Nice jake!

By the pics, the spurs appear to be 3/16" - spurs on an average jake are typically under 1/2 inch.

For the beard...
You should pull/stretch the beard straight. It's probably going to reach 4+" when you straighten that wave...

S&R

Yep spurs look to be 3/16" to me. Like Strut said stretch the beard out straight while getting the measurement. You may be able to squeak out an extra 1/2" by the looks of it.


For weight a typical fish scale works good. I have a dial type fish scale with a measuring tape on it. I'm looking at getting a digital though so I can be more precise.


Great bird! Any turkey is a good bird. How I normally call is I locate them with a owl hoot when they are on the roost or once they fly down I will use a crow call. If no answer with the crow call I will try a loud box call with yelps. Once I get them coming abandon the box and use the mouth call (diaphragm) with some yelping. If they gobble I will cut them off with some cutting and finish off with a yelp.


I am still learning but this has worked well for me. Take in mind though I have only taken a few first thing in the morning. I have most of my luck after 9 am and before 2pm although I did take 2 this year at 5:30pm by calling in the hen that the Toms were courting. If ya get a hen to start calling try mimicking her. This will piss her off and she will almost hop in your lap looking for the hooker that I trying to steal her man lol.

When ya get the final score you are happy with either you post it on the score thread or I can post if for ya. What ever ya like. Congrats again

I'll post it over in the score thread, save you the time! I know being captain can be allot to keep up with. Thanks for the help everyone updated the score and posted to the score thread.
-Jake

Welp fellas we are hanging in there. Just a 20 points or so behind team 1. Looks like it could come down to the wire. That's why I have always liked this contest lol. Gives me a reason to keep on holding on the season even though the hunting is over for me till fall. Keep up the good work

Congrats Bocajnala
 

Sounded like an awesome hunt, any bird you call in yourself is a trophy. I learned the hard way to get the gun ready for a followup shot. Sometimes they get up and start running and if you left your gun at your hide you can lose the bird. I got lucky and managed to find him about 75 yards inside the treeline. Got him with a followup shot. And I've heard horror stories about guys picking up a longbeard by the legs while they are still flopping, those spurs will rip your hand wide open. I just stand on their neck until the hackles go down. Another Tom rejected, and another morning of sanity and serenity in God's house.

Nice, Bocajnala! I still haven't had anything but birds out of range, and afraid of even leaf scratching and purrs...I'll have a few more hunts next week here in TN, then I'm out unless one of you teammates from another state wants me to come visit! HA!

Nice work, everyone.

I would say come on but our last day is tomorrow.

I still got 3 Wisconsin hunts May 10-30. I expect to raise my 52 score but I don't know about 20 points! Could definitely use some help. Keep hunting hard.

I hear ya Zim. Team 1 has at least 1 person that has taken 3 birds but they haven't posted it so we may need way more than 20 lol. Probably need 2 guys that haven't gotten one yet to get lucky. Either way considering how the contests have been going this has been a great team to be apart of.

I'll be out again in Ohio tuesday and Wednesday. And in PA next tuesday and Wednesday.
-Jake

Good luck everyone. How many of our team mates aren't really participating?

Im still here!! Got my bird earlier, so my season is over, but I still check in a few times a day to see how everyone is doing. Good Luck to everyone still hunting! How many team members are left to get a bird??

My season opened May 1. I made it out Wed and today, called in gobblers both days but too far or no shot. Played with 4 different gobblers today and called in 6 jakes. Hunting MI all month, and maybe NY the last week of May. Headed out tomorrow or Sunday for round 3.

The 5.3 engine in my '02 Avalanche seized 2 weeks ago, been a little busy but will hopefully take a bird soon.

2 out of 3 ain't bad
 

My season is over, tried hard to fill my 3rd tag but no joy, keep knocking them down and I'll check often to see how my fellow Rejects are doing.
Dan

Ok hoping to get one this week. I have parts of tuesday, wednesday, thursday and friday morings this week as long as I don't catch a double at work. I'll be in PA tuesday and wednesday next week for two morning hunts.
-Jake

Pretty sure the only one not checked in is clemsonturkey. I pmed him a few times but he hasn't been on here since Feb. I think the only team mate that has checked in but haven't heard anything for a few weeks from is firelt72. He's prob just been busy chasing those birds ;).


Over all we have had great participation. If a couple folks that have been unlucky can turn it around with a 50pt bird each we may squeak it out lol. No worries though. This has been fun.

I'm going tomorrow and a few more times this week if needed. I had at least 2 hot gobblers coming in yesterday morning when 2 does walking in the opposite direction slipped between me and them. The dominant doe never scented me but saw me and knew something was out of sort - she snorted repeatedly and my day was done. I gave the woods a rest today and will set up in a slightly different area tomorrow.

We're only ~30 pts out of the lead. I'm quite sure there's only a few of us on the entire board hunting the month of May, so the contest will probably come down to the last few days...

S&R

I finally broke down and spent some money on a a new hunting toy. Ordered a mirror finish Ghost Blind. Will arrive from Amazon before my first of three WI hunts open. Very curious about it. I've wanted to hunt a couple particular spots where the cover is in favor of the wary toms. That should change now.

Let us know how ya like it. I've been pondering one of those for a while now. Just haven't pulled the trigger on one.

Right 26 pts behind with the scores right now but Team 1 has 1 person that has killed birds but not posted them. So I'm just taking a guess but I think we would need 90 pts or there abouts. 2 decent birds from folks that haven't checked a bird would about seal it I think. Either way its been a great year

Had a tom at 45 yards this morning - too thick for a shot. He was coming in a on string - until Ms. Doe started stomping and snorting about 5 yds behind my tree.

At this rate I may need to break out my Scent-Lok for turkey season - unreal...

S&R

I was out most of the day yesterday, and was on a few different birds, but never got one close. Between a bobcat coming into the field one was in, to deer blowing off (right, S&R?), to just plain stubborn, call-shy birds that seem to run from even purring and scratching, it has been tough, especially lately.

I will stay after it, and have a few hunts left, good Lord willing. I'll keep you posted.

Ya this came about after several years of observations of turkey travel patterns in three particular setup spots of mine. One is a 40 yard wide narrow field where I keep getting evaded just out of range, but with this I should be able to push the envelope, setup at the far tip of tree cover into that strip for a 30 yard shot. Another spot is a heavily used dusting area the Tom's look over real close before exposing themselves. Plus one other spot between Christmas tree sized fir trees they've spotted my blind and exited. I'll have time to try all three these spots and more, and am eager to compare bird Reactions at each of these.

Those look like cool blinds, the advertisements I've watched look like they work really well.
-Jake

Got it done in Indiana on Monday! 19Lb 6.4oz 1" spur left and 1 1/16th" right 8" beard.
NWTF 56 score.

Sweet - Nice bird!

I'm headed out in the morning, still have 20 days to bag a gobbler in MI and NY...

And....the Rejects are in the lead!

That's what I'm talkin about! :rock:


Was just in your hood yesterday. Had work in Edinburgh then up to Frankfort. But today in Mokena then pit stop at home where I'll pick up the Ghost Blind and head to my Wisconsin public spot. Hot weather on the way.

Good job firelt72.

Season has been one of the most difficult I have ever had. We have had so much rain. Like Ark building type. Just glad I was blessed Tuesday. Also glad it put us up on top for the time being.

Called in 2 hens today - one got to 5 yards and I think she saw me blink. She startled and took a short flight, but no putts. She threw out a few clucks and the 2 stayed in the area for a while, then slowly wandered over a ridge. I waited an hour and when I got up I heard distinctive clucking from the other side of the ridge, I think I may have spooked a quiet tom working his way in. Regardless, no putts so the birds weren't spooked...

Starting to really warm up here and the birds are going into full-time silent strut as the hens finalize their nests. I may hunt tomorrow morning (woods are beautiful right now) and if I don't connect I may take a week off while the hens finish laying...

Appears our lead was short-lived...

Arrowmaster dropped a few birds for Team 1 and will post pics and scores soon. After he posts we'll be alone in 2nd place. Swamp_Slayer also bagged birds for Team 1 but never posted pics or official scores. If SS doesn't post anything then 1 more tom will put us in the lead - if SS posts his pics, one of us needs to bag a monster or we'll need 2 more mature birds...

My season is done. We are 1 and done here. hmmm Yes Arrow got a MO and NE bird on his recent trips.

No luck in ohio this week. I'll be hunting PA tue and wed morning next week.
-Jake

congrats firelt72
 

Nice bird, how many tags do you have left?

springspur none we are a 1 and done state. I'd love to go elsewhere too, but can't with son graduating this week.

Congrats on the bird firelt72! I posted it to the score thread.

Think if you can pull one off scoring 50 pts we should be good. We are up by 17.44 pts but like I've been saying team 1 has 3 birds not posted yet by SS.

I had a red head in the red dot this morning at ~40 yards but froze on the trigger - something didn't feel right. He came in hot but literally was running past me to the field where they strut. He gave me one short-lived opportunity for a head shot, but his neck was below my line of site and literally all I could see was the top of his head.

Of course he popped up in about the only spot I didn't anticipate when I setup in the dark. It was also stupid early (~6:10 or 10 min before sunrise here) - based on the past week, he pitched down about 15 min early and must have ran to my setup. Honestly, it was still dark enough in the woods that I just couldn't tell if there were any saplings/twigs between us so I laid off hoping he would stick around or move closer in my direction.

Glad I waited - 30 min later I could see 3-4 saplings between me and him, I'm convinced the pattern would've been too scattered to drop him cleanly (if at all). On opening day in CT, about 15 years ago, I lined up on a nice tom and proceeded to harvest a beautiful 1 inch Oak sapling - I never touched the tom and he ran off gobbling at the shotgun blast. I still have that stick (with the shot in it) in the bottom of one of my totes as a reminder to myself :poke:

I waited an hour then looped around to the edge of the neighbor's field. Counted 4 strutters and only 3 hens - I had them gobbling and the hens were getting pissy, but they eventually went off on their normal travel route to the other side of the field.

All of those strutters will score 50+, and there's at least one obvious 3-4 yr old in that mix that will score in the 60's or higher. I'm the only one hunting these properties and therefore I'd like to better last year's bird from this same property, which I dropped around May 25 and scored in the low 60's.

The Team 1 score also doesn't reflect Arrowmaster's birds yet - once they post his best bird, we'll be behind by ~40 pts.

Thus, if I bag a good bird then we'll take the lead, or if both me and Boca connect on toms then we'll be close even if SS posts his best bird. SS is active duty, so I'm not sure pics and/or scores will ever get posted (unfortunate) by the close of the contest.

I believe me and Boca are the only 2 members of our team still hunting - is this correct?