alot of you guys been tryin to help me bag a particular bird.....so ill keep yall updated every day i hunt....if i do bag him youll get pics...till now....this mornings story goes like this.......tuesday i think it was i hunted across the gulley from where he and his hens roosts....he snuck by me once again....so this morning i set up farther left..100yds or so...he flys down and tends to walk down and through the area i was in...his hens hit the ground inbetween there and where i was last time...so i figured it would be a good spot....got there aound 505am.....sat down and waited.....the wind kinda picked up....then day broke....it was crazyness let me tell you....i bet i had near 10 gobblers gobbling at daybreak.....couldnt even pick out my bird...he has a distinct gobble....but there were so many all around me i couldnt tell.....just hoped hed do what he always does....well....i waited till they all hit the ground to call....i saw 2 birds fly out of his tree...think they were the hens....i called and they all shut up...uht oh....then a few mins later i called again...and a crow called after me....and they all went nuts...and closer.....i worked them a little...more silence then calls....had them all gobbling and going nuts.....2 behind me far away....probably 250-300yds away across a field....4 or 5 infront of me and a couple to my right.....the few infront and to the right were coming quick....going nuts....my heart was pounding....i couple i could pick out jake gobbles......the rest i couldnt tell....maybe 20 mins later they all calm down....gobbling still but not so hard....a few jakes and another bird gobbling infront of me and to the right....2 were particularly close....maybe 100yds tops....one right one infront of me..(i was facing his roost)....the one to the right came to the trees that bird usually roosts in...and hung up...i could hear him breaking sticks....gobbling....and walking around maybe 60-75yds infront of me...ontop of a hill and across a creek...im in the bottom....i wait and wait...then they ALL go nuts ....gobbling like ive never heard........then the woods went silent.....5 mins later i let out a few purrs and GOBBBBBBBLEOBBLE OBLE right infront of me...long gobble...he came back....5 mins later after 10 more gobbles and hearing footsteps i seen him......50-60yds ontop of that ridge...strutting like the king of the world.....MY boss tom ive been hunting....BIG ole bird....only thing i can think of is he went and kicked the crap outa the jakes because they were closing the distance....then came back to me.....got him to gobble maybe 10 more times....and he worked the ridge away from me....i wait till hes way out of sight....and found a cow path that goes through THICK bushes....crawled 100yds to my right and tried to fire him up but he was already gone.....its a dirt path and i didnt make a hint of noise....and was well below the bushes...he didnt see me...he just kept walkin.....it was another great morning.....but no bird.....hes killing me.....season doesnt end till...may 28th i believe......im hunting him tomarow...maybe a few days next week....that saturday and most of the next week i got plus saturday..........we shall see how it goes......my buddy said he might not hunt tomarow so he might beable to let me borrow a hen and jake decoy....that would be nice.....that should send him running.....looks like that birds hens have nests....and they ignore him and fly right to the nests.....normally they are with him all morning...now hes alone and gobbling hard.....i left early this morning because i didnt wanna spook him walking around.....figured it would be best to slip outa there and come back in the morning......tomarows up in the air.....ill probably try the same spot....maybe ill cross the TINY creek so he doesnt have to.....think thats what hung him up....and the fact he could see straight down to me and saw no hen........man i need to buy decoys......im sure the stores are still out.....turkey season they never have turkey hunting gear!!!!!! thanx alot guys.....any tips for me for tomarow???? ill probably hunt him all day tomarow depending on the weather.....ill just sit tight.....but i htink it may rain or storm.............

Yeah gettin on the other side of the creek is a great idea. Sometimes they will hang up at the smallest of things. I would setup real close to the roost and make sure there is nothing between you and the roost so he cant hang up because of the territory. You might consider using a gobble call. If he is the boss tom there is a good chance he'll come to check out another gobbler. Plus, in the later seasons like now especially, I've found that using a gobble call and doing tom cluck and stuff can be very effective as some of the toms will group back up a little bit. Hope this info helps. Man you are making me wanna go hunting. I keep picturing me hunting that bird or one like him. Sounds like you are having a blast. And like you said before, sooner or later he'll slip up so make sure you hunting him every minute you have a chance. One other piece of advice, you might try staying out till 9 or 10 am if you can. Alot of times birds will return to those strutting zones then, especially if the hens are off roosting. They will come back looking for the hen they heard earlier in the day (in this case that hen is you). Good luck and keep us posted everytime you hunt him! Oh yeah, he's still out there in the rain.

this is one of the most exciting seasons for me.....and i havent even fired my gun.....every day i hunt him its a blast....i get him in so close......sometimes i cant see him...all he gota do is walk another few feet.....sometimes he hangs up........i know staying longer would be a good bet......i just dont know where he heads after 7am..i know he may come back........but usually when i try to sit there i get busted when they slip back in silently....ive done it before......tomarow rain or shine ill be out there..i cant wait......id like to slip in right under his tree....but he got THE perfect roost sight.....big oaks...taller then the rest of the trees......he can see the bottom clearly.....the top clearly......and all around him.......seems he flys down to the left or back side of the tree....but today i think he came from the right....i really dont know where he came from today......so many birds were gobbling i couldnt tell.......i can gobble with a mouth call.....i just might try that if all else fails.......im rather sure hes THE BOSS.....he acts like it.....and when he gobbles all the other birds shut down....them jakes.......i never heard a peep from them all year.....they were probably just looking for territory and roosted there and they got a thumping today......i wish i coulda seen it......i heard it......gobbling like MAD.....that 30 second or 1 minute i bet they gobbled 20 times.....and i could hear flapping.....i had a dream i shot him last night with bloody spurs too! lol.........ill keep tryin.....if i dont get him......oh well.....im having a blast......theres so many other hot birds i know it wouldnt be hard to go off n whack one.........but why tag out when i can have fun chasing him?? even the last week or last few days i dont think ill let up on him to try to fill my tag.........the beard looks impressive.........cant tell HOW long...but its thick and an easy 8incher.....i wont be surprised if its 10+.......and he acts like the king....he should have some hooks on him.........cant wait for the morning!

Any updates?

sorry...long weekend......friday evening and night turned out to be a pretty bad thunderstorm.....saturday morning i showed up.......set out the decoy i borrowed from my buddys cousin.....one hen.....all i need i think.....heard some birds gobbling around me but not mine i dont think......6am.....light....waiting for them to hit the ground and it got REALLY windy....and POURING rain HARD.....couldnt hear a thing.....the only birds i heard shut up.......and my birds never flew from the tree they are usually in.......i waited till 630....nothing....then i heard someone shoot on the gasline......told my buddy to hunt there and id meet him at the trucks later in the day.......and figured it was him.....i was soaked.....calls were soaked......birds werent there......so i went to see what my buddy or one of our other friends killed.......he was supposta be there or his regular spot....walking out through the pasture i looked to his regular spot..and what do i see?? a BIG ole longbeard walking RIGHT to his tree!!!! later found out that he wasnt there.....and i dont know who shot....never saw another hunter.......i wasnt feeling hunting after that....soaked.....pouring rain.....windy......cant hear a thing...calls would been useless.....working 2 jobs PLUS school till 1130am everyday.........i was just burnt out......430am comes early.......so i packed it in and slept till 1230 lol........just didnt feel like sitting there........tomarow....i plan to get back on him before school......with the decoy.....hope hes there...and hope hes talkin and ready to meet me...........i htink friday night he got caught in the storm and flew into the nearest tree for the night.........i honestly dont think him or his hens were there saturday.....they would hit the ground before the bad weather came out of nowhere that morning......

good Luck Mauser...Im waiting for you to get him!

Keep at it. It will happen.

this AM he and his hens were nowhere to be found..........heard 3-5 birds goin nuts off the roost farther behind his roost.....hit the ground...shut up.....so i started calling........nothing......15 mins later....a gobble closer to me........across the creek to my left....gave him one last call.........nothing............never showed..............