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whats your memorible hunt

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whats your memorible hunt

Old 02-09-2005, 08:02 AM
  #11  
Nontypical Buck
 
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Default RE: whats your memorible hunt

Once again great story Pat!!!Watching my kids as well as others that I guide make for thrilling memorable hunts for me!
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Old 02-09-2005, 08:55 AM
  #12  
Fork Horn
 
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I have two that are a tie in my mind. The first was the first turkey I shot (not the first hunt). In that one when he showed up in full strut after blowing my ears off with a gobble at 50 yards (when I didn't think he was that close and I was standing up instead of sitting down) I though he would hear my heart beating and I couldn't catch my breath.

The second was with my middle son (age 11) last year on the last day of the season. He had been out with me in previous years and earlier that year without seeing a turkey (although we had heard a few). After working a bird all morning but not getting him to come to us I put down my gun and left my son with a friend while I went to see if I could circle the birds and find out what was keeping them away (it was very heavily wooded and we could hear them but not see them). When I got back the three of us were standing and talking about what to do next. At that point my son announced that he had yet to see a turkey and he didn't believe that you could really get them to come to calls. No sooner had he finished speaking when his eyes got huge and he started to shake. He pointed behing me and there, not 20 feet away, was a jake that had walked right in while we were talking. I told my son to slowly pick up he gun and he informed me that he couldn't because it was leaning against the tree where the turkey was standing. Needless to stay will still have fun talking about the first rule of hunting ("always keep your gun with you").
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Old 02-09-2005, 10:37 AM
  #13  
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Default RE: whats your memorible hunt

Pat, that is a very touching story...I too have lost a child at birth that had gone full term. Thanks for sharing.

Here is one of my many turkey memories....

I stumble through the darkness stopping periodically to sound off the locator calls in my pouch with the hopes of getting some idea of where my prized targets might be. The first few attempts proved futile. As I made my way around a huge wash out next to a creek, finally a crow call gave away the general location of the roosted toms. They were perched among some timber in a deep ravine that acted as a border for a bean field on one side and a cornfield on the other.

There was no way to traverse the bean field without bumping the birds so my plan was to sneak up the backside of a grassy hill opposite the deep ravine. From there I hoped to make my way down the slope to a wild plum thicket that offered valuable cover in my effort to pull off this deadly ruse. I was worried about spooking the birds when I set up my decoys in the bean field because by the time I made the half-mile hike to my chosen spot Mother Nature was beginning to shed her cloak of darkness in favor of brighter attire. From the babble coming from the trees several hundred yards across the open expanse it became evident I didn’t drive the birds off the roost so I began calling to let them know there was some action taking place in the bean field. Apparently I do not speak the Tom Turkey dialect very well because to my dismay at least three gobblers elected to fly down to the cornfield on the far side of the ravine. I kept calling to them and eventually I could see them strutting on the far hillside. It became painfully obvious they were already in the company of the feathered female kind.

To my left and rear I hear something in the grass. At the first glimpse of movement I thought it was a couple of pheasants that had been crowing behind me but to my surprise the pheasants turned into turkey hens (personal reminder: get eyes checked!). Perhaps they had a silent suitor with them. I lay flat and rolled over on my belly and tried to position myself for a shot in case a tom was with them. They saw the decoys and got nervous but seemed to get calmer when I responded to their chatter. They milled around for about 10 minutes, at times only about 12 feet from me and then silently vanished over the hill.

I sat back up and called some more to the gobblers across the valley. I could see one harassing some hens but figured there was no way for me to get a gobbler to my setup because I had already been calling from this location for more than an hour. As I contemplated packing things up, I see a blob of black and red step out of the weedy ravine about 200 yards away…I fumble for my striker…

Driven by an urge greater than he can control the unsuspecting tom sprints in my direction! About half way to the decoys he stops to strut and profile…I call softly to him again… He can only fight the compelling force burning inside him momentarily as he terminates his strut and breaks into a sprint one more time. As he rushes to claim his prize the light reflects the iridescence on his breast in a dazzling display of color. His baldhead and neck, a beautiful combination of patriotic red, white, and blue, is arched forward in saber like fashion as he makes his charge up the hill. His 11 inch beard sloshes from side to side further accenting the magnificent creation that he is. Again he stops to display his splendid profile, snood, dewlap, and carnucles, ripping with crimson, in a royal strut.
He is within range now but I don’t even have my gun up, the show is too good. I am held captive by what I see. Once again nature has lured me into her magic circle with shock and awe of the most spectacular kind. She has intoxicated me with the moving picture I am beholding in front of me and my judgment has been impaired. I almost feel sorry for this guy…almost. I know unless something goes exceptionally wrong this majestic tom is about to kick his oxygen habit.

Suddenly he identifies the jake decoy as an intruder, a trespasser with no rights in his domain and begins to spit and hiss. As if I have lost control of all my faculties I hear my gaping mouth whisper the words, “totally awesome!” But alas if I am to complete this deceptive ploy it is time to act for he is dreadfully close.

As he is about to render malice to my decoy I carefully raise my gun and take aim. A cluck from my diaphragm call causes the duped bird to make a momentary pause and raise his head. The Benelli “barks” with a thunderous clap. Amplified by the valley walls the shot rudely ends the morning calm and the antics of my feathered star. The tom is pushed one direction, and I another as final judgment is anticlimactically meted out in the form of 1¾ ounces of number five shot at very close range. It occurs to me that I felt more than he did.

As the last echo of the blast ripples across the valley, and the final feather falls softly back to earth, I drink in the experience of the morning and feel both exhilarated and humbled. Yes, it’s going to be another great day.

Vital Statistics:

Weight:……25 lbs. 4 ozs.
Beard………11 inches
Left Spur…..1 1/8 inches
Right Spur…1 5/16 inches
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Old 02-09-2005, 10:41 AM
  #14  
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Default RE: whats your memorible hunt

A couple years back, I took a chance and opted to hunt the local "big woods" instead of my lowlands honey holes. After an entire day on the go, I hadn't even heard a gobble. I kept going deeper and deeper into the game lands (about 1.5 mi.), calling with no response.

So I sat up atop a huge boulder, which was very special to me - It was where my great grandfather used to stand while running his coon hounds. I finally heard one answer, and man was he far away.

I closed the distance and he was coming, and fast. The acoustics of the hollows made him sound farther away than he really was. So, I'm stuck in the open with nowhere to hide. So, I pulled out my jake decoy, and stuck it in the ground, and crawled to about 10 yards away.

So here he comes, with six hens, strutting and gobbling up a storm. I did a couple soft purrs and tucked the call inside my cheek. Man, those hens walked right past me, at less than 5 yards. I could hear them all purring and the gobbler's drum. I couldn't move a muscle, as I was laying in the middle of the open woods, so I had to wait for him to walk into the line of fire. He finally did, and I took him at 10 yards. He had about a 9" beard, 1" spurs, and about 18#.

Definitely not my biggest bird, but one of my favorite hunts, for sure.

I was hunting with another guy, who never even heard me shoot - he was pretty far out of radio-range, as well, so I couldn't even tell him I got one. I met him back at the parking area, and he thought I was lying about killing a bird, till he saw it.
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Old 02-09-2005, 12:11 PM
  #15  
 
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To make a long story short, I was leaving from a hunt about 9:30am because I was late for work. I stopped one more time to yelp 7 after I did I heard one sound off 100yds from me. I set up & 5 min later 2 longbeards came in. I let them show off for a few min. then I took the dominate bird @ 20 yrds. After I shot the other bird jumped about 12 feet in the air then stopped. I started cutten and yelping & he turned around and started stomping on the bird I had just shot. I was amazed. After about 2-3 min of beating the other dead bird up, he stayed within 15 yrds of me and gobbled every single breath he had for 10-15min. I finally got up & waved my arms and he flew off. I went & picked up my bird & as I was walking out of the woods I heard the other one fire back up, but I left him. It was the most awesome hunt I have ever been on. To bad I didnt have my camcorder.
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Old 02-09-2005, 04:23 PM
  #16  
Fork Horn
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Default RE: whats your memorible hunt

bird or no bird,i could read these stories all night.some with sadness and some not.thanx for sharing guys,it humbles me to read some of them.if you are like me we have all have setbacks in our lives and being outdoors keeps me grounded.sometimes i choose to go alone and i observe nature and reflect on the past and present,sometimes i think about nothing at all.god bless to all of you.
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Old 02-09-2005, 06:00 PM
  #17  
 
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I really don't have one that stands out alone. There all in my memory banks for as long as I can still remember them!!!!
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Old 02-09-2005, 09:22 PM
  #18  
BT
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Default RE: whats your memorible hunt

Will i would say like most people my first bird was very important.
I have not been bird hunting long and dont have that many birds so all of them are memorible.

But the most specal would have to be the last day "hunt" of last years spring seasion.

I did not evan carry a gun.
I had limeted out in Fl.

But on that last day my doughter "5" in from shcool caming running in and saying daddy i just say a turkey in the back fild. Can we please go hunting.

I told her i had limetde out. But we would try to call him in any way.

She had been pratcing with some of my calls and she is geting good. she can evan yelp with her voice some what.

we set up in the front hay fild about 400 or so yards from him. i let her do most of the calling.

he came in strate up the fild.
he got with in 50 yds of us.
then my wifes cat ran across the yard a scard him off.

But the sher injoyment of that bird coming in to my doughters call was amasing to me.

She therily injoys it.
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Old 02-10-2005, 03:51 PM
  #19  
 
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Sorry for putting 3 but they all are great to me..

Here are three accounts.. In ohio I went out to some public land and ran into some guys walking the road from hunting.. They told me they just saw a bird go up over a hill.. So I decide to try it out in the morning.. I get out there and get to this rock wall by some hills and boom I heard 5 or 6 turkeys gobbling like crazy.. so I head up this hill... had a hen fly up in front of my 2 yards away.. scared the &^%% outta me.. lmao.. Instead of setting up like I should have... lol I stalked to the sounds.. and well they stopped and I got lost lmao... 5 hours later I come out on some guys farm and he gives me a ride back to my truck....lol... But it was awesome to hear all that gobbling..

Next day I went to a farm a guy from the town said I could hunt.. It was windy as heck and it didn't see anything.. but in I got a turkey to gobble back to my call twice... I was happy as heck...

A special hunt to me was a buddy of mine that owned the local archery shop offered to take me hunting.. First time ever anyone has done this.. It was great.. we get out to this corn field up on a hill from a river.. well first thing he dropped me off to hunt the field it was dark and I didn't see a cable across the field road.. down I went... He ragged on me all day about that...lmao.. he went on down to hunt a ridge back in the woods about 700 yards away. I got setup in the field.. heard some gobbling close.. all i called out was a hen.. we both didn't get anything but Him just offering and taking me made it special to me...


Erik
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Old 02-10-2005, 06:38 PM
  #20  
VP
 
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Default RE: whats your memorible hunt

Pat, Thanks again for sharing your story agian, I've read it many times over the last couple of years and it still has the same effect on my wife and I.


I'm almost 36 yrs old and been turkey hunting since I was old enough to keep up with my dad in the woods and Up until last season all of my most memorable hunts have been with my him. This past season was my oldest sons first year turkey hunting with a gun (12yrs old).We made several hunts here in our home state of La but he was not able to connect with his first bird. I planned, prepared and hunted harder then I ever have to get one within 30yds but was unsuccessful.
We planned our annual tirp to Taxas and it turned out that he would be out of school that week so we packed up and headed out.
Our first morning was nothing out of the ordinary for Texas turkey hunting, we must have had 30 birds fire up at the first sign of daylight- There was nothing better then to see that kids face light up like he had just seen his first magic trick. We worked several birds that morning but they were just to henned up.We moved to a different area that afternoon and worked two Longbeards with 4-5 hens within 35 yds- the hens bcame a little spooky and started to move off so I told Travis to take the shot, he did and shot clean over the ole Toms head- Never touched a feather- He was so disgusted, I thought he was going to cry- I felt like it myself but wasnt going to show him - The next morning started out the same, birds gobbling their heads off and we lucked up and got a HERD of Jakes all fired up and coming in. He didnt really want to shoot a Jake but these birds were within 15 yds spittin, drummin and gobblin like a bunch of fools- I told him he better take advantage of it and take one so he shot and folded one and I shot another. So his first bird was also a double with his ole man.
I expect he and I will have many more hunts to cherish just as I do with my Dad.

Those are the kind of things you truely live for !
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