Day 1) It was windy and cold. I didn't see or hear any turkeys. It was great just to get back out in the woods!
Day 2) A beautiful day! Had a gobbler answer my call for the first time ever! Very cool feeling. I saw 5 turkeys and at one point had 3 different gobblers answering me but I couldn't close the deal!
Day 3) One word "WET!" No gobbles at all. 3 hens did wander by during a break in the rain.
Day 4) Had a gobbler gobbling early but another hunter walked through my set up and that was the last I heard him! Gotta love hunting public grounds!

Well , the week ended without a turkey kill but it ended with a good story.
Day 5) My buddy and I set up about 100 yards apart between a steep mountain and some houses where the turkeys have been cutting through just about every morning. At 5:37 I heard the first gobble. I heard 3 more gobbles until about 5:45 then nothing. Then at about 6:45 I finally hear another gobble but it's pretty far away. As I am listening for more gobbles I suddenly hear a mans voice and then what sounded like to me a tree falling! The comotion was coming from my buddies area so I really started listening hard....We are set up about 200-250 yards from some houses so in my minds eye I'm picturing someone yelling at my buddy for hunting there and I have no idea what the tree falling sound was. I can hear something moving through the woods just on the other side of the hill I'm hunting. All the sudden my phone (which is clipped to my vest just under my neck) starts vibrating and scares the living crap out of me! I answer it and it's my buddy who is babbling about a bear heading my way and something about a vanishing turkey! He's talking so fast I can barely understand him but I did catch the word BEAR! Suddenly the noises I heard made sense.... I took out my camera but the bruin stayed just below the hill top and I never did get to see him.
The bear walked within 15 yards of my buddy and he decided that was close enough so he stood up and yelled at him. The bear turned and bolted through the woods. It was loud! He said he couldn't believe how fast they can run!
Every time I think about what happened that morning I get a huge smile on my face. To hear my buddies voice all excited and to see the glow on his face while telling me what had happened was just awesome! Thats what hunting is all about to me. It's not about the kill as much as it is about the experiences you have and share along the way. It was an awesome day and an awesome week of hunting! If you have never tried turkey hunting I strongly recommend you give it a shot! It is a blast!

Neat story.

Hunting really is more about the journey than the destination, no doubt. To bad you were not able to connect, but hey, sometimes you just have to grin and "bear" it, if you know what I mean.

Congrats!

The week was so much fun I'm going to buy 2 more permits for next week and the week after! I am hooked for sure![8D]

sounds like an eventful time.......[8D]

Well JerseyJim im glad u actually got to go out for the first time. Even thou u didnt connect with anything u still had a positve attitude towards the hunt and that will always lead to good things. Glad u had fun and remember keep it safe.

Louis

That is a cool story and IMO those kind of moments are a major part of what makes hunting what it is.

Sounds like an awesome time. Too bad you didn't get one but keep it up and it'll happen for ya!

Thanks for the encouraging words! I hope that from what I've been learning on this and a couple other sites plus what I learned in the woods last week I can put together a plan and a hunt that produces a bird next week! I can't wait to get back out there!