Team Turkey Takers (#21)

[borch]

Here you go.

[elnor]

Checking in. I'll be hunting on family land in various places in eastern Oklahoma, also possibly a trip to western OK if I punch my first two tags early (three bird state limit, but two bird limit in southeastern OK where I do most of my hunting).

How about everybody else?

[elnor]

Don't have any ideas for team name yet...I'll have to think about that a bit. How about you?

[Missed160]

I'm here, really looking forward to turkey season!!

I can start hunting April 15.. Been seeing lots of birds!!

[elnor]

Concerning team name, I'm not sure if this is taken or might have been used in previous years(?), but how about:

Team Turkey Takers

I know, I know, kinda obvious. But we could have a cool T3 logo with a "Terminator" bearing down on an ole tom. Which brings me to my other three name ideas:

Team Turkey Terminators
Team Tom Terminators
Team Tominators

Thoughts?

PS My season starts here in OK on April 6th. Counting the days...

[elnor]

Any other team name ideas, TuffnufArchery or Missed160? Or should we pick "Team Turkey Takers" and run with it?

[rutnroy]

hello team mates, rutnroy here. i'll be hunting in wis. apr.26 -30. we only get 5 days per period. i'm hoping to get an extra tag for in may. as far as team name, tominators was catchy. but i'm ok with what the rest chooses.

[elnor]

Since there's an RT site member/user with the nick "Tominator", I 'spose we should avoid that for clarity.

Soooo, I think I'll vote for "Team Tom Takers". Second?

[Missed160]

Team Tom Takers is fine by me..

[rutnroy]

sounds good to me also.

[rutnroy]

send away , just in case someone else plans on using the same name.

[elnor]

Yes, please send it. Thanks.

Now the hard part...getting some nice birds! Our season opens one month from yesterday, can't wait...

[Missed160]

How about a little bit of background, to pass the time till the season comes..

Where are you hunting?
How many birds have you taken?
What will you be hunting with?

[rutnroy]

i quess i could start. i will be hunting waupaca county ,wis. beginning april 26-30. with the hope of getting an extra tag for may. i took vac. days so i can spend as much time as i can hunting. i have taken 7 long beards in the last 8 yrs. with last year being a yr i didn't get one. time to redeem myself. i would like to get a bird with my new hoyt trykon xl bow , but will have my knight tk2000 muzzleloader ready.

[elnor]

I'm hunting Easterns in SE OK (Pittsburg Co.) starting opening day, April 6th. This land is in the 8 SE county block that has a combined limit of two birds. If/when my father and I get a couple of gobblers apiece down there, we'll shift to some family land in NE OK (Creek Co.) and/or head out to western OK public land (Black Kettle Grassland and surrounding WMAs) and try to fill our final OK tags with Rios.

I hunted turkeys with a Remington Premier 11-87 28in as a youth and took a decent jake many years ago, but I'd been away from turkey hunting for about ten years until I had several really up close encounters with fall flocks during muzzleloader deer season last October (see first picture below, taken with a little ole Canon Elph 3x pocket cam to give you an idea how close they walked up on me!). Those re-lit the fire!

http://www.realtree.com/img/508/medium/day564_20051029_1734.JPG

This spring I'm better prepared in just about every way (knowledge of the birds and land, calling practice, well patterned Rem 11-87 with camo stock & sling, TruGlo sights, HS Undertaker H.S. choke, and Win XtRange shells) than I ever was as a youth. There's a ton of sign on our land and I've been hearing and seeing very nice winter flocks by SE OK standards (50-100 birds a month ago, breaking up now for spring; see second photo for fleeting glimpses in early February).

http://www.realtree.com/img/508/day663_20060205_3720.JPG

Come on April!!!

[elnor]

I'm not an artist, but if you had images you wanted included I might be able to put them together and produce something simple.

Can you post a link to someone else's which is similar to what you'd like?

[Missed160]

When will everyone begin hunting?

I drew Minnesota's earliest season, so I get to start 2 weeks from tomorrow, Apr 12.

CAN'T WAIT!!!!!!!

[elnor]

April 6th. Nine more days!

[rutnroy]

i'll be going april 26-30, then i have a extra tag for mid may.

[elnor]

How's the season going for those who've started hunting? Anybody got a bird yet?

I'm leaving tomorrow for hunting camp. Season opens Thursday morning. Not sure how much I'll sleep tonight or tomorrow night!

Best of luck to everyone hunting or hitting the woods to start hunting soon

[Missed160]

Well Elnor, any luck? Seems like you are the first in the woods, so you are setting the pace for the whole team!!! Lots of pressure.

I get to start next wednesday..
Could wait any longer, had to dig out the camo & get the gear ready last night!!

5 days!!!!

[elnor]

I did get a decent bird for our team on April 8th, Missed160. Stats:
* 19 pounds
* 8 1/4 inch beard
* 7/8 inch left spur
* 13/16 inch right spur
---------------------------
** NWTF score: 52.375

I'll post photos, contest form, and the story of the hunt asap.

Sorry to hear you had no luck in AL, Tuffnuf. Hope KY is fantastic hunting!

Good luck to everybody and let's bring home some big ones!

[elnor]

I've posted the details: My contest entry is here (http://www.realtree.com/forums/showflat.php?Cat=0&Number=934248&Main=901012#Post9 34248), and you can read the full story of the hunt and see additional pictures here (http://www.realtree.com/forums/showflat.php?Cat=0&Number=934250&an=0&page=0#93425 0).

The bird and I

http://www.realtree.com/img/508/elnor_20060408_6003_StrutterInWoods.jpg

[elnor]

Missed160, let me know if you need to email me your pictures, entry form, and story to get your bird on the official contest thread.

How's the season going for everyone else?

[elnor]

I guess everybody's so busy hunting that they haven't checked in.

I've been sidelined by a bad cold this week but hope to be back in the woods soon. Hope you're all seeing birds and that we'll have more entries for our team soon!

[elnor]

I've been down this week with a sinus infection but am planning to hunt tomorrow and/or Monday after my meds kick in. Allergens have been terrible around here this spring. Hope everyone else is feeling well and getting time in the woods.

[rutnroy]

well i'm headng out for my season tommorow. wish me luck in trying to help the team. congrats to those who got a bird so far.

[elnor]

Great luck to you, rutnroy! Hope you're in the birds today!

I managed to get a couple of day's hunting in over the weekend. I dueled with a massive old longbeard (nicknamed him "VW" 'cause he looked as big as a VW Bug parading around out in the field) but never could get him away from his three hens. Also had a calling contest with a gobbler that was more interested in talking about getting together than actually coming over to meet the (pseudo)hen.

Hope to get in at least one more trip to the woods before our season closes May 6. It's amazing how fast it goes...

[rutnroy]

sorry guys, i wasn't able to get a shot this period. passed up 5 jakes, but thats isn't what i'm after. i 'll have one more chance in later part of may. hopefully things turn out better.

[elnor]

No worries, rnr.

I spent the last four days dueling with longbeards but none would ever come in and the ambushes I attempted never quite worked out. It appears that our birds are all still henned up. The weather or something has delayed things a bit this year since usually by now the hens wouldn't give 'em the time of day and we'd be in business again.

I'm hoping things will change for the better soon. Saturday's the last day of my season.

Best of luck to everybody still in the field.

[elnor]

We have three longbeards roosting on the east end our land in southeastern OK. They spend the evening in trees on one of two ridgetops adjacent to some large meadows, then strut the day away on adjacent land. The boss bird of the three will gobble his fool head off throughout the day, every ten or twenty minutes, as he practically runs from hill to hill and field to field looking for interested hens. Because of this hilltop running, we've taken to calling him "Ridge Runner".

Problem is, none of the three of them will come to calling. I guess we killed the "easy" birds earlier this season and now the rest are the tough ones that want the hens to come to them while they stay 200 yards out in the middle of fields. I spent all the time I could muster during the last ten days of the season trying to get one of the three to make a mistake.

Our season closed yesterday. Ridge Runner was still gobbling as late as 3:56PM, right before a storm moved in and shut all the birds up, but he still wouldn't budge a foot towards any calling and ambushes failed to produce.

I hope the rest of you are getting time in the field with more cooperative birds. Oh well, c'est la vie. But I know at least three birds that absolutely must die. http://www.realtree.com/forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif My dad and I are already getting into bowhunting mode so we can get em this fall (OK has fall turkey hunting but where our land is bow is the only legal method of take).

Today I've been dreaming of gobbler hunting starting early (maybe FL or MS?) and running late (MT?) to really stretch out the fun next spring. You know you have it bad when the season ended only yesterday and you're already daydreaming about next year...

BTW, Missed160, we need to be sure you get your pictures and form posted to the official contest entry thread. Please PM me if you need to email everything to me to have me post them.

[rutnroy]

well team i was able to finally get a bird on the last day of the season here in wis. he isn't the biggest bird around but as hard as i worked for this bird i'm happy. what is also great about this hunt was i was able to get this bird with my knight tk2000 muzzleloader. stats are 18 lbs. & 13 oz. , 10" beard, and 3/4 " spurs.

http://www.realtree.com/img/508/medium/Img_0125.jpg

[elnor]

Fantastic news, rutnroy! Congrats on a beautiful bird!

I also see that Missed160's posted a picture to the contest thread. Thanks, Missed. You still need to be sure you get your other pics and a copy of the contest form posted too for the Moderator to count your bird towards our point total.

Anybody else still hunting?

[elnor]

Missed160, we still need the rest of your photos and a copy of your completed contest form posted to the contest thread by June 12th so that the moderator (borch) will include your bird in our team tally.

Everybody else, if you got a bird but haven't posted yet, please do so now so that we can get it in before the June 12th deadline. If you have any questions or problems uploading your pics, please let me and/or borch know and we'll help get it done.

Thanks again to every Turkey Taker!