My 2nd Youth Turkey Hunt: Follow This Link

Alrighty then folks, I am now going to attempt to recap my season. I warn you, this is going to be very long and contain lots and lots of pictures.


Opening Day - May 1st, 2005

My dad's friend Kenny met us up at our cabin the night before. My dad owed him a turkey hunt because back in the mid 90's or something like that this guy took my dad turkey hunting, so ever since then, my dad has owed him one.
So we get up at about 4:30 AM, eat a few snacks, have some coffee, hot chocolate etc... At about 5:30 AM we get on the quad and head up the mountain. My dad dropped me off in one spot and took his buddy to another spot on the other side of the mountain. My dad then later returned and we set up in the area where we heard a jake gobbling the weekend before. Sure enough, I let out some soft tree yelps at dawn, and he answers us back. He just wouldn't budge. As it got lighter out, we regrouped with Kenny and it turns out that he had a hen walk almost into his lap, coming to his calls. That was our opening day. Not very exciting, but worth it in my opinion.

Saturday, May 7th, 2005

We go to our spot where we had the jake gobbling the past two weeks and sure enough he answered us back, but it seemed like he wanted to play the game. He just can't really gobble, his gobble sounds like he has marbles in his mouth, so we nicknamed him Marbles. He kept getting closer and closer. But then he just hung up. We guessed that a real hen got in between the two of us and took him away. Bummer. The same thing happened on Sunday, May 8th, he started coming closer and closer, got within 80 yards or so, and then hung up.

We couldn't go out on Saturday, May 14th because my dad had a 50th anniversary party for his aunt and uncle.

Sunday, May 15th, 2005

We got in contact with Bill Purdy of <a href="www.purdyscustomturkeycalls.com" target="_blank">Purdys Custom Turkey Calls</a> a few days before and we agreed to meet at his house for 4:15 AM. His house is an hour ride from our house. So we had to wake up at about 2:30 AM to be at his house at 4:15 AM. We made it to his house earlier than expected. We got there 15 minutes early so we made good time. It was a rainy wet night and that led to the birds being extremely quiet that morning. The area we hunt turkeys in by his house is an apple orchard. The turkeys like to stick to the hardwoods around the orchard and inside the abandoned (sp?) orchard. We hiked up the mountain to a spot, stood there and listened for gobbles. Nothing was happening. Then at dawn, we set up the decoys and sat from about 5:30 AM until 8:00 AM calling every 10 minutes or so. Not a single gobble heard. Then we pack up the decoys and start getting ready to go home. Usually if nothing is happening by then, nothing at all is going to happen the whole day. Bill then pulled a call out that a rep from Knight and Hale gave him. He handed it to my dad to let him try it out and just mess around with it for a few minutes. My dad started yelping on it and then a tom answered us back! We just couldn't believe it. As it turned out, it was just a courtesy gobble and not a mating gobble. He was between us and another hunter who was also calling. We met up with the other hunter later. We came up on the calling on a trail. Sat and talked with them for about a half an hour. We then went back to the truck and let out some yelps, nothing! As we were driving out, we see a big old tom walking across the orchard moving towards the area where we were just calling a few minutes ago. Right there Bill's cousin Timmy says, theres a bird. My dad then says, " Look it's a Tom! Look at the red head on it!" We get out of the truck, I load up my gun and we start stalking this Tom. At this point, he is running back in the direction he came from. As we were walking after him, my dad lifts up his gun, and as he did this, the Tom ran and flew off. My dad said that the bird was too far anyway and he wasn't going to shoot.

I didn't make it up for May 21st or 22nd because I had a school project to do.--- Just for the record, my dad didn't hear any gobbles or see anything.. So he said...

My brothers and I had a half day in school on Thursday and we had off on Friday because we had an extra snow day that we didn't use. So they gave us half of Thursday, Friday, Saturday, Sunday and Monday off from school. Friday afternoon, my brothers, my dad and I all went up to the cabin. The plan was to hunt Saturday, Sunday and Monday. My dad and I would go out hunting while we would leave my 2 brothers at the house with food and video games etc..

Friday, May 27th, 2005

As we were unpacking the truck, a local, Randy, comes by the cabin and tells us that by 8:30 - 9:00 tomorrow morning, I should have my bird because a Tom keeps coming through the field everyday strutting at the same time.

Saturday, May 28th, 2005

We met Randy up at our buddy's farm at about 6:30 AM. We set the decoy up and start calling. 2 different Toms answered us back! We sat there calling for about an hour. The toms sounded like they were in the field, but not coming in. As I was calling, I was so rudely interrupted by an actual hen. I started calling aggressively and louder then her. She then shut up and went away. We then got impatient with these Toms and started to move up the hill towards the decoy. I then see one Tom run into the wood line. Then I call Randy and my dad over and they look and then another Tom ran into the wood line! But for some weird reason, the turned around out of the safety of the woods and started into the field again. AWESOME! We sat down again and got impatient after an hour or so and did the same thing again. They then flew off, never to be seen again the whole weekend.

Sunday, May 29th, 2005

We set up in the field again and didn't hear a single thing all morning. We went back to the house, I grabbed my pellet gun and went off to a spot where I put birdseed down in hopes of shooting a chipmunk. I get into the treestand and put my turkey call in my mouth and start calling. I then hear a cluck and a purr in response to my calling. I look up on the trail and I see a hen walking towards my tree. She came in quick, purring, clucking and putting all over the place. She was looking for a fight. I started imitating her, cluck for cluck and yelp for yelp. Her boyfriend, Marbles then sounded off inside the woodline. He wouldn't come out of the woods into the field. I never saw a beard on him, but I saw his jake like tail fan with raised center tail feathers, saw his red head and heard his immature gobble. I could not do anything but laugh about it. After they didn't find what they were looking for, they lost interested and left. About 10 minutes after they left, I did shoot a chipmunk at 20 yards with my pellet gun. No pics on the chipmunk because my dad couldn't find the camera.

Monday, May 30th, 2005

We didn't hear a single thing all morning.

While out riding, we were chasing a doe around a brush pile, just having some fun. We happened to stumble across a dead turkey. I hope it was a coyote kill and not shot by a hunter, breast meat, spurs and beard taken and the rest dumped.

I hope it wasn't a hen because she has a nest, I hope it wasn't a gobbler because I could have shot it. As of now, it is undetermined and most likely always will be. If you guys can tell from the pics let me know. There was no beard, and both leg bones were cut from where the scales start on the leg. Exactly where the spurs would be. Maybe it was a yote kill, and someone else found it before us and took the spurs and beard. We'll never know.

Pics:















Feathers from the tail fan:



Us out riding on top of Columbia Mountain:









I didn't add put this in the stories, but we went riding every day we were up there. We have 3 dirtbikes and a quad.

Well, I hope you enjoyed my season through my posts as much as I did being there.