Ash, they may not be edible but you did better than me by getting 2 of those nasty things out of this years nesting round...Good Job! Good luck on the turkeys and thanks!
Been working 2 Tom's and 2 Jakes with 3 hens all morning. They got by me off my land to farmers hay field finally have them near our wood line.
What a fun hunt . No bird but lots of close action, spitting and drumming wing dragging. But the hens even though they came into shooting range they didn't stay long enough to get the boys into range 40 and 50 yrds. Not with the 20 ga. 12 maybe if it patterned well , I dont know I'd have to barrow hubbies. They both have thick long ropes. I am not understanding these birds. Never, never have mature toms and jakes hanging with several hens and no fights, close together this time of year. Then that hay field was SOAKED, it rained so hard last night plus fog this a.m.. They never have hung out in the fields when this wet. Especially when right next to a bare newly planted cornfield. Anyways, so they're roosted on our ridge across gully and a little behind the new blind. They walked 5 ft past one of my brush blinds to get to field. Will take the chair blind out to the ridge next time... Weather has rain for next several days. All in all fun.
Sooooo a friend and I get in early and sit ready by 510. At 520 I hear a cluck. I speak back and forth with a hen for half a hr. She walks to about 10 yards. Then leaves. It's past six now and nothing else. I hear a noise and 6ft from me is a possum I naturally poop my pants then shoe him away. The kid in with says man thought we would hear something today. I told him give me another try at it. I call stupid loud and obnoxious to be funny and it's answered by a gobble under 50 yards away. His eyes pop out send he says I see him. I drop my call and grab my camera. The bird comes out walks a circle and at 35 yards my friend says can I shoot him.... Good to go brother ... Bang. Dead bird. But camera as it always does errored out so I only got the first 1.34seconds . But my buddy had the time of his life and is hooked. I took it and cut and salted it for him and butchered up the bird for tonight at the fire. Finally I can work on getting my own bird. All in all great day I would show pics but I didn't ask his permission so y'all get nothing
Too much rain and a bit too cool to hunt this a.m. Hoping for tomorrow morning. So went out to where the gully flows from us to the neighbor and cleared a spot at the base of a giant red oak along the property line. I will take my turkey chair and spring form blind to tie between two trees in front of me. This is where I watched them come off our ridge and through the gully to climb up to the farmers hay field on my last hunt. If they stay on that pattern they'll come straight at me from the ridge above me. Now lets hope the rain holds off till later tomorrow.
No rain and light breeze expected...shower tonight and set alarm for 3:45. Trick will be not to spook deer, theyuse that trail as well. Luck has an E wind which should be perfect.
Well those nasty little hens took the boys up into the chicken farmers corn field first not the beef farmers hay. Which means they took them off the ridge down the hill and cross our place then back up the hill behind where I was sitting. I heard a cluck behind me and turned my head to peak behind tree and there was a hen up in the field. Unfortunately cshe caught the movement. I got up and checked the field to see them all 1/4 mile away moving around in the corn field then the toms gobbled. Tired and fighting ma nature I packed and came home. Beautiful morning.
Thanks I know exactly where he's roosted. And have a brush blind there. But I fear getting too close so have avoided it. Beside I have a few BIG dead beech and ash very close to the blind. Now hubby just tells me I have to take him to drop of his truck for brakes in the a.m. Then he'll take my car. Damn and the hunter next door is back..
So hubby "I HAVE TO LEAVE BY 6 IN THE MORNING" I finally took him down to drop off truck at 8: 30. Mantra, "I love him, I love him, I love him...." LOL i went out a bit ago just to check locations and found where the hens have been taking the Toms every morning. I walked through the woods at a steady pace calling and fired up at least two different Toms on the neighbor sanctuary. Got a coup!of hens mad as well. . I was going to come back and change for a hunt but have to go work the garden. Really too windy to be in the woods right now besides the ground is drying down enough.
Shortest hunt ever and no bird. Went to spot I've avoided. Fear of walking right under them, yep. I was there by 4:30 but still Spooked something off roost. Had hoped an owl. Set up jake with real tail and wings and then it began before I sat down stomp, stomp stomp, snort, snort, snort. I had walked into a group of deer. One particularly nasty doe literally circled me snorting for 15 mins. Yes that's right it went on so long I timed it and felt like an hour. She would not leave. When she did I could hear the turkey droppings hitting the ground and the light vocals of hens. As it got light off they went not dropping down but gliding through my woods downhill toward the lower fields and trees. I did a few yelps then gobbles to see if I could get a tom to respond. Nothing, I'll try later when the girls are off to nest.
That sucks, deer are second only to "real" hens for ruining some of my Tom only (Idaho Spring rules) hunts. You know they are roosting there, how about an evening hunt by getting set up there before they return?
NYS only allows hunting until noon... I went back out for the last 2 hours. I took out Mr jake and a hen and did some calling near where I heard yesterdays gobbles. Not a peep, then I glassed the hunters next door leaving in a truck and ATV at 11:45 . They may have prevented the hens from coming back up the hill seeing it is their property that has the corn field they cross on way up in the morning. They were also dead silent today not a gobble or hen call at all. Eeggaaddss....this getting up at 3:45 is getting as old as me!..lol
Well we can hunt Sundays but yes, the until noon spring thing is stupid. Especially seeing it's tom or hen in fall and all day. Our spring season starts late May 1. I did spruce up my jake decoy today. I had bright blue plastic that I cut and wrapped around his head/ neck securing it and yanked out two "petals" from a fake red poinsettia I hadn't put away after Christmas. I secured them to theblue under his beak. That brightened him up a lot. His real tail had him moving just perfect back and forth slowly with his real dropped wings dragging. He looks so good I'm very careful about his placement to me,even on private.
Well season ended yesterday and I never got another chance at a second bird . Though Friday I walked under the oak I was hunting uner and kicked a roosted bird at 1 pm out. This a.m. I went to new blind to retrieve a pair of utility shears to have a tom gobble. So I thought lets see who made it. Half hour later I had called him in . The thick roped long beard I nearly got a week ago...go ahead ask...yes 20 yrds away gobbling looking for me...made me laugh. I always have fall...
