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Kansas Hunting

Turkey Tales

 

 

 
Turkey Hunting Tales

 

 

Name: Mike Marks
Location: Washington Co. - PA
Time: 5/8/01 7 a.m.
Subspecies: Eastern
Beard: 10.5"
Spurs 1” and 1”
Weight: 20 lb.
Distance: 60 yd.
Decoys: none
Calls Used: American Friction [Bruce Wurth] Cutt-n-Purrfect glass and a Doug Camp slate

 


My hunting partner, Tim Johnson, and I decided to work the back field edge near a thin strip of woods which always held roosting gobblers early in the season. In years past, these birds generally moved back into the woods as the season progressed, likely due to hunting pressure. So this might be our last chance at them. Just as it started getting light, sure enough, a gobbler began gobbling. We were about 90 yards from him, so we sat down and set up on the edge of the field, with the woods behind us.

This bird just pounded it from the roost for maybe 20 minutes, then he was quiet. It had become a bit lighter, so we knew he was on the ground. Suddenly, a lone hen passed in front of us, feeding through the field, and heading in the direction of the gobbler. The gobbler comes out into the field with several other hens in tow, and meets up with the single hen. At this point, all of the birds are about 125 yards from us, and the gobbler starts to do to that hen what gobblers live for in the spring. She gets up, ruffles her feathers, and the flock begins moving through the plowed area and toward our position.

All the way, the boss is strutting, not a care in the world. I get turned towards them, in a very uncomfortable position almost laying on my back. I'm thinking that if he gets into the planted section of this field, he's in range. So I line up my 12 gauge, 3"- #5's with the 1 3/4 power scope and wait. Slowly he makes his way to the plantings, all of the hens are clear, and I take the shot. The gobbler goes down hard, and Tim and I are surprised to find out the distance steps off at 60 yards! I'm glad to have set up my gun with a custom fitted Hastings turkey tube. It did the job out to a range that surprised me. Even after taking a longbeard in 2000 at 53 yards. The scope really helps to center the pattern.

We took the bird to the truck, and hunted the other side of the farm. I was prospecting with my Steve Mann butternut boat paddle, and proceeded to call in a group of three jakes for Tim. These youngsters came in from about 150 yards, and almost ran us over looking for that hot and raspy hen! Looking for a longbeard, Tim let them walk.

Great day in the spring turkey woods!

 

 

 

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