Well, another turkey season here in Mississippi has come to an end for me. I won't be out on the last day of the season due to finals. This year has been a blast, I've loved every minute of it. I've had some long days in the woods and like I knew I would, I wish I could be in the woods one more day. I have been fortunate enough to take some beautiful birds on some beautiful hunts. I got to share the spring woods with my wife, my dad, and a few close friends. I swallowed my pride and called up a bird for my wife to 50 yards that I knew was a bird I've fooled with for two years. We watched him pitch down off the roost after gobbling 60-70 times inside of 100 yards and drum so loud that it made her jump the first time he did. I would have given my limit up for her to kill that bird. When we sat down that morning I told her what her range was and she knew he was outside of it. He flew down and just knew there wasn't a hen there so he left. She did wonderful and has really picked up on a lot of the things I've told her over the years. She has seen me kill a few but she hasn't killed one YET. There is nothing I could have done different that morning to kill that bird. It was just one of those things. Even though we didn't kill, that was my favorite hunt of the year.
Other than that, I called in a good many turkeys and enjoyed the interactions and learned from each interaction with them, I believe. I went 14 or so days without hearing a gobble, but I stayed after them and persevered. Don't worry about next year, there will be some turkeys still alive behind some of those gates. They will just be very WILD! [notagain]
I hope I live to see another turkey season, I look forward to being in the spring woods, getting to talk to a few of the guys on here almost everyday, and spending more time with my dad.
Once again, the Brown Tie Custom Calls came through for me. I tote a lot of different calls into the woods with me, but my zebrawood slate is beginning to look like a Meat Call, it claimed it's 13th or 14th life in only it's 3rd tour. My Brown Tie box claimed it's 3rd. Dad got a new Brown Tie Slate and it claimed it's 1st this year.
Now, I'm looking forward to a trip with my dad and wife. We are heading out the 11th to go to SD & KS. Hopefully, we run into a bird or two. [cool]
My scale broke this year and I never bought a new one. I will buy another before my upcoming trip, but no birds got "officially" weighed.
Hope you enjoy the pics.[cool]
#1
It was a silent morning and I was moving to a ridge top where turkeys like to strut. It was early in the season and I could see a long ways. I spotted something up through the woods on the ridge top about 150 yards. I got my binoculars out. Yep, 3 strutters. [blink] I sat down, clucked a few times on the slate and yelped, they stretched up long and tall. I threw some leaves and they came looking. 2yo. 7/8" and 1" spurs. 10 1/8 beard
#2
I sat to this bird at daylight. I could tell he had a good gobble on him. He flew down to me and heard nothing on the roost but the trumpet and he loved it. After that, he got nothing but purrs and clucks and soft yelps off of the slate. I pulled the trigger on him at 8:40ish. A really nice bird. 1 1/8 on both spurs and a 10" beard.
#3
I struck this bird up at 9:40 across a big creek, by using my box. I sat to him twice. The second time I setup I knew he could get to me. I called him up to me twice without a shot. The third time, he came in he stood inside, around, 50 yards and gobbled over 20 times. Once he finally shut up and just started drumming, I clucked twice and I could then see him slipping in. I shot him at 11:58. 2yo 3/4" spurs and 10 4/8" beard.
