Today was opening day youth season here in NY and I had the honor of taking a close family friends son who turned 12 5 months ago. I took him with me once last year midway through our season and we had birds gobbling 300 yds away and you da thought they were in our tree by his reaction. Well leading up to his 12th birthday he has never stopped calling and emailing me leading into today. I did my homework and set a blind in a great crossing between woodlots and fields. I have been watching 3 gobs and 1 huge jake for 3 weeks now and a good handful of hens. Well he stayed over the house last night and we went over our game plan. Mind you, his mom won't allow him to use a shot gun, but this fella is a heck of a shot with his bow so all the more reason for the blind.
Well the whole ride it rained and the walk to the blind it rained. Arrived turkey early and took a nap--it rained and hard with blowing wind. It was supposed to stop around 8:30-9:00. We did some loose calling after flydown (we couldn't hear a thing) but I know turkeys can. Got a solid gobble at 8 about 150 off to our right and then another about 3 minutes later but he was moving north and away. The wind and rain kicked up again so we sat tight. I kid you not, at 8:45 the rain stopped and the wind died down (it was as though God said to us, "Well there fellas you all can go and hunt now) so I jumped all over a crystal pot and a sweet butternut and walnut box call from Ole Mr. McKamey and sat in to wait and listen but heard nothing. I was tucked down in my gobbler lounger and Matt was up high in a lounge chair. At 9:00 all of a sudden Matt says...ah Scott (I'd a dun thought this boys eyes were gonna spring clear out from his head) Ah, Scott he repeats with a whisper, Matt, are you looking at a turkey...I said Matt, are you looking at a turkey, He nods and clearly can't speak, and I sit up to see a slob of a jake cruising around our 2 hens and jake decoys. Crap Matt grab your bow and hook on Mr. The second he starts around that Jake draw your bow and when he comes back around I am gonna cluck and stop him them stick him good! Matts take careful aim, but I can see he is shaking, he lets one fly (the jake was 16 yards away) and it sails through his tail feathers and trims one out! The jake only runs a few steps, but he is out of our shooting window. I immediately starting calling to him with the mouth call to calm him down and he proceeds to start gobbling his waddles off about 50 yards off to our left. No matter what I threw at him he gobbled. So we sat back and enjoyed the entertainment. Remember this young lad has essentially never heard gobbling before so for the next 40 minutes he gobbles and if he stops for a few minutes I give him a few yelps on McKameys box and that ole boy just fires right up again.
Matt turns to me and says Scott your the best caller ever. Matt, we did our job and we did our best. the rest will have to stay in our hearst forever. He said I never ever forget this day! And for that this was a successful hunt and a cherished moment for me