Outdoorzman

Thanks Steve! It's good to be back!

Hi Everyone! It's been a looong time since I've visited the forums. Been a busy year! I've been pursuing a lot of outdoor goals and have been focusing more and more on my outdoor ministry. I'd like to thank Team Realtree for taking the initiative and posting an article on me in the REALTREE.com "NEWS" yesterday. Check it out! Currently, aside from the ministry taking top priority, I'm now also on prostaff with "Knight & Hale", working under turkey calling champion Chris Parrish, and I'm also with "AMERISTEP". In the realm of outdoor television I've spent the past year as vice exec. crew director (Northeast region), for "AVERAGE JOE'S HUNTIN' SHOW", (Pursuit Channel), where I manage crew & staff in (13) states. I also hunt & film for them as well. Still an outdoor writer and seminar speaker, I now write primarily for "U.S. Hunting Today" and "Bowhunting.net". I can't wait for turkey season, (May 1st here), and I invite all of you to come over to my official hunting & ministry page at facebook where you can see notes and pics galore. The direct link is attached to my name on my email signature! This month, thanks to Phillip Vanderpool of Hunters Specialties, I've been invited to be a part of the annual St. Jude's "Kids Hunting For A Cure" event in Huntingdon, TN!! Money is super tight but if at all possible I'd love to attend this event and help call in a turkey for a child, so I'm going to try and make it happen. Wish me luck! Time to go check out the Turkey Forum!!! Boo yahhhh!!

And I suppose, after contemplation, I could say it this way, concerning my own calling... There will always be christians walking by faith and discussing the Bible by faith, however, many times the simple topics can become arenas for dissension and quarreling, based on opinions. My position...though I'm right there with you guys, is this...That there is still a need for christian 'teachers' who have the ability and training to step in-between brothers & sisters whose arguments could be straightened out by simple grammatical or cultural truths in clarification; Otherwise, with no direction, divisions would grow with wild abandon. That's where my own strengths lie, and as I mentioned early on, I try not to sway any believers through opinion when facts are openly available. Then it becomes a matter between you, (the student), and God. There is no pressure from me.

I like the comments and discussion guys. And muggs is right on about being too 'analytical'. I just wanted to bring out the point that when my back is against the wall in defense of the gospel, I have a leg to stand on with those who would try to use logic to tear me down....and believe me, there are lots of folks who boldly stand up and preach on something they know nothing about, which often ends up stumbling someone else...and I'm speaking of the few who speak and react before thinking or studying. Fortunately, most of my ministry is good old fashioned spreading the gospel, sharing my faith, and trying to win people to Christ, and in humble, open-minded discussions. And to m gardner I say....dead-on about convicting rather than convincing. I'm often led into the convincing arena with others more than allowing for their conviction, which is something I shall work on. And the Bible is indeed the true and only source of God's word, completely applicable for us today. I just feel that my specific calling...which seems to be continually drawn out...lies more in classroom teaching & education rather than simple faith. Even though I walk by faith and not by sight, there seems to be a need for a little analytical discussion with those who brazenly try to twist the word for their own agendas. Wow...this is a great forum. Love talking with you guys. We could combine all our thoughts and ideals and really enjoy a campfire in some remote hunting lodge somewhere, couldn't we! LOL!! Remember...there is ALWAYS something to be learned from the Word; it truly is pregnant with revelation no matter how many times we read it. God bless all my brothers here at Realtree. Hope to share camp someday.

Sounds like you're having a blast. The next time a yote seems to hang up out there a ways and he won't come in, try stopping the regular calling and start 'kissing' the back of your hand really loud....or have a squeaker call ready as a coaxer call. That works pretty sweet.

I'd like to try it. It sounds like a blast. I spend alot of time in the woods chasing ole tom and this year Maine is allowing us a 2-bird limit. How does the team thing work?

My favorite calls are the HS Infinity Latex, the new line that came out last year. Remember that everybodys palates are different in size and shape so the same calls some like might not work well for you. Experimentation is the key with diaphragms and I can do any turkey call in the woods with the Raspy Old Hen. The plastic frame calls are not designed to bend (in any companies line) but HS also has an Alumistrut series with aluminum frames that CAN be bent to fit the contours of your mouth more efficiently if you choose. Other companies also sell aluminum frames and they work better for some.

My advice would be to stick with a hoot tube or hoot flute if you have trouble with backpressure. These are the plastic barrel calls that you simply cover a hole with a finger and blow into. Absolutely no backpressure at all but the lack of pressure reduces volume. That said, you could always amplify the call by cupping it with a coffee can or call adapter bell taken from like a moose call or whatever.

Hey Rhino-- Man that's a great point and I do exactly what you said. I scout for deer AND turkeys every time I'm in the woods and I start early, too. I have several areas I hunt and I know them well, which makes a buig difference.

Man, that's bigger than the one I REALLY shot 2 years ago!! lol

My pleasure, guys...And for the record I don't believe in the word 'religion'; What we have is more 'relationship' than religion. And I don't know about being a 'great' teacher, but I DO agree less pressure and no forcing something down throats is the best way. I'm not a pastor; I don't have a 'church'; It's not my job to judge anyone...that falls to Jesus. If I can try to be as unbiased as possible, that's all I can hope for. However, many times a person will come to me with something stuck in his head, trying to get me to sway to his understanding of a passage and if I believe that person is off base, I have to tell him so, but by giving him the facts first. No matter where we stand on a biblical issue, there will always be facts that can be applied to it first, and if the person lets me identify those, and THEN we can discuss it's modern day application, we have a good base to work from. Hope to see more great discussions in here!! We can "agree to disagree" on MANY christian topics, that do not hinder our salvation, and that's where the 'opinions' come in. Each has his own and sometimes that's not a bad thing because though we all are of one universal Body in Christ, the Bible says there are MANY different callings and types of service, and I think the problems with our divisions lie there....

I've been studying the Bible for the past 18 straight years and have accumulated approximately 35,000 hours of one-on-one time with others through personal study, college courses, mens studies, and library research. I've studied everything from apologetics, to theology and doctine, to the concept of faith, but perhaps the greatest area of research has been hermeneutics & exegesis. THAT, ladies & gentlemen, is where we separate opinion from fact. Suffice it to say I like things simple....and religion is NOT a simple topic to many; Here's what I see in the New Testament...'follow Jesus, learn his teachings, become a disciple, and share with the world'. That's pretty basic. The development of Christianity was the building of hundreds of local assemblies in Paul's day and all NT teaching shows sound structure concerning how the Body of Christ as a whole should be, even today. Folks....we have an unbelievably long way to go. Today, on practically every street corner, you have a church, and each claims they have "the truth", and because of that, though we should be acting as brothers & sisters worldwide, we are divided on MANY topics. The Bible was inspired by God and written by men, but its books and epistles all came from a culture that, quite frankly, is foreign to our way of life, some 2000 years after Jesus' ministry. This is where exegesis comes in. I started "Mountain-Man Outdoor Ministries" just this past fall and though it's easy to break off into opinions when teaching the Bible, I at least try to approach it from a different angle. Exegesis and hermeneutics is dissecting not just scripture but scriptural content, and that means in order not to take a passage 'out of context', you have to analyze the original words for exact meaning, who wrote it, to whom it was written, and when, along with having a cultural understanding of the time period in question. Then, we have the arduous task of taking what we've learned and seeing if and how it can be applied to us today...a different cultural society, some 2000 years later. My job is to present the student with as many facts as possible concerning his/her biblical question, then let them make their own decisions based on their own personal walk with God. That allows me to be less "judgemental". And the only time I'll give you my opinion is if you ask me for it. I guess the point to all of this was to let everyone know that if you have questions, I'd be glad to work with you to find some answers. This forum may or may not be the place but I'll let you decide. Fact is, even though I've got accredited Bible college courses under my belt, along with years of study, I'm still just a hunter and a redneck outdoorsman just like most of you....no better, no worse. My 'Mountain-Man Ministries' business cards say it like this: "Christian Studies for Rednecks and Sportsmen". So praise God and pass the ammunition!!! Let's go huntin' and share our faith around the fire!! :gun2: That's just my "2 Cents".....

Maine has had some tough snow conditions for the turkeys but they're still growing overall. And it's my personal opinion that even if you do lose a large amount of birds, all will balance out in the egg production this spring; The ratios of male to female young seems to always favor replenishing that which was lost. Plus, many birds that experience a bad winter or wet spring tend to lay accordingly, whether by more eggs, more clutches if some are destroyed, or whatever. Again, just my opinion but I wouldn't fear.

Ok....I've been hearing lately about the new Hevishot 13...I have been offline and out of commission until recently, and now I see it on posts in here. What's the scoop on it. I used to shoot Hevishot but in my ultimag and with my choke it was not the best combination so I switched to Winchester Supremes and have even had great patterns with Federal Flight-Control...which so far I love.

As I mentioned in another post, Maine goes generally from May 1st to June 5th, give or take a day. Our location/zone originally opened to turkey hunting in 1996 by chance lottery only, but now it's over-the-counter. We can only hunt til noon and no Sunday hunting. Bag limit was always 1 bearded tom but starting this spring, (2010), we will be allowed 2 bearded birds. I'm pumped!! What are your season dates, how long can you hunt, (half or full days), and what's your bag limit in spring?? Two years ago me and my partner both took doubles in Vermont (over 2 days), and the cool thing was both hunts made it on outdoor tv. Of course, my buddy took 2 in one shot and I had to make 2 shots in rapid succession to kill my 2 birds...but we did it! Am hoping to do it in Maine now!!

Great responses, guys!! And I should clarify that I still do roost birds at night maybe in the 75% range, but it seems I just developed a taste for locating them in the morning darkness better. LOL! As to birds occasionally moving roost trees at night, I should also add that I hunt specific parcels of public land and we have ALOT of activity with night-time 4-wheeler activity here. Between these yahoos hootin' & hollerin' on the evening trails and the occasional wind gusts, the turkeys often aren't where we roosted them. It's so cool now to drive to a spot, park my truck, get out in the pitch black and listen at 4am. I know all my areas well so when I hear the gobblers I can best decde if I can get between them or at least in that "comfort zone" prior to flydown. And like you said, if it don't work coming off roost, I run & gun. Maine season runs May 1st to about June 5th and closes at 12 noon every day; no Sunday hunting so it can be tough....

Thanks guys! Yes, big help, and I'm anxious to see more thoughts. Wow...that turkey tactical looks like a killer....

Great points! Sounds as though we got some real predator hunters in here! We should start a club. lol. What also can help is tying fishing line to a little fuzz toy and having it out wherever it can be seen. Twitch it around while calling. It adds alot to the hunt!

My best success has been mornings, just after dawn, though pre-twilight has also produced. I call now for a longer duration than the usual few seconds to a couple mins, and even though it all works, again, I have had more yotes respond to consistent steady calling that increases in anguish. I stop and trail off, yes, but I start again almost immediately and it seems to work well. If after 15 mins nothing comes in, I move. Only issues are with mouth calls the yote focuses on YOU, so if you try electronics the speaker can be moved. And alot of guys will run the tapes the same as I call...consistently for the duration of the tape or card. Of course, evrything will work, no matter how long you choose to call, as long as the whole set up has been thoughtfully planned out. Chances increase when you determine wind, common food sources, and don't forget hunter pressure. A great time of year for most of the well-known industry hunters is also October thru November in the northern US because that years pups have been driven out around that time and are hungry and ready to respond to calls....

Whatever call you use, you mentioned having no luck and not being confident in the sound. I'd reccomend any dvd or video that shows predator hunting and really listen to how these guys work pitch, tone, and inflections. Another good point is calling non-stop. Believe it or not, most who have had the best success get set up and then call.... and I mean continuous for up to 15 straight minutes, only varying the tones & inflections. I shot coyotes in the 80's and though I killed a good handful, I found out my success rate went up when I tried this. And I learned it on an HS video production.

I agree the 22-250 is an awesome predator rifle; it has the range and the knockdown power. Also, the instructional videos/dvd's will help you alot. There are several good ones on the market but of course I like the Operation Predator series by HS. Remember that HS also owns Johnny Stewart and Gerald is one of the best callers/yote hunters out there.

For turkeys, I've only had two shotguns in the past 10 years, both Mossbergs; The first was a model 500 and my current is an 835 ultimag. I use the HS Undertaker choke tube and the combo is great when coupled with 3" #5's but I'm thinking about a new gun, and not a Mossberg this time. What would you suggest? And what other choke tubes are you guys using out there? (I still like the Undertaker the best and will use it with the new gun so if anybody has an undertaker in a particular gun they feel is a better combo, I'd like to hear your thoughts).

Ok...I've taken several turkeys with my bow but to be honest, they're harder to hit than my decoy target!! LOL! Darned things move alot more for sure! So...that said, I know the 3 best placements for arrows are up the vent if strutting, wing-joint if walking/standing, and upper thigh area for quicker bleed out & recovery. This will probably generate different responses but I'd be interested in knowing where YOU guys & gals try to shoot a bird, and without destroying too much breast meat at the same time... And also, how far are you comfortable shooting at a turkey, (with bow), without becoming unethical?

Ok, All- Time to stir the pot and have some fun! I love talking turkey so I think it's time to post some stuff after a long absence!! Yee-haaa! I've had good success roosting birds at night but can't always get a gobble, and I've experienced birds that have moved during the nght, so more times than not, I drive preseason at dawn and locate gobblers waking up, note it, and return when season opens. I've never not had a shot opportunity when driving to a spot at dawn, hearing a gobbler, then sneaking in for the 'off the roost' set up. And sometimes you can sneak inbetween TWO gobblers this way, increasing your chances. Thoughts boys & girls? Cool stories to share?

My favorite call is a hand-tuned box call given to me by friend, Tad Brown, but the one I always fall back on when it comes to hunting is my HS 'Black Magic' slate with a rosewood striker. I use mouth, box, & slates in a wide variety, and for different reasons like most, but man...that particular slate has consistently brought down some nice boss birds over the past 10 years or so... Case in point last spring: My son's first turkey; I used everything I had with no results until I broke that puppy out. Turkey gobbled from 350 yards and my son shot him at 18 steps within 5 mins...