elkoholic Posted May 17, 2019 Report Share Posted May 17, 2019 With the season ending this coming Sunday, I thought it best if I got serious about filling my tag. I had been hunting turkeys in the mornings and going bear hunting in the afternoons. The problem being that in the mornings there was competition with the hens. The gobblers would gobble from the roost in response to my calling but after flying down would take off with the hens in a different direction and no calling I did would bring them back. I even tried staying silent and guessing which way they would go after flying down so I could head them off. They would seem to wander aimlessly about the mountains, but at least they weren't holed up on private property like early in the season. Yesterday, I decided to change it up and hunt turkeys in the afternoon as they headed up the mountain towards where they tended to roost. Original plan was to try and intercept them but as they started working their way up I realized that I had missed the mark by almost a quarter mile (there's a lot of mountain). Time to try my limited calling skills. With a few clucks and purrs every five to ten minutes I managed to pull them my way. There were four gobblers and a couple of jakes. As the lead gobbler came strutting to within 25 yards, I let the 870 speak and 1&3/4 oz. of #5 Hevi-Shot did it's job. It is amazing how heavy that bird felt toting it the 2 miles down the mountain to my truck. Must'a weighed 50 lbs. Actually, a tick under 20 lbs. and a nine inch beard. When it comes to spurs, most of the birds I've shot have none, just a rounded bump, but this one did have 1/2 inch spurs. I'm not sure if the dry, rocky terrain has anything to do with the lack of spurs or it's a genetic thing. It had been trying to rain all afternoon, with the occasional raindrop, back just as I reached the truck the sky opened up, a real toad-choker as my Oklahoman friend would say. A fitting end to the afternoon. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ravin R10 man Posted May 19, 2019 Report Share Posted May 19, 2019 Congrats Dave!! Ya got er done!? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Strut10 Posted May 19, 2019 Report Share Posted May 19, 2019 Great story and great bird !!!!!!!!!!!!!! CONGRATS !!!!!!!!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Strut10 Posted May 19, 2019 Report Share Posted May 19, 2019 On 5/17/2019 at 3:34 PM, elkoholic said: When it comes to spurs, most of the birds I've shot have none, just a rounded bump, but this one did have 1/2 inch spurs. I'm not sure if the dry, rocky terrain has anything to do with the lack of spurs or it's a genetic thing. Either/or, I think. The Merriam's and Gould's I've shot usually have thick, but rounded, spurs. Has to be a result of wearing them on the abrasive landscape where they live. But a buddy of mine has told me about one particular place in Montana he has hunted Merriam's. Says the gobblers in that one particular area have NO spurs...………..not even a button where they SHOULD be. Weird. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wtnhunt Posted May 19, 2019 Report Share Posted May 19, 2019 Congratulations Dave. Way to go with adjusting and getting it done. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
3seasons Posted May 24, 2019 Report Share Posted May 24, 2019 Congrats. Fine looking bird Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HeadShotX Posted May 27, 2019 Report Share Posted May 27, 2019 Boy, I would I love to see that on my plate on Thanksgiving. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rymillare Posted June 13, 2019 Report Share Posted June 13, 2019 Impressive bird. Great work and Congratulations! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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