Starting to see birds in the fields and the itch to kill one is getting strong. Season opens here 4/25. Need to get the turkey gun patterned, but not looking forward to the shoulder punishment. It's funny how you don't feel or hear a thing when you let one go on a turkey, but shooting paper is the complete opposite.
Patterned one choke/ammo combo today. Borrowed another choke to try, hopefully tomorrow. Those 2 ounce (875 grain) loads pack some punch. Shoulder is mad at me.
3 jakes in the yard this morning. Hey XXL looks like we won't need to travel very far for opening day.
It opened Monday here and the weather has been horrible each day. Had storms and turned cold and the wind has blowed hard every day. I won't be able to go anyway but I feel for the guys that do. it's 34 here and colder in a lot of places. winter won't go away. you guys getting all that snow can attest to that.
I can remember when wild turkeys were re-introduced to Indiana. We had 0, now we have enough to hunt, but not enough to see while fetching the mail....probably because we have a good population of hunters.
Wild Turkeys are strange creatures. When I was building my house in 2012 this family would walk by every morning and in the afternoon they'd return and walk past the other way. I'd generally stop what I was doing and watch them. They never paid me any attention at all. Then one day I shouted out, "Hey Turkeys!". And the old man turkey raised his head and stared at me. They walked away and that was the LAST time I saw them. They never returned.
Weds was opening day here. Lots of gobbling on the roost right by my blind on my small plot. Also tons of hens... i thought id punch a tag for sure, but I did need to leave by 8am to get ready for a meeting in DC. Only thing that came into my sweet suculant love whispers was a bearded hen... great, i seduced a gay turkey.. she walked around feeding and clucking n purring for a while eyeing up my decoys. Going again tomorrow morning. Lots of birds around right now and Im not as rushed tomorrow.
These two studs are about 8 years old. They are genetically eastern "wild" turkeys but we have raised them from chicks. Unfortunately, as much as they try, they can't get the local hens to come inside the fencing. So sad for them.
Getting ready for this coming weekend and beginning of next week myself! Got to dust off the ol’ 10 gauge! Saturday is the PA opener which we usually hunt, this year I might be doing that Monday instead. Tuesday is the NY opener here and these few have been hanging where I hunt so.....
Jill actually left the property this week to go to the store. (She seldom leaves the property if not necessary, and in winter, it's not necessary ) She said she saw a nice Tom and a hen walking down the roadside. Up by my leeks, they have tore up everything, and occasionally you can hear them up in the woods. I don't generally carry my turkey call that was handmade by a co-worker, but I have drawn them close a few times. He does very nice work. Never really got into turkey hunting for some reason. I make time for deer hunting, but that's about it these days.
Yep they're coming along finally. They grow in one of the coldest areas, so when they finally come up through the leaf cover, it's spring.