Earlier this year my girlfriend and I decided we would try to take a couple of tom turkeys with our bows. For me, this was my first attempt at shooting a turkey with a bow. I had called turkeys into decoys well within range for a bow in the past so I figured it would be a piece of cake with a pop-up ground blind. We scouted the property we would be hunting and knew there were several nice sized birds in the area. In early April there was a group of three mature longbeards that seemed to be hanging out close to our trail cameras, and with a little luck, we managed to get some nice trail pictures of them. This really had us excited for the start of our season.
When opening day arrived, the weather forecast was solid rain for the remainder of the first week, and with classes and other obligations, we made the choice to stay out all day. Unfortunately, we realized the birds were not roosted in the woodlot we were set up in. The morning produced nothing but hens and jakes, but we were determined to stick it out and give the toms some time to move. In the early afternoon, we left the blind for a much needed lunch break. To our surprise, when we returned, we made a big mistake. The three toms were no more than 50 yards from the blind moving through the field. After a few moments, they actually made their way toward the tree line and walked off into the woods. We quickly ran to the blind and started calling. About 15 minutes into our calling sequence the toms returned to the field, but hung just out of bow range. 16 hours after we first entered the blind, our first day of hunting was over with two unfilled turkey tags.
To make a long story short, two weeks had passed out of our three week season and neither one of us could coax a tom close enough to kill with a bow. Being the late season, well after their breeding period, this is not an uncommon occurrence. I knew the season would be tough, but this year had been brutal. Even so, we managed to keep our spirits up and enjoy the time we spent in the woods.
I made the decision to personally change weapons and switch to the shotgun for the last week. I had a couple of encounters during the first two weeks with gobblers well within gun range and had been unable to fill my tag with the bow. Knowing that these birds had already been exposed to my calling and didn't bite, I switched tactics and made a conscious effort to leave the woods early to locate and roost this group of toms.Late into the hunt, I found the flock - who had recruited a forth longbeard - on another piece of property I had permission to hunt. I watched the birds roost and planned my setup for the following morning. The field layout was such that they only had one real place to land. I made the choice to sit on the edge of the field where they had flown up the night before. Even though my cover was bad and the sun was in my face, I knew the birds would fly down on either side of me because of the long grass surrounding their roost, which was directly behind me and the tree I was sitting against. I made it to the base of the tree well before daylight and prepared for their departure. Almost immediately after the sun began to light up the sky the birds sounded off. My plan was looking good. I waited to hear the unmistakable sound of a turkey leaving the roost, and when I did, my heart began to race. One by one, I watched the toms land 40 yards to my left. They had landed in the exact spot where they had flown to roost the night before. Now my only problem was waiting for the group to spread out and allow me a shot.
I learned a lot about myself as a hunter this spring, but even more about myself as a boyfriend and mentor. I found the same enjoyment being in the woods with my girlfriend - sharing experiences and making memories - as I did taking this beautiful Michigan tom turkey. It goes to show, you never know what you'll find in the woods.
What a wonderful article! Not only are you a good outdoorsman, you are a great writer! Tells so much about who you are as a person.
ReplyDelete...from a proud mom