Man, it's been a tough start for me! I've just been dealt some tough hands.
For starters, I opted to hunt the pole bridge bird. Actually, there were three of them and I roosted them Thursday afternoon in a creek bottom where they had flown up from a road that crosses the strand. I was standing at a tee in the road deciphering a tangle of turkey track sign and strut sign when when one of them fired off a gobble. Holly cow! what a stroke of luck I thought. Little did I know the whipping I was about to receive over the next three days.
I slipped down the road and proceeded to fire them up. I even went back to the truck, grabbed my phone and called my buddy Capt Rick......"listen to this Ricky!" I owled and one bird gobbled but it was late and I had worn them out it was over for the night.
I had located 6 or 7 gobblers that night including another strutter near a power line that had really cut the road up. This and the pole bridge bird would be my main focus and everything was falling into place like I planned it that way.
Friday afternoon, the day before the opener; I knocked off work early to load all my gear and atv. Next was stops for fuel and provisions for a weekend in turkey camp.
After unloading at camp it was off to put the pole bridge bird to bed. I tracked the road and moved down the road towards the expected roost after fly up. I owled, nothing, owled again, nothing. nada.
Desperate, I pulled out my "Double D" call and cackled, my secrete weapon.....nothing. They weren't there! I can't remember an open eve that I did not have a gobbler put to bed for the mornings hunt.I have to admit I had an unease feeling about the prospects for the morning. Something just did not seem right about those birds not being there.
The next morning dawned perfect, clear, cool and low humidity. I was hoping the birds were there but just did not gobble. I set up on the side of the road and waited for gobble time.
Well before gobble time I heard a bird gobble to the NW. almost out of hearing. Just them I realized I had left my bino's at the atv. I had just enough time to get there and back. When I got to the atv I decided to owl. A bird responded straight down the road to the south! I owled again and he gobbled again. Well, I guess I'll run back to my setup and grab all the gear I had left there. Little did I know the birds were nearly a half a mile down the road the other direction. When I finally got down there I realized there were two gobblers roosted together and one to the south. There was a hen or two clucking on the limp, roosted to the west out over a jungle in some sparse bays. A jake was involved also and would squawk out a yelp right behind the gobbles.
By the time I developed a plan the gobblers were on the ground. The bad thing was they either flew to or ran as fast as they could to get into a pasture adjoining the woods. The pasture is out of bounds for me so all I could do was watch while the two gobblers strutted around and bred a few hens.
That night I came back hoping to catch them roosting in the creek again. I set up along the road and waited. About fly up I heard a bird take wing and beat its way thru the tree tops but I could not course it. A minute later I heard another but this time I saw this one. they were about 100 yds down the road and right over the creek.
About this time I start hearing an atv approaching. It rolls right by and down the road towards the roosted birds and kills the engine when he gets to the creek. Damn the luck! I couldn't believe it. I got up and started walking out and here comes the atv with his two dogs in tow. He apologizes for messing me up and we parted ways but before he leaves he related that he saw several jakes and hens here in the road the afternoon before but the big gobbler was not with them. Now I know why they were not there.
Scouting on the atv by the full moons light!
Actually, after talking to my hunting buddy Steve, I think this was done intentionally.
Saturday, day #2; after all the commotion down at the bridge spot I decided to go to my fall back bird near the power line. I got there and hour before daylight to assure my spot. Scouting the day before revealed someone had walked down the road and had been in the area. Also, the gobbler had left his sign there also. No strut sign just jumbo gobbler tracks.
Big Gobbler track!
I was sitting there in the dark thinking about getting out of the truck to owl when I see a form walk down the side of the truck! Great! Apparent this guy had built a blind down the road and to make a long story short I gave him the spot and headed back to the bridge.
It was gobble time when I got around there and I planned to try to strike a bird from the truck, stopping every couple hundred yards down the road. The second time I stopped a bird gobbled on the hill beside the truck and a hen started clucking in a bay off in the creek bottom.
I nosed the truck off the road, grabbed my gear and headed off towards the gobbling tom. I ended up in a real open section of high hill with a mix of sand pines, yellow pine and various oaks with little understory. I moved as close as I could and set up but the bird was already on the ground. H was responding pretty good but moving away. I had no choice but to try to move on him.
I moved a hundred and a quarter or so and set up again. I called and he gobbled but I not gained a foot. I made a little cut at him and he gobbled again. Just then a hen that was with him started cutting back at me and he gobbled again. I decided I had to try to gain some ground. He had hens and was getting no closer. I made my move......he never gobbled again. I expect I was seen. If your going to practice an aggressive hunting style you have to be prepared for this kind of thing. We'll meet again another day!
This is the first time I have not taken a gobbler on the opening weekend that I can remember. Unbelievable! I hope this is not the start of a trend.
More gobbler strut sign!
Gobbler tracks in the mud!
Best of hunt!
Larry S.
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