SEIowaDeerslayer
Well-Known Member
Well my alarm went off this morning at 4:00am, and I felt like crap, didn't want to get up, but knowing that I was going turkey hunting motivated me. Much to my suprise, its wasn't raining. Glorious! 90% chance of showers and thunderstorms this morning, and NO rain whatsoever. How reliable are weatherpeople? I wasn't complaining though. Made a thermos full of coffee, grabbed some donuts, doubled checked that I had my pack, my chair, my blind, and decoys. Good to go, so I was off to the woods.
I have to add that this was the first time that I myself would be hunting out of a ground blind. I've tagged along with friends before who have used a blind and called for them, but this time I was behind the gun, so I was pretty pumped and eager to use my new ameristep brickhouse blind.
I got to my spot at 4:45am, parked on the road and unpacked my truck. The pasture where I was going to set up was about a mile away from the road. I tied the blind and seat to my packed, and shouldered my bag of decoys and gun. This was going to be a fun trek... By the time I got to my spot, I was sweating so bad I had to sit down and take a couple minute breather... I think I may have to invest in a pull cart for future outings. I set up my new blind in the middle of the pasture, set up B-Mobile and She Mobile and the swinging hen decoy 15 yards away from the blind, put on my black hat, black shirt, and turned my facemask inside out to the black side. I was ready for my first ground blind hunt at 5:15am, still pitch black out. Perfect.
I poured myself some coffee, sat back and enjoyed nature. It was dead calm out, perfect temperature, and I was so comfortable I almost fell asleep. I was really digging this blind hunting.
At 5:45 a vulture got off its roost and starting hissing, and about 100 yards in the timber a gobbler sounded off. I thought, "okay, cool...we might have a chance this morning". At about 6:15 it really started to get light out and I started out with my slate doing some soft tree yelps. Almost immediately a hen that was roosted about 50 yards behind me started cackling. I put in my mouth call and started cackling back at her. The gobbler I heard earlier started going off, and then the whole timber erupted with gobbles. I counted 7 different ones, but the first one I heard was still the closest. So, this hen and I are talking smack to eachother for about 10 minutes, until she had enough and flew down to my spread. She walked up to my swingin' hen and knocked the crap out of her with her wing, then ran off. The gobblers all continued to gobble until 6:30, and I heard them on the opposing ridge fly down the opposite way, but I didn't see or here the one fly down that was close. At 6:35 the gobbler that was 100 yards away on the roost let one last gobble go, and I saw his neck up in the tree. He them jumped out of the tree, and things were dead calm. I continued to cut, purr and yelp with the mouth calls, and nothing. No bird would gobble.
I checked my phone...6:45am. 5 minutes had gone by since I saw the gobbler jump out of the tree. I figured there were hens with them, so I decided to not call and wait them out, and hopefully pull in one later in the morning. So...I bent down to pour myself another cup of coffee, and got another donut. I lifted my head up and saw a big black shape at the end of the field: Strutting gobbler 80 yards away. He lifted his head up, saw my decoy spread, and completely hauled ass into my setup, first knocking the crap out of my She Mobile that I had in the mating position, then he hit B-Mobile with his wing and kicked him over. Now, all of my decoys were down! He continued to hit B-Mobile, stuck his head way in the air, and I let the BPS with 3" #6 Hevi-Shot roar. Feathers flew, bird didn't even flop. I had just killed my first ground blind turkey, and it was the end of the most exciting hunt I've ever had.
For one, this was my first ground blind hunt with me behind the gun, the first time I've shot a turkey on a field (I've shot a lot of turkeys, but I used to only use ambush tactics like running and gunning), and seeing all three of my decoys get the piss beat out of them was an awesome experience. I was rewarded with a great trophy turkey, my biggest to date...and all I can say is I'M PUMPED!!!! (If you couldn't tell from the long story and tone of the post) The turkey had a 1.5" right spur, and a 1 1/8" left spur. It would've been bigger but the tip was broken off from fighting. He was also missing a few tail feathers, so I'm guessing this big boy was the ruler of the roost and liked to fight. My dad and I are going out this afternoon to the same spot, hopefully all the other gobblers we heard will be done with their herems and we can tag another.
23.8lbs
1.5" right spur 1 1/8" left spur
10.5" beard
I have to add that this was the first time that I myself would be hunting out of a ground blind. I've tagged along with friends before who have used a blind and called for them, but this time I was behind the gun, so I was pretty pumped and eager to use my new ameristep brickhouse blind.
I got to my spot at 4:45am, parked on the road and unpacked my truck. The pasture where I was going to set up was about a mile away from the road. I tied the blind and seat to my packed, and shouldered my bag of decoys and gun. This was going to be a fun trek... By the time I got to my spot, I was sweating so bad I had to sit down and take a couple minute breather... I think I may have to invest in a pull cart for future outings. I set up my new blind in the middle of the pasture, set up B-Mobile and She Mobile and the swinging hen decoy 15 yards away from the blind, put on my black hat, black shirt, and turned my facemask inside out to the black side. I was ready for my first ground blind hunt at 5:15am, still pitch black out. Perfect.
I poured myself some coffee, sat back and enjoyed nature. It was dead calm out, perfect temperature, and I was so comfortable I almost fell asleep. I was really digging this blind hunting.
At 5:45 a vulture got off its roost and starting hissing, and about 100 yards in the timber a gobbler sounded off. I thought, "okay, cool...we might have a chance this morning". At about 6:15 it really started to get light out and I started out with my slate doing some soft tree yelps. Almost immediately a hen that was roosted about 50 yards behind me started cackling. I put in my mouth call and started cackling back at her. The gobbler I heard earlier started going off, and then the whole timber erupted with gobbles. I counted 7 different ones, but the first one I heard was still the closest. So, this hen and I are talking smack to eachother for about 10 minutes, until she had enough and flew down to my spread. She walked up to my swingin' hen and knocked the crap out of her with her wing, then ran off. The gobblers all continued to gobble until 6:30, and I heard them on the opposing ridge fly down the opposite way, but I didn't see or here the one fly down that was close. At 6:35 the gobbler that was 100 yards away on the roost let one last gobble go, and I saw his neck up in the tree. He them jumped out of the tree, and things were dead calm. I continued to cut, purr and yelp with the mouth calls, and nothing. No bird would gobble.
I checked my phone...6:45am. 5 minutes had gone by since I saw the gobbler jump out of the tree. I figured there were hens with them, so I decided to not call and wait them out, and hopefully pull in one later in the morning. So...I bent down to pour myself another cup of coffee, and got another donut. I lifted my head up and saw a big black shape at the end of the field: Strutting gobbler 80 yards away. He lifted his head up, saw my decoy spread, and completely hauled ass into my setup, first knocking the crap out of my She Mobile that I had in the mating position, then he hit B-Mobile with his wing and kicked him over. Now, all of my decoys were down! He continued to hit B-Mobile, stuck his head way in the air, and I let the BPS with 3" #6 Hevi-Shot roar. Feathers flew, bird didn't even flop. I had just killed my first ground blind turkey, and it was the end of the most exciting hunt I've ever had.
For one, this was my first ground blind hunt with me behind the gun, the first time I've shot a turkey on a field (I've shot a lot of turkeys, but I used to only use ambush tactics like running and gunning), and seeing all three of my decoys get the piss beat out of them was an awesome experience. I was rewarded with a great trophy turkey, my biggest to date...and all I can say is I'M PUMPED!!!! (If you couldn't tell from the long story and tone of the post) The turkey had a 1.5" right spur, and a 1 1/8" left spur. It would've been bigger but the tip was broken off from fighting. He was also missing a few tail feathers, so I'm guessing this big boy was the ruler of the roost and liked to fight. My dad and I are going out this afternoon to the same spot, hopefully all the other gobblers we heard will be done with their herems and we can tag another.
23.8lbs
1.5" right spur 1 1/8" left spur
10.5" beard
