Buck Hollow Sporting Goods - click or touch to visit their website Midwest Habitat Company

Opening morning double with the old man

AIRASSAULT

PMA Member
Opening morning double with the old man (STORY ADDED)

My old man and I hit the woods this morning in the 40+ mph wind gusts and it couldn't have worked out better.

Here is a pic for now with the stats and I will upload more pics and story tonight!

Dads bird: 21 lbs
10.5" beard
1.375" spurs

My bird: 27.3 lbs
11.5" beard
1.125" spurs

I grew up hunting with my dad. He called in my first two gobblers on public land when I was 13 and 14; I've been hooked ever since. We haven't really hunted all that much during turkey season together lately because of different obligations such as work and other time constraints, however, this year I really wanted to try to get a "TRUE" double (two simultaneous shots). It didn't quite work out that way, but, the way it turned out made it even a little more enjoyable.
I've been hunting this particular section for probably the last 8 or 10 years and it has miles of riverbottom, but, the mature Jellyhead's always seem to roost in a little 10-20 acre patch of woods. This morning, just like every morning I go down there, we walked the same path. I've got this trail nailed down to a science that I can get into the center of all the action and have groups of roost trees all around me with out jumping a bird. We have to walk about a half mile to get to this spot across a large field and then once we hit the edge of the woods, it makes a 15 foot drop down into the bottom. We set up where I thought we would have our best open clearing at a double and as it got a little lighter, we soon realized that there was a little too much brush in the way. The turkeys were actually gobbling pretty well this morning regardless of the high winds. We got to within 100 yards or so of where they were roosted and eventually the first bird flew down. There was one other tom with him in the roost, but, we still don't know what happened to him. The bird that flew down, strutted a little out of range and with a few short yelps, we coaxed him. Being that it was a lone tom coming in, I told dad he could have the first shot of the morning when he got a chance. He let the 870 bark and dropped him in his tracks. I admit, I was pretty jealous of his bird when we got up to him and he had 1 3/8" spurs. THIS SPOT ALWAYS PRODUCES!! We got him tagged and while dad was putting the gobbler in his vest, I snuck up the high bank to peak out into the field to see if anything was out there; Nada.
There is a draw of trees that goes out into the field quite a ways and almost splits the field in half, so, we snuck around to the other side and peaked out and low and behold, every hunters dream, a LONE TOM. The bad thing was, this tom was over 200 yards away, upwind with 26 mph sustained winds and 40 mph gusts. Good thing dad talked me into bringing the slate call, because I don't know if my mouth call would have had the power to penetrate that far. I immediately sat next to a 6 inch tree along the field and made a cut sequence on the slate. This bird didn't waste any time reacting. There was a fence in-between us and the bird and he paced back and forth along it for a minute or two and finally jumped it. He came all the way across that field gobbling several times. I can still see his long beard whipping in the wind and about slapping himself in the face. I let the bird come into about 40 yards and I had to shoot before he got behind some brush on the edge of the field to my right. He folded up and the celebration began. It all happened with in an hour of eachother. It was a great experience and I couldn't be happier. I feel very fortunate to have a father that can tag along like a best friend.


582671_10150749503664609_500039608_9067595_24968207_n.jpg


461092_10150750139964609_500039608_9070154_1476733905_o.jpg


458104_10150750141349609_500039608_9070159_1294278108_o.jpg
 
Last edited:
Nice work, Bill! Good to see your old man still showing you how its done! :grin:

Congrats to you both!
 
  • Deleted by N/A
Show…
Top Bottom