| OpeningWeekend (pics) | Apr 8 (Video Clip) | Apr 25 Wild Turkeys Get Close (pics) | Apr 27 Do Decoys Really Work? (pics) | Apr 30 Broken Fan pics & hunt | May 6 Calling in a Tom (pic) | May 7 Hunt | May 9 Gobblers come to decoy & hunt. (pics) | May 10 Change in hunt strategy & pics | May 11 A Longbeard Comes In (pics) | May 12 Longbeard Returns & makes my day (pics) | 

A Wild Turkey Bowhunt In Progress

Opening Weekend
Saturday: One word accurately describes the opening day of our 2000 Spring Gobbler season. Rain! 

Wild Turkey Bowhunting 2002
Sunday: More rain. It slacked in mid afternoon and I took advantage of the quiet footing and skulked around. 100 yards from the Point I spotted 2 wild turkeys walking along in the dried range grass and brush. I closed the distance between us and got their pic, two Gobblers. Then I back trailed and found a place to put a ground blind. It was 3:00 and I'll be back asap, same time same station, with the blind and some decoys.

Wild Turkey Video Clip
Apr 8 - Here is the Short Video Clip I got today of a puffed up gobbler messing with a flock of turkeys.

Wild Turkeys Get Close
Apr 25 - Mid afternoon I slipped out to my ground blind near the Point and picked up a decoy I had left inside it. As I stuck my head outside I spied a small group of wild turkeys coming into my area. I ducked back inside and nocked ann arrow and started my camera. They came right in. Pics & More...

Do Wild Turkey Decoys Really Work?
April 27 - Today, as I slipped along in the cover on the way to my blind I heard gobbles in the area. I quickly set out two hen decoys, took this picture, and quietly entered the blind. In only 10 minutes I spotted a wild turkey walking through the nearby grass picking up tidbits to eat. It had not seen the decoys ... yet. But it did ... and here are the pictures and the hunt details.

Broken Fan Shows Off for The Toms (and us)!
April 30 - So far, almost every time I've gone out the wild turkeys were already in the general area. Today I went early so I could move the blind about 80 yards. I didn't hear any gobbles on the way to my blind. Once there, I folded up the blind, picked up the decoy bag and my bow, and walked to the new area. I set everything down and walked in a 30 yard circle to pick the best spot for the blind and the decoys. As I stood considering exactly how to arrange everything I saw something move in the nearby trees. I knelt down to cut my profile. MORE

May 6 - I slipped into my blind at 4:58 this afternoon. Both the decoys were out and I was good to go if a gobbler showed up. Gobbles sounded from several directions as it got later. At roughly 6:30 I called in response to a gobble that was close by. Without any hesitation the Tom came toward me, gobbling as he approached. He stopped 35 yards from the decoys and began making a soft call to them. Then he did something that every veteran turkey hunter has experienced, he hung up. Permanent. But I did get his picture!

May 7 - Today, before I got in the blind, I trimmed some limbs so I have better shooting opportunities in more directions. When that was done, I set out two decoys. As I was shoving the stake in the ground to anchor one decoy I heard the first gobble and quickly got in the blind. I heard more gobbles on three occasions and at 5:30 it sounded like one was on its way to the decoys. But nothing came within sight this afternoon.

May 9 - (Morning)  Through one of the shooting windows of my blind I spotted a coyote -- sneaking up on my turkey decoys. I reached down, picked up my camera, turned it on and panned in on the coyote. The sun must have glarred off the camera becuase it picked me up immediately and retreated to where it came from. 

BINGO! Will Gobblers Come To Decoys?
May 9 - (Afternoon)  Half an hour after I set up I heard gobbling, so I called on an aluminum slate call. When the gobbling stopped I quit calling. A fence line is directly ahead of me and 20 minutes after my last call I spotted gobblers walking parallel to the fence. They stopped and looked over my decoys for several minutes. I took this one picture, I didn't want to risk spooking them. There were 3 in all, and they walked out of view to my left. I waited, they were not spooky and I felt chances were good they would come pay the decoys a visit. I was right, here's the pics and what happened.

More Wild Turkey Action & Pics
May 10 - (Afternoon) To change the decoy scenario I set out 3 in a triangle and positioned them so they appeared to be looking at one other. It worked. A hen approached them and checked them out and I got pictures of it for ya.

Speaking Of Longbeards ...
May 11 (Afternoon): Back to Blind #1. Gobbles, gobbles and more gobbles, all afternoon. My first picture was a whitetail doe investigating the decoys. Early on, I saw a large turkey about 100 yards away, walking along a trail that runs parallel to my blind. My binoculars showed it to be a longbeard, mature bird. But there was no way it could see my decoys. I decided to do something about it, and it WORKED ...

Last Call for Gobblers!
May 12 - Four hours of silence! Not a single gobble and no more wild turkey sightings. I had stuff to do at 8:30 so at 7:35 I gathered up my fanny pack, binoculars, camera, bow and reached for the zipper that opens the blind.

Gobble! A close gobble too, definitely within 100 yards. I jammed my call in my mouth and clucked. The gobbler sounded off in the middle of my call. I called again and it did the same. (This is a good sign.) I pulled my gear off, nocked an arrow and sat in my chair. (No camera this time.) To The Hunt ...

Back To Where You Were: Wild Turkey Network or Bowhunting.Net