BOWHUNT FOR THE FLORIDA OSCEOLA
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Day 5 - A Change In The Weather

Overcast and in the low 50's ... for a change. I heard something very faint in my Pro Ears and turned the volume up slightly. Yes, the sound was distant gobbles. As dawn approached I called and waited, hoping for a repeat of yesterday morning meeting with the slunger longbeard. No more gobbles sounded after daylight.

Movement in the edge of the trees 300 yards away caught my attention and my binoculars caught the monster longbeard as he came out of the trees and palmettos and turned right at the woods edge. Three other lesser gobblers were behind him. I called but they had something in mind already and never missed a step.

At 10:30 I saw them again, walking along the same wood's edge, but going the opposite way. I called with the Woodhaven cherry slate and they advanced to 150 yards. The longbeard slunger was hard to see in the cypress knees. (See below.)

I zoomed in full zoom so you could see where he was. He stayed there over 40 minutes and then just wasn't there when I looked to check on him.

At noon I drove back to David Mills house and we went to lunch at Rooster's restaurant in Zolpho Springs. By 2:00 I was back in the blind. In an hour the clouds busted wide open rain poured down. I had my backpack with me and took out my laptop and went to work.

Surprise! At 4:26 a turkey walked into view in my window. It was a hen and it investigated my jake decoy. I sat my laptop down on the ground.

It walked out in front of the jake and looked around.

The hen showed no interest in my hen decoy, only the jake. It hung out around the jake until the daylight first started to fade. As it walked away I picked up my laptop and, oh oh, the screen was dark and the colors were not right. Water had dripped on it from a spot in the roof.

Daylight was still left when it stopped raining and I moved the blind 100 yards closer to where I had last seen the slunger longbeard.

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In Florida we are hunting with David Mills of Zolfo Springs, Florida in Central Florida's Osceola wild turkey country. David is an immediately likable guy and makes you feel at home from the get go.  David has thousands of acres available to hunt Florida Osceolas. He understands this unique species of wild turkey and knows his extensive area like the preverbal back of his hand. David is now part of the Woodhaven Sting Team and is hosting them on this hunt. To contact David about Osceola hunts, bow or shotgun, phone 1-863-990-9087.

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