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My hunting partner, Tim Johnson, and
I decided to work the back field edge
near a thin strip of woods which always
held roosting gobblers early in the season.
In years past, these birds generally moved
back into the woods as the season progressed,
likely due to hunting pressure. So this
might be our last chance at them. Just
as it started getting light, sure enough,
a gobbler began gobbling. We were about
90 yards from him, so we sat down and
set up on the edge of the field, with
the woods behind us.
This bird just pounded it from the roost
for maybe 20 minutes, then he was quiet.
It had become a bit lighter, so we knew
he was on the ground. Suddenly, a lone
hen passed in front of us, feeding through
the field, and heading in the direction
of the gobbler. The gobbler comes out
into the field with several other hens
in tow, and meets up with the single hen.
At this point, all of the birds are about
125 yards from us, and the gobbler starts
to do to that hen what gobblers live for
in the spring. She gets up, ruffles her
feathers, and the flock begins moving
through the plowed area and toward our
position.
All the way, the boss is strutting, not
a care in the world. I get turned towards
them, in a very uncomfortable position
almost laying on my back. I'm thinking
that if he gets into the planted section
of this field, he's in range. So I line
up my 12 gauge, 3"- #5's with the 1 3/4
power scope and wait. Slowly he makes
his way to the plantings, all of the hens
are clear, and I take the shot. The gobbler
goes down hard, and Tim and I are surprised
to find out the distance steps off at
60 yards! I'm glad to have set up my gun
with a custom fitted Hastings turkey tube.
It did the job out to a range that surprised
me. Even after taking a longbeard in 2000
at 53 yards. The scope really helps to
center the pattern.
We took the bird to the truck, and hunted
the other side of the farm. I was prospecting
with my Steve Mann butternut boat paddle,
and proceeded to call in a group of three
jakes for Tim. These youngsters came in
from about 150 yards, and almost ran us
over looking for that hot and raspy hen!
Looking for a longbeard, Tim let them
walk.
Great day in the spring turkey woods!
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