Spring is here

[Bob Hayes]

Getting ready for osceola turkey season.Just picked up some trail cams yesterday and birds are right on schedule.Looks like it will be a good season.Had birds on all cams and but got a lot of standing water right now.Won't hurt the birds just limit where we hunt.

[Bill Anderson]

Turkey hunting, my favorite! I even hunted southern Florida, around Palm Beach on huge management areas (50,000 to 100,000 acres), for five years from 1999 to 2004, but the heat and the sand finally got to me so I swapped out Florida hunting for southern Tennessee, near Pulaski, which I hunted for seven years. Their season starts a month later, but the temperature and terrain more to my liking.

Bill

[Bob Hayes]

Yeah it can be hot here but usually nice temps through spring.All though last year it got hot.But this looks like its going to be perfect this year.

[Bill Anderson]

Yeah it can be hot here but usually nice temps through spring.All though last year it got hot.But this looks like its going to be perfect this year.

Every year I came down it went to 85 to 90 or a bit higher, first week in March. Friends I made there said I brought the heat with me. :rotf:

Bill

[Bill Anderson]

bye

[Bill Anderson]

Here is where the turkeys have been, but I don't have a trail camera set up on them yet.

http://i1276.photobucket.com/albums/y480/TommyGunsNo1/turkey%20at%20feeder%20Feb%201%202015_zpswyyqv4k8. jpg (http://s1276.photobucket.com/user/TommyGunsNo1/media/turkey%20at%20feeder%20Feb%201%202015_zpswyyqv4k8. jpg.html)

Bill

[Dennis E. Jones]

It's spring here also. I'm looking out the window at snow flakes coming down that are the size of a quarter dollar. Turkey season starts mid April we may be able to get into the woods by then.

[Robin Lewis]

Yep spring is just around the corner.

[Bob Hayes]

Well we did have to endure a few freezes this year.Got all the way down to 30 degree's for a couple hours several mornings.
Actually it can get cold here but hasn't in a few years.

[charlie cleveland]

turkey hunting is my favorite sport too...we had a fair hatch last fall..i ve been seeing a few turkeys in places i m hopeing that saturday i can do some scouting..good pictures everyone...charlie

[davidboyles]

One of my favorite outings will start in tx late March good hatch have lined up 5 different spots to hunt this year. Actually fromy last PP article we have some already in our new backyard but we don't hunt them. Good luck to you go get them "Long Beards"

[Bill Anderson]

Yep! Spring is here for sure. 2nd snow of the winter, about 8-9", came on Feb 16 and gone on Feb. 21. Great winter for our turkeys. Flock of 28 hens & poults hanging around the feeder. Seperate flock of eight Gobblers also. I'll be out just about every morning soon. Here are a few pictures out of many.

http://i1276.photobucket.com/albums/y480/TommyGunsNo1/Gobblers%20%2002-19-16_zpsvzxpi0bf.jpg (http://s1276.photobucket.com/user/TommyGunsNo1/media/Gobblers%20%2002-19-16_zpsvzxpi0bf.jpg.html)

http://i1276.photobucket.com/albums/y480/TommyGunsNo1/Hens%2002-21-16_zpsrfggmopg.jpg (http://s1276.photobucket.com/user/TommyGunsNo1/media/Hens%2002-21-16_zpsrfggmopg.jpg.html)

http://i1276.photobucket.com/albums/y480/TommyGunsNo1/Nice%20Gobblers%2002-19-16_zpsgpxrflfj.jpg (http://s1276.photobucket.com/user/TommyGunsNo1/media/Nice%20Gobblers%2002-19-16_zpsgpxrflfj.jpg.html)

http://i1276.photobucket.com/albums/y480/TommyGunsNo1/Struttin%20Gobbler%2002-20-16_zps6mqgxngn.jpg (http://s1276.photobucket.com/user/TommyGunsNo1/media/Struttin%20Gobbler%2002-20-16_zps6mqgxngn.jpg.html)

http://i1276.photobucket.com/albums/y480/TommyGunsNo1/Bearded%20Hen%2002-19-16_zpsdxidk4yi.jpg (http://s1276.photobucket.com/user/TommyGunsNo1/media/Bearded%20Hen%2002-19-16_zpsdxidk4yi.jpg.html)

Can hardly wait! :)
Bill

Yikes !! Might have a coon problem, too!

http://i1276.photobucket.com/albums/y480/TommyGunsNo1/Coons%2002-21-16_zpssdhkknj8.jpg (http://s1276.photobucket.com/user/TommyGunsNo1/media/Coons%2002-21-16_zpssdhkknj8.jpg.html)

[Bob Hayes]

Always get a kick when I see turkeys up north in winter coats.Looks like their plumage is so bulky.Birds down here look so lean with tight pattern to the feathers.Obviously temps are the difference but still get a kick out of it.
Stand by I'll have some more recent pics tomorrow some time.

[charlie cleveland]

great pictures that one gobbler is sure sprouting a nice beard...charlie

[Bob Hayes]

Well its progressing nicely down here,if it will ever stop raining.But birds don't seem to mind.Flocks are still large but more strutting and gobbling.Sounded like a symphony this morning.

[charlie cleveland]

nice group of turkeys i love to hear them gobbling and listen to a flock of jakes....charlie

[Bob Hayes]

One of my favorite times of year.Florida is awesome this time of year with our normal weather but when is anything normal anymore.
This morning the birds around the lodge were sounding off repeatedly till about 730am almost a solid hour of gobbling in all directions.
Good luck to everyone this coming season.

[Gary Laudermilch]

Spring means turkeys to some and to others it means dogwork. Just checked the RGS site to see if the woodcock have left the deep south. Yep, they departed a week ago and one has made it to sw PA already. Time to get the collars and bells out for some real spring action.

Have fun turkey hunting but I'll be listening to the music of dog bells running the spring woodcock flight.

[Mike Koneski]

Gary, clients were here this past week from the Quakertown area and they said their dogs got into woodcock last week during their daily walks. They should make there way up near us in the next week or so. I have my eyes peeled.

[Jeff Kuss]

We have been hearing and seeing Sand Hill Cranes in the area for the past 10 days.

[Mike Koneski]

THOUSANDS of snows have been passing by this week. All heading North. A huge flock of Red Winged Black Birds arrived on Monday. I've been seeing grouse in our habitat work too. Even the turkeys are gobbling!! We are turning the corner!! :clap:

[Dean Romig]

The male Canadas are fighting all the time now here on the Shawsheen Flats.

It won't be long before we start hearing spring peepers and male woodcock at dusk in the maple swamps and meadows along river.





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[Greg Baehman]

. . . and here in Northcentral Wisconsin the Pine Siskins are emptying the thistle seed feeder in a day, small flocks of Snow Buntings are flitting about in the countryside and there are reports of Snowy Owls plying their trade in the area . . . Spring hasn't sprung for us just yet.

[wayne goerres]

I saw a snake dead in the road Monday here in Ga.

[Bob Hayes]

Last monday I was quail hunting with a regular client and we noticed hundreds of sandhill cranes which winter here in Florida circling getting lift on thermals.They were noisy as always but when they got to well over 1000 ft probably more they got into v formation and headed north.We watched probably 15 flocks do the same thing.I had never noticed that before but made note of it in the log book for sure.
Beautiful day and good quail hunt with nature at her best.Now its nice and quite on the ranch.

[John Cinkoske]

We've heard and seen flocks of Sandhills over North Central Indiana for a month or so. Saw Redwing Blackbirds, Turkey Vultures and Kildeer here in the last three days. C'mon, SPRING! :rotf:

[Bob Hayes]

The vultures are another seasonal resident here.Fall and winter have great numbers of them here.Late spring and summer the population dwindles.But I have never noticed a concentration of them.

[Bob Hayes]

Well got off to good start with lots of birds,gobbling,hens cutting and yelping.Then came the shot and it all went south from there.Looked like a good shot but suspect it was higher than thought.Anyhow bird recovered and ran off.Now we were bow hunting and shot was about 15yds.So back at it tomorrow and hope to change our luck.
Here is the bird just before the shot

[Bob Hayes]

At it again and same result with two birds at 12yds but no shot.Birds would not stop moving.Archery can be very frustrating.

[Daniel G Rainey]

Great Pictures. But, are the turkeys being called or decoyed ? Am interested in your snipe hunts they sound like lots of fun.

[Bob Hayes]

Both those pictures are flocks of at least 35 birds.Obviously not all of them are in the pics.I'll call and get the hens attention and hopefully make her mad and she'll bring the flock.Once hens mingle with the jake decoy gobbler usually rushes up to it.So yes and yes to the question.

[Bob Hayes]

Well we finally got a bird down after a rollercoaster ride in the 1st 5 days of the season.Birds everywhere with plenty of opportunity and bad shots.
Tracy from WV was the first though to put a bird on the ground.Got it all on video and she now has her first osceola.She didn't use a sis but she did use a weapon closer to heart than those new fangled autoloaders.Her bird was taken with a single shot H&R 12ga with a 3" shell.Really put a wallop on the bird and her shoulder.But like she said she only has to shoot it once.
Here is her pic and one of us taking a few photo's.Right after the shot a big tom bobcat walked right where the turkeys approached from.Just minutes separated the two.

[charlie cleveland]

good bird tracey lots of turkeys have been killed with single shotguns in fact i will try my luck with the 8 ga davenport sometime this season....ya ll sure got a purty place to hunt....charlie

[Bill Anderson]

One of my many favorite turkey guns is single barrel 28 gauge, good to 40 yards.

Bill

[Dean Romig]

Who makes that gun Bill?





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[Bill Anderson]

[QUOTE=Dean Romig;190533]Who makes that gun Bill?

It is a Remington 1893 B grade.

[Richard Flanders]

It be spring all right. There was a strutting ruffie staking out the area in front of my deck yesterday afternoon just before dark. He was doing his best to make understand just what was what around here....

[Bob Hayes]

Took a beautiful bird today with a young lady(11yrs old).Got great video of the hunt and awesome memories.She performed like a season veteran.In fact the girls this season are in the lead.Bird had 1 1/4"spurs,10"beard and was 20lbs..

[Bob Hayes]

Sorry for the non parker post but the young girl had such a good day I thought I would share her joy.Promise to get a bird down with a parker before the end of season.

[Bob Hayes]

Well its been a long season and its not over yet.But south zone is closed now and I got a chance to try my vh out on a turkey.Birds started out red hot this morning like it was March 5th(opener)all over again.There was at least 4 gobblers in ear shot and all were gobbling.Hens were vocal also and jakes were running around like it was spring break.
Anyhow one then 2 gobblers entered my corner of the pasture and it was 30 mins of sweet talk and whispers.Then finally what I've been waiting for all season.The vh 12ga barked and down went the gobbler.I used a 2 3/4 high brass #6 pheasant load with 1oz of lead.
Patterned them a couple of weeks ago and was very impressed with the patterns at 30 yds.
So bird got to 30yds and the parker let him have it.I think I have a new turkey.gun.
Good luck to all

[John Cinkoske]

This being Indiana, last week as I left for work in the dark, it was snowing, but frogs were peeping just West of the house at the same time. Some crazy mixed-up weather we're having this year!

[charlie cleveland]

it s crazy in the south to been wanting to plant a little corn but its been raining every time the ground gets dry...charlie

[davidboyles]

Charlie thanks for sharing plenty of Turkey in Texas I have bagged 3 so far one with my growing up with Fox 16 another with DH 12 Damascus and one with C Fox 1910 12 gauge 1910 vintage all I mouth called to within 10 yds either they are dumber or I'm getting better! We get 4 tags each year!😀😀😀

[Dean Romig]

Nice work David!





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[MARK KIRCHER]

Spring Turkey – coming down the trail to my house

This guy was the big boy in a group of 14 – He actually rushed my truck when I creeped up on them.

https://youtu.be/OmSgOmHSU0c

[Rick Losey]

nice Mark- seasons a long way off and he knows it

BTW - your " ice hunt afterward" video started up right after that- Macallan really likes Craig's calling, he was laying on the floor and came right over and put his chin on the keyboard to listen

[charlie cleveland]

heh david thats a good storey for sure..i too hunt with differant guns about every trip out...you have had amazing good luck or else like you said you have got really good...we are allowed only 3 turkeys per year in my county but in some counties of mississippi in the fall hunts more can be taken....hope you get that 4 th bird...what kind of load were you useing ....charlie

[Bob Hayes]

Season has been over for a month but gobblers and hens still carrying on down here.Gobbler even bred one this morning

[Bob Hayes]

Try again