turkey tales

charlie cleveland · 05-12-2013, 05:50 PM

anybody out there got a new turkey tale to tell... charlie

Angel Cruz Ortiz · 05-12-2013, 07:24 PM

Charlie, my tale does not have a happy ending but I'll tell it anyway. This was back on March the 16th, opening day here in my part of Florida.
I met the guide at 6:30 and hopped on his boat. We were hunting a cypress swamp and boat was the best way to get there. We hit the shore around 7am and made our way inland. By that time the owls were hooting and the gobblers were going nuts. There had to be at least 6 toms in the group. We got to our spot and settled down. The guide made a few calls and the gobblers were going nuts. Never heard anything like it.
There was one that was louder than the others. My guide's been hunting this land for over 45 yrs and he knows Oceola turkeys. He told me that's the one we want. He figured that one tom did not have a mate and was trying to out call the other toms.
My guide made his last call around 8am at which time he told me that tom was gonna come in alone and silent just to keep my eyes open. He was not going to call again.
Sure enough around 10:30am he whispers "Shoot him". I don't see anything, all I see is high grass and bush. Again he says "shoot him" and again I say "where?" That time he tells me to my right but I still don't see anything. So I asked him to give me a "cluck" on his slate. he does and around 40 yards in front of me the most beautiful golden brown tail opens up in a fan and up pops a red head on a red neck. I was amazed, that turkey came in like a ghost.
I put the front bead just below the head and squeeze the front trigger, the gun goes off and I'll be danm if that turkey did'nt take off like a Harrier jet. Straight up and flapping for all he's worth. It took me a second to remember I had a second shell but when I shot I missed again. Man was I pissed.
And now I have to wait for october for another chance at a Florida Osceola.
Those are some pictures of the lake I took on the way out. When we when in it was still dark and we got there with out lights. This boy really knows his swamp.

Mills · 05-12-2013, 07:41 PM

What a story Angel! Sounds like a lot of fun, even if you did not get anything. Our season is coming to a close here in Georgia. It is already too hot to hunt. Some friends went yesterday and got eaten alive by bugs.

charlie cleveland · 05-12-2013, 11:18 PM

angel that storey really got me fired up but at the end i had to laugh..almost the same thing happened to me about 20 years ago i had 3 toms a gobbling and strutting at 40 yards i had swam a creek and low crawled 40 yards through a briar patch those turkeys were so caught up in there act of trying to out show one another that i got up to with in ten yards of the biggest gobbler..i rasies the ithaca auto 10 took a good bead on the head pulled the trigger and after i regained my composure after the shot that turkey was in the air and on the wing..the other turkeys flew before i could get a bead on them..the turkey i shot at landed in a big pine at about 100 yards that big bird started gobbleing as though nothing happened i walked to that tree and thought i was close enough to kill that turkey i shot and out he flew fired to more shots and never cut a feather..believe it or not them two other gobblers were gobbleing at my call after i had missed the big boy but they were safe across a big slash that was mighty deep..they never came to my call s but they were still gobbleing as i left the woods..never before or after have i had so much gobbleing on a hunt.... charlie

Dean Romig · 05-12-2013, 11:23 PM

My hunt continues in a mad 9 hour (7pm to 4am) dash to Ohio Thursday night to hunt cousin Tim's farm. He tells me there are some good ones around this year. He took a 26 pounder there last spring.

Here's Tim's big 'un.

.

charlie cleveland · 05-13-2013, 10:38 AM

thats a fine bird indeed...hope you get one dean...stay awake during that long night drive... charlie

Angel Cruz Ortiz · 05-13-2013, 11:17 AM

What are you using for the hunt Dean??

Harold Pickens · 05-13-2013, 11:19 AM

Dean, where in Ohio do you go to hunt turkeys. I have 170 acres in the hill country of eastern Ohio. I got up Sat morning but it was raining cats and dogs, so I went back to bed until 6:30 and while I was drinking coffee, a jake came thru the yard and stood in front of the picture window for over an hour. My wife said I should go out and get it, but I said that would be bushwakin' not hunting---I got a nice one the week before on the farm.

Dean Romig · 05-13-2013, 01:22 PM

Kathy and I will drive in two or three hour shifts and we'll time it so that I sleep for the last stint before we arrive at Tim's place.... that way there is less chance of me falling asleep while I need to be hunting.

Tim lives in Jefferson which is pretty close to the PA border and maybe 40 miles south of Lake Erie.
I'll bring the 10 ga lifter that I shot my VT gobbler with and I'll also bring my 12 ga DH 30 F/F.

That's quite true... bushwhacking them is not at all like being out there interacting with the turkeys and trying to lure a wise old gobbler to you with some sweet-talkin' promises.

Bill Murphy · 05-13-2013, 05:28 PM

My "Thanks" for the last two posts are because of my feeling about bushwhacking. I won't even whack a groundhog any more. You must get out and hunt. Of course, after 39 years in my present home, I have been tempted a few times to "whack" a goose that flies within .410 range of the roof of the house. I haven't done it yet.