2006 Michigan turkey hunt
Keyman
12/27/06 12:33pm
Turkey Hunt – May 1, 2006
Opening day of the guaranteed hunt here in Michigan. Out of bed at 5:30 on a gray overcast day with a few sprinkles of rain in the air. Still pitch black when I headed out the door for my half mile walk to the roost I had scouted yesterday. I carefully picked my way through the stand of woods to the edge of the hayfield where I had to start a very stealthy stalk to the birds. As I eased along the hayfield tight to the overshadowing woods I could see the vague outline of 2 birds roosted in a big oak tree. Silently I slipped into position about 40 feet from their roost. I sat in tall grass with my feet on the edge of the alfalfa. Light brush gave me a screen on my back. I sat for about 5 minutes watching the birds in silence when the lower bird erupted into a loud gobble. My heart was pounding in my ears now. He gobbled again as the sky started to lighten in the east. I just about laughed when he tried to fan on the roost and almost fell. Another gobbler answered him somewhere in the trees behind me on the left. Suddenly a hen flew down almost directly over me and landed 15 feet in front of me in the field. As she slowly walked away from me the gobblers I was watching flew down to my left and landed just on the other side of a small rise…hidden from view. Another hen flew down and landed 8 feet away directly on my left. I tried to not even breath as she just stood there looking at me. I could hear other turkeys flying out of the woods and landing on my right but couldn’t even blink let alone turn my head to look. After what seemed like hours (actually about 2 or 3 minutes) the hen beside me started to walk away into the field – and suddenly alerted and ran putting away! I whirled to my right and saw a dozen turkeys – including a huge gobbler in full strut 20 yards away! He tried to come out of strut but my load of #4 shot dropped him on the spot! His beard measured 11”, he weighed in at just over 20 lbs, and had one spur 1 ¼” long with the other one broken off at ¾”. I proudly carried my trophy back home – and was back in time to fix my son’s breakfast before he left for school at 7:30. All in all a very memorable hunt even though it only lasted less than an hour!
Opening day of the guaranteed hunt here in Michigan. Out of bed at 5:30 on a gray overcast day with a few sprinkles of rain in the air. Still pitch black when I headed out the door for my half mile walk to the roost I had scouted yesterday. I carefully picked my way through the stand of woods to the edge of the hayfield where I had to start a very stealthy stalk to the birds. As I eased along the hayfield tight to the overshadowing woods I could see the vague outline of 2 birds roosted in a big oak tree. Silently I slipped into position about 40 feet from their roost. I sat in tall grass with my feet on the edge of the alfalfa. Light brush gave me a screen on my back. I sat for about 5 minutes watching the birds in silence when the lower bird erupted into a loud gobble. My heart was pounding in my ears now. He gobbled again as the sky started to lighten in the east. I just about laughed when he tried to fan on the roost and almost fell. Another gobbler answered him somewhere in the trees behind me on the left. Suddenly a hen flew down almost directly over me and landed 15 feet in front of me in the field. As she slowly walked away from me the gobblers I was watching flew down to my left and landed just on the other side of a small rise…hidden from view. Another hen flew down and landed 8 feet away directly on my left. I tried to not even breath as she just stood there looking at me. I could hear other turkeys flying out of the woods and landing on my right but couldn’t even blink let alone turn my head to look. After what seemed like hours (actually about 2 or 3 minutes) the hen beside me started to walk away into the field – and suddenly alerted and ran putting away! I whirled to my right and saw a dozen turkeys – including a huge gobbler in full strut 20 yards away! He tried to come out of strut but my load of #4 shot dropped him on the spot! His beard measured 11”, he weighed in at just over 20 lbs, and had one spur 1 ¼” long with the other one broken off at ¾”. I proudly carried my trophy back home – and was back in time to fix my son’s breakfast before he left for school at 7:30. All in all a very memorable hunt even though it only lasted less than an hour!
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Now where is the pics? :)