The gig was up for smilling Bob
southwind
4/21/11 2:13pm
6:30 a.m. I cross the Elk river to my favorite hay meadow for strutting action. The day before brought cold rain and 60 mph winds so roosting birds wasn't very effective. As the sky warmed the only gobbles and yelps were a distance away in the wrong wind direction but I am committed.
At 7 a.m. a lone hen appears and works her way my direction nervously feeding about 40 yards in front of me. My optimism raises but after thirty minutes starts to fade with no other birds showing themselves. Just as I believe my morning my be uneventful a tom breaks into the meadow with a thunderous gobble and his entourage.
After decades and piles of turkeys the sight and sounds of a strutting a tom still lights my fire. The birds got hung up in the middle of the field and I feared they might pass without a shot until the toms jake companion headed for the lone hen that had been feeding in front of me for some time. That sealed the deal on the fate of Bob as he crossed the 40 yard threshold I let a 3 1/2 magnum greet his romantic advances.
He sports a thick 10 1/"2 beard with a bonus 7" and 8" beard for a triple bearder. Spurs measure up right at a inch and while I processed the bird before having a scale he easily top the twenty pound mark. A great start to another turkey season.
http://i293.photobucket.com/albums/mm66/southwind_hunter/IMG_0313.jpg " alt="" />
http://i293.photobucket.com/albums/mm66/southwind_hunter/IMG_0316.jpg " alt="" />
At 7 a.m. a lone hen appears and works her way my direction nervously feeding about 40 yards in front of me. My optimism raises but after thirty minutes starts to fade with no other birds showing themselves. Just as I believe my morning my be uneventful a tom breaks into the meadow with a thunderous gobble and his entourage.
After decades and piles of turkeys the sight and sounds of a strutting a tom still lights my fire. The birds got hung up in the middle of the field and I feared they might pass without a shot until the toms jake companion headed for the lone hen that had been feeding in front of me for some time. That sealed the deal on the fate of Bob as he crossed the 40 yard threshold I let a 3 1/2 magnum greet his romantic advances.
He sports a thick 10 1/"2 beard with a bonus 7" and 8" beard for a triple bearder. Spurs measure up right at a inch and while I processed the bird before having a scale he easily top the twenty pound mark. A great start to another turkey season.
5,072
MuleyMadness
4/21/11 3:58pm
Wow tripple beard, didn't know it was possible. Congrats on a fine bird. :thumb
17
huntfishnv
4/22/11 11:59am
Very nice bird!
17
antler08
4/26/11 4:30pm
Very cool. I had one of those several years back when I lived in southern Missouri, nothin better than a multiple bearded bird. Congrats 10sign:
17
6x6 bull
5/9/11 6:51am
Great looking bird. Congrats!!! In your part of KS are the birds all eastern or rio or crosses? It seems where I hunt they are mostly crosses.
17