Turkey Hunting
Update from Turkey Camp.
Well, it was a good fresh start. It wasn’t going to last. I bagged that gob on Friday. Friday evening, my wife and sons showed up. We were treated to a bunch of hens and a mature gobbler out in the pasture just before sundown. The didn’t much mind us; their closest approach was 150 yards. The gobbler did not seem to have his heart in it– he strutted once, and then spent the rest of his time feeding. That was sort of how Saturday was. I took Angus back to the same spot as the day before. The same … More . . .
Double Beard with a Double Barrel
I was feeling a might heavy when I went out this morning. The birds have just not been cooperating lately. It’s coming to the end of the first week. I’d stayed home Monday and Tuesday due to rain. Wednesday the wind had gotten outrageous, and it was promising to blow big time again. The kids were coming for the weekend. Once they arrived, I’d be devoting my energies to calling in birds for them. Besides, the crunch is on. I’m a Pro-Staffer now. I have the reputations of a magazine and a call company to hold up. Try telling that … More . . .
A Fresh Start
I was feeling a might heavy when I went out this morning. The birds have just not been cooperating lately. It’s coming to the end of the first week. I’d stayed home Monday and Tuesday due to rain. Wednesday the wind had gotten outrageous, and it was promising to blow big time again. The kids were coming for the weekend. Once they arrived, I’d be devoting my energies to calling in birds for them. Besides, the crunch is on. I’m a Pro-Staffer now. I have the reputations of a magazine and a call company to hold up. Try telling that … More . . .
I Made it to Camp
I finally made it to Turkey Camp. It was 62F outside and 50F inside, so I turned on the attic fan, opened the windows and came out on the front porch. I was met with two hens out in the far pasture, so I grabbed the binos and started glassing. They’re coming and going out of the tree line. While I was waiting to see them again, I set up the laptop on the shooting bench, put up the string between the tin cans and tried to get a signal and here I am. The kids don’t show until tomorrow … More . . .
An Anonymous Acolyte and Mister Remmy
I received the following comment the other day regarding my “Bubba’d-up” Mossy: Anonymous said… Inspirational. That’s what your ministry has done for me. I too had a sticky-tape camo job on my Rem 870 home brew turkey gun. Since I am the President of the “Order of the Blue Snood” here in Washington State, I felt it was time to give ol’ Mister Remmy a makeover. A visit to the local Fred Meyer store and $28 bucks later I was spraying my way to the coolest do-it-yourself bubba gun I’ve ever done. (OK, it was only my second.) I will … More . . .
Yute Hunt 2009 — Angus Counts Coup
Angus and I went this morning for Day 2 of the KY Yute Season. Angus was armed with his 20 GA Mossberg bolt action. He was shooting Federal #4’s. We spent another morning like Saturday, with a bunch of half-hearted gobblers barely paying us any mind before fading off. Like Saturday, we packed up around 0900 and moved to another part of the farm, with the intention of looking for gobblers that might be starting to heat up. We tried a few spots, nothing paid off and the sun was getting high enough that a mid-morning nap seemed to be … More . . .
A Letter from Brian Lovett
From: Brian Lovett, Editor Turkey & Turkey Hunting Hi William: Welcome to the Turkey & Turkey Hunting Web Pro Staff! You have been selected to be an inaugural member. The purpose of this Pro Staff is to highlight our most loyal and serious customers. We will expand the staff in the months to come, but we want to limit its membership to only a handful of participants for each state. Although inclusion in the Pro Staff is a voluntary and honorary appointment, we will periodically reward staff members who are most active on the Web site. Most members have already … More . . .
Bubba Paints His Turkey Gun
Whenever you start talking to gun snobs, every little thing a normal person does to their gun is a “Bubba Job.” The definition, as I have been able to refine it is 1)n: any modification to a firearm that the perpetrator did not know how do when he started. 2)n: any deliberate modification to a firearm that detracts from its resale value 3)vt: To Bubba a firearm is to make such modification as described above. I personally have no qualms about doing a Bubba Job on a firearm. I have taken a belt sander to the cheek piece of my … More . . .
Turkeys in the Rain
I have to be honest. I have done very little turkey hunting in the rain in recent years. A lot of it had to do with the camo job I did on my turkey gun. It had a fabric tape on the barrel, and I did not want moisture getting in underneath and rusting the barrel. A lot of the reason was that the house is no more than a half mile from the furthest extent of my property. If it rained, I could hole-up inside the house and wait for it to let up. I am a big fan … More . . .
Teaching a Mouth Call to a Young’n
From Tinker at Turkey and Turkey Hunting Forum . . . Would like to know what learning experience a novice can actually get from a mentor concerning running a mouth call. My mentor was probably as good as I ever heard, but couldn’t coach me a whole lot in how to use the diaphram. It took me 2 yrs. of practice to master most of the calls on my own. He had a low tolerance for my “sqawking” and couldn’t relate the basics of tongue position and pressure, how the air should be run over the call, etc. During my … More . . .
Shamanic Turkey Hunting Tips
Here’s some random turkey hunting tips The cold: I carry an extra set of socks when it’s cold. Between what’s coming through the shoe and what’s coming over the top from all the cold dew on the grass, my feet get wet. Along about 9-10 AM , after the dew’s dried out, I change socks. It makes the walk home much nicer. When it gets real cold, I throw a handwarmer in the front pocket of my bibs. It heats my chest, which heats the blood going to the heart/lungs. It’s like a hot water heating system. Calls: A dab … More . . .
Quaker Boy Forums
Calling all Turkey Hunters! You know that when the ol’ shaman tells you about something, he means it. It’s been over 20 years since a man from Quaker Boy put a Grand Old Master box call in my hand and told me to go out and try turkey hunting. A few weeks later, I was standing atop a brushpile in Hocking Hills waiting for the sun to come up and I cranked out a yelp and had a gobbler answer back. I was hooked, and still to this day Quaker Boy calls take up a good deal of space in … More . . .
Who coined the silly term "hung up" ?
From Turkey and Turkey Hunting: ORIGINAL: TurkeyComander Who coined the silly term “hung up” ? I really don’t think it’s silly, but I do think it is oftentimes a solvable state. At least it is something that was in your control at some point. It certainly is not a disease. If nothing else it is a ready excuse for the uninitiated (“I dunno, the gobbler just got hung up!”) Let’s look at the basic idea of a hung-up gobbler. A gobbler is on his way to you and at some point he just stops coming. He’ll honor calls, but he … More . . .
Winter Tonic
For the first time in several years, I braved a mid-winter trip to turkey camp over the weekend. Some years we have been blocked for three months getting there. Last year it was a snow and ice storm that kept us bottled up from VD until the second weekend in March. I have to tell you that there is just no better feeling than opening up camp, and finding it for the most part untouched and unchanged. The big treat Sunday night was listening to lots of wing beats as the flock that inhabits the woods behind the house came … More . . .
On the use of Turkey Decoys and Going Old School
From Turkey and Turkey Hunting — Not as Sporting…Are You Serious??? The Turkey Hunter at the Vegetorium Some of y’all remind me of the stories a buddy of mine used to tell. He was a cook at a vegetarian restaurant/store up near the University of Cincinnati. He used to listen to the various veggie-heads all day and had some pretty funny tales. He said that there was a macho-ethic going on with the grazers, and it would always seem to escalate into a one-upping sort thing: “I’m an ovo-lacto.” (If I remember, that meant just eggs and milk) “I’m just … More . . .
Honey Holes and Structure Hunting
I’ve got a few spots on my 200 acre farm which are good spots for hunting turkeys. You can be fairly sure that if you’re there and you wait long enough, eventually a flock will come through. A lot of what you learn from bass fishing and deer hunting applies to turkeys: Find the roost. Find the food. Hunt the likely path between the two. I have had expert turkey hunters, men I respect, tell me that there is no such thing as a “Honey Hole” for turkeys. I have to disagree. There are only going to be a few … More . . .
Cell phones in the Turkey Woods
It was only a couple of years ago that my phone was anything but useless out at camp. The Verizon map still says that we should not get a signal, and down in the hollers, I would agree. However, up on top of the ridges, we get a fair number of bars. In fact, I can now take the laptop out with me if I want to. The air card works just fine. I doubt I will. This is a cautionary tale. Normally, I do not leave the cell phone on, but I take it with me. I am fifty. … More . . .
Old School I am Not
Lately I have been exposed to a set of attitudes that really sort set me back on my heels. I guess these attitudes have been out there for quite a while. I just had not seen them. I don’t get off my ridge that much. For want of a better term I will call these “Old School” turkey hunting attitudes. The general gist of this is that only certain turkey hunting practices are okay, and that these practices are a subset of what is legal in most states. I really did not know what I was being called last year … More . . .
Traditional Turkey Hunting Season
I want to start a petition around. It is going to be in favor of a resolution to the state legislature to incorporate a Traditional Methods Turkey Season into the Schedule. Black Powder Shotguns of up to #4 Gauge will be allowed Breech loading rifles will be allowed with straight-necked cases up to 50 cal. Muzzleloading rifles of any caliber will be allowed. Shot of any size, gravel, and roofing nails will also be allowed as ammunition in the muzzleloading weapons. No camo will be allowed. Hunters must hunt in an old suit with the elbows mended. Mouth calls cannot … More . . .
Tipping Point
It is a state of mind. You wake up one morning, and you are no longer a deer hunter with a full freezer, remembering the season just ended. You look out the window at the cold dawn and realize that you are a turkey hunter and have about a hundred days to the start of season. Usually this happens sometime during the NFL Playoffs for me. Somebody gets caught in a ridiculous blow-out and I get bored watching the slaughter and go to turn off the set. An unplayed DVD catches my eye, or I go outside to catch some … More . . .
The Season So Far
I have had a moderate season. For everything that has gone right, there has been something else impinging on it. As things go, last year was the best year for us ever– just about anything would have been a let down. For starters, the big influences on our hunting this year were: 1) Hurricane Ike 2) The Drought I’m not going to say it was going to be a banner year for acorns without Ike. This was our second year of drought. However, we have had extraordinarily good luck with acorns in 2006 and 2007, and this year was flat. … More . . .
Angus Bags a Bird
“I always thought it was hard killing a turkey,” said Angus. “But then there it was, and it was all over.” That was Sunday morning. We had gone back to the place he had shot his first turkey last evening. He had a squirrel already in his bag, and the sun was barely up. He was on a roll. Angus, Moose, and I had come down to enjoy the two-week bye between Kentucky deer seasons. Angus, 10, had taken his first deer during the Kentucky Yute season. Moose, 16, had gone out alone for his first deer hunt the next … More . . .
Turkey Hunt Ends — One last humiliation
It’s over. Angus and I came out of the woods around 10, but not before giving a long look over last year’s food plot, and off into the forest filled with dogwood and redbud, and wishing that the season would go on forever. We took the long way back, walking through the woods instead of going back through the pasture– one more time in the Spring woods before hanging it up. The weekend was not without its treasures. On Saturday I got a humiliation at the hands of a gobbler. From 0400 to 0830 we had pouring rain and 15 … More . . .
Losing Stuff — Requiem for a Hat Pt II
From the Heirloom Turkey Call Forum Re: Losing Stuff — Requiem for a Hat Postby Brian on Sat May 10, 2008 1:29 pm Just a quik update in Bill’s losses. His call has been replaced or will be shortly. As soon as he gets his mail in the next day or so. AND they have told me that the forgetfullness will come and go, I just can’t rememebr where it goes to or I’d send it back myself….LOL Brian Warner Heirloom Turkey Calls http://www.heirloomturkeycalls.com Haughton, Louisiana 318-949-9008 Brian __________________________________________________ Re: Losing Stuff — Requiem for a Hat Postby Toby Benoit … More . . .
Losing Stuff — Requiem for a Hat
I was asked to join the pro staff of Heirloom Turkey Calls this year. Brian sent me a bunch of calls to try, and after bagging a good gobbler, I managed to lose one of the calls. It was one of his Single Barrel calls– easily the most beautiful call I’ve ever used — a turned wooden scratch pot with matching stained glass and a picture of a gobbler under the glass. I went back time and again to the spots where it could be, but it was not there. The good news is that the call was fantastic, and … More . . .
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