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Topic: After 23 years I still get excited (Read 35 times) |
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JW
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After 23 years I still get excited
« on: May 29th, 2010, 12:22pm » |
 
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¡V I need to slow down!!! Here is why.
But let¡¦s start with 3rd Season WI. And me calling for a buddy.
I hunt within two turkey groups. I have a Michigan group (how I started turkey hunting) and a Wisconsin group (a group I started). As a Wisconsin group we have one out of state hunter that over the years and because of the lottery we always are awarded a later WI Season. No Problem to us as all we want is a chance to hunt Spring Turkeys!
Well with Wisconsin change on how kill tags are awarded with the chance now to buy 4th, 5th, and 6th season permits over the counter I decided to try something different. Told the boys we will still hunt 5th season but we would not apply. We would just buy!
So I applied for Fort McCoy which will be another saga to share. My buddy whom I taught to turkey hunt applied and got 3rd Season April 28th to May 2. He had asked me and I told him to stay away from the earlier seasons. Just didn¡¦t like them. And this year with the spring weather being extremely odd. The breeding season was really far ahead.
It so happened I had time to tag along with my buddy to Zone 1 ¡V 3rd Season hunt. He asked what he should do and since we both shoot in a spring trap league we decided to skip Wednesday as the weather was to be poor!
We left at 1:00 AM Thursday morning as it is only a 3 hour ride. Both os us over 60 years and we ought to know better. After about an hour I mentioned that my buddy was traveling a bit too fast. He is a drag racer and I know he likes to move a bit. But 80 mph is asking for¡K¡K¡K.shoot we got red lights behind us! ƒ¼
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JW
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Safe Hunting is NO kick in Da Buttt!
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Re: After 23 years I still get excited
« Reply #1 on: May 29th, 2010, 12:23pm » |
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Well 4 points and $250.00 later we are back on the road sort of traveling in silence! ļ
Bud says ¡V ¡§Man why didn¡¦t you warn me earlier?¡¨ ¡V I say ¡V ¡§I tell you all the tie but you don¡¦t listen!¡¨ ƒº and we both laugh.
We make one stop to get a fresh coffee and we are headed to an area we have hunted quite a few times. 13 years hunting the same area has taught us a bunch. I have suggested we go to where my buddy is familiar and that I finished hunting last year. It is a 200 acre field and last fall it was corn and set up at the far end. It is surrounded by bluffs as we hunt the Wisconsin Dells area. The field is protected from high winds being low and the side of the field I suggest is using the West side so we face East. (Read the other story that is a #1 tip in my books!) . Bud is the shooter and I did not plan on calling at all but did bring a few calls in my pocket. Bud wanted his blind in the usual spot and I told him to move it 25 yards further out near the fence line. So that is what I did. We walked in silence and I set the blind up quickly. My buddy inserted the two turkey NWTF folding loungers we use and I placed decoys. Again I set up my strutter Bruce with Vera laying a foot in front of him on an angle ¡V her back to the blind and the two bobble head decoys Jenny and Henrietta off to one side 7 yards away. The strutter is only 6 paces in front of the blind. We are all set at 4:10 AM and it is till dark. We both pour a cup of coffee and settle back to await the waking morning.
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JW
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Re: After 23 years I still get excited
« Reply #2 on: May 29th, 2010, 12:24pm » |
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At 5:15 AM I wake up from my short nap to the sound of Robin singing, then a few Cardinals and even a Bob-O-Link to which I have not heard one of those is a quite some time. I then hear a Owl Hoot with another owl giving a response and then the awaited Gobble way in the distance. Well we have our work cut out for us.
My buddy on hearing the Tom goes into a calling frenzy as I just sit in silence. He calls way to much. I wonder if I make him nervous or exactly what is going on. He stops after using up all his calls he has laid out and asks – “Hmmmm didn’t answer!” Well a discussion ensues and I tell him that was way to much. All I do is maybe a very soft cluck or tree yelp or two only after the Tom has gobbled at least 3 or 4 times. I wait for the bird to wake up now rather than force things. We hunt late seasons!
So in a sort of huff he tells me fine you call. Well now I did it – two old guys and he is mad at me. So I wait and wait and wait and not a sound is heard. That Tom was no more than 100 to 150 yards away up on the ridge and it is 5:40 AM and very light out. Bird ought to be down on the ground. The other problem is my buddy don’t like mu strutting tom decoy as he has had no luck with them at all.
So we sit and I finally make a few calls in a sequence and do a few of my sequences each time getting a bit more louder and a bit more anxious in my calling. And nothing!
Well with old guys who drink coffee – ya gotta git rid of coffee at some point so we crawl out of the blind to stretch at 6:15 AM as we saw or heard nothing since that first gobble. The day is overcast but shows no rain. We strectch and I pull out a wingbone as I have one I like to use as it is loud. I call it my long distance get em going call!
I crank on that 2 times and hear a gobble way off. I ask my buddy – “did you hear that?” Bud shakes his head no! Hmmmmm am I hearing things? I do wear hearing aids and with only one good ear. Well maybe. So I wait a bit. Buddy stretches one more time and gets back in the blind. I stay outside. I call one more time and this time the gobble is much closer and the birds answers me in mid sequence. Then gobbles again as I stop! Man I scramble back to the blind and crawl over my buddy. As I do I ask well we got one coming did yopu hear that? He says NO! NO? Hmmmmm. I wait a few minutes hoping to get the Tom gobbling looking for me. He does gobble to which I answer and he cuts me off again. Man this bird is hot and coming. I ask “hear that?” “Nope!” “Yer dreaming” he chides. Wow! He is deafer than I am! I just smile. For the next 15 to 20 minutes the Tom is actively looking for me and gobbles to which every other gobble I answer. The last gobble I cut at him and he triple gobbles to which all of a sudden my buddy hears that! I just laff!
And then silence – total silence. Silence so bad I can hear my heart beating! AND no bird. I wait for over 20 minutes. Well dang it he was close! So I call softly. Nothing – not a sound. I call a bit louder and still nothing. So I crank on my wingbone again and I hear a gobble way off in the distance. Either that bird didn’t like the decoys or hooked up with a hen and is gone! Dang it! Time is 7:25 AM!
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JW
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Re: After 23 years I still get excited
« Reply #3 on: May 29th, 2010, 12:24pm » |
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So I pour another cup of coffee and inform my buddy he is deafer than I am. He smiles as I offer the use of one of my hearing aids! Dang ole fool!
As we talk softly enjoying the morning I hear another gobble in a different direction. Oaky I¡¦ll bite and I grab a box call this time. I start answering this tom and he gobbles back. The only bad thing is I can¡¦t seem to get him to gobble or talk to me first he waits for me to call. But he is moving in our direction. Time is 7:40 AM. Well it is a long wait but he is coming at a slow pace. At one point I get frantic with calling to see if I can speed tings up. Have been told I get to aggressive but it works for me. And he triple gobbles and is closer. The next gobble is much closer still. So I cut one more time and all goes silent. And then behind us I hear drumming but am confused as I only hear with one ear. So I ask my deaf partner and he tries to look out the back of the blind. I poke him and tell him no! If the bird won¡¦t enter the front of the blind he wins I tell him! Well the drumming gets louder and then I hear a ¡§Twang¡¨ as something thumped the blind tie down line on my buddies side. I look out the window there and all I see is he top of a semi-circle of mature tom tail feathers! This bird has rubbed up against out blind ¡V got sort of caught on my tied down line and is within reach to pluck a few tail feathers and I loose it!
I have never had a nice Tom this close. Had a few hens I felt I could of grabbed their neck and a Jake like that too if I was quick enough but not a Tom. And he is huge. As he makes his way in full strut and still drumming going at my fake strutting decoy I tell my buddy to shoot. He is also flustered. He has the gun up but on such an angle down I whisper ¡V Hey put the gun barrel out the window as he uses a scope ¡V but it is too late as I didn¡¦t quite exactly whisper I guess. The Tom looks back with that one big huge black eye and BOOOOOM!!!!!............the Tom is pushed forward and is rolling he is so close. I see his head is barely attached as the shot really smacked him good. AND I now have a nice half moon circle because of the shot gun barrel not sticking out pas the fabric of the blind! He shot my blind too!
Dang!!! We both are laughing. He is just giddy a he goes I have never witnessed calling like that! That was great he goes! I am laughing too but I say you shot my blind! Well my buddy goes ¡V you did not give me a chance as you got so loud. Loud I was whispering I go. He says if that was a whisper I think they could have heard you in the next county. And besides my buddy points out the other tear in the window exactly opposite of his shot and asks ¡V What is that? I confess it is mine the first time I used this dang blind. We both laugh! Two old fools we are! But we like to hunt turkeys!
Time is 8:20 AM we are done.
Oh and both of us had a tag for 4th season the following week but my buddy did not make opening. He was stuck in a Doc¡¦s office as he had so much ear wax he was deafer than I was! ƒº
I¡¦ll write about our 4th season escapade!
JW
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| « Last Edit: May 29th, 2010, 12:26pm by JW » |
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