What, no turkey hunters?

Well the first week of the season was one of the worst I've personally had that I can remember. Had a longbeard opening morning hang up peeking at 70 yards. Never would have thought he was alone and so spooky on opening day, but he didn't want to play. Called a jake in for a friend who had never killed a bird later that day, so it ended up pretty well. Second day I got set up on a bird gobbling his head off on a powerline. He gobbled enough to let me set up on the power right below him without touching the call. Few calls and he was headed right down the line to me...or so I thought. I let Mr. Murphy get the best of me when he left the field and came into the thick woods like they never do and when I tried to move my gun, I got busted. First longbeard in range with no shot.

Next day I called in 2 toms to 40 yards in front of another friend, but he had no shot through the trees. Two more longbeards in range with no shot. Bumped another bird later that day trying to get too close.

Third day I had a bird gobbling harder than any I've ever heard. I lost count at 6 consecutive gobbles. I thought he'd pass out before he got in. Long story short, he finally broke, crested a rise at 25 yards and I blasted AT him. First bird I can remember missing with no reason. Another bird in range with nothing down.

Next day, we again had birds on the limb gobbling like crazy. Birds came in great and were strutting 25 yards in front of me. I left them go in hopes they'd move to the left so we could get a chance at both of them. They didn't and started to move off. Friend dusted one in front of me while I was trying to get on the other one. One dead bird, another in range for me without a shot.

Saturday was fairly uneventful, but I did have one bird cover a ton of ground coming in, only to have a herd of 5 longbeards without any hens go past my calling to the gobbler that was coming in, and they all shut down. Brokeback turkeys?

Monday we headed to some new territory to try our luck. Never set foot in this spot before, but it looked good, and everything else we looked at in the area looked bad. What the heck, we drove 3 hours, we were going to hunt it. Didn't hear a bird until 8, but when we did, he came in like gangbusters. Came around a bog, walked through a mudhole (could hear his feet plopping in the water) and strutted in to 25 yards. BANG, and he flew! BANG again, and he went down, but not out. 3rd shot was about as productive, but I got the bird. Turns out I had some pretty severe scarring in my choke tube and was patterning more like a quail load. Lesson learned, pattern your gun before EVERY season even if you don't change anything. Headed back to the truck with a very ugly wet longbeard in the bag, and struck another gobbling bird that probably came in faster than the first. Buddy shot him, for 2 gobblers down in less than an hour. Bad day turned real good.

Decided to head to another new spot yesterday. Public land and we had competition. Figured the guy in the parkinglot was working the close bird gobbling, so we made a big loop around that bird, and ended up striking a gobbling bird across a busy road down a powerline. We weren't really thinking anything would work that far, but when the bird flew down, he started our way. What the heck, lets give him a try. Probably won't cross that road, but this is the only bird here right now. We set up without much hope, but before we knew it, he was a couple hundred yards out on the edge of the road waiting for the cars to pass. He crossed the road and ran right in, and into the bag. (Backup gun, thank goodness). 3 hours drive, half hour hunt.

Situations can change quickly, and this time, I'm glad they did. I got so wrapped up in my bad luck, I didn't realize until now, that this was my 40th longbeard. Still have a few tags left and a few more guys I'd like to put on birds. Things are looking up!

I'm temporarily technologically challenged. I'll get some up sometime I promise.

Two days at work was enough for me. I headed back out today to chase thunderchickens again. Glad I didn't listen to the naysayers who said the birds weren't gobbling! Ran across a bird gobbling from the other side of a deep creek. He wasn't coming any closer so we decided to make the mile trek to where we could cross. Got all the way back down where we left him and he gobbled across the creek where we just left    Called him all the way to the creek and he stayed behind a big birm spitting and drumming for about 20 minutes. He was probably in shotgun range the whole time, but we couldn't see him. I gave him the silent treatment for about 10 minutes and he decided he was going to come over the rise to investigate. He won't make that mistake again!    21.5 pounds, 10.5 inch beard and 1.25 inch spurs.

Had a great season. Got a bird in Alabama,Tenn.and Md. Wonderful spring....