Thursday A.M.  this was my set-up in the cedar bush at first light After watching a particular tom fly up to roost in the same tree two evenings in a row, and knowing where he flew down from that tree the first morning of the hunt, I decided to set up on him in that spot this morning. I got there when it was still pitch black and nestled into the foliage of a cedar bush because it was basically the only cover for me in the spot where I wanted to be. It was on the edge of the winter wheat field this tom has been flying down into, about 150 yards from his roost tree. After a while the woods started to wake up and pretty soon the birds on the creek were gobbling, including the tom I was targeting. I had determined not to do any yelping, only purrs and clucks since I knew this tom had hens with him the last few days. I was hoping to let the hens lead him past me. Well, fly-down time came and as I peered through a little hole in my cedar bush, the tom and his hens flew UP onto the ridge, NOT down into the winter wheat field like he's been doing! Talk about frustrating - just when you think you have them "patterned", they change on you.  the tom and his hens flew UP onto this ridge instead of down to the wheat field like they were "supposed to"! the yellow "x" shows the tree where they were roosted I made a big circle around them and snuck up the ridge, which was pretty bare on top save for a few small cedars. I was hoping to get around at least beside them. I heard him gobble once so I knew he was still up there. As I snuck up to the crest of the hill, I heard drumming. I immediately ducked to the ground and then slowly peered around trying to find him. I saw his white head and the top of his tail fan about 70 yards away over the crest of the hill. He hadn't seen me. I quickly formulated a plan - I knew he had hens and that I likely wouldn't be able to call him away from them. So, I decided to do a sneak on him, barely hoping for success, but not really having any other good option. There was a cedar bush roughly between me and him, so I put it directly between us and I started bellycrawling towards that bush. I got there as quickly and quietly as I could, and peered over it to see if he was still there. He was, and he still didn't know I was around, but this was the end of the line. There was no other cover between me and him. I figured the range to be close to 40 yards, which is on the outer edge of my comfortable range, but I have cleanly taken birds at that range in the past, so I decided to take the shot. I raised my gun, sighted on his head, pulled the trigger and watched him go straight down. I ran over to him and the two hens he had been following flew off in alarm. I breathed a big sigh of relief to be done with the hunt - I'd been hunting turkeys in three states over the last two weeks and my body was starting to feel a bit of fatigue. It was a very nice tom - 21 lbs. with a 10.5" beard and 1.25" spurs, definitely an older bird. It was a great end to what has been a fun hunt.  my tom laying exactly where he fell  my "spot and stalk" tom - 21 lbs., 10.5" beard, 1.25" spurs Hunt Conclusion Well, I hope you enjoyed this Live Hunt and the other Turkey Live Hunts that we did this Spring. I certainly had fun hunting and then bringing the story to you. Turkeys are a great challenge and I always look forward to turkey season with much anticipation. I'll definitely be back in Kansas and Missouri hunting turkeys again next spring! Check back to www.huntinfo.com and www.livehunts.com in a few weeks for another Live Hunt, this time on a bowhunt for East Texas Wild Hogs! Until then, Good Hunting!
Joshua Flournoy owns and manages the Livehunts.com web site. Joshua resides in east Texas with his wife and four children. |
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