I havent got my tag yet. I was wondering if anybody went out on Sunday.

I hunted some private land in the Northeast area on the opener. Saw a decent number of birds, but they were real quiet. Thought we had them pretty well dialed in the night before, but the next morning, they had other plans. They gobbled like crazy before they came out of the trees, but once they hit the ground, they never made a sound and we never saw them again.

Checked out some other areas and saw quite a few birds...just on the wrong side of the fence.

Later on that day, I went back in there by myself just hoping to see one at that point. Finally found a group of four toms and six or so hens. I tried calling them, but they showed zero interest, so I just took to stalking them. I was chasing those birds for nearly two hours before I finally got close enough to get a good shot and finally bagged a decent tom with an eight inch beard. Those toms were strutting like crazy, but the entire time I was after them, not one of those birds even made a peep. At least where I was anyway, it might be just a tad early. They had no interest in leaving those hens, but I think once they go to nest, it should really turn on...hopefully in a couple weeks when I head back over.

Oh, and beware of ticks! I found nine of those things on me after that trip. Just thinking about those things makes my skin crawl.

Congrats on the Tom!


I was getting exited about going out until you mentioned the ticks. I hate those sneaky little things. Do the turkeys have ticks on them?

I'll echo fishmonger's report. lot's of gobbling before the fly-down, then they just shut up. spent most of the morning trying to get them to gobble. we had 1 flock come in close, but they bailed and never got them to come in close enough for a shot. i went back out in the evening, never heard a thing. i sat there (we'd seen a flock of 10 birds on friday night in this field) for 3 hours in front of my decoys, calling every once in a while. all of a sudden, here they come. not one of them even looked at the decoys. then the tom comes out last (of course), and they're all making a bee line for the other side of the field- the tom's gonna get away!! NOT! i jumped up, took aim and shot, he was about 40 yds away. turkey goes down, i walk over and he gets up (sort of) and starts flopping and running away. not wanting to blow a hole the size of a softball in him, i attempt to dispatch him with a stick-- he wasn't having any of that! now he's gaining some of his composure back and starts running full-bore into the bushes (can't seem to fly-duh). i'm running downhill, shotgun in one hand, stick in the other shouting "don't make me shoot you again!!" and laughing my ass off. he holes up under a bush, and i figure to let him die, when i can still see him breathing, and i'm thinking i'll be out here all night. in to the bush i go, wielding the stick. the bastard gets up, down comes the stick, and he keeps running!! he lays up again (now i'm feeling like an idiot) i decide enough is enough and i decide to blast him in the nose from about 5 feet (again, i don't want to destroy the meat) so i miss!! got about 1/2" of beak. sucker jumps up again and runs to another bush. i shoot again...another miss!! holy shiat-i suck!!! now i'm out of shells (only really need one, right?!) and my buddies show up laughing at me. 'ol tom is caught again in a bush, and if he gets free, it's going to be a pain in the ass to find him in the bush. buddy #1 carries a .357 mag on his hip, so i send him in to finish off the bird. try shooting a turkey in the head with that cannon, and you can guess what happens next- right, he misses 4 times, bird's still flopping. finally, the last shot got him. i chased that bird about 100 yds from where i first shot. ended up with a 8 1/2" beard and 7/8" spurs. those are some tough birds!!




willy

by the way, fishmonger where did you hunt? i hunted my friend's place in addy.



willy

J7,

I've shot quite a few turkeys and have yet to find a tick on one. Not to say they aren't on there, but I think turkeys are flexible enough to be able to pick them off themselves. I made the mistake of bringing some of my gear in the house and not long after, my wife found a tick crawling on the floor. Told me I'd have to wear a flee collar if I didn't put my stuff in the shed. It's still sitting out there.

Landcruiser,

I was actually hunting a little west of Spokane near Wilbur. Those birds sure are tough aren't they! I shot one out of the air several years ago and had almost the same experience as you. Fortunately I broke one of his legs and he wasn't going far, but I still wasn't going to take any chances and I just topped him at ten feet. Good job sticking with it and getting that bird! I can't wait to go back over!

landcrusier,

Your friend might want to consider a different way of dispatching wounded turkeys. Its illegal to pop them with anything else other than shotguns or archery equipment. The stick you had or the heel of your boot is accepatble dispatching equipment.

j7,
i know. the boot thing was not working, due to the fact that he was wedged up in the brush. the stick thing wasn't working either. i do understand the rules, but under the circumstances, we bent 'em.


willy

Being a hunter first and fly fisherman seccond, I should have know about this site but I just found it looking for Turkey stuff. I went last week and had a good time.

I have good news and bad news. Long story made short. I shot two turkeys and only recovered one. I second LCW's note that these are tough birds.

Attached is a picture of a nice approx 20# bird with a 9 inch beard. The other bird, a Jake, is likely now in some coyotes belly.

Opening morning found us on land with three setups hunting within 400-500 yds of each other. All spread out in areas where we had seen the Toms strutting the days prior to opening. We could clearly hear 4 Gobblers gobbling their heads off. Well... just as predicted, the toms were unpredictable. They stayed in the roost for about 30 minutes after shooting time and then they disappeared to who knows where. We looked all over a good square mile with no sign nor sound. Came back that evening with a plan to cut them off on the way to the roost. It sorta worked. I called a group of approx 15 birds to circle my decoy. All hens with a couple Jakes and a Tom staying back in some thick brush. I finally got impatient and pulled the trigger on a Jake. The thing fell over, then stood back up, took to the air, I put more pellets in it to knock it sideways but it kept going. I never found it.
We rested the area the following day and then came back a day later. The place was nearly silent with one Gobbler speaking up but it had no intention of coming the call. We tried a pincher movement, but it disappeared somewhere between/below/above/under us. On other lands, we would find birds, but they were hened up with no intention of coming to our calls.

Finally on Tuesday (our last day) and only 2 hours before sunset we hit pay dirt. We found a big Tom in thick cover with hens. We had to get serious and come up with a plan to put a bird in the bag. I had previously blown/crippled my chance so I sent my partner quietly down a fire road with a good range of fire for my goal of pushing the big boy out of his thicket. I quietly went down another logging road with the goal to then make some noise and push the bird to him. I was just in position use a unique locator call as a signal to him that I was about to start the push when within 25 yds of me 5 huge birds appeared behind a tree. We all spooked each other. They started bumping into each other like Keystone cops and then tried unsuccessfully to fit behind a large tree. The biggest Tom stuck his head out for the last moments of his life and I then pulled the trigger with success.

duck,

NIce work on the gobbler and welcome to the BB. You mentioned that a picture was attatched, but it did not show up in the post.

Just got back from the Colville area Saturday. I found the turkeys to be non responsive to calls and also decoy shy. I left the decoys in the truck and called very little with better results. I did end up with both my birds. The first Tom was 18 pounds with a 7 1/2" beard. The second Tom was 21 1/2 pounds with a 9 1/2 " beard and 1 1/8" spurs. The big boy took me 2 days to pattern him and his hens but once patterened I was able to get ahead of them in the morning and have them come to me. The smaller Tom I basicly stalked. Believe it or not he saw me and came to check me out not nowing what I was. Well, a 12 ga. 3 1/2" full of #5s was cut loose that started my season off right. Would post pics but i'm computor illiterate. some day I'll get there.

And yes the ticks are out. If you go to the northeast cormer of the state please for your sake spray your cloths, head net, gloves etc. good hunting.

My buddy and I went out on opening day and bagged a gobbler with about a 8 inch beard. The birds are tuff this year. seems like they only get smarter. Wasnt able to call any in so it was more like deer hunting chasing them around the woods. We were walking the derection we were hearing gobbles when we cut down a ridge to a road opening bam there stands a couple toms and hens who never mad a sound. So now that we were busted we just sat and waited. The toms decided to take off around the cornor and leave one hen to sit and watch us. At this point im thinking to my self that there setting us up so as soon as that hen turned her head for a split second I gave my buddy the signal and wy started to double back up the hill. Lets just say we were moving at a fast pace so by time we make it back to the top of the hill and we are out of breath theres an explosion, not from the gun but the tom standing five feet from me but out of view on the other side of a thick bush. I could make out 2 turkeys but couldnt tell which one was the tom. Luckely my buddy had a better position and could see them both and then i hear him say shoot. Im still unsure of which bird is the tom so I ask which one.
His reply was this one. Boom his gun goes off and then one turkey flies while the other stumbles and tries to run off. But he only made it about another ten feet and then had a private escort back to the truck. So I guess in short what im saying is I need to head back out to the woods.

Oh P.s. Last year I shot a turkey that had a tick on it but that was the only one I have ever seen on a bird.