Took my youngest daughters boyfriend out for his first turkey hunt yesterday and I learned a few thing.
So this kid is a really good guy and loves the outdoors and fishing but has never really had the chance to do much hunting, has gone out for partridge with his buddies a few times and I have taken him with me for deer. He really wanted to go turkey hunting this year so I said I would take him, he doesn't have really any shooting experience except for the few time I have taken him out.
So I bought a turkey choke and a box of 3" Longbeards for my 870, I use a Beretta, and took him out a couple of times to pattern the gun.Started with come cheap targets loads at 20yds to get him used to the gun then went to the turkey loads. His pattern was great out to 30 yds so I told him we would set his shooting limit to 25yds just to be sure.
I headed out hunting Thursday morning as he had to work until Friday, Thursday morning great weather but no birds at all in the morning, switched spots for the afternoon and seen one hen but heard a few gobbles so planned on heading back there the next day.
Friday morning it was raining so took my blind and set it up before daylight and crawled in, tried a few calls, no gobbling. The rain started pouring down and the wind picked up a bit but I was out there. Around 7:30 a hen came by and hung out for a 1/2 hour, a second hen came out around 9 but still not a gobble. At 9:30 2 jakes came out and I called them over, they lay a real beating on my decoys, were strutting and gobbling and have a great time, so was I. At 10:00 am heard my first gobble in the bush, the 2 jakes take off for it as they get to the edge of the fence line 2 more jakes pop out and the fight is one. They are scraping, running around, gobbling like crazy. I was taking pic and videos and sending them to Jordan who was at work, he was so excited. I was waiting for a Tom so didn't shoot, wanted to leave the jakes for when he got there on Saturday morning. Pack up around 12:00 and head back home to pick him up, 3 hour drive, as I staying in a hotel where I hunt.
We get back around 6:00, to late to go out so we drove around looking for birds and he is as excited as a 7 year old on Christmas eve when we see a couple of birds far off in a field.
The wind was howling so we when back to the field I was hunting and sneak in to my blind and take it down so it doesn't end up blowing across the field in the night. Head back to the hotel and get all the gear ready for the morning. He is pumped for the morning. Check the weather and it doesn't look good for Saturday, snow and high winds starting around 9:00. Not the best out look but we will go anyway.
Wake up at 4:00 am and look out the hotel window and it looks like a January blizzard, 1 inch of snow on the truck, can hardly see across the parking lot and the snow is going sideways, look at the weather and is calling for 40km winds with gusts to 70km. I close the blinds and tell him it's too nasty out today, we will have to sit it out and go another weekend. The look on his face was as if his whole world just fell apart. Ive been told there are three types of hunters the Try Hards, Die Hards and the Ret@#*!, no disrespect to anyone. I said the hell with it we will be in the third category and go and have a look and see what it is like, he lights up.
All the gear in the truck and off we go, can hardly see to drive, trees are laying sideways, this ain't going to work. Drive over near the field, park and wait for a bit to see what its going to do, snow slows down but wind gets worse. Head back to town for a coffee, see a couple of guys trucks parked by fields with nobody in them, guess there are more third category guys out today. On the way to Tim's he see a lone turkey on the edge of a field, wind is blowing snow sideways, and he is like a German short haired pointer trying to get at a pheasant out the window. Shi$, I guess were going out. Get a coffee and back we go to the field.
Walk in and can hardly see across the field with the wind and shon but get to our corner and it is only gale force 6 winds. Clean the snow off the blind and decoys ,set up and climb in the blind around 8:00. I wait for the wind to slow down for a second and give a few calls, they are more for show than anything. The wind dies down a bit and only one of us has to hold onto the blind during the gusts. Call a few more times and try to think how I can break the news to him that this is a waste of time. Every creek and groon from the trees he asks is that a turkey, no just the trees.
Around 9:30 the wind dies a bit more and the snow has stopped, but the wind is blowing huge snow devils across the field and I think there is no turkey stupid enough to come into this field. I was playing on my phone and he was keeping watch on the field. At 10:00 I look out the corner of the blind and to my total shock I see 2 of the jakes from yesterday at about 100yds right on the edge of the field. I tell him "2 turkeys in the field" he says "Where? The ones on the sticks or the ones in the blind". No really 2 jakes over on the side of the field, he peeks out and see them and is more excited then ever.
I tell him to lift his gun up and rest the barrel on the edge of the blind window and I will call them over. Couple of calls and they are on their way. I decide that I will take one if we can get a double, decoys are at 15 yds and will be easy shots. The 2 jake head for the hen decoy and one starts strutting while the other one pecks at the jake decoy. I put my gun up and wait for a chance to both. I tell him to take the one on the right and I will take the one on the left and don't shoot my decoys. The jakes are strutting around and put on a show but not presenting a shot. This goes on for 10 minutes and I dont think I can keep him from shooting much longer, he keeps asking if he can shoot now. Finally they split apart and there is one on each side of the decoys, I say we shoot on three. One, Two, Three, BANG BANG.
My birds goes down and his runs! The second jake turns and heads back, Shi&, I had only put one shell in his gun as it is a pump and didn't figure he would ever get a second shot, I always put 2 in my Beretta auto. So I give him my gun and say tell him to take his time and wait for him to put his head up as the jake is walking around my bird. Jake stops and puts his head up, I say now, Bang, and the jake runs away again. I grab my call and give a big yelp and he stops and heads back over, Shi%, now my gun is empty, I dig around in my pockets and find a shell and load the gun again. I tell him TAKE YOUR TIME AND AIM!
The jake stop at about 18yds and put his head up and BANG, the jake drops. It must have looked like some kind of black and white comedy routine in the blind.
We get over to his jake and he is still flapping, I break him neck and its congratulations and a couple of high fives. The look on his face was worth a million bucks. First thing he does is call his dad and buddys to tell them. We pack up and take everything to the truck, it a 3 hour drive home. He is bouncing the whole way.
Get the birds in the garage to clean and mine has a few extra pellets in one side, must have got hit again during the shoot out with the other jake. Start plucking his and the bird does not have a scratch, not a pellet in it, check everywhere and nothing. There is blood on its head but I can not find a single pellet entry.
So what I learned yesterday was, helping a guy get his first turkey was better then get my first one, it is worth going when the wind is gale force birds still come out and if you shoot at them enough sometime they just give up, lay down and let you walk up and break their necks. Oh and new shooters can never get enough practice.
I have had some great hunts in my life time but this one will be at the top of my memory list for a long. I hope his as well.
For some reason I can't post pics to go with this.
