Runaway Tom

The last season of Wisconsin’s 2013 turkey season brought my son and brother into the woods with me for one last sit. We were very excited about this particular set and hoped that JD would get to see his first kill and Nick would be able to capture some action on video. We set up for an afternoon hunt and while we were setting up we even heard a hen clucking nearby.

After about forty-five minutes or an hour of patiently waiting and watching JD engulf a couple suckers movement was spotted through the woods that were getting thicker and thicker with additional ground foliage every day now. –It was a hen followed by another hen and a strutting tom. JD’s eyes were as bigger as saucers as the birds were about 75 yards out and working their way towards our blind. I gave a couple of very soft clucks and the hens were on a rope moving their way towards the blind and eventually one even walked right up to the jake decoy I had out as if to say, “check me out little man.” As the hens stayed calm and moved their way behind our blind my nerves suddenly went the other way as the tom neared the blind. He too liked (or disliked) the action of the jake decoy as he strutted right up into his face. JD was shaking as I positioned myself to draw on the old boy as he stood only eight yards from our blind. I finally maneuvered myself into position and I released an arrow into the bird’s mid-section, but I wasn’t exactly certain on the hit location as the arrow sank through the bird so quickly. The tom definitely took a hard hit as he hobbled off about 35 yards and lay down. I felt solid about the shot, but was beginning to wonder when the bird was going to put his head down for good. We decided to give him a few minutes before I would retrieve him.

Once a few minutes were up I headed out of the blind to get the bird. However, the bird had something else to say about it as he got up and hobbled a couple steps before taking flight due north (and looking pretty darn good doing it!) I did watch his flight line as my heart sank. –Apparently I did not hit him all that well? I went back to talk to my brother and son and see if they witnessed this whole debacle unfold. Neither could believe it, but both were game to at least help me take a look for the bird. JD and I headed north in the flight line I had picked out and Nick cut a bit to the east as he saw the bird bank that direction and felt that was a decent starting location.

Within a few short minutes JD and I had located the bird as we neared the creek bottom. The tom was laying right on the other side of the creek and hobbled and flapped his way up the opposite bank and rested about 30 yards away in a blow down. I made contact with Nick and after devising a plan of attack he was going to circle around the top of the bird and push him back down towards me. (I wasn't too sure whether I should toss the bow and plan on tackling the bird or if the bow was still the weapon of choice... I kept the bow in hand, but Nick would later prove that Option B was the right choice.) After another couple of minutes Nick was hoofing it after the hit gobbler as both barreled down the hill towards us. Nick pronounced, “Here he comes!” Within seconds he was indeed coming and a few second later Nick had the tom finished off as he caught him in the creek bottom. JD thought that this was pretty darn cool and I certainly will second that. Sometimes a little luck on your side doesn’t hurt.

Upon investigation of the hit on the bird he had broken one leg/thigh and the arrown tipped with a Montec had gone through both breasts in the lower 1/3, but had missed the lungs ever so narrowly.

An UNREAL ending to an unreal season!

Protecting My Decoy

Season D of the Wisconsin Turkey Season finally brought with it some decent weather in terms of temperatures and the snow had finally disappeared--- at least where I was hunting. (Immediately to the west of where I was there was a new snowfall of 12-15” on May 2 so I am guessing that they may have been whistling a different tune.) I had set up a number of blinds to accommodate myself, my father, and brother for our annual get-together. The blinds were set up in some of our usual favorite locations, which showed some decent turkey sign when I was putting them up along with my two sons the prior week. After dropping off my father and brother off at their blind locations I was settled in my location at nearly perfect time. There were overcast conditions present that afforded me a little bonus time in getting everything settled and in place. I placed my sole decoy, a little jake, exactly twelve yards from my blind according to my rangefinder. The first light brought with it on and off rains. I held off on letting any calls out for about 20 minutes after first light as I knew that the birds probably would not be moving extremely early with the weather conditions.

I finally let a soft series of hen calls out with my slate call and immediately had a couple of very vocal hens return volley followed by a mature gobble and at least two ugly sounding jake “gibbles” as I had recently added this term to my hunting dictionary. This banter went on for about ten minutes and for a while it sounded like I was amidst a turkey barn. After a bit the calling subsided and I questioned whether the birds had hopped off the roost and travelled the opposite way to feed in some nearby corn fields. After another fifteen minutes I spotted a number of turkeys B-lining their way right at my decoy set up. I watched the group of about ten birds amble their way through the woods and detected a couple of jakes and one very nice long-beard for sure.

I then began positioning myself with my bow towards a portal that I thought would possibly present me with a shot eventually if they kept working in the way that they were. Within seconds these birds were right in my kitchen as soft purrs followed by a gobble had the hair on the back of my neck sticking straight up as I readied my release and bow. As I slowly peaked up I discovered that the tom was taking out some pent up aggression on my jake decoy and after a series of beat downs with his wing he knocked down. I watched this show for about 30 seconds and as the tom fanned himself out and turned away a drew back and leveled down on him. He turned broadside and I was able to center punch him. A couple of crow hops later and he was down. –A very nice two year old bird that had a 9.5” beard and weighed in just shy of 22 lbs. Certainly a prize in any turkey hunter’s book.

And to put icing on the cake my brother and I picked up our father following the end of the morning hunt only to discover that the “Ol’ Man” still had some tricks up his sleeve as he too scored an admirable bird that rainy morning as well. A great weekend was had by all! I hope we continue our great turkey hunting tradition for many years to come as I am looking forward to my boys joining the turkey troops full-time as well.