Perseverance pays...

It was about 5:30pm when I made my way across the creek and set up on the edge of a freshly planted field, surrounded by prairie grass with mature trees encompassing. I put out my looker hen decoy and sat down against a tree in the tall grass about 25 yards from where the decoy sat. A storm had just moved through and the weather was now just right. I grabbed my fly down wing from my vest and began scratching in the leaves like a feeding hen would. Not 20 minutes later I saw the painted purple, red, and white head of a strutted appear over the hill about 80 yards away. He was soon followed by 3 jakes and another gobbler. As soon as they saw the decoy they came in at half strut practically on a dead run. As they went behind a bush I shouldered my Benelli and waited. They strutted out of view for a few minutes and then the mature gobblers slow walked straight to the decoy. I picked out the left one, waited for a clear shot, and then squeezed the trigger on the 20ga. The bird folded as the other gobblers ran for cover.
After 2 and a half weeks of season finally the stars aligned. You may have noticed that I didn't mention any yelling or purring with calls. That's because I didn't. Those birds came in to the scratching in the leaves solely.
Patience has killed a lot of turkeys and curiosity has killed even more.
Don't be afraid to switch up your tactics. Nothing is going to work every time but, when something finally does you'll have that memory for a lifetime.

Turkey Season Indiana 2012

Pull on your boots, slipped into the early morning darkness, moved into your setup against a choice Oak tree without sound. You wait patiently as the morning begins to dawn. A deer feeds on the edge of the hay field, song birds begin to wake, a pair of geese pass over head, and then there it is, probably the most recognized sound in the outdoor world, the gobble. He's less than 100 yards from your hiding spot.You let out a soft purr and yelp, he answers once and then nothing... Much to your disappointment he flys down the other way completly uninterested. A wise man once said "Roosted ain't roasted." and this is sometimes the case.
    Never the less you leave satisfied in being able to feel another morning in creation begin.
  This season has'nt been the easiest on alot of Hoosiers, with the freakishly early spring we've had birds are in a different breeding stage altogether. They have been very consistent in gobbling on the roost. However they have remained for the most part, unimpressed with any calling, and weary of the decoy setups. This leaves a person with 2 options. 1. Find exactly where they are roosted and take note of where they are headed one once they hit the ground and try to be in their route of travel. If this does not work in the morning, reverse it. 2. Get tight up against their roosting area in the evening and wait for them to come home. You may be able to get a gobbler in range before he flys up for the night.And remember when a Tom isn't real excited about your calling don't press the issue. It's always best to wait them out.
  If there is one thing I've learned to enjoy more this year it's the amazing beauty of this country. It's amazing and at many times breathe taking. People that haven't experienced this outdoor lifestyle just simply do not understand our obsession. For this reason I have recently taken up photgrophy to try and capture just  a litttle of the amazing things I've seen on the countless adventures into the heart of nature.
   I hope you all are having a wonderful spring and stay tuned as my adventures take me to Maine next week on a spring black bear hunt.