May 17, 2098 - The oldest's first turkey

 

The hubby sat with me and my youngest in the mornign hunt, since I thought I didn't have enought experience to be on my own.  We got there about 5:20 a.m.  We set the middle boy up in his usual spot...brought the youngest and myself to our spot and told the oldest to go to the corner of the field, find a big tree to sit by and wait there.....I believe it was about 6:30 a.m.   All of a sudden there was a huge bang coming from where the oldest boy was I jumped up and wanted to go running over to where he was, but the hubby said, wait and see if there are any other turkeys running over here.....NO turkeys came....

 

Congrats to the oldest on his first....

May 18, 2008

 

The morning hunt wasn't so successful, so the middle child, the hubby and I went to have lunch and a little snooze in the van.

 

When I woke up, the hubby was across the road talking to someone who looked like he lost his keys or something, I have noticed him coming and going for a couple of weeks now.  The hubby was now looking for something....strange.  About 10 min. lakter, the hubby comes back to the van, we get our stuff and go to the field.  The hubby asks me.  "Where do you want to go?"  I said, "I want to go where the youngest, the oldest and you got your turkeys. "OK," he says.

 

I'm sitting on a chair, waiting.  About 1 1/2 hours goes by and here comes a turkey, then 2, then 3 come into the field about 15 feet away.  I was so nervous, I was shaking.  The gun was so heavy, it started to sway, I checked for beards, all 3 have one.  Take aim, shoot, one goes flying up and the other 2 take off into the bush.  I missed all three.  The hubby and the middle child come running, but there was no turkey to see....."What Happened," "I missed," alright, we are going back to where we were and they left.  Thank God we just didn't leave, it gave me a chance to ry to figure out what went wrong.  I came up with....The gun was to heavey for me to hold all that time.

 

When we were leaving I asked the hubby, "What did you talk to those people about before we went into the field for the afternoon hunt?"  "Did they lose their keys?"  "No, they were hunting for Moral mushrooms, so off we went hunting for moral mushrooms.   We round about 1 dozen of them.  Just got to love hunting, even when you don't get anything, you get something.....hehehehehe.

May 19, 2008

 

Well, the hubby, the youngest, and myself went hunting his morning.  We left at 4:00 a.m., got there about 5:20 a.m., just before sunrise.  Ray wanted to try a new spot, so that's where we went.  It's in the same field as my missed turkey, just on a different side.

 

We got there a little later than usual, sun just crossing the field, we loaded our guns as quietly as we could, since pump action guns tend to be loud loading, if you load them from the bottom.  We sat there waiting....

 

Crap, was it cold and windy.....I was shaking fromthe cold, not from excitement, hehehehehe.  We stayed there for 2 hours and I turned to the hubby and siad I can't warm up.  He asked me if I wanted to go back to the spot where I shot at those 3 turkeys, I said, "of course," that's where the sun was, hehehehe.  He asked me if I loaded my gun and I said YES, I loaded it when we got here, he said "OK," I thought that was a strange question, he's never asked me that before, so i was a littled ticked at him for even thinking that I didn't lad my gun.....OH WELL, MEN WILL BE MEN, hehehehehe, just kidding.  So off we went.  Sitting in the new spot for about an hour, the hubby decided to use one of his call, (they haven't been coming to the calls so far but), we had only seen one hen in that time and we were waiting about another hour, with the wind being as strong as it was, the turkey (that finally came out) didn't hear the hubby and I talking when, I looked up and said to the hubby, DON'T MOVE, there's one right there, he looked up and WOW he's right there about 15 feet away, I already had my gun up since the hubby made me a stand to hold my gun up for long periods of time, (that's why I missed yesterday, I had to hold my gun up for a long time and it got heavy).  I was getting ready for the shot and the hubby said, "their's a beard, it's small, but you can shoot it if you want." I whispered, "OH YEAH."

 

There he is right in front of me with his head up, I was trying to reamember all the things you have to remember, check behind your shot - CLEAR, turkey's head up - CHECK, sights are in place - CHECK, safety off, CLICK, Can I shoot, "Yes if you want."   FINGER ON THE TRIGGER,    I'm going to get him, pull back on the trigger easy, not fast (I kept telling myself).  THEN

 

The best sound a turkey wants to hear...........................

 

CLICK

 

Good God my gun wasn't loaded, (I didn't pull back hard enough on the pump to chamber a shot when I loaded in the morning when we got there)....CRAP, I  looked at the hubby instantly to see his eyes RRRROOOOOLLLL.    (Remember he already asked me if my gun was loaded)

 

He looked over to the youngest boy......The youngest had his finger's in his ears waiting for the bang of my shotgun.

 

Ray whispers loud (still the turkey is about 15 feet away),   BOY, shoot the turkey,  the youngest can't hear him...

 

May 25, 2008

Well the morning started off the same as always....up at 3:00 a.m. - leave by 3:30 a.m. - stop by Tim Horton's (Tilbury) by 4:00 a.m. - Get to the field by 5:00 a.m.  This morning it is just the hubby and myself.  We went across the field where the turkeys have been coming into the field...we need to get one today so the hubby said we are going to set up there (this is my last chance for the season for us)...We crossed the field.  The dam moon was almost full so it was bright you can see right across the field with no flashlight.  Get set up and wait....GOBBLING was directly behind us...(hope at last)....now we just have to wait until they fly down from their roost....7:00 a.m. all the turkeys are off their roost and on the move we can hear them all over the place...all of a sudden the hubby counts seven over where we usually hunt (in the corner, where the hubby, the youngest, and the oldest got their turkeys and where I missed my 3) they were running back and forth p approx. 8:00 a.m. a hen comes walking out about 50 yards from us and starts to walk.  The 6 jakes and the tom see her and start to walk towards her - they come half way, almost in range but not close enough for a clean shot.  They turn around and run back, "CRAP RAY, THEY SEE US."  "No, they don't," Ray says, just be paitent, "I'm not a patient person Ray," I'm getting pissed off at those dam turkeys.  The turkeys keep running back and forth right in front of where I was yesterday, it seemed to me they were teasing me.

 

I was watching the left (where all those turkeys ran to) and Ray was watching the right....Ray says, "There's a tom right behind you --- DON'T MOVE --- HOLY COW, HE'S HUGH" .... I'm not moving Ray....I'll keep watching those dam turkey's tease the crap out of me over there (CRAP)...Ray says "HOLY CRAP THERE'S TWO MORE HUGH TOMS...good got that's 3 hugh toms....THEY ARE ALL IN FULL STRUT."

 

Holy crap Ray one of those tom's over there is in full strut too..Holy cow here they come....there running---holy crap they ran right passed Ray and I and didn't even see us...They were running so fast I couldn't even shoot....Ray said they were out of range anyway..CRAP, I'M NOT GOING TO GET ONE AM I...holy cow Pam, be patient....

 

The turkeys I was watching ran right over to the 3 Ray was watching and were haveing somewhat of a boxing match....hehehehe...(you got to love that male dominance hehehehe)...After their so called boxing match they walked over to the other field where the middle child ususally hunts....and stayed there for a while...WOW what excitement Ray...i was so excited, popped my safety so many times I can't count....hehehehe (probably 3x's).

 

Those dam turkey's are all over there and I kept asking Ray, "Do you want to go over there and try to sneak up on them,"  "We won't be able to, they will see us before we even get into the field, just wait, let's see what they will do."

 

About 9:10 a.m. Ray say, "See they are coming back here, where, I don't see them, over there along the hedge-row, oooo there's the 6 jakes I was watching (I'm guessing), yeah that's them..    Get your gun up maybe they will run across the field.  OK...  Holy cow here they come, what do I do.   One, Two, Three stop just to my left, my shooting side, CRAP, I have my gun pointed a different way, "Ray says, "move your gun to your left, SSSSLLLLOOOOWWWWLLLLYYYY" "OK # four runs by, CRAP my gun is not quite right, five and six stop right in front of the tree blocking me. i have to move a little more.   Ray says "shoot if you can, "BANG, HOLY CRAP, I TURN TO RAY......I GOT HIM....YEAH....I GOT HIM

 

Ray went and got the turkey out of the field and waited, I was shaking so much I couldn't finish unloading my gun.  Ray was laughing and he finished unloading it for me....WHAT A MAN.......

 

 

Good story Whammer,   it was like we were there as well.

Bummer about the bad cocking though.      Pump shotguns are a lot of fun!

To finish up with the story......

 

When he finished unloading my guns and we weren't leaving, I asked Ray, "what are we waiting for?"  I'm waiting for those hugh tom's to come back," "OK," I was shaking in my seat thinking about what I just did, WOW, that's all I can say...

 

About 1/2 hour later Ray says, he wants to go see where those Toms went....OK. I'm game for anything now...(hehehehehe)

 

We go to the corner when we last seen them, Ray goes and checks out the field, he see's them, way down the field, checks everything out ands says to me, "they have to cross here in order to go to Roost, let's wait here and see what happens, I love it when he says that."

 

As we were waiting, he says, "I should have brought my knife.  I'll go get it Ray, and I will get our sandwiches as well since were going to be here for a while.  OK."

 

I run back to the van and got his spotting scope, his knife, sandwiches, wet ones, and some water....and run back to Ray.  CRAP, I forget where it is to sneak back through the the bush where Ray is sitting......

 

PSSST, RAY............PSSSSSSSSST, RAY, where are you? .......... OVER HERE.......COAST CLEAR........OVER HERE (obviously he didn't hear me).....I ran back through the field where the turkeys are suppose to come back....Ray looks up and seems to be surprised to see me there.......I thought you were going to come back through the back....'I LOST MY WAY."     hehehehehehe ok

 

He takes the knife, cleans my turkey.....washes his hands....all in about 15 minutes...asks me for a sandwich....I give him one sandwich cut in have, he finishes on half....I see right in front of me, a turkey, (this is about 15 minutes after I was just there) I poke him and point in that direction.....he looks, I was thinking it was a male, I block my ears, NOTHING.....I slowly look up.....female.....he finishes the other half of his sandwich......Good God......another one.....this time I see him raise his gun....I Block my ears......BANG.......he got one of those hugh turkeys....CONGRATS RAY....

 

Funny thing.......when he was going to get HIS turkey he was sneaking out like there were more turkeys coming........hehehehehehehe........I SCREAM, "WHO CARES WHAT'S COMING OUR TAGS ARE FULL."    hehehehehehehehehe

 

This is the entire turkey season with my family......I hope you all enjoy it.....

Yeah Luke......about those shotguns ...... I did learn how to chamber a shot from the side.....I was never taught how to do that.....makes it really quiet for loading.....You will never guess who taught me how to do that.....hehehehehehe...... my youngest boy.....

If you care to see some pictures of our turkey season, I have uploaded some in the picture gallery.......enjoy!!!   Have a great Sunday everyone!!!!!

Hey Whammer,  how much does a wild turkey usually weigh??

 

What was yours?   before the field dressing.

They can usually weigh about 20 - 35 lbs......Mine was approximately 20 before dressing it.....Mine was a young jake about 1 year old.....My hubby's was bigger.....about 30 lbs before dressing it.....

We shot all these turkeys in Thamesville, but we did hunt in Rodney as well......