Larry A. Smail's Blog

Longbeard

I was looking into the stars when I decided to try shocking a gobbler. It worked! The time was five o’clock. The bird was about half-a-mile away and in the same area where he was roosted on the first day of the gobbler season. I quickly crossed the road and headed to a spring seep to try to get close. I clucked to hear the gobbler farther up the hollow of approximately 100-120 yards away. However, before I could make a move a hen started yelping and cutting directly above me. I was trying to decide on my next move when a loud thunderous gobble exploded near her. I couldn’t move now. I was in an area with a lot of hazel, but still open ranges of thirty-five yards or more, but bordering a rather open woodlands. trying to move there would risk being spotted. I set down to see what would happen.

The farther gobbler left the roost and began moving away. He quit calling when the closer gobbler along with others began moving. I soon called in a hen. the group worked along that open border eventually moving across the spring seep and going onto the other side. They were jakes, but that one bird sure sounds like a mature bird. Prior to seven A.M. I noticed the winds becoming agitated. This would make hearing and calling more difficult.

  I moved uphill to try to get the first gobbler to answer…no deal! I circled the hollow and had the jakes gobbling again until I tried to move to a better spot and was caught. I was heading back to the other side of the road when I heard a gobbler. he was on a gasoline. I tried to move on him, but by the time I reached the area he had, apparently, returned far enough away to not hear me. Also, the area he went into was heavily posted. This has happened other times to me. They walk the line and turn and walk the line back.

I crossed the road and began moving and listening. I heard a gobble. I realized where he was located and moved in close. Suddenly, I heard a loud noise as of metal slamming together and something like a car door. I had never called yet and the tom went quiet. What was going on? I soon went to see if another hunter had driven up a close gasoline road. Nobody was there, but I check some kind of metal door at the well and it had banged in the wind.

I searched an open area and saw a hen feeding. I began to make a circle in the area trying to stir up a gobbler.  I came upslope in an area with lots of

Spring Beauty

young maples and called. I moved higher and spotted three jakes feeding where a lot of low leafed-out plants were present. While standing I clucked loudly and called two in towards me. I am sure the third one was there, but I just didn’t see him. They eventually spotted something and stood and stared at me trying to figure out  I was. I walked towards the jeep  planning on quitting whenever I reached the vehicle.

While moving I would see two more turkeys. I got a photo of one longboard, shown above. One of the issues I have is sometimes wishing I had my camera in hand instead of the shotgun. Sometimes it is the opposite. That doesn’t matter to me at all. Either way the day is a success.

As Saturday, I heard a Barred Owl. I saw a number of deer, too.

Young ferns