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Archive for the ‘2011 Spring Gobbler Season’ Category

Day 3 Gobbler Season

Posted in 2011 Spring Gobbler Season, Uncategorized on May 3, 2011| Leave a Comment »

    Bob didn’t show at our predetermined meeting place. I waited until 5:15 A.M. and drove up the road to where I usually park. I sat in the darkness and waited to hear a gobble greet the morning , but was disappointed to hear nothing, but the increasing rain. A tour to listen and call would be the next step.

My calling was producing nothing. At one point, after calling, I began walking downhill only to spook a turkey of undetermined gender. Why didn’t this bird answer my calling?  No one can say why a turkey will one day answer and other days totally ignore a call.

Beautiful wetlands!

  I left this area and went about a mile away to check for activity. At 9:15 I received a gobble to my calling clear across the hill. I hurriedly took off in the general direction until I approached a field. I, cautiously, peeked through the vegetation and quickly noticed that the gobbler was NOT in the field.

I approached the  wood line and field intersection and called twice. No answer. I thought the rain and terrain may be keeping my love-sick calls from being heard by the gobbler. I elected to move farther upslope and call again. WRONG MOVE! I had taken two steps when the gobbler exited the woods into the field. Our eyes met and the tom escaped back into cover. If only……………

I did, however, see seven deer and another hen in a field. I saw some squirrels, catbirds and indigo buntings. (first time this year)

Spring Beauty

   Bob and I are going to try again in the morning. the weather is supposed to improve over night.

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Second day Gobbler

Posted in 2011 Spring Gobbler Season on May 2, 2011| 2 Comments »

  

Turkey hunter????

   Despite the weather people calling for rain the morning hours produced few drops of water. Bob and I split up to cover more area. I was sneaking through the pre-dawn morning when a gobbler sounded off across a small ravine at approximately 200 yards. His first gobble was at 5:35 A.M. He didn’t gobble much and left the roost sometime after 6:20. I could hear hen chatter near by.

    Two shots sounded off, somewhere,  on top of the hill above the gobbler. I later found lots of feathers along a gas line. I walked back around where I had heard the tom and after hearing some hen talk another gobble exploded in the gray woodland.

Mayapples

  I elected to cross the hollow again and try another approach. (I tend to fear hen talk. I treat hen yelping as a potential hunter so I try to avoid any situations such as this.) On the next hill top,I sent some seductive hen calls and was immediately answered by two gobblers and too close for comfort. I sat down in rapid preparation knowing this calling site choice had some issues. There were some down trees and I feared these obstacles could be a deterrent with the birds approach. I had no choice since the silent birds were, no doubt, sneaking on in. Another twin gobble and there the two longbeards were coming on in. I was ready!

    The two toms slowly surveyed the area in search of the hen. They stood at 45-48 yards and stared for a time before becoming suspicious and easing on. I try to keep the shots to 35 yards and under and those distances were much too risky  for me.

Shortly, I went searching for Bob and we returned to the site where the two birds were and waited for some time in hopes of hearing a bird as time went on. The woods were silent.

Fisher tracks?

  All in all, I saw three toms and one hen; two deer; some squirrels and  two scarlet tanagers. (One of my favorite spring birds.) I found tracks that I believe could be fisher tracks and a remains of a beaver. I removed the skull for the native American Room in the museum.

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First Day Gobbler & Wheatfield painting

Posted in 2011 Spring Gobbler Season, Historical on April 30, 2011| Leave a Comment »

     A beautiful morning indeed. After weeks of much rainy weather this morning was clear and dry and calm! I sounded off with a goose call and heard an answer. My step father, Bob Miller and I set up hoping the gobbler was not across a rural road behind an eight-foot enclosure.

Button buck

   I called sparingly hoping the big bird would fly to our side of the hill. he didn’t. he worked towards a trailer and two booms were heard. I had heard two distant gobbles and we headed in that direction when I heard hen talk. We paused and I correctly surmised the calling was human. We turned away and went several hundred yards when three shots from two different guns blasted away. We heard and saw a turkey flying away in the distance.

Bob and I crossed the road where we had parked and heard more hen talk followed by two blasts. We went high on the hill to check a field and heard two more shots over in the next hollow. I did see a hen in the field. Bob decided to leave the woods and travel to Ohio to mow the grass at his other home. I went to another place. I heard a hunter and avoided the area and was answered by a single gobble. I began a trek down over and up over the next hill when I heard a shot.

Morel

  I decided to hunt morels and work for turkeys next week! I found some morels..yum- yum! I saw several squirrels and six deer today too. I do not function in high-hunted pressure areas. I needed to leave early anyway for I was to meet my friend Slim Bowser to do a joint Civil war presentation.

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Commander Bowser & I

  Slim, dressed in Civil war era soldier clothing, and I visited the Worthington Library. This year is the 150th anniversary of the beginning of the Civil War. Yes, that is only three 50 year life spans. Slim set up a display of Civil war items of interest. I set up my, yet uncompleted, painting of the Rose Wheatfield Battle of Gettysburg. I brought early sketches and such to discuss to those in attendance.

Slim did his talks basically, on the 62nd, Company D soldiers. Many of these soldiers had enlisted during the war from our area of Armstrong County, Pennsylvania. The visitors throughly enjoyed the educational and informative talks.

Honorary Membership

  At the completion of our presentation, I was deeply honored to receive an honorary membership of the Company D, 62nd regiment Pennsylvania Volunteer Infantry, 5th Corps.

Sometime I wish to do a blog concerning my ancestors who fought in the Civil war. At least, six out of a family of 15 were in that war. Two died in  battle. My great Grandfather was wounded. One seems to have died from typhoid. Oh well, that is a story of the future.

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