Larry A. Smail's Blog

I stood in the cool, breezy twilight listening for gobble talk, but failed to hear any gossip. I became chilled at times for I was dressed light anticipating the warmer temperatures predicted for later in the morning. While standing and listening I was surprised to see a Coyote pass by at about thirty-five yards.

Eventually, I began circling about listening and calling.

I was shocked to see the gobbler, at first. The bird never gobbled and was coming close to me. The bird was about thirty feet distance at the closest. He scratched the leaf litter feeding and would occasionally go into a partial strut. The big debate was circling amidst my thoughts. Do I fill a tag? With all the asthma issues I had been struggling with, that thought seemed strong at times. I elected to shoot the legal gobbler with the camera. I shot him about twenty times with the Nikon.

The yearling JAKE sported a sharply, curled four, maybe five-inch beard. The beard is hard to see in the photos. I am happy I didn’t shoot the gobbler with the 870 shotgun.

I moved farther south and was disappointed once I reached the top. Acres and acres of the woodlands had been timbered out. I could not see this from the road for the steep hillside wasn’t cut. I called around anyway until I decided to head home for I had some commitments later. I found a turkey egg. I saw about six or seven deer. I found a couple of morels but I didn’t pick them.

Yikes… I am beginning to have the scratchy eyes. Are the allergies coming next? I know it will hit soon and more meds will be needed.

Wild Turkey Egg

Read Full Post »

Yes, my butt has been kicked! The first morning of the 2023 Pennsylvania Spring Gobbler Season had me calling a longbeard and two Jakes off the roost. Unfortunately, the scenario of the area did not allow a shot to be had. The birds went below me and within a Safety Zone area. That was all right for I had plenty of days to hunt not knowing what the following day had in store for me.

Sunday the asthma hit hard! I coughed, choked became extremely exhausted due to the expelled energy to cough so hard and not having much sleep. It is a scary thing to cough and choke so hard you can’t get your breath. So, I hunted very little. I did try a couple of mid-morning hours but failed. Coughing uncontrollably and gobbler hunting doesn’t make for a scene with much success.

I finally had a doctor appointment and was put on steroids. I am improving, thankfully. This morning I watched the sunrise and heard two gobblers, but both were not near to me at all, however, I was enjoying the morning with little coughing.

One humorous story of the morning was an encounter with a flock of, at least, ten gunieas. The noisy birds’ home is the landowner’s sons home but they travel all around the fields. I tried to put a legal beard on some but failed to do so.

Baby Red-tailed Hawk in nest.

Yellow Warbler

Mollusk in a deer track

Mayapple Blossom

Morel

Wild Geranium

Read Full Post »