Lost my virginity this morning...

[wolfsong]

...I shot my first turkey!
*UPDATED WITH PICS* 6-12-22

After 61 years on this earth, I went on my first turkey hunt. We started at 0600, got a lot of responses while calling, but had to move around a bit trying to stay ahead of them. Finally, around 0745, at the fourth location, the young man I was hunting with called in 3 jakes. They were about 75 yards out initially. It took 15 minutes to gently coax them into range - about 15 yards out. That kid could call! I took a bead on the best looking one and let it fly. Damn, those Heavi-shot #4 steel shot rounds pack a punch! 5 inch beard and 3/4 inch spurs, almost a tom. Beautiful bird, a sub-species known as a Rio turkey.

That was the longest 15 minutes of my life. How I stayed perfectly still for that long, I really don't know. Funny how the slightest movement will send them running before the shot, but after the shot the other two stuck around, actually pecking and attacking the downed bird. They were still hanging around a good 10 minutes after we retrieved the bird and packed up to leave.

My gracious host/guide wouldn't accept any kind of payment. He even let me use his shotgun and ammo, as I didn't have a turkey choke for my 870 magnum. Told me to save the time and money going into town to buy a choke and ammo. Nice kid, he's a sergeant with the Mariposa County Sheriff's Department and the son-in-law of a good friend of mine. I'll be giving him a pound of homemade jerky for his generosity. That's the very least I can do.

The bird is soaking in brine right now. I'll smoke it tomorrow.

Wow. I think I'm hooked on turkey hunting. That means decoys, calls, a new shot gun...

 

[GP100]

Congratulations Sir.. Glad you had a good time..

 

[sfhogman]

Alright!
Best thing I'll hear all day.

Jeff

 

[Sturgis270]

Spring turkey hunting has become my favorite hunt. Really love being out at first light and hearing the toms gobble before leaving their roost. I can call a bit but I usually hunt with a friend who I've known since high school. I think he talks "turkey" well enough to inquire as to how the birds family is doing!

 

[Taterman]

Congrats on the gobbler.

 

[CGDustDevil]

You had me extremely concerned with your subject line!

 

[tom black]

Turkey breast is probably the best eating thing to ever come out of the woods. Enjoy it. And they don't all come to the gun that easily.
Tom Black

 

[wolfsong]

Turkey breast is probably the best eating thing to ever come out of the woods. Enjoy it. And they don't all come to the gun that easily.
Tom Black

I'm kinda partial to mountain quail, myself...

My guide has called in over 40 birds killed this season. I don't know squat about calling turkeys but Tim seems to be a pro. Mariposa County is known around here for its turkey population. Very little public land, though.

Tom, do the higher end electronic game callers work well for turkeys? He was using mouth and handheld manual calls. Another friend has a rather expensive electronic caller - I think he paid over $600 for it - and it has proven to be very effective on coyotes, crows, fox and bobcats, but he hasn't tried it on turkey. I know non-electronic calling is a learned art form unto itself, and neat as hell to witness. We'd like to do more turkey hunting on our own. Any insights for us?

 

[Bear Paw Jack]

Congratulations. I am looking forward to trying that myself. Looks like a cool sport.

 

[Valmet]

Congrats- I've been meaning to get out there and go on my first turkey hunt (I'm 36). Folks I talk to that are into turkey hunting absolutely love it.

 

[tom black]

Wolf song,
My favorite call is a box call that I've had for years, sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn't, then I try a slate or a diaphragm call, they don't always work either. There's no guarantees in turkey hunting. Wing bone call is the most difficult for me. I like to cut the breast off the bone, then slice into 1.5 inch chunks. Dredge in flour, season them with S&P and some Cavender's Greek seasoning and fry. Don't over cook them. Make some gravy with the drippings, bake some cat head biscuits an Katy, bar the door.
Tom
Never used an electronic call, don't think they are legal here in Kentucky.

 

[Big Old Boy]

Congratulations on a job well done. I'm 67 and hunted all my life but never hunted turkeys. As a former game warden I have chased a few turkey hunters, most every year someone would be arrested for stalking other hunter rather than sitting and calling.

 

[JackpineWillie]

There is nothing like being in the woods well before dawn on an April morning, just to here the world wake up. My area we here the crows and owls first then the grouse and turkeys followed by geese, swans and sand hill cranes, just wonderful! That said, I'm glad I won't be out there tomorrow . We had 8" of snow last night, have been getting flurries all day along with high winds. Long live the turkeys!

 

[SAJohn]

Wolfsong, I also think mountain quail are outstanding eating. I have spent a lifetime hunting throughout the west, mostly for deer. In all that time I have only seen wild turkey twice. Not once have I seen a live mountain lion. However, my next door neighbor (we all live on 5 acre parcels) had to shoot one in her front yard tree in broad daylight, as it was directly above her 5 year old son. It was a classic one shot one kill. Never mess with a ladies cub.

 

[Don Lovel]

Make yourself a Spur necklace with a cut above and below the spur, poke the marrow out of the bone and put them in a bottle with some kosher salt in it for a few days and remember that if you are mounting the tail fan yourself, you must remove the small fat pockets on each side of every quill base and get your salt down into those recesses to prevent spoiling and molding. Also beards are fragile, be careful handling it.

 

[contender]

I've taken my share of the Eastern variation of the wild turkey. But our opener yesterday was a bust. I think I was telling the birds; "Come here & I'll blast ya" instead of " Come here big boy, I want a date!"

It is fun,,, and as noted,,, you can save the fan, the spurs & the beard. I have many of my beards preserved, then I take my spent shotgun shell I used,,, cut off the plastic, knock out the primer, tie a loop in a piece of 1/16" nylon string, insert the loop through the hole, place the meat end of the beard on top of the knot. Epoxy it in place & after it sets up,,, I hang the upside down shell, beard down, by the loop. A neat way to display the beard.

 

[Colonel Daddy]

Yup, the title kinda threw me :lol: . Glad ya finally got your turkey!

 

[David LaPell]

Virginity and a turkey, reminds me of a guy we had brought into our jail one time, and his day involved poultry as well, but I recall his chicken was still alive, and in need of a vet.

Thank God your story has a much happier ending. Congratulations on getting your first turkey.

 

[blackhawknj]

20 years ago or so walking in a nearby forest preserve, saw a big tom turkey probably 20 feet away.

 

[WendyZXZ]

Congratulations on getting the bird!