Stoking the fire

[Deleted member 28227]

Overcome by the pangs of failure we decided to get some coffee and Danishes, Ben made some bacon.

We planned out next move.

New blind options were considered.

 

[BrentD]

Not every turkey is an early morning bird. Some of them stay watching "Late Night", you know.

 

[Deleted member 28227]

Bellies full we decided to take a stroll.

Right out of the gate we inundated with gobbles.

We decided to stalk up to them.


A bit of a game of cat and mouse occurred with us chasing them around a small hill.
Green=Turkey's
Red= Intrepid duo
Gold = Will split's off

We got out of the truck and walked towards some gobbles. The turkey's seeming to be stationary I positioned myself in a cut, while Ben circled around to call. We totally misjudged everything, and Ben is a lightfooted ninja and ended up walking within 30 yards of the birds.

I saw nothing. We decided to head back to the truck, on our way there the birds ran out in front of us.




We waited for them to get out of sight, I made a run for them...


...

They went into the swamp.

 

[Deleted member 28227]

After the brutal exertion we decided to get lunch.

Afternoon rolled around and I found a nice spot to set some decoys, and take a nap...er call



The woods were silent for most the afternoon, we did a late walk to see if any of the birds had come back out.

A lone Tom cackled.

I posted up and Ben went to see if he could call him to me.

The tom clearly was getting antsy to get to his roost and came into about 50 with no shot and then just called it.

I figured the he was gone, and got up to walk out.

Not 50 yards from my tree there was the Tom, below what I presume was going to be his roosting location.

 

[Deleted member 28227]

That evening we were treated to a hell of a sunset

 

[Ben Lamb]

Ben is a lightfooted ninja

"The Hardcore Do Understand."​

Tigress, 'Kung Fu Panda 2' (2011)​

 

[Ben Lamb]

So, now that Will has told his story, here's some color commentary:



The bottom right, where the red arrows start is where we parked. The fools that we are, both of us walked almost a mile before realizing that I should have just used my impeccable calling skills to lure them to the truck, where Will should have just leaned out to pop one. The toms literally walked past the truck to get to the swamp.

Here are some other observations:

1.) Realtree bathrobes really do run true to size. So order accordingly. Also, pick up the fleece slippers. They're excellent sneakin' shoes. Much better than crocs, which squeak when you walk.

2.) I think blind hunting is more fun when you have a tablet to watch Blues Clues and keep yourself occupied for the hours of ass-numbing sitting that has to happen.

3.) Turkey calling is fun, and it only took me 36 hours to master the most pathetic hen turkey you've ever heard in your life. But hey, they called back. So, I'm taking this as a sign that I'm a master turkey caller. Youtube channel to start next month.

4.) I'm not as smart as a turkey, and neither are you.


Set the popup blind for the next weekend 50 yards off the roost site on our place. Hoping to place some cameras on the neighbors to get their route nailed down (I think we have it mostly, just want to test some assumptions) and my tag goes green on Saturday.

@AvidIndoorsman's bird had a 10.5" beard, and was easily 20-25 pounds. It's a real dandy of a bird!

 

[noharleyyet]

So, now that Will has told his story, here's some color commentary:

View attachment 323931

The bottom right, where the red arrows start is where we parked. The fools that we are, both of us walked almost a mile before realizing that I should have just used my impeccable calling skills to lure them to the truck, where Will should have just leaned out to pop one. The toms literally walked past the truck to get to the swamp.

Here are some other observations:

1.) Realtree bathrobes really do run true to size. So order accordingly. Also, pick up the fleece slippers. They're excellent sneakin' shoes. Much better than crocs, which squeak when you walk.

2.) I think blind hunting is more fun when you have a tablet to watch Blues Clues and keep yourself occupied for the hours of ass-numbing sitting that has to happen.

3.) Turkey calling is fun, and it only took me 36 hours to master the most pathetic hen turkey you've ever heard in your life. But hey, they called back. So, I'm taking this as a sign that I'm a master turkey caller. Youtube channel to start next month.

4.) I'm not as smart as a turkey, and neither are you.


Set the popup blind for the next weekend 50 yards off the roost site on our place. Hoping to place some cameras on the neighbors to get their route nailed down (I think we have it mostly, just want to test some assumptions) and my tag goes green on Saturday.

@AvidIndoorsman's bird had a 10.5" beard, and was easily 20-25 pounds. It's a real dandy of a bird!

1.) Realtree bathrobes really do run true to size.


Kilt rule apply?

 

[Deleted member 28227]

2.) I think blind hunting is more fun when you have a tablet to watch Blues Clues Bluey and keep yourself occupied for the hours of ass-numbing sitting that has to happen.

Behind the times guy FIFY

 

[Ben Lamb]

1.) Realtree bathrobes really do run true to size.


Kilt rule apply?

Weather exceptions can be made, but it has to be below 20 degrees. Airing out the boys is a good thing after a long winter.

 

[noharleyyet]

Weather exceptions can be made, but it has to be below 20 degrees. Airing out the boys is a good thing after a long winter.

...said no 2500HD ever.

 

[Ben Lamb]

...said no 2500HD ever.

That Caddy blind is a little tight. The frumunda doesn't need to be in there with you. A little courtesy goes a long way, man.

Behind the times guy FIFY

I'm not taking advice from a guy w/a blue wrench.

 

[noharleyyet]

That Caddy blind is a little tight. The frumunda doesn't need to be in there with you. A little courtesy goes a long way, man.
So, Houston plates?


I'm not taking advice from a guy w/a blue wrench.

Problem? -Larry David

 

[TrumpkinTheDwarf]

@Ben Lamb you seem like the perfect candidate for traditional archery. Especially the making and shooting of self bows. #justsayin

 

[Ben Lamb]

@Ben Lamb you seem like the perfect candidate for traditional archery. Especially the making and shooting of self bows. #justsayin

I've been really contemplating archery. I think it would be a lot more fun for deer than rifle given the interactive nature of it. Given time constraints due to work, fishing, upland and family obligations, I have to admit it may be a multi-year journey, that starts with a crossbow and is more about killing does than anything else.

 

[Hydrophilic]

“I think there's some truth to that. but I also think that each person's hunting is an adventure on it's own - that everyone has to come to the place where you recognize that killing things is part of you are, and that's ok - even if you have a soft side that roots for the underdog, or for the coyote to outrun the pursuer.”

Great post!

I’ve been through my own version of that. I was born into hunting and got to the point where I didn’t like the killing, and I often found myself not fitting in with the typical modern hunter mindset.

What got me back into it was wanting to know where my meat came from. Once I had my own reason everything else fell into place. IMO, there is no better way to connect with our world than participate in one of the most ancient, shared human experiences - hunting. Connecting with that aspect of human history is priceless, I feel it in my bones, almost as if it’s wired into my DNA.

 

[SAJ-99]

Overcome by the pangs of failure we decided to get some coffee and Danishes, Ben made some bacon.

We planned out next move.

New blind options were considered.
View attachment 323913

The stories that blind could tell...and I doubt they are hunting stories.

 

[Ben Lamb]

The stories that blind could tell...and I doubt they are hunting stories.

 

[noharleyyet]

Comment #1..."Did somebody order a pizza with extra sausage?"

 

[Ben Lamb]

Comment #1..."Did somebody order a pizza with extra sausage?"

These turkeys strut a little differently out here.