The Last And Best Day of 2008's Spring Turkey Season

Turkey season is now over, but I had a very good last day. On the morning of the last day, I walked into the woods on an ATV trail to a spot near the area where I had spent the last Saturday hunting. After almost reaching the field, I set up next to the ATV tail. Because of the short ranges of the open areas near by me, I decided not to set up my decoy.

Around 7:30 am I heard a gobble about 200 yards away, so I answered him with my mouth call. Then the next time he gobbled he sounded a little closer. As before I answered him, but when I did I heard some other sound, but it did not register in my mind what it was. Then another gobble sounded out and as I answered I heard that sound again -- it was a hen, but it was between me and the gobbler! I remembered how that some times if you copy a hen it will get worked up so much that it will come in to try to find you, some times towing the gobbler in behind it. So I start calling doing just what the hen did. This cared on for quite awhile, and as time went on I started thinking how much the hen sounded like another hunter using a box call. That thought worried me, because if it was another hunter, we were probably both over calling which would scare the gobbler away. After thinking that, I quit calling and so did the hen. Awhile later I started hearing the sounds of something walking in the woods, soon two turkeys appeared. The combination of 50 yards and the thick woods made it impossible to tell if either of the turkeys had beards. A few clucks from my mouth call made the lead turkey stop in its tracks and stare me down for a minute of two, after which it just mozied on, not paying any more attention to me. They proceeded to walk past me and go behind me purring as they went

A good while after the turkeys were gone I decided to walk in the direction of were I had heard a faint gobble, I set up but never heard anything more. After walking in a big circle I came back to where had I started out in the morning. Instead of having some one pick me up in a car, I decided that with a half hour left till noon and the end of turkey season I might as well walk home. On my very hot walk (1 mile+) home I jumped one deer in the edge of the woods by a field, I did not see if it was growing any antlers or not.

Spring turkey season is now over, but I look forwards to next year with more knowledge on hunting them.

Seeing and hearing turkeys

Well, the past to days have been good hunting days compared to the rest of turkey season.

Yesterday morning when I was walking through a field, I looked ahead of me and saw three red necks sticking out of the grass, at about 100 yards away from me, and running fast. So I set up in the field hiding in the edge of some tall grass with my decoy out in front of me in the open. After waiting awhile I did some calling with both my box call and mouth call, but to no avail. I heard no answering gobble nor did I see anymore turkeys.

This morning I went out into the same field, but this time I stayed in the woods by the field moving very slowly and calling as I went. After setting up at a couple different trees I found a tree with a nice view. After sitting there for awhile, I heard what I think might have been a turkey shock gobbling at some crows in the distance. Then right after that there was a gobble in close -- closer than all season. He sounding like he was around 300 yards away (kind of hard to tell though). I tried calling some, but he never answered. Later on in the morning I heard a couple of really distant gobble in a walkable direction. So I started walking that direction some so that I could get in close enough for the turkey to have a chance to get to me by noon time. The turkey never gobbled again though, so I just sat a by a tree to decided where to go next with about 1 1/2 hours left till noon. Suddenly this deer came running out of a fence row, and into the woods in front of me. Next time I called the deer came out from behind a tree about 20 yards away from me. It focused all it's eye and ear power on me for an instant then bonded off with a snort. It kind of surprised that it was able to identify me in such a short time (unless it had caught a good smell of me), because I was dressed in full camouflage except for an orange hat. Hmm, maybe deer are not color blind after all!

Success in the first week of rifle season

Well, I had a first week of deer season with a lot of walking, but it paid off. On the Friday of the first week I shot a 4 point buck.

I shot the buck on a very steep hill side that has three or four benches on it. I was standing on the highest bench that is right below the top of the hill. My Father and brother were driving the hill side towards me.

As I was standing on the bench, I saw a deer with antlers, walking towards me on the same bench as I was on. As soon I saw it I pulled my gun up on it before it ever saw me. Since I had both my buck tag and my doe tag, I did not bother to confirm it had antlers nor did I bother to count points. I just put the crosshairs on the deer's chest and fired at it from about 40 yards away. The deer did an instant crash dive down the hill. As it ran down the hill there was to much brush to see it well, but it looked like it tripped on a bush and fell down. Then I saw from behind a tree the deer sticking just its head out. I tried to find the deer in my scope twice; then right before my third try I saw the deer fall over. I walked down the hill to where the deer was, it was still alive but not mobile so I gave it one more bullet to finish it off.

To clarify for anyone wondering I am a junior hunter, (hunting his last year as a junior hunter) other wise I would not have been able to shoot this four point buck by PA law.

Hunting in the Jr. Deer season

Well, I have spent three days hunting in the Jr. Deer season as often as I could.

I saw nothing the first day. A small buck walking through the fog in the morning on the second day (why did I bring my rifle instead of my bow). The third day in the evening guess what? I saw ANOTHER buck out in the field I was watching, rifle in hand of course.

So much for the Jr. Deer season, I guess I will have to go back to bow hunting now that Jr. Deer season is over.

So far this fall I have seen around 10 bucks and 3 does (one of which may have been a buck). Seems like the antler restriction is working as far as killing less bucks goes.

Now all I need to do is to get into bow range of one of those bucks.

A very successful scouting trip

Since archery season is fast approaching I decided to go out scouting for deer. So I grabbed my camera, put on camo, and sprayed on some sent killer.
I went to the knoll on a field where a few days earlier I had seen a herd of deer. Then at about 8:20 ish I heard some trigs snapping in the fence row behind me and to the left. Out came not one, not two, not, three, but SIX bucks. As they came out one by one, they started munching on the soy beans.

While I can not say for sure how many points all of them had I think that around three or four of them were in the six point range. With a few being from two through five points.
Then as the last deer came out of the fence row he took the time to look at me before he went into the soy beans, he must have seen some thing he did not like because he and the other deer took off for the other side of the field. They stopped there and continued to eat the soy beans, I guess the never completely recognized what I was.

By this time it was getting pretty late and I was ready to go home, so I started slowly backing up the opposite direction as the deer were. I did this for about ten yards, then I got the bright idea of turning around to look behind me to see where I was going. So, not wanting to spook the deer any more, I turned slowly around.

I got a very nice surprise for there was standing about twenty yards away from me was an nine point buck. He was just standing there watching me, I got my camera on him expecting him to bolt, but he did not. I set up my mini tripod on the ground with my camera on it. But by that time the deer started walking away lazily eating soy beans. Then ANOTHER buck walked out into the field this time it was an seven point. With my camera on the tripod I turned on the ten second timer (so that the camera would not shake any when it when off). Those ten seconds were a very long ten seconds, all the while the deer was pounding on the ground with his hooves (the picture that my camera finally took is the picture at the top of the page). After I took the picture I started taking video with my camera. Each time the deer's hooves slammed into the ground he came a little closer to me. About this time I started remembering all the news stories that I have heard about deer attacking people. I figured I would have a really great video any ways if the deer did attack me. The deer must have finally seen me picking up some stones ( I was getting very close to throwing them at it to scare him away), so then he just let out a big snort, and bolted back into the fence row.

The nine point after hearing the snort looked up and walked to where he could see me. He looked around wondering why the other deer spoked. Then he just walked off into the fence row.