jdmaxwell
WKR
- Joined
- Mar 8, 2014
- Messages
- 798
Shooting jakes and hens and talking about not many birds around. LOLGave this jake a ride home this morning. Grew up in southern IN where the birds were plentiful. Now live in the north half, not so many birds around. Shot a bearded hen last year.
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There are birds around just in completely different numbers from when I was a kid. My current area the county averages less than 20 birds taken a year, where I grew up the county averages 400+. Nobody around here passes up any legal bird.Shooting jakes and hens and talking about not many birds around. LOL
Shooting hens is a great way to make sure the turkey population doesn't expand. "If i don't shoot her someone else will" isn't an excuse if you care about turkey numbers.There are birds around just in completely different numbers from when I was a kid. My current area the county averages less than 20 birds taken a year, where I grew up the county averages 400+. Nobody around here passes up any legal bird.
She came out of the wood line I was backed up to and turned and started heading away. Wasn't aware she was a hen until I got up to her. She had over a 7 inch beard. If she has given me a better look I would have let her walk. I understand how turkeys repopulate...Shooting hens is a great way to make sure the turkey population doesn't expand. "If i don't shoot her someone else will" isn't an excuse if you care about turkey numbers.
My first Eastern. Made a 9hr drive from Houston to North Arkansas to hunt my uncle’s 180 acres. I thought it would be great since they see plenty of birds there each Fall and no one has hunted turkeys on his place in over 20 years. I worked the area hard my first morning but couldn’t turn up any sign of anything. So, I bailed on that and went to plan B. I drove another hour to a large piece of public land with a walk-in only area. This was the first weekend of the Arkansas season and there were plenty of trucks along the roads. I’m not a very experienced turkey hunter and it was my first time ever setting foot in these woods. In fact I’d only looked over maps while downloading them to OnX. All I know to do is outwork others and try to create my own luck. So, I picked a ridge, Ditched the day pack & loaded up my my Reckoning with camp and 3 days of food, and set out with a few hours until dark. By 10 am the next morning I’d covered over 7 miles and still hadn’t heard a single Goble. But, I’d recently found some J shaped scat so I was encouraged. There was a small clearing/food plot ahead of me and as I got close I spotted a turkey thru the brush that was just inside the field on my side, maybe 30 yards. It was walking away and didn’t seem to see me, but it passed through the opening before I knew what it was (Jake’s are not legal here). I spent about 30 minutes creeping the last 10 yards to get set up on the edge but no birds were in sight. I’d just gotten set up and ready to start calling when I looked up to see a Tom all puffed up in the field about 80 yards away. He was doing all he could to get this hen’s attention. I had a great time watching that display. Every time she’d look in his direction he would inflate like a pufferfish, but she wouldn’t pay him any mind and just go about pecking around in the tall grass. I decided not to call as they could clearly see my location and I didn’t have a decoy, so I decided to just wait and watch and not risk spooking them, but if they moved over the rise and out of sight I would do some soft calls. I guess it was the right call, that hen ended up feeding my way and passed in front of me at only 6 yards. The Tom followed and when he stuck his head up at 28 yards I let him have it. About a month ago I bought that Rossi Tuffy single shot, crack barreled .410 with TSS ammo and it really did it’s job! Barely a flop. And only 1 pellet hit the breast. I had about a 5 mile walk back to the truck, but I was able to do most of it on the gravel road. I can’t tell you how proud I was to be walking out with that Tom slung over my shoulder every time a truck full of hunters passed by.
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Broke back, Rokslide edition…
What is Broke back?Broke back, Rokslide edition…
If I remember right they actually had to cuddle to stay warm while stuck in a blizzard on the highway that night. If this is the day time pic im glad they aren’t sharing the pics from after dark.
O there was definitely a broke back later that night.Broke back, Rokslide edition…
If I remember right they actually had to cuddle to stay warm while stuck in a blizzard on the highway that night. If this is the day time pic im glad they aren’t sharing the pics from after dark.