10 bonus points for anyone who knows what tv show that phrase comes from.
We got to our spot at the perfect time. Gobblers were gobbling, and there was enough darkness to sneak in close. There was so much vocalizations going on that I decided to do some filming. As soon as I pushed the record button, my darn flash came on. Fortunately I was able to turn it off with no ill effects. About shooting light the birds started coming out of the trees, unfortunately they were going the wrong way. I started helping hoping to draw a Tom our way. Luckily one flew down be hind me. I stopped calling and stayed still. The tom landed so close I could hear him puffing out his chest but couldn’t see him. With no hens close by, he started making his way up the hill towards the rest of the flock. He walked passed me, and made his way towards Brice. Once he was past Brice, Rice was able to get turned towards the tom, and Brice made the 10 yard shot.
I was hoping the tom was a mature bird. When I got up to Brice I asked him if the Tom had a beard. He said he was able to see the beard when the tom was strutting. At that point I knew he had shot a good bird, because Brice has been fortunate enough to shoot a lot of Toms in his few years of hunting. So he k owns what a mature Tom looks like. Turns out the beard was 8.5”.
