2008 Youth Turkey Hunt

[ICEMAN]

No Birds down. 

Now that I have that out of the way, I just wanted to share how great of a trip I had taking my son on his first hunting trip carrying a gun.

Arrived Friday afternoon to set up camp and then to go visit someone I have chatted with on this site. My new friend was very gracious showing us around his house, introducing myself to his wonderful wife and sharing his insight on the area, which I have hunted before. We had a great short visit. ( We are truly a blessed group of sportsmen on this site, to have some folks who we can share with here daily...) I felt like I had known this person for years.

Saturday we hiked and hunted turkey on foot from 5am to 2pm. Returned to camp for a two hour break and then more hiking. We only had one gobbler respond to us briefly, the birds were very quiet.

Sunday nearly the same, worked one bird in the morning to no avail. Lots and lots of hiking. After breaking camp at 1:30, as we drove out of the woods, we finally pull out onto the country road to see a Tom standing 30 yards off the road.  A shootable bird on state land, 30 yards off the road. I told my son to crawl under the wire fence so I could slide under and load his shotgun.... After all the fussing around with the fence issue, the bird sauntered off. We cruised woods looking, but as you know...

Lessons learned. We spent alot of time talking about how some folks may have simply shot from the edge of the road, or on the wrong side of the fence.... All in all, he is not very upset at all. He wants to return all the more! (Just like Dad!)

We had a great time, learned some good lessons and made a new friend, was a great trip!

[jackelope]

the good news is you've got another month and a half to go...you guys will get it done...sounds like a great weekend. what area of the  state were you in that they were pretty quiet?

[ICEMAN]

   PM Sent...

[Intruder]

Went out w/ 2 kids on Sat and 1 on Sun.  Lots of rain/snow and general misery.  Did have a couple chances but got foiled by dogs and horses on Sat.  Sunday we were really close.... had to birds coming in but just couldn't close the deal.

[Gobble]

Ditto for me,

I took my son out on sat to the Teanaway and it was terrible  . Didn't see any birds and the snow was way too deep on the hills 2- 5 ft on the lowland hills and the wind was really blowing. Had one hen answer (we think) saw a couple of guys in the general direction of the hen, probably was them but hey we will give it the benefit of the doubt.

I'm looking for a place where my son can shoot his first turkey without tons of competition. If any of you have property or a place where he could get one feel free to PM me to rid the property of those pesky Toms 

[Machias]

I didn't even take my boy out.  We've been out the last couple of years so I told instead of being miserable we'd go out once the regular season opens.  We had 3 inches of wet fresh snow Sat and raining hard Sunday morning.  With six weeks coming up soon, I didn't take him out.  The gobbler up behind my house was silent all weekend as well.  No dispair guys we'll get some birds in front of the young ones we have plenty of time this spring!!    Good luck to you all.

[westcoastsoutherner]

Ditto here in Walla Walla.  The snow is still pretty deep in the public lands, and the areas that the snow had melted have not greened up.  We saw of few on private land still in the winter flocks.  It'll get better later on.

[JBR]

Looks like many of us were in the same boat.  Saturday was cold, windy and had some light snow (Lincoln County).  There birds were Q-U-I-E-T and very inactive.  I had pre-scouted the birds two weekends in a row and knew where they were, but the bad weather seemed to change things for the birds.

The morning was unproductive and after a lunch time break, we hit another area where lots of birds were know to be.  Feathers and poop all over and especially around the base of the roosting trees.  But once again, Sat afternoon/evening turned out to be just an excercise into how much the kids could endure in the way of wind and cold. 

Sunday morning had us in two different blinds on another different place.  I was with my 9 yr old son in one natural blind, and my buddy was with my 10 yr old son a short distance away.  We were in the blinds (just natural brush formed into a circle with us inside) by 6:00 am, just before daylight. 

The turkeys began gobbling and talking all around us.  My younger son and I had a few hens milling around and had a tom with a 6-7 inch beard walk by at about 100 yrds, on a rope to somewhere else.

My older son sat quietly watching a few hens walk nearby his blind (with my friend coaching him) .  His 20 ga pump gun was held in his lap.  A bearded hen (yes, they do exist) walked within 5 yrds of my 10 yr old, but off his right shoulder where he couldn't spin the gun around for a shot. 

After it disappeared, he caught movement from the corner of his eye and noticed a big tom with a 9-10 beard coming straight at him.  The tom noticed him and stopped at about 30 yrds.  My son feared that raising the gun to his shoulder while the tom was locked onto his position and starring right at him, would send him bolting.  Both were hopelessly locked into a stand-off, each waiting for the other to blink.   After about a couple minutes, the turkey made his quick escape, leaving my son in shock and disappointment with no shot fired.  Talk about "turkey fever"!!   That's hunting, I told him.  We all have times we would like to have a "do-over". 

As for my younger son, after sitting still for about an hour and a half, I leaned back to stretch for a moment and when I sat back up, I noticed 6 hens and a tom walking down the hill behind us at about 35 yrds and closing...right up until they saw me move.  The immediately stopped, turned around and walked back up the hill back outta sight!   #@&%!#   

Some close calls, and a great weekend overall.  They definately have the bug and can't wait to come back over during the general spring hunt.  I count it a success.

[Gobble]

JBR,
Sounds like you found a good honey hole. I like to hunt over too lots of birds. Hopefully we will get over there for the opener.

Good luck to you and your kids

[robb92]

Good luck to all your kids trying to get their toms, according to the VA game regs she can't go through hunters safety until she is 12, why I don't know. She is all jacked up to go and get her first deer and turkey.

[gjorgy]

Took my son and his friend out for the weekend hunt north of Spokane.  Nothing the first day but the second morning we set the decoy out and started calling.  The Jakes came in first and started beating the snot out of my poor decoy!  Waited for about a half and hour and a nice Tom came in for my son's friend.  One shot one bird for the oven.  Not bad for a bunch of rookies! 

We saw probably 200 whitetail and about 50 turkey in the two days we were out.  We were (and still are) in awe over the amount of game over there. 

I can't wait for the general season when I can carry a gun!!

[ICEMAN]

Alright! One bird so far. Good Job gjorgy!

It was definitely a cold hunt with nothing greened up yet, looked sort of bleak...

I will definitely report in after the general opener. May have two kids in tote then...

[Intruder]

Got a report from a landowner that they had a bad experience this past weekend.  A guy pulled up w/ a kid and let him shoot a bird from the truck window in the land owners pasture.  The guy jumped out and grabbed the bird, chucked in the back and drove off.

      

*censored*es like that should lose their hunting licenses for life.  Not only is he setting one of the worst possible examples for his kid, he's totally screwing all of us when it comes to building good relationships with private landowners and the non-hunting public. 

[gjorgy]

   Yea that kid is going to grow up right!   It's no wonder the landowners buy No Hunting No Trespassing signs by the Costco 100 pack.  We had a VERY hard time finding a place that wasn't posted. 

[Huntmossberg8]

My little cousin, will add another bird for the youth weekend count. Her third year hunting, she is 14 about to turn 15. They went to pomoroy, I couldn't go this year becasue i had to work, and make money so i can go during general season, otehrwise i would have been tehre and filmed it. But the story i got, was they had birds everywere, and the younger sister, had 3 oportunitys and very nice, birds but was hesitant, to shoot adn lost her chance, with 2 of the birds and one she did shoot at, hit is, but my uncle said she hit low,  knocking the bird over and it got up and flew... As for the older cousin who got a bird, her 3rd, called it in saturday morning after roosting it on friday night, and wasted it. Huge mature gobbler, with 1 and 1/2 inch spurs, With a beard as  thick and round as a quater. Sadley the beared had either been cut, or shot, or riped by another bird, it was only about 3 inches long, you could tell it had been messed with. I am doing a mount for her tail feathers, cut from  mid-neck to the end.  beautiful color. I guess, they had a blast,a nd saw plenty of birds, and got  plenty of permission, with more birds scouted out for general season. 

 :yike:That, is horrible that the father would let his child do that. The kid is being tought, very irrisponsible, ileaglle, unethical, and dangerous methods, for taking game. I really hope the kid, either learns that  is wrong, or someone cathches the father.

Good luck to all this season.  Whack em and stack em.

[Antlershed]

I saw some Turkeys while I was out driving around on Sunday afternoon. Three of them on private property.

[jackelope]

i'll be outside pomeroy for the general season and hopefully will see lots of birds too. i did on easter weekend, hopefully they're still around.

[Huntmossberg8]

We are trying to decide, if we want to go to Pomoroy, or coulville. we seem to do just as well either place. There is a lot of birds and land at both areas, little less people in pomoroy, in my opinion. But we do enjoy hunting near  coulville, kettle falls, and even down near keller ferry. We have been going to pomory for the past 3 years, and the 4 years prior to that we went to coulville, we like to mix it up a bit.

[jackelope]

lots of snow in colville anywhere off of the valley floor for whatever thats worth. the turkeys are gobbling and strutting where they can get out of the snow.

[DeKuma]

Got another 4-5 inches at our property up there!  Dad says it is melting fast though.  Supposed to be in the 60's for a few days.  He is starting to see some green on his property, but my end is uphill and still snowed in.
Hopefuly will be better by the opener............

[Machias]

  We'll all be turkey hunting in white camo if this keeps up!!!!!!!!

[Huntmossberg8]

I wouldn't mind hunting in the snow, give it a try. Openening day and that mid week i'll be in western washington, hunting before i go to school. Don't know about the weekend yet, but snow would be cool., or 60 degrees, i just hate the rain...lol