Post by: Gobble Doc on January 21, 2011, 09:06:37 PM
Post by: Phantom Gobbler on January 21, 2011, 09:22:35 PM
Post by: carpsniperg2 on January 21, 2011, 09:26:04 PM
Post by: STIKNSTRINGBOW on January 22, 2011, 11:40:25 AM
Post by: bearpaw on January 22, 2011, 01:42:27 PM
Post by: TwoFeet on January 22, 2011, 03:02:49 PM
You are not the only one :chuckle: I can already hear the thunder chickens in my head :chuckle: Some people hear voices, me I just hear animals :chuckle:
:yeah: :yeah:
I hear 'ya Carp! Just had one of the most epic hunts of my life last night...in my dreams!!! It was my third night in a row "dream chasing" gobblers, and I'm definitely in need of some good old fashioned April Field Therapy.
Post by: Gobble Doc on January 22, 2011, 08:32:04 PM
Post by: Hank on January 23, 2011, 03:31:58 AM
Thank you.
Post by: turkey slayer on January 23, 2011, 07:06:04 AM
Post by: bearpaw on January 23, 2011, 12:25:24 PM
Post by: yelp on January 23, 2011, 03:50:27 PM
Post by: Gobble Doc on January 23, 2011, 08:32:09 PM
Post by: PolarBear on January 23, 2011, 08:36:30 PM
Post by: yelp on January 23, 2011, 08:48:01 PM
Those damn things are a nuisance over at the place in Republic. We try to chase them off and the stinkin' things keep coming back.
Polarbear...Need any help give me a shout hunted the Republic area for years..always can fit in some new spots to help landowners out. :)
Post by: ellensburgpo on January 23, 2011, 08:48:56 PM
Post by: wsucowboy on January 23, 2011, 08:50:06 PM
Post by: Andrew on January 25, 2011, 02:06:28 PM
Needless to say we walked around this saddle and he let out a yelp and heard the sweetest sound I've ever heard boom through the woods! The rest as they say is history!
80 days!
Post by: Machias on January 25, 2011, 03:14:22 PM
Post by: BIGINNER on January 25, 2011, 03:49:25 PM
Post by: JKEEN33 on January 25, 2011, 04:00:48 PM
Resized. Looks a little better now. :)
Post by: Gobble Doc on January 25, 2011, 06:20:41 PM
Post by: yelp on January 25, 2011, 08:12:44 PM
Right on with taking the kids. I have got my youngest son now worked into a lather thinking about the youth weekend. He and I hope to spend some time in a blind and see what happens. A blind and some decoys. The cost of the bird keeps going up. ;)
Remember its "priceless"..spending time is the important thing.
Post by: BIGINNER on January 25, 2011, 08:16:03 PM
Right on with taking the kids. I have got my youngest son now worked into a lather thinking about the youth weekend. He and I hope to spend some time in a blind and see what happens. A blind and some decoys. The cost of the bird keeps going up. ;)
Remember its "priceless"..spending time is the important thing.
yep... last year i mostly road hunted for turkeys...yes i said i road hunted. buts its because my wife wanted to go with me. and the kid was with us and he was about 6 months old... so i ate tag soup... bt we had fun. saw lot and lots of turkeys, now we can't wait till this spring,.. cuz now we can all sit in a blind!!! :) :hello:
Post by: WDFW Hates ME!!! on January 25, 2011, 08:30:05 PM
That is the only thing Cody really wants to hunt right now.
Hope this year will be different for him.
Post by: KLRKeith on January 25, 2011, 08:37:31 PM
Post by: Gobble Doc on January 25, 2011, 09:34:41 PM
Post by: yelp on January 26, 2011, 06:56:12 AM
I've never done the late season. The calling in the spring is what has me addicted. Love hearing them work their way in.
It is the best. Also it is more challenging. Fall hunting in Washington rarely involves calling most hunters out here ambush and stalk flocks in the wild or in areas they congregate. I prefer spring seasons..it is fun to have them respond to a call and have them strut in. Nothing better than hearing a gobbling turkey. It gets my blood going for sure! :)
Post by: HornHoarder on January 26, 2011, 07:17:44 AM
Post by: yelp on January 26, 2011, 07:24:51 AM
I can't believe how worked up you all are getting over turkeys. I used to be, but not so much these days. I quit hunting them with a shotgun several years ago. Now I bowhunt for them. Anybody else archery hunting those crazy birds.
I am the same way..but it is fun to see otheres get excited about hunting turkeys. I want to archery hunt them, but need to get the right set up.. what do you use?
Post by: TwoFeet on January 26, 2011, 02:08:17 PM
I can't believe how worked up you all are getting over turkeys. I used to be, but not so much these days. I quit hunting them with a shotgun several years ago. Now I bowhunt for them. Anybody else archery hunting those crazy birds.
I've shot a ton of turkeys in my life, and the day I don't get excited about them is the day I'll be six feet under. The only thing that gets me more excited is when I get the opportunity to call in a bird for a friend. Helped my best friend John get his first ever Turkey, a nice Jake, last spring and it was one of the happiest moments I'd had in a long time. Can't wait to get back over there in a couple months!
Post by: yelp on January 26, 2011, 07:57:10 PM
I can't believe how worked up you all are getting over turkeys. I used to be, but not so much these days. I quit hunting them with a shotgun several years ago. Now I bowhunt for them. Anybody else archery hunting those crazy birds.
I've shot a ton of turkeys in my life, and the day I don't get excited about them is the day I'll be six feet under. The only thing that gets me more excited is when I get the opportunity to call in a bird for a friend. Helped my best friend John get his first ever Turkey, a nice Jake, last spring and it was one of the happiest moments I'd had in a long time. Can't wait to get back over there in a couple months!
A ton of turkeys is about 100-120 birds.. WOW :o In this state? LOL :chuckle:
Post by: HornHoarder on January 27, 2011, 08:28:39 AM
Post by: Gobble Doc on January 27, 2011, 08:52:41 AM
Oh my word. That looks like a beast. I really want to get my son next to a bird of any size with a beard for the youth opener. He has a bow and has been practicing a lot and I think if he gets the chance for a reasonable shot then he has a good chance at having success.
Post by: Machias on January 27, 2011, 08:53:53 AM
Post by: bearpaw on January 27, 2011, 08:54:24 AM
Post by: ellensburgpo on January 27, 2011, 12:39:12 PM
Post by: TwoFeet on January 27, 2011, 06:46:37 PM
Yelp- I think I'd have to put myself in handcuffs and roll my sorry butt into the local law enforcement office if I'd literally shot 2000+ pounds of Gobbler. Before I did that I'd post my location so every hunter could come open hand slap me across the face. :)
Nice reading all your guys' posts. I get pretty sick of all the rhetoric I hear during my daily travels throughout the Seattle area. Nice to know there's still a bunch of good sportsmen out there.
Post by: HornHoarder on January 27, 2011, 06:53:18 PM
Post by: Gobble Doc on February 04, 2011, 10:11:10 PM
My spring plan is beginning to emerge. I'm taking my son for the youth opener. We'll get up early early Thursday morning in the dark and do a lot of driving so that we have most of Thursday and all Friday to scout. Hunt on Saturday and Sunday. I'm out to find a blind tomorrow and maybe even a couple of decoys. I've been trying to go running every evening to start getting in shape this year. I was pretty tired last year after doing just a small amount of hiking. Pathetic. Totally distracted these days with the hope of trying to get close enough to a spring gobbler. I'm even considering blowing a week at one shot of my vacation to spend trying to get a bird this year.
Post by: HornHoarder on February 05, 2011, 06:56:09 PM
Post by: yelp on February 05, 2011, 07:31:38 PM
I have a local flock of 80-100 birds that frequent my property. Today I heard them Gobbling!! Its coming.... :IBCOOL:
Since your name is HornHoarder..Is there any chance you don't hoard turkeys?? When we going? LOL Need any help..keeping them thinned down PM me. :chuckle:
Post by: Hangfire on February 05, 2011, 08:09:06 PM
I shot one that I never weighted, but if I ever shot a 20 pound bird it was him (most weight 16-18 pounds). He had a 9.5 inch beard but had 1 3/16 inch long spurs. Old and tough. Meat ground and made into patties was very good.
Post by: Gobble Doc on February 06, 2011, 05:32:04 PM
Post by: turkeydancer on February 07, 2011, 12:21:56 PM
Post by: Andrew on February 07, 2011, 02:18:23 PM
Do the spurs wear down in rocky areas? Will beard hairs break if they freeze?
Post by: yelp on February 07, 2011, 05:29:38 PM
So my first bird had 9.5" beard, however the spurs were nubs. My second bird had a 1.5" -2" beard, full fan (no jake feathers) and nubs for spurs. Third bird was definitely a jake, but it to had a 2-3" beard and nubs for spurs.
Do the spurs wear down in rocky areas? Will beard hairs break if they freeze?
Yes to both ?'s. Spurs are better indicators of age versus beard length. Deep snows can create ice balls on beards and they will break off and grow back.
Post by: kevinlisa06 on February 12, 2011, 07:19:27 PM
Post by: yelp on February 12, 2011, 10:02:39 PM
my only question for yelp would be why did my tom this winter have a 10" beard and no spurs? It had a full tom fan but literally no spurs, is this a genetic thing or did he eat out of a garden where someone used miraclegrow?
I would say it was genetic more than anything. Some turkeys have been known to grow two spurs per leg. :yike:
Post by: WCTaxidermy on February 12, 2011, 10:50:44 PM
my only question for yelp would be why did my tom this winter have a 10" beard and no spurs? It had a full tom fan but literally no spurs, is this a genetic thing or did he eat out of a garden where someone used miraclegrow?
So my first bird had 9.5" beard, however the spurs were nubs. My second bird had a 1.5" -2" beard, full fan (no jake feathers) and nubs for spurs. Third bird was definitely a jake, but it to had a 2-3" beard and nubs for spurs.
Do the spurs wear down in rocky areas? Will beard hairs break if they freeze?
The Merriam species generally have very small spurs most often referred to as nubs. Some Rio's have the same thing. Most the turkeys that I got in last year all had very small spurs if not nubs. Over the years I think the biggest spur I got in was just over an inch and that was on an Eastern. I did do some research on it and it has to do with the area and species of the turkey. Can't wait for the season to open. John
Post by: br8kitoff on February 13, 2011, 07:31:40 PM
Post by: Gobble Doc on February 13, 2011, 08:34:32 PM