Best Days for Harvesting Birds!

We were waiting all week for this nasty weather in Kansas. Our hunt had been a good one up to this point, but we knew this storm would bring in the mallards! It was a cold twenty degrees. The wind was supposed to be 25 mph out of the north with gusts possibly reaching 40 mph. The weather forecasters rarely "get it right"! They were "spot on" this morning. As I drove to the boat ramp, I could feel the wind pushing my boat and SUV. It made me shiver just thinking about how cold it was going to be! We agreed that taking the boat off and back on the trailer was going to be interesting since the ramp faced north and we had a north wind.

After pulling in, it was business as usual, unstrap the boat and load it for launch. I could hear the waves smashing against the rocks. When I bent down to loosen the tie-down strap the wind was strong enough to blow some sand in my face. The cold was bad enough without that! I crawled up in the boat and Randy assumed his position behind the steering wheel of my vehicle. We have done this so many times that we worked quickly without speaking. As Randy backed the boat down the ramp, I could see that waves were rolling up at me. My science teacher background told me that I had to get that boat out of the surf zone as quickly as possible. I needed to get into deeper water where the waves would break high over the stern and swamp the boat. I just sat my gloves down beside me on the boat when "BAM"! The biggest wave of the morning came crashing into my back! The wave washed my gloves forward coming to rest ten feet away and soaked. I had the motor started and quickly slammed into reverse. As the boat retreated from the trailer, I flipped the bilge pump switch. I didn't need to look to know I needed it. I took on a little more water, but I was able to get the boat far enough away from the shore that the next big wave did not do too much damage. I turned the 1860 Alumacraft and headed for the courtesy dock. However, Murphy's Law got me again, and the motor stalled. I frantically turned the key and uttered "words of encouragement." With the Mercury EFI outboard there is no choke to push or pull, just wait and hope. The usually very reliable motor sputtered and coughed, but made it to the dock before it died yet again. I put my legs over the gunwale to catch the dock with my feet. A few minutes later the motor fired up, and we were on our way.

We crossed the lake against the strong headwind. It took a little longer than usual. Visibility was low even though we were heading toward town. The sleet, snow and wave spray made it impossible to find our destination without the aid of our GPS. The electronics guided us safely to our cove within the tall grasses. The wind was at our back making this an ideal location. We set the fake Herter's ducks in the shape of a "U," giving the birds a wide open landing zone. We drove the boat into the cattails and waited. The wait was for ducks because we barely got our guns loaded when shooting time arrived.  The mallards did not disappoint us. The first single cupped his wings at 150 yards and coasted all the way in without hesitation. Gunner just finished shaking off from the retrieve when another single joined the party. I shot a blue bill, and Randy shot a teal. Other than that it was a mallard day. We bagged our limit of ten mallards with only one hen in the boat. What a great duck hunt! We finished the day with three green heads out of as flock of ten.

The weather was cold and miserable. It made hunting difficult and boating treacherous. Those are usually the absolute best days for harvesting birds!

If You Want to Hunt Turkeys, You Have to Get Out of Bed!

I showed up at Doug's house at 5:45 AM as agreed. We had planned to hunt right behind his house, so getting in position for a gobbling Tom would not be a problem. I parked off to the side so that they still use the driveway. I didn't notice any lights on, but I figured that he would not want to wake anyone up. I walked up to the kitchen door and peered through the glass. It was as black as the night sky. There was no sign of life, not even a cat. I hung around outside and waited to see if my host was going to appear. No dice. I decided to head out back and get in position to run to the first tree gobble. There was enough foliage on the trees that I could enter the woods undetected. As luck would have it, I heard a gobble in the opposite direction that I walked from the vehicle. Again the bird called out to the early dawn, but still, no one joined him. I decided to wait. I was certain I would hear a bird near my location. It occurred to me that the scouting report came from a guy who couldn't get out of bed in the morning! Perhaps I should rethink my strategy.  I listened intently as the birds sang their early morning tunes and the sweet smell of honeysuckle filled my olfactory senses. Just as I was about to throw my former coaching rival completely "under the bus", I heard a gobble from in front of me. "Atta boy," Doug! The hunt was on!

 I closed the gap quickly and quietly on the gobbler. I looked for a place to sit. I chose a large oak tree to lean against. This tree put me one hundred yards from his roost. I did not dare get closer. The mature forest was wide open. He would see me approach. After settling in, I made a soft "purrrrr" with my easy yelper. He gobbled immediately! I waited a full minute and repeated the soft gentle purr. He came "unglued" with a resounding triple gobble. For several minutes we called back and forth. He flew down about 6:25 AM. In an attempt to illicit a response and identify his location, I purred. No response. "Oh no. He is coming in silent. He could be anywhere!" I thought as my eyes scanned the forest floor. I made one soft purr, but in response, I received the call of a raspy old hen. She began to "cluck," cut, and carry on, as she ran to the gobbler. He gobbled at her advances. I had one chance, and that was to imitate her. I started cutting and carrying on like a whole flock of hens. That Tom turkey went crazy, but he never wandered more than forty yards from his tree. Before long he had an entire harem at his disposal, and together they wandered off.

I sat at the base of the tree for a time as the gobbles got further and further down the hollow. It was about 8:30 when I decided to head back to see if "Sleeping Beauty" had awakened. I found my buddy all rested, bright eyed and bushy tailed. "I guess I have to get out of bed if I want to hunt turkeys, aye Bill?" We laughed. Doug said that he hears turkeys in the late morning hours, so we walked back down the hill. We stood in his field talking quietly for about thirty minutes. Every now and then I would "cluck" to check for interested gobblers. After one such "turkey check" we heard a loud gobble, and he was close! We scrambled to hide. Big mistake. We should have been seated in position, but I did not anticipate the bird coming to me. I figured we would be moving to him. I am not certain if he saw us scramble around to hide like two of the "Three Stooges" or what, but we never saw or heard him after that.

All in all, it was a good hunt. Anytime you get to set up on a bird, it is a good hunt. I got to set up on two in one morning. Spending time with good friends makes for a good hunt as well. That made this day very special. Remember though, if you want to hunt turkeys you have to get out of bed!