I have been able to hunt several times this year but the gobblers have been grouped up and I've had a hard time with them. They haven't been too responsive. They've gobbled their heads off on the roost but not much when they hit the ground. I can't hunt the field they like to work to or fly down into which makes it challenging. I have one bird still in here that I know is bigger than the one I killed.
I had a game plan that I was going to get in early and set up on the edge of a field near where they roost. Usually they'll start gobbling around 630-645 or shortly thereafter. They're flying down around 7.
I was running a little late and I was about to step into the edge of the field at 601 and a gobbler let out a gobble at a passing plane about a 100 yards away. It was still dark so I pushed on into the field to set decoys out. I got the decoys out and my stake blind out.
I waited til about 635 and let out a soft yelp, GOBBLE. Well that's a good sign seeing as how they haven't answered a lot of calls earlier in the year. Well as the minutes passed, every call I made, he answered. I also heard 4 or 5 birds within a couple hundred yards too.
I knew this bird was able to be killed and I called way more than usual. Following a fly down cackle, two birds flew down from above me that I didn't even know was there. My first thought was they were hens. They were working towards the gobble. As soon as he saw them, he flew down. He put on a good show.
The birds topped the hill, saw the decoys and came running. The first two ended up being jakes. The tom stayed back and the jakes charged the decoys. As soon as the tom saw the decoys and the jakes with them he came running into 10 yards.
I let him get into the decoys and let the 870 eat. The bird ended up being 22lbs 10.5" beard, one spur was 1 3/8 and the other was broke off at 3/4". I self filmed all of it to boot. Great bird too!
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