I covered a lot of ground, climbed many ridges, and had a couple birds toy with me via random afternoon gobbles. Around 5:00 PM I headed back to the area where I started nearly 12 hours earlier. Planning for tomorrow, I got on a high ridge in hopes of hearing a bird go to roost. Around 5:30 a hen yelped in the hollow below me and I thought I heard a distant gobble answer at the very edge of earshot. A few minutes passed and the hen yelped again. I yelped back and another gobble - somewhat closer but still too far to worry about this late in the day. 15 minutes pass and I call and was answered immediately. He’s now one ridge over and I realize that the situation is serious. He has covered a LOT of ground in a hurry and it’s nearly an hour until flyup. I decide not to call anymore other than leaf scratching. A few minutes pass and I think I hear drumming. I’ve never been great at picking out drumming unless I already know it’s happening, so I was second guessing myself. Then the drumming became unmistakable - loudest I’ve ever heard. Then I hear him walking in the leaves. Safety off. I see his snow-white head crest my ridge and he stands tall 20 yards away showing off that big bushy beard. I touched the trigger at 6:15 PM. Exhausting day, but in an incredibly satisfying kind of way.
