Public Land headaches

Stories of your favorite gobbler hunts.
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Swampstalk
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Joined: November 16th, 2018, 3:48 pm
Location: Palmetto Bay, Florida

Public Land headaches

Post by Swampstalk »

A couple weeks before opening weekend of March 2/3 my son and I had scouted a spot in a large WMA here in South Florida, and as we walked in heard 3 to 4 gobblers cut loose before first light about 300 yards out in a stand of pines and cypress. We were headed into the area just a little north along an oak tree line along an old drainage ditch. We finally sat in a very nice set up spot and listened for a couple hours. Toms called for about an hour. We heard a few hens in the area as well. So, we made our mines up this was where we would come on Opening weekend. Unfortunately, my son's baby daughter had to be hospitalized for several days and we couldn't do the hunt. He and his wife had a quota permit hunt on another WMA area the second weekend, but no takers.

Yesterday, he and I took the Jeep buggy back up to the first WMA area to hunt the spot we had found. We drove up Friday night and slept in the truck and then around 5:15 the next morning drove into the ORV trial to our spot. We walked into spot and had just got settled in and heard a Side by Side ORV come down the trail and stop not to far from where we parked. 15 minutes later we see lights crossing an open clearing 300 or so yards from us headed into the strand of pines were we thought the birds were roosted. At first light we see what looks like a possible turkey in a pine tree in front of us at about 75 yards. As it got lighter, thinking this is amazing to possibly have a tom roosted right there. No luck, it was a hen that hung around 'til well after sun up and then flew down away from us.

In the mean time, the pair of guys of to the south of us is calling non-stop. Then we hear someone that had come in the north of us maybe 250-300 yards and called constantly for 2 and half hours of the most God awful sounds one could imagine. Never heard a gobble in the entire area. Around 9:30 the guys to the south take a shot at something. A while later we hear them busting brush coming our way. They pop out 60 yards from us so we call to them and they wave and turn to head out of the area. The other bozo must have worn out his striker as we never heard him after 9:00 or so.

We stayed the course until 1pm cut off, heard a couple hens responding to our calls but not action. There we had some action, though no gobblers came in, it seems it snake breeding season as well. About 10 yards from us a pair of Southern Black racers were mating in a small oak tree, and after a while a third snake comes in intruding and got a face full of snake teeth and he left. After they parted ways, I look up an hour later and one of the snakes was approaching my shotgun barrel that was laying across my legs. The snake must have thought it was another black snake. He got within 6" of the barrel then turned and went behind our tree. Few minutes my son hears a zip lock bag noise and the snake had crossed over his backpack within two inches of his elbow. Pretty amazing outing but bummed over the nimrods that can't seem to understand courtesy and not move into an area when it's obvious other hunters are already there. We usually attempt to go the extra mile to get away from people. But some WMAs have too much access making for too many people. Though even with limited access some areas are overwhelmed. The same WMA but with a walk-in access point on Intrastate 75 a while ago had 7 hunters calling the same tom. They had all walked in from the same gate and fanned out but all heard the lone gobbler. Don't know if anyone got him! Just crazy stuff like this drives one to want a helicopter to go in with!

Hard luck missing our first weekend on the site, probably would have worked out differently. No birds were harvested according to the check station there yesterday, so I feel somewhat better about the situation. But we did get a free up close snake sex show!
Don
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howl
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Re: Public Land headaches

Post by howl »

FL public is so bad not only are private hunts down there $$$$, it has driven up costs of private hunts across the country.
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Hoobilly
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Re: Public Land headaches

Post by Hoobilly »

Public land on opening weekend etc or the first week anyway would definitely suck while having to hunt public ground. Especially in Florida. Usually it calms down some after and makes for better hunting.

Hope you all get on them. The snake stalking your gun barrel is hilarious
Don't start none, won't be none!

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Swampstalk
Posts: 388
Joined: November 16th, 2018, 3:48 pm
Location: Palmetto Bay, Florida

Re: Public Land headaches

Post by Swampstalk »

Hoobilly,

Well it actually was the third weekend of the season here, and it seems to bring out the novice hunters as time goes on. Seasoned turkey hunters hit opening weekend hard and seem to move on to other areas. What we experienced, along with the birds being pressured may have changed their calling and/or roosting patterns as well. There were 9 birds checked in the first week, 4 the 2nd week. None this past weekend at the WMA unit check station.

Guess if I had kept still the black snake would have been trying to hump my shotgun barrel!
Don
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Hoobilly
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Re: Public Land headaches

Post by Hoobilly »

:LMAO: :LMAO: :LMAO:

Had a black snake a few years ago slide past me so fast I about stood up. Got the ticket going fosho
Don't start none, won't be none!

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Swampstalk
Posts: 388
Joined: November 16th, 2018, 3:48 pm
Location: Palmetto Bay, Florida

Re: Public Land headaches

Post by Swampstalk »

Snakes can do that. About 10 years ago, opening day of ML deer season in Big Cypress I was heading to a stand and a 10 foot Burmese python scooted around my path at about 6 feet. Tempted to shoot the thing but figured I got one shot, and I'd screw up my deer hunt. Pucker Factor of 10.0! Same trip we had a 6 foot Diamondback shed right by our camp table. Needless to say, we wore snake boots when getting out of the tent to take a leak during the night. Seems our camp site was "Wildlife Central". Came into camp the next weekend and had bear scat next to the fire ring and Panther tracks next to the damn tent! Never did sleep too deep out there!
Don
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