Gobbler Nation

today was the north zone illinois opening day. i have been trying to get my dad a turkey for some time now, 7 years, with lots of action but no chances to pull the trigger. my dad suffered a fall off a roof while working eight years ago, and now is disabled to the point of only being able to handle flat ground. This public land we hunt is part of the driftless area in the midwest. that means the glacier missed this area 10000 yo. the topography of this place is compromised of steep ridges some nice valleys and atop some of the ridges is agriculture. we have always had good action, but not being too ambulatory our strategy is limited. i have killed some nice birds here before, just not dad. we set up on an edge of a round bale field in a 40 yard narrow that connects two ridges. we position ourselves so we can see down the short ridge and the other ridge is to our left. last night some strong storms came through, i love hunting after rain. as the woods start to waken i hear one gobble way off, maybe on the short ridge...maybe on the other? this place is about 2400 acres. then three gobbles 500 yards away, but on our ridge. things are pretty vocal with consistent gobbling from both locations, so i like our chances so far. after fly down the we see the group of birds that were gobbling, a seven pack of jakes! they worked the field strutting and gobbling about 175 yards away, they left and returned with two long beards leading the way right passed us and down the lane we came in on. the jakes are still milling around, and i see a fan coming up the short ridge right at us. as he approaches i notice two hens leading. the hens lead and one strutter and one non-strutting long beard followed. i would call and he would respond, but since they were on track i was not pushing the calling. when the strutter came to 35 yards i told my dad to put the red dot on his red part and... my dads first turkey ever! my father never turkey hunted until i started taking him. he enjoys being with me and that is alright. he would hunt by himself. me, i live for this stuff!!! even though he is not die hard, he was shaking like a kid when i handed him the gun, told him where to aim and killed that bird. he likes hunting and was really excited for his first bird. not to often in life does a son teach his 62 year old father much of anything. but today i was so proud of him, like i am sure has been of me throughout my life. one month ago my wife (35) lost her mom (60) unexpectedly. i understand the fragility of life, so today is special for me. thanks for reading.

pete

p.s. i tried to get him to shoot my twenty gauge with tss, but was more comfortable with the big gun.

Nice, congrats to you both.

that's one for the all-time memory bank. Great hunt and bird. Gil

Way to go, congrats

Pedro, your story brought back some sweet memories.
I'm telling you now, and you listen!!! You get that man in the woods with you, every day you possibly can,... Do you hear me???!!!
I'm glad the two of you got a good show put on, before it was hammer time. He will never forget it either. Congrats on a Nice Gobbler.

The last time I was able to take my father after his fall from a ladder was in 2010.
Thank God for a Gobbler close by, cause he could not motivate hardly at all.
I even had to get behind him to hold him and his gun up. He did do the aiming and trigger work.
After that fantastic hunt, he went downhill fast, and was never able to leave a hospital bed again.
My mother will try all day to get him to talk, but is too weak and unable to.
I can always start telling the story of the Gobbler, and will get a response everytime from him.
Never underestimate,... The Power of Turkey Huntin!!!

Take care Pedro!

That's awesome, great pics too

Good job on getting your father a turkey.

Congrats . I know either one of you will wont ever forget that Day !!!

congrats man! Way to make memories!

That was awesome! Thanks for sharing and congrats to your dad!