Post by mullis56 on Apr 23, 2007 7:52:24 GMT -5
Well, after a few dismissal out of state hunts I finally have something to smile about, and I guess that I won't give up this sport of turkey hunting after all. Friday night arrived in North Platte, NE, to a beautiful lighting and thunder show going on and safely mad it to my hotel. Wake up at 4:30am, shower and then find out that there were tornadoes with 20 miles of town or so the night before, in fact TWC said that there was a tornado in North Platte, NE, so I had to call my wife in case she heard that in the morning news. Well we headed out to my friends town spot, as it is called, and we were there about 1 hour before daylight and on the way I was nearly spined by a porpcipine (sp?) about 6 feet is too close for me. When we set up you could see quite a few birds swaying on the limbs as the wind was whistling, still asleep. That didn't last long and the noisy Merriams fired up on the roost soon after. The 1st big tom that came in pitched down right behind me and strutted around and around and around back there. Then a big group of hens and jakes came by, then a good looking Hybrid (looks just like a RIO) came into the dekes and he was the 1st bird I took and several birds gobbled to the shot of my gun, then I took another good tom that was a merriam about 10 seconds later. After that I could still see about 10-15 birds on the roost........what a morning, heck the sun wasn't even out. Here are the stats:
HYBRID: 21 lbs, 1-1/8 spurs and 10-1/2 beard
MERRIAM: 19 lbs, 3/4 spurs, and 10 beard
BOTH beautiful and a great early morning hunt.
Then we were off to Sidney, NE to where the cabin is at. On the way we saw several hunderd birds right off of I80, and we hunted 3 other farms with no quick luck, so we kept moving westward. We got to Lewallyn, NE., and checked out 2 farms and saw a few birds, then we checked out an abandoned home stead and a tom took off running. We drove 1/2 mile down the road and glassed for other birds didn't see any but did see a heard of antelope in the distance....this is the area where my friend got is ONCE IN A LIFETIME TAG FOR ELK AND HE GOT A 320" WITH HIS BOW! We decided we'd pull out pretty boy and go back to where the tom was at and see if we couldn't get him. Well we get up there and set up about 12:30pm, and I call then Scott calls then I call, then boom he gobbled. Then again, and again and again. We are set up with Pretty boy behind my right shoulder and gun to the left and the bird to the left and we are in a cedar tree. Then he showed up strutting and saw pretty boy and he starting coming our way, well the way he was coming I lost him and he'd show up about 10 yards from the end of my gun barrel, and he did and he was welcomed with a face full of # 4's at 10 yards. Well after a little celebrating I got to the bird who didn't flop hardly at all, and he hardly had a beard, first thought I shot it off? After further inspection, beard rot, as what he does have it just breaks by touching it!!! 1" spurs, and a few broken tail feathers. But what a hunt, and a quick one at that.....I figured he was dead when he started gobbling......but with turkeys you never know. He is a full merriam and beautiful CHECK OUT HIS HEAD IN THE PICS (HE IS THE ONE WITH A BROKEN TAIL FEATHER, HIS HEAD LIKE A SOFTBALL.....I BORKE HIS BOTTOM BEAK OFF WHEN I SHOT HIM).....anyway a great time in NE and glad to score a bird or two!
Can't wait for Wed., now!! Good luck everyone!
HYBRID: 21 lbs, 1-1/8 spurs and 10-1/2 beard
MERRIAM: 19 lbs, 3/4 spurs, and 10 beard
BOTH beautiful and a great early morning hunt.
Then we were off to Sidney, NE to where the cabin is at. On the way we saw several hunderd birds right off of I80, and we hunted 3 other farms with no quick luck, so we kept moving westward. We got to Lewallyn, NE., and checked out 2 farms and saw a few birds, then we checked out an abandoned home stead and a tom took off running. We drove 1/2 mile down the road and glassed for other birds didn't see any but did see a heard of antelope in the distance....this is the area where my friend got is ONCE IN A LIFETIME TAG FOR ELK AND HE GOT A 320" WITH HIS BOW! We decided we'd pull out pretty boy and go back to where the tom was at and see if we couldn't get him. Well we get up there and set up about 12:30pm, and I call then Scott calls then I call, then boom he gobbled. Then again, and again and again. We are set up with Pretty boy behind my right shoulder and gun to the left and the bird to the left and we are in a cedar tree. Then he showed up strutting and saw pretty boy and he starting coming our way, well the way he was coming I lost him and he'd show up about 10 yards from the end of my gun barrel, and he did and he was welcomed with a face full of # 4's at 10 yards. Well after a little celebrating I got to the bird who didn't flop hardly at all, and he hardly had a beard, first thought I shot it off? After further inspection, beard rot, as what he does have it just breaks by touching it!!! 1" spurs, and a few broken tail feathers. But what a hunt, and a quick one at that.....I figured he was dead when he started gobbling......but with turkeys you never know. He is a full merriam and beautiful CHECK OUT HIS HEAD IN THE PICS (HE IS THE ONE WITH A BROKEN TAIL FEATHER, HIS HEAD LIKE A SOFTBALL.....I BORKE HIS BOTTOM BEAK OFF WHEN I SHOT HIM).....anyway a great time in NE and glad to score a bird or two!
Can't wait for Wed., now!! Good luck everyone!
