I've got pictures from another hunt this year that I will post after this one.
My Dad and I have been talking about doing a "Anniversary Turkey Hunt" for the last few years.
20 years ago on my 10th birthday, April 2nd, my Dad and I hid under a big cedar tree and called in a group of turkeys. He shot his first turkey that night with a Bighorn recurve. What a birthday present for one excited 10 year old! I remember riding in the truck with the window down, looking at the stars, and telling my Dad that it was the best day of my life. At the time it really was too.
So with the 20 year anniversary of that hunt falling on this year we made it a point to get out and hunt some turkeys together.
By pure happenstance a gentlemen called from Arizona claiming to have a Bighorn that used to belong to my Dad. Well dang if it wasn't the same bow. I had to have it, and bought it for myself. It's a little heavy for Dad to shoot anymore.
I did not kill a turkey on April 2nd, but I did get one on the 1st. Good enough! It was a pretty special hunt to share with Dad, and my Mom got to come along as well, she had a blast and shot through some feathers on a couple of nice toms with her Hummingbird recurve.
The story:
We were alerted to some turkeys when we heard them drumming on the hill behind us. My Mom thought I was crazy when I told her there was a tom close by, as if I had a sixth sense. She had never heard the drumming sound before.
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I was actually going to let my Mom shoot at these toms, but as they were making their way in to the window of the blind to give her a shot they suddenly turned around and started going the other way. Because of where I was sitting in the blind I grabbed my bow as Dad dropped one of the windows.
That 20 year old Bighorn felt good as I pulled back the string. I let fly a cedar arrow with a big Snuffer leading the way. The arrow struck the turkey, who was facing away, to the feather I was aiming for. He flopped a few times, flew across a small creek, and died within seconds.
(https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-08cxQGcsHdQ/T3yUSKXx_XI/AAAAAAAAZzA/KrmC_El8ESQ/s640/P1130457.JPG)
(https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-vsRm_35Pc0g/T3yWDk0eVII/AAAAAAAAZ3U/vC9IKkueftU/s640/P1130488.JPG)
Dad and I with the turkey:
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I made these arrows as close to what I remembered my Dad using a lot when I was growing up. A normal walnut stain with a white crown dip, no cresting, and two turkey feathers with one white cock feather.
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We also went out and hunted the previous week, opening weekend.
The first morning of the hunt I sat in the blind with my Dad while my brother and his girlfriend, Ashley, went a few hundred yards down the field in the opposite direction. There were extremely large flocks roosting at both ends of the field, as well as large flocks in adjacent properties. They all usually converge in this corn field to do their morning feeding before heading up in the open hills to spend their days.
The vocalization was intense, the first three hours of the day was non-stop hen talk. The toms and jakes were yackin' it up as well. Before they flew down the gobbling sounded like a constant thunderstorm. Once they hit the ground the gobbling slowed down more and more as the morning went on. After a few hours of being on the ground they all but quit gobbling.
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After an hour or so of observing the turkeys they finally made their way to our end of the field. Once some of the hens got close we picked up our calling tempo which brought them to within feet of our decoys. Naturally, some jakes and toms followed them over.
I usually aim straight up from the legs, at about beard height. I missed a little jake by inches, but grabbed another arrow quickly because a big tom was strutting 20 yards away. My arrow hit him a little behind the legs. The turkey gimped out 75 yards or so with blood absolutely pooring out of him. He bedded down and died a very short time later.
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A few hundred yards down the field Ashley was getting quite the introduction to turkey hunting. Ashley played DI softball at Purdue University, and she is one tough gal. Danny was just four days out of shoulder surgery, so Ashley was the one who had to carry in the pack with two chairs and the blind.
Wave after wave of turkeys came past the corner of the field where they set their blind. Turkeys can be such easy targets to miss. On Ashley's first shot her arrow sailed harmlessly over the turkeys back. A little while later another jake came by, this time she got some feathers. She was stepping it in. The third jake that came by didn't have a prayer. The third shot was so perfect that the turkey didn't even run 3 yards, it died on the spot.
This was Ashley's first successful bowhunt, or any hunt for that matter. She has been practicing like crazy, and is quite the shot by now. Once she got her nerves under control the turkeys had no chance!
(https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-FX47IqmKDzI/T3NWUhlO9ZI/AAAAAAAAZq8/ZEz4cIyj_Xg/s640/P1020740.JPG)
(https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-vAtkRNbwTTE/T3NXCuKulqI/AAAAAAAAZs8/wPMSACtR3jU/s640/P1020747.JPG)
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The following morning my Dad and I returned to the same field but set up in a different spot.
We had a tom split from the main flock and run up to our strutting decoy. He was looking for a fight!
Dad shot him right through the breast. I was convinced he missed but Dad was sure he drilled him. The turkey rejoined the big flock in the middle of the field. About 20 minutes later we noticed a tom just standing around, not doing anything, just standing there. Soon after he went up a small hill and laid down. I was wrong, Dad was right, he did hit that turkey.
Once the turkeys left the field Dad swung around that hill and I came towards the turkey from the front. The turkey ran to the top of the hill where Dad was waiting with a Simmons Shark.
The hill where the turkey laid down.
(https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-6ni2PMhCwkM/T3NGMtX_FWI/AAAAAAAAZY0/5MCx3r7tfvA/s640/P1130392.JPG)
Zoomed in and you can see him better.
(https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-Ort9qiwsyxM/T3NGOdnM99I/AAAAAAAAZZA/-k9QdswiKD8/s640/P1130393.JPG)
Dad punching his tag.
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Now that's some good stuff!! Congrats to all on the nice birds! :thumbsup:
Congrats! Awesome stories thanks for sharing! :thumbsup: :notworthy: :campfire:
that is too cool. Great story and great job on those turkeys. Glad you could find that bow of your dad's. priceless
Wow, that's stuff dreams are made of. Sounds like fun was had by all. Congratulations on the fine birds and that for sharing.
Awesome story and beautiful pictures.
Great story and pics! Congrats to all!!! :thumbsup: :clapper: :archer2:
You are a blessed man. Thanks for sharing.
Great pics and story! Its great that you can hunt with your family. You all are very Blessed.
Thanks so much for sharing this with all.
Awesome hunt, awesome story! Thanks for sharing!
Congrats to everyone! :thumbsup:
Great story! Congrats to all. I am sure the shot with your dad's bow will be a special shot that will never dim in your memory.
wow thanksgiving dinner is taken care of !!
Congrats
Wow, congrats to everyone involved in these epic hunts!!
Thanx for taking so many fine pictures, you always do such a great job with your threads :clapper:
Awesome stuff!!
Always look forward to your threads Tommy. Great work and many congrats to all. Pretty cool first as well.
Congratulations to all three hunters! Very nice photography also!
Bernie Bjorklund
NC Iowa/SW Wisconsin
Good for you folks. Now thats some quality time.
You are a blessed man. Thanks for sharing.
priceless! And that zink hen decoy rocks!!!!
Thanks for sharing....spent the night watching the grand nationals senior devision championship here at work...I'm stoked and I'm still weeks away.....you guys are making me grow feathers hehe!
WOW,and thanks for taking us along on the trips with you!I love theese hunting threads other than going out in the blind with my kids,this is as good as it gets.Thanks again for the pics and stories.
:clapper: :clapper:
Awesome story and pics, thanks for sharing :thumbsup:
If it gets any better than that count me out....couldn't handle it.
Awesomeness!
Thanks for sharing a great Hunt!
If it gets any better than that count me out....couldn't handle it.
Awesomeness!
Good job and congrats to you and your father. Great story and thanks for taking us along.
From first hand experiance I can tell you that they don't make them any better than your father. Great man that loves spending time with his family and is as honest as they come.
:thumbsup:
Keep coming back to this one...still doesn't cure turkey fever, but it helps!
Tommy, where did Ashley hit her bird? From the look of the arrow, it looks to have gone all the way through...
I also have to comment about how much you look like your Dad...and that's a good thing :thumbsup:
Awesome. I'm sure this will be one of those hunts you remember for a long time.
Awesome story. Congrats.
Thats a mess of turkeys! Great story.
Thank you guys for the fine compliments. I appreciate it, and yes I am very blessed. I hope my son and I can enjoy hunts like this in the future! But I got time, he's not even 2.
QuoteOriginally posted by Guru:
Tommy, where did Ashley hit her bird? From the look of the arrow, it looks to have gone all the way through...
I also have to comment about how much you look like your Dad...and that's a good thing :thumbsup:
Guru: I get the look-alike comment about five times a day, my Dad just says "poor kid". Ha! I don't remember exactly where Ashley shot her turkey but I have the videotape so I'll have to review it. I think her bird was quartering towards her and she hit it right in front of the wing butt, with the arrow exiting near the far leg. The feathered end of the arrow remained in the bird.
I just reviewed your turkey shot placement thread. It is very informational, I think I may shoot over there and share my experiences.
I will share our set-ups here as well.
I have, unfortunately, lost too many turkeys, especially when I aimed for the wing butt. I am now picky on broadheads and try to be picky on shots as well. I aim straight up from the legs at about beard height, no matter what angle the bird is at. I have found that looking up from the legs helps me pick a spot, which is difficult for me to do on turkeys. If I shoot slightly forward I am still in vitals, if slightly back then the arrow shoots through the guts, and with a LARGE broadhead that is deadly. If I square the hips it completely shuts down the bird's ability to run, and if they can't run they can't fly. Shooting them through the hips has also turned out to be a shot that produces a quick death.
I really prefer facing towards or facing away shots, I have 100% success with birds dying extremely fast with these shots. Not only have I not lost one, but they haven't even ran 15 yards with this shot.
On my first turkey this year, with the Rampart longbow, I used a big Sasquatch 4 blade. I hit him behind the legs while in full strut, he laid down within a minute.
My second turkey, with the Bighorn recurve, I used a 160gr Snuffer. That might be my new favorite broadhead for turkeys. I can't believe how bad the damage was. He was facing away and I hit him right above the fan. The arrow completely took out a leg and one side of the breast. The turkey died within seconds.
Ashley used a wide Magnus 4 blade. Quartering to shot, the bird flopped a bit but never stood up after the shot.
My Dad used a Sasquatch 4 blade as well. He knows better, but shot through the breast. It took a long time for his turkey to lay down and required a follow up shot. His bird got his wings under him after the second shot but did not fly far. The second shot was probably over an hour after the first shot. Had we pursued this bird immediately I have no doubt he would have flown a long ways, and/or ran a long ways. I doubt we would have recovered him if we were not able to observe him for a long time after the shot. Luckily this is open country and he did not leave the field we were set up in.
Awesome story, thanks for sharing!
Great stuff Tommy! You've really got me pumped up for turkey season. I have a tag here in WI starting next Wednesday. I'll try to be like Tommy!
Very cool story, congrats to all invloved!
:clapper: :clapper: :clapper:
Really nice, great story.... :thumbsup: :notworthy:
Great story and pics!! Thanks for sharing. :thumbsup:
Awesome! Great stories and photos. I learn a little more every time I read about another hunt like this.
I Gotta make some phone calls and get out there after those turkeys!
Congrats to everyone on the birds. I always enjoy the quality of your stories and pics. Thanks, once again, for sharing them with us.
Congrats! Thats getting it done on the Thunder Chickens. Great pics. TD.
Incredible!!
truley outstanding :thumbsup:
Some really great pictures. Thanks for sharing.
Great pictures. Thanks for sharing.
Thanks for the awesome stories and pics. I have to wait til May 2 here in Wi.
Thank you for sharing your family and hunt with us.
Congratulations!!
God bless,Mudd
I just put a few more pictures on my computer so I thought I would share.
This is the first tom that I shot with my longbow.
(https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-e50o5rUjSJ8/T3_TV-SfDwI/AAAAAAAAaBM/JNbjRA_jqMw/s640/Fullscreen%2520capture%2520462012%252085712%2520PM.bmp.jpg)
And a few of the turkey that my Dad shot on opening weekend.
(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-l7QkwReuAZk/T3_TfZbODhI/AAAAAAAAaBU/lfpPSODB0Jg/s640/Fullscreen%2520capture%2520462012%252090853%2520PM.bmp.jpg)
(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-wAIuM9o3A7w/T3_ThTxuUaI/AAAAAAAAZ-A/nCSOVcIftQY/s640/Fullscreen%2520capture%2520462012%252090947%2520PM.jpg)
(https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-Z5sH5-gyHf8/T3_Thz2TnqI/AAAAAAAAaBc/8pXeG3KcZlY/s640/Fullscreen%2520capture%2520462012%252091048%2520PM.bmp.jpg)
Awesome pics and story, now I'm even more pumped for next Saturday! :thumbsup:
Great stories and pics..I expect a turkey sandwhich when I stop by the shop. Thanks for sharing.