(http://i28.photobucket.com/albums/c222/526don/3D19C24D-5E8C-430D-9420-847BCF69171D-7615-000009CDAE1CF053_zps6a1b8779.jpg)
Yesterday afternoon was good but this morning was even better.
With a title like that the story has to be good.
Let's hear it, Don.
Tom
:campfire:
Shoot straight, Shinken
:archer2:
Thanx for the text bud...congrats again!!
Now I wanna hear the story :campfire:
Congrats, but we need a story. :campfire: God bless.
Yesterday I got home kinda early and decided to run up to the farm where we had the st judes hunt last weekend. I was throwing stuff in the truck (Blind, chair, pack etc) .
I picked up this recurve that was laying on my decoy bag. It was a psaV that I actually had on the classifieds this past week.
I'm not all that attached to bows, I figure they are just tools like a hammer that I used way too much the first 45 years of my life. I had put this widow up with two sets of limbs at what I thought was a killer price. I was kinda thinking of using the cash for something else i'd been thinking about. Short story is , I got a few pms about the limbs and bow and such and one guy who said he would buy it and then backed out. No worries about any of these folks. I had marked the bow sold and had not had a chance to edit the post that it was for sale.
Any way when I moved it off my decoy bag, I looked at it and kinda smiled. I thought, I'll take this old hoss and kill a turkey with it today. I had some 400 axis and 300 gn vpa 3 blades that I knew shot good out of this bow. three practice shots im my shop told me they were good but I shot just a tad high on every shot. I'll confess that turkeys have it in for me with trad gear out of a blind. I came in 3rd in recurve at the IBO worlds one year and missed 7 turkeys under 15 yards. Ive killed some with trad gear and have come to realize that I need to shoot out of the blind on my knees with no hood. the Ninja mask messes with my anchor so back in Nebraska , 3 years agoe, I went hoodless and net up and
had good results out there . Most of the time though, I take my OTHER bow. But today it was gonna be the old widow. I drove up and set my blind right beside the dirt pile that you can see in this video. I filmed this last friday from across the field.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SieSp0iShlU
I texted Cory and Michael and told them where I was and that I expected to be up to my butt in turkeys shortly. Here is the pic I sent them.
(http://i28.photobucket.com/albums/c222/526don/7B6640F1-ADF8-47AE-9745-E0DC883C0649-7615-000009F713B99671_zps44789c37.jpg)
Ooh, there has got to be more!
Waiting :coffee:
Bisch
What a great title. Can't wait for the rest.
Very nice!!
Well my expectations didn't pan out. I had a hen come over and visit my dsd hen early and then almost no activity. finally the birds started coming in the field but, they were going the wrong way, feeding out towards the hwy. They will sometimes roost out that way but not usually this early in the season. Any way I was just hanging out and looking. My phone buzzed and I looked and it was a message from Joebuck. All it said was " He stopped lovin her today". I had hear that George had passed away and knew where he was coming from. I was gonna send back a reply but when I looked up there were 3 jakes about 75 yards out and they were checking out the decoy. I dropped the phone and picked up the binos and confirmed that they were all 3 jakes. any bearded turkey is legal in NC and I figured if one of them came close enough I was gonna try him. Well they looked for a moment and then headed up front just like the rest of the birds had done. Now I don't consider myself a turkey caller at all. I've always had better luck just being quiet. But, with nothing to loose and daylight fading , I decided to try and get their attention. I reached for my slate but saw my wooden hen scratch box that Joey had made and sent me a few years ago. I can do a pretty good cluck and purr on that thing so I grabbed it up and went to it. Just a soft cluck and then some purring. I about fell over when all three Jakes turned and started toward my decoy.
Well I dropped the call and picked up the old no sale bow and got ready. It took about 2 min for them to get in range. As I came to anchor, I thought about the high shots before I left. I lowered my bow arm just a tad and pulled till the string slipped out of my fingers. I was looking just above the beard and the bird was facing me straight on. The bright fletching, hubbed up right under the beard. Dang it , a low shot. The bird turned and just walked back the way he came and disappeared into the woods from where he came with his buddies going along with him. Grabbing my binos, I could see about half of my fletching sticking out of him just below the beard. I replayed the shot over and over and figured this bird would need some time and I would need some luck. A look , out where I shot and over where he went in the woods showed no clues. No blood, no feathers , no nothing.
I headed to the truck and thought, Man it's getting cool . My next thought was , I'll bring my dog back in the morning. Supper time. I'll try and finish up before I go to bed tonight. s
Congrats on the turkey! :thumbsup:
Great story so far, Congrats!!!
You're tell'n a good'n Don :thumbsup:
Kinda thought about that shot all night. I felt like the turkey was dead but with no blood to trail, it would be a crap shoot at best.
Now My old Lab Chip is getting long in the tooth. I think he's about 12 years old. He's been a great companion and found quiet a few deer and even a few turkeys before today. I think he sneaks out and puts twist in my string or other stuff to make me shoot just bad enough to need him. About a week ago he went missing one afternoon. I ask my wife if she'd seen him and she said not since you left for work this morning. It aint like him to get gone . I had rode the subdivision looking and no dog. the next morning I had about decided that he had just wondered out in the woods and died. I told my wife that If he had indeed died, I'd just like to know it so I could make plans to get another dog. Well when I went out to go to work, he was laying in my garage. He must have been in there and gotten shut up by mistake. He and I were both happy campers.
When I put the kennel in the truck he knows it's time to go hunting. this morning was no different . He ran around the truck and put his front feet up on the tail gate. He can't jump up by himself anymore. Kinda sad but he's ready in mind if not body. I helped him up and loaded my son's wirehaired pointer too. He's just a two year old but a good dog as well.
I had left my blind up over night and just left all my stuff in it to. I put the dogs on the ground at 7:15 this morning. It was 50 degrees. they milled around and I walked to the spot where I saw the bird go in the woods. Neither dog acted like they had any real trail to follow. when I got into the woods good I just looked around and my heart sank a little deeper. The storm, Irene, had took its toll on alot of big trees in this track of timber. big trees down and tops everywhere. I thought of all the places a turkey could hide and my spirit wasn't very high. I knew about where I usually hear gobbling on the roost and headed on down that way. Probably 75 yards into the woods I noticed Chip run up on this big root ball of a tree that was almost blown over. I went over to him and when I got down on my knees and looked up under the roots I saw this.
(http://i28.photobucket.com/albums/c222/526don/414486A6-2575-4D27-8ABB-F026324CBC9F-7615-000009CDB7C336C5_zpse40f73dd.jpg)
yeah boy!!
:clapper: :clapper: :clapper: FOR CHIP!!!
That's a nice recovery for an ol' dog!
I've got a 15 yr old yellow Lab that still has an awesome nose on him, but along with A LOT of fatty tumor tissue he has some type of dementia and some days he just takes off like he's a 1 yr old pup runnin' as hard as he can. If you're not right there when he takes off, you usually end up pickin' him up from someone who has found him and called in a lost dog....
Enjoy the feast Batman!
Shoot straight, Shinken
:archer2:
turkey down. I was happy as could be as well as the dogs. I got hold of the broadhead and pulled it on out of the bird. I'd have never found this bird with out the dog. I may have never found him 99 out of 100 times with the dog. I guess the good Lord wanted me to recover this bird.
Thanks for hanging in there for the tale. here's a few pictures I took.
(http://i28.photobucket.com/albums/c222/526don/F4C53084-46CE-4353-83EA-ED8A2006A96C-7615-000009CDB1F775CF_zps03f19bb3.jpg)
The spoils of war. Chip is letting Wyatt know that He found this bird and not to get too close.
(http://i28.photobucket.com/albums/c222/526don/AB7F67A8-A953-41E2-B061-5DC191055451-7615-000009CDA957BF6C_zpsc88b3787.jpg)
Since all my stuff was here already , I couldn't resist a pic of the equipment.
(http://i28.photobucket.com/albums/c222/526don/9CAE5579-2D37-43B4-A901-5B14A8587FBD-7615-000009CDA5E95690_zps08f129c2.jpg)
My dsd hen, longbox and swamp rooter ball cap by joebuck.
(http://i28.photobucket.com/albums/c222/526don/415507C5-73D0-48E0-871D-AB150DE10670-7615-000009CDA2B35D80_zpscb42dd97.jpg)
Kinda lame hero pic. I was by myself and had to wing it with the old Ipone. Yes I shaved my face this week.
Thanks for coming along. In closing , I think I'll keep the bow and dog and eat the turkey tomorrow ala Marty McMahon's method of cooking one. May post some pics of the meal.
Good night all and good hunting. Don
:thumbsup: :thumbsup:
Great story. Thanks for sharing.
Excellent read about an excellent hunt! Glad you were able to recover him. I lost one this season that I am 99.9% sure is dead. He flew off a ways and I was unable to find him.
Congrtas again,
Bisch
Congrats Don, glad you found him.
Oh yah!
Loved every "minute" of it Don. Good on ya! Ol' Chip is a real whistler - gotta love a dog like him. Great story, buddy - made my night. :thumbsup: :clapper:
Gtreat story and great dogs. :thumbsup:
Great Story! I have a 11 year old Lab, she is a great Dog. :bigsmyl:
Don, Congrats on the bird. Great Story too! Thank you for sharing.
Don,
Congrats on the bird! Looks like a big ol' gash. I'm guessing something nasty from Simmons, perhaps?
Great story and super recovery! :thumbsup:
Bernie Bjorklund
NC Iowa/SW Wisconsin
Nice story and turkey congrates.
Great story. Nothing like an old friend to help make things right. Way to stick with it.
Now that's a memory worth keeping. Good Dog, Good Bow and a Great Story.
Thanks for sharing!
Thats good stuff Don! Way to go! The most shocking part of the tale was when you said that you had actually missed turkeys before! I kinda find that hard to believe!
:thumbsup: Congrats again on the bird Don! Good to see old dogs doing what they love, and I mean the dog! ;)
glad you didn't answer the phone! way to follow up! congrats on the shot. Those ¥#€£^*€^ are tough! Bull Jake Trophy for me
Way to go Don!!!! Great story.
Thanks guys. Was cleaning up the breast today and found this. I guess someone had shot at this bird earlier. Only one pellet.
(http://i28.photobucket.com/albums/c222/526don/3EC368D1-35D0-4AC6-AAAE-2442028A40E7-8685-00000B04D4566775_zps0e5fb8ed.jpg)
Ready for the old grill/ smoker.
(http://i28.photobucket.com/albums/c222/526don/A84C5290-756F-498C-A96F-7E56AC4EDB40-8685-00000B04CAE96448_zps1d4f67f2.jpg)
and finally the finish of this hunt. Nothing goes better with turkey than a good sec baseball game. SC leading LSU 3-0 in the 9th.
(http://i28.photobucket.com/albums/c222/526don/F6F30BC4-46F9-4D26-96DB-6782911586CD-8685-00000B04C4EB0353_zps3e32cde7.jpg)
Awesome hunt Don!
I bet someone shot the bird standing next to him and he caught that one pellet!
Dinner looks awesome!
Bisch
Great story - thanks for posting - maybe it'll be my turn next week - M
Way to go Don! Your story might just motivate me enough to get out after a bird myself....I kinda lost interest after the first week for some reason...
It's hard to believe you missed 7 birds as good as you shoot..lol....but you and I both know shooting a target and shooting game just ain't the same....even though I'm shooting targets better than I have in years, last year I had one of those years where I couldn't do anything right on shooting a deer so I know how it can go..congratulations again good buddy...
Great job Don and great story, several times I wished I had a dog that could find a bird.LCH
A pleasure to read. I don't know how many times you could have gone back and not found that bird..... but it just proves that you never will if you don't try.
Good job Don - dinner looks great too!!! Hey Wally I heard a gobbler yesterday afternoon when I was scouting gamelands - the only reason I did not give chase is a hunter entered before I got there and he could have been working the bird - 4 gobbles over 20 minutes never heard a shot so I will try him Tuesday AM - I am seeing lots of sign and lots of birds this year - get out there buddy :)
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Don what is that seasoning you put on that bird. I have one to cook and that looked good.LCH
Great writeup Don! The turks seem to have my number this year but I sure enjoyed reading about your bird from start to finish, gives me hope!
Good job Don. Enjoyed the read. RC
Thanks guys.
Lee, It was a McCormick rub called Sweet and Smoky. Also did a light 2 hr marinade of soy sauce. This was suggested by Cory to pull and hold the smoke flavor . It worked. Was really good. Be careful not to over cook. I went to 155 internal temp and was gonna let it rest to 170 but got side tracked and it was almost over cooked.
Great bird, and a Great story!!! Congrats!
Thanks Don.LCH
That was a great read. Congrats on everything.
"Chow" looks like a good line to be in, buddy, know you enjoyed it all the more, for the great hunt behind it. You deserved it, especially after all the times you have put folks onto a bird, instead of hunting yourself.
Our dove season open on Labor Day monday. the sunday 8 days before, Chip passed away. Was heart broken but he had got in pretty bad shape as of late. This is my new companion. Doc Holiday. He's four months old now and a Boykin Spaniel. I wanted a smaller dog this time around. Don't go for the big water ducks much anymore. Anyway he is coming along very nice in his training. Also been doing a little blood trailing work. He's found two deer so far. Now bear in mind that these were slam dunk double lung shots from the same old no sale widow in the story. I heard both deer fall but didn't even look till I went back to the house and got Doc. He could have done no better on each trail. Gave him a small pc of liver as reward. I think he will be in future post on here.
(http://i28.photobucket.com/albums/c222/526don/photo_zpse8dd6f23.jpg)
(http://i28.photobucket.com/albums/c222/526don/IMG_0938_zpse40c4745.jpg)
Don,
Boykins are special dogs. I've had them since childhood and admittedly haven't done the blood trail work with them that I should. Whip got one down here last year and I believe has had good success with blood trailing. If this is your first one, feel free to give me a holler. They are very different than labs if you haven't figured that out yet.
Good stuff.
Julian
What a great story on the turkey hunt. Sorry about Chip passing. I know a lot of folks on here can relate to losing a good dog. Good luck with Doc.
:clapper: Congrats!
My Lab, Rainy, found a bow-shot turkey for me a couple of years ago, and our beagle pup is going to help if needed on a trailing job. Dogs are invaluable for finding turkeys that don't leave much of a blood trail. Nice story and congrats on a fine tom.
Doc looks like a great pup. Hard to loose a family member but, glad you found another to help with the void. Looks like a smart pup. I wanted a Boykin but hard to find without giving up a arm for one or signing 20 legal papers about them.
Look forward to seeing more of him.
Good story.
Give old Chip a cookie !
great story. My chocolate lab is getting pretty grey and we all feel your loss.
Dogs take a piece of our heart when they go and only a puppy can PARTIALLY restore that heart.
You look famaliar fron my Camp LeJeune days- you shoot that range during tournamanets?