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Post by astronankin on Oct 16, 2023 18:15:35 GMT -5
My first fall turkey and first crossbow turkey is down! Not a big gobbler by any means, but I still got turkey fever when I saw she was going to pass in the clear less than 30 yards away. Second turkey ever. Third turkey sit of the year. Seen turkeys every time and both times I wasn't set up right. This time, they came in front right along the creek. There were some much bigger hens in the group and I had my eye set on one or two of them but they went through just below where I could shoot and know there wasn't another turkey there. This smaller one, she walked right where I needed her to. There was another turkey behind her when I first really got good to shoot, so I waited a moment. She kept walking, I saw my chance, took it. Didn't go 30 yards! Pass through, didn't find the Luminok bolt and think it went into the creek. Very happy to have more meat on the table. I think she's a young one, she's similar in weight to my spring Jake and the tail feathers in the center are longer than the others. Pics later.
Edit: I heard rustling behind and to my right as I was watching the turkeys and waiting for a good one to walk where I needed it to. Turned my head to look, and there was a spike buck with a protrusion or two on his antlers about 10-15 yards away and still sort of coming towards me and obviously beginning to notice that I was there. Turned back to the turkeys and waited until mine was where I needed her to be. Shot, and while the turkeys split up and got all alert and at a bit of a faster walk, the spike took off running! I could hear him, think I scared him way worse than I scared the turkeys. He wasn't in sight when I looked again.... The turkeys were. They didn't actually spook until I got up to retrieve the bird.
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Post by schall53 on Oct 16, 2023 18:37:39 GMT -5
My first fall turkey and first crossbow turkey is down! Not a big gobbler by any means, but I still got turkey fever when I saw she was going to pass in the clear less than 30 yards away. Second turkey ever. Third turkey sit of the year. Seen turkeys every time and both times I wasn't set up right. This time, they came in front right along the creek. There were some much bigger hens in the group and I had my eye set on one or two of them but they went through just below where I could shoot and know there wasn't another turkey there. This smaller one, she walked right where I needed her to. There was another turkey behind her when I first really got good to shoot, so I waited a moment. She kept walking, I saw my chance, took it. Didn't go 30 yards! Pass through, didn't find the Luminok bolt and think it went into the creek. Very happy to have more meat on the table. I think she's a young one, she's similar in weight to my spring Jake and the tail feathers in the center are longer than the others. Pics later. Congratulations 🎈🎉🍾🎊 |
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Post by astronankin on Oct 16, 2023 19:58:54 GMT -5
Thanks! Just finished getting the breast and as much leg meat off as possible. I wanted drumsticks and thighs but... Don't have anything for cutting bones and joints. I think the only thing I don't really like about hunting turkey is that there's not a whole lot of good meat on them so depending on how you do the butchering you might not use most of the bird.
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Post by deadeer on Oct 16, 2023 22:16:10 GMT -5
ANY turkey is an accomplishment, one with any kind of archery equipment is a BIG accomplishment. My only fall turkey was a hen with a bow, and still a trophy to me. Congrats to your success!
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Post by astronankin on Oct 17, 2023 7:38:23 GMT -5
ANY turkey is an accomplishment, one with any kind of archery equipment is a BIG accomplishment. My only fall turkey was a hen with a bow, and still a trophy to me. Congrats to your success! Did you get her mounted? I just took the meat I needed and some feathers. Not going to mount tails unless it's got a beard. |
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Post by astronankin on Oct 17, 2023 7:39:26 GMT -5
I was hoping to get a crack at one of the nice longboards I had been under in this roosting area Sat morning but they eluded me. I think there's a double beard among them.
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Post by deadeer on Oct 17, 2023 8:24:02 GMT -5
ANY turkey is an accomplishment, one with any kind of archery equipment is a BIG accomplishment. My only fall turkey was a hen with a bow, and still a trophy to me. Congrats to your success! Did you get her mounted? I just took the meat I needed and some feathers. Not going to mount tails unless it's got a beard. No mount. I had a chance at a bearded hen on a spring hunt, thats the only way I would justify a mount. There was a couple boss gobblers on the property I was waiting for, so didnt take the bearded hen. |
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Post by Woody Williams on Oct 17, 2023 8:56:22 GMT -5
Did you get her mounted? I just took the meat I needed and some feathers. Not going to mount tails unless it's got a beard. No mount. I had a chance at a bearded hen on a spring hunt, thats the only way I would justify a mount. There was a couple boss gobblers on the property I was waiting for, so didnt take the bearded hen. I killed a fall gobbler a few years back and when I stopped by the taxidermist shop to show him and check him in I asked Dean Stallion if he wanted hi to make a stuffer decoy. He says that fall birds do not mount well. Something about their pin feathers not staying put after mounting. www.nwtf.org/content-hub/pin-feathering-and-how-it-ruins-wild-turkey-mounts |
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Post by astronankin on Oct 17, 2023 12:26:22 GMT -5
 Here's the pic. Best we could do at dark. Shot her about 6:45 pm and got back around 7:30 pm. Dark by then. |
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Post by genesis273 on Oct 17, 2023 13:21:41 GMT -5
Congratulations!!! 🏹🦃
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Post by astronankin on Oct 17, 2023 14:28:33 GMT -5
Thanks! Hit her a bit higher than I wanted to because I was shooting slightly downhill but other than that things went great. |
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Post by huntsemall on Oct 17, 2023 17:01:22 GMT -5
Congratulations.....closest I've came with a bow was shooting the foot off of one.....I'm telling you, they can still run fast on one foot. Called her "peg leg"! My neighbor ended up getting her with a shotgun later that fall which is quite a story.....
I was headed back on the 4 wheeler to try my luck with a shotgun, as I came into the CRP field I see my neighbor jogging out of the woods into the field. I stopped and he told me "that peg leg turkey is out here". He had been watching her and when she heard the 4 wheeler, she just dropped and hid is the weeds. Got off the 4 wheeler and we proceed to walk towards where he saw her go down.....whoosh, there she goes up in the air, my neighbor (excellent trap shooter) hammers her, feathers fly but she hits the ground running and into the woods whe goes. We are in the woods looking and this time she takes off on the ground, he shoots and misses but she changes direction and comes right at me, he yells "tackle her cause I can't hit her", so I was able to wrangle her around and so ended the saga of Peg Leg.....by the time he shot her, her weight had dropped to a whopping 6 pounds. Would have made an awfully funny Youtube video!!!
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Post by esshup on Oct 18, 2023 0:12:05 GMT -5
Congrats! Good shooting!
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Post by astronankin on Oct 18, 2023 7:58:31 GMT -5
Congratulations.....closest I've came with a bow was shooting the foot off of one.....I'm telling you, they can still run fast on one foot. Called her "peg leg"! My neighbor ended up getting her with a shotgun later that fall which is quite a story..... I was headed back on the 4 wheeler to try my luck with a shotgun, as I came into the CRP field I see my neighbor jogging out of the woods into the field. I stopped and he told me "that peg leg turkey is out here". He had been watching her and when she heard the 4 wheeler, she just dropped and hid is the weeds. Got off the 4 wheeler and we proceed to walk towards where he saw her go down.....whoosh, there she goes up in the air, my neighbor (excellent trap shooter) hammers her, feathers fly but she hits the ground running and into the woods whe goes. We are in the woods looking and this time she takes off on the ground, he shoots and misses but she changes direction and comes right at me, he yells "tackle her cause I can't hit her", so I was able to wrangle her around and so ended the saga of Peg Leg.....by the time he shot her, her weight had dropped to a whopping 6 pounds. Would have made an awfully funny Youtube video!!! Now that's a story! |
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Post by span870 on Oct 20, 2023 3:31:12 GMT -5
Thanks! Just finished getting the breast and as much leg meat off as possible. I wanted drumsticks and thighs but... Don't have anything for cutting bones and joints. I think the only thing I don't really like about hunting turkey is that there's not a whole lot of good meat on them so depending on how you do the butchering you might not use most of the bird. To get the drumstick and thigh off, grab the leg and pull away from the body while holding the body. It'll separated showing the joint. Put the knife point in the joint and it'll pop off. |
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Post by stevein on Oct 23, 2023 10:38:34 GMT -5
Thanks! Just finished getting the breast and as much leg meat off as possible. I wanted drumsticks and thighs but... Don't have anything for cutting bones and joints. I think the only thing I don't really like about hunting turkey is that there's not a whole lot of good meat on them so depending on how you do the butchering you might not use most of the bird. To get the drumstick and thigh off, grab the leg and pull away from the body while holding the body. It'll separated showing the joint. Put the knife point in the joint and it'll pop off. I learned from Dad how to cut up chicken when I was young. Most people just buy parts. Turkeys are not that much different. The legs make good soup stock and the wingbones can be made into nice trophy calls. The hen is the most desired for that purpose. Congrats on a plan that worked. |
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Post by huntsemall on Oct 25, 2023 11:08:40 GMT -5
Well so far it is turkeys 2-0 against me. I headed out with the shotgun on the 20th, sat for a couple of hours, making a few lost hen calls. Figured they were out in the field so I decided to ease up there....stepped out on the 2 track road looked to the right and they they were about 50-60 yards coming my way which they quickly ducked into the woods but really weren't too alarmed (or so they seemed). I tried another set up next to the field several hundred yards away but no luck. Turkeys 1-0
Today with the temps being in the 60s this AM opted to not bow hunt. Been wrenching on my Jeep and needed to take it to the local mechanic just down the road. Thought about trying the turkey but decided not to.....coming back around 10:30, there they were pretty much right in front of my chair. I swear they have a spy at my house and they let them know when I aint gonna be there. Turkeys 2-0 Tomorrow is another day! LOL
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Post by MuzzleLoader on Oct 25, 2023 12:05:45 GMT -5
Geese and turkeys. They know exactly when you’re there or not.
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