Red Oak Ranch 3rd Turkey Hunt

Bowhunting Wild Turkey 2013

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This morning the wind was howling and I didn’t want to hunt and risk having my arrow deflected by the wind. It let up during mid afternoon and I want out to hunt. I didn’t stake my blind down yesterday so I had to walk around until I found it. (This is the 3rd turkey hunt at Jim Mitchel’s Red Oak Ranch.)

Afterward, I moved my ground blind uphill to the place that I saw the longbeards yesterday. It didn’t take long to see some wild turkeys. First off, 3 solo hens crossed the plowed field. And I noticed a gobbler 400 yards away.

A small pond is to the north of me and 2 strutter jakes headed toward it after approaching a group of hens that are coming into the area. Then 2 longbeard gobblers came out of the trees below me and stood where my blind was yesterday. They hung out for almost half an hour. When they saw a solo hen crossing the plowed field they did not pursue the hen, instead they walked up behind me. I tried to talk them over to my decoy but they kept going uphill.

Another solo hen came into the field 100 yards uphill, this hen was definitely in a hurry. The reason was right behind them about 150 yards — my two longbeards in full strut. Here’s one doint the fast walk strut.

Later, 100 plus yards away, the 2 gobblers were paying careful attention to 2 hens. And the 2 strutter jakes came in close to them but the longbeards didn’t give them any openings.

The 2 jake, 2 gobbler and 2 hens group got 70 yards from me. But they switched directions and went into the woods where a dry creek is.

I noticed a gobbler’s head poking out of the weeds uphill from me.

As soon as I made a few soft yelps he started walking through the tall weeds toward my.

Once I got a good look at him I knew he was too immature for my liking and didn’t call anymore. But he came up to 15 yards anyway. My decoy must have looked too tough for him to whip because he watched it for awhile and then passed by the blind and jake-walked away downhill.

A few minutes later I yelped when I heard gobbles downhill to my left. I mixed it up a little and they came out of the trees and walked right over to me.

They were nice looking jakes. However I wasn’t interested in them either. But they were interested in the hen they had heard and walked over to the decoy. I cut at them and they came right to the blind.