MT 2017 Spring Turkey Hunt Thread

kansasdad said:

Binoculars are way underutilized by turkey hunters in my experience. I hunt several areas near highways. Rumble strips and semi horns, and even ambulance sirens can be great locator "calls"......anything that is a surprise can cause a shock gobble. Coyotes and even peacock calls might work to stimulate a gobble when owl hoots and gobbles fail to do the job.

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I use my Binos a lot. Very important part of my turkey gear

406LIFE said:

@hobbes is right with the need to draw for the full potential of birds. However Spring draw is very favorable and I think Fall draws are almost garunteed.

Maybe BigFin should do a web exclusive and get a lackey to go chase all of them this year.

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Can I volunteer to be that lackey? Ill chase these birds wherever, whenever

This thread is awesome! Congrats to all of you smoking them birds! I have Montana on my list for multiple species, but reckon its going up there for the thunder chickens!

Despite the Gail force winds Saturday we managed to put down some region 5 birds.. speaking of binos, I realized I forgot mine, had the 60 power spotter under the seat though. Hiked to the highest point and spotted some birds resting under a canopy about 1/2 mile off. Had to sneak to 80 yards before the bird could hear the slate over the wind, but he came right in after that. First turkey ever for my brother in law.
Way more enjoyable getting new hunters and kids on birds than shooting them my self.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3_iaTCJzbcE

I decided to try my luck at self-filming my opening weekend hunt. This is the result after throwing some clips together in iMovie after a 5 minute tutorial. Moves a little slow and probably could've cut some things out. If you want to skip ahead to the good part, start at about the 5:30 mark. Heading out again tomorrow, good luck to all hunters.

My son and I got on a group with 4 big toms and 10 hens off the roost this morn. One tried to come home on a 399 youth tag. See what round 2 tomorrow brings.

How'd it go Phutch30?

I got my oldest out yesterday morning and we chased a tom with a couple hens part of the morning before he quit gobbling and we lost him. I thought we had him early on.

Son got it done with a mid morning tom after plan A fizzled. Went to the location we had the action yesterday morn. Got set up well before light anticipating the flock in the trees. To get to a good setup we had to walk very close to the roost so wanted to do it in the dark before they woke up. Worked perfect. However, as it got light, the heavy gobbling taking place across the river from us and none in front of us told me we were toast. For some reason there were 3 hens all alone roosted where they usually roost. So we waited for the hens to fly down and beeline to the river and picked up.

Headed to another spot I had permission and saw 2 toms strutting with 8 or 9 hens. So parked and started to move around in front of the flock and walked into another tom with a single hen. So tried to circle them and ran into 6 jakes which spooked and moved off towards where the single tom and hen were. Finally got around everything and moved I to the edge of the juniper bowl the single tom and hen were last seen heading for. Peaked over the hill and there were 6 jakes and a lone tom feeding on the hillside 200yds away. A single series of soft calls and everyone looked up and started walking towards us. At 25 yards it was all over. Not sure where the hen went. We never saw her again or the other birds for that matter. It wasn't the flashiest finish but he thought all the chess play was exciting.

Congrats to both of you. My youngest and I got in a 2 hour hunt today ( just got back). We found what sounded like three toms together. They were following hens and wouldnt cooperate other than gobbling. Looked like someone hunted it this morning and found,another truck parked next to ours when we came out. Would have loved to kept after them but celebrating my daughter's 16th tonight.

Thanks. he's stoked. Last yr was his 1st yr turkey hunting and he only took one mature bird....cuz he wouldn't pass up jakes lol.

Ive seen more multiple toms with hens this yr then I can remember. Time for them to break up and spread out.

Man Phutch...your kid layed out the birds this year! GREAT JOB to him and you. Memories for a lifetime.

Yea he had a good yr. Asked me last night when he gets to go again. Told him we'll see. LOL

I used to put my oldest up first every hunt assuming I'd need to clean up occasionally. I can only recall one time that happened. I finally had to start saying "it's my turn now".

Enjoy every minute of it Phutch. My oldest hunted almost every day with me from 10 yrs old to 15 (we homeschooled at that time). Now he's turning 18 and there is always something in the way; school, girlfriend, job, you name it. I've had one day hunting with him this season, and quite frankly miss it. Ive had several days with my youngest son and my daughter, so I cant complain. They just haven't had the desire like my oldest used to.

I can honestly say I enjoy seeing him get something more than if I did. After 38yrs of chasing critters Ive got a little jaded. So seeing the excitement in a new hunter brings it all back. Hoping my daughter will want to go, I think she will, shes 10 and not 100% sure she wants to kill anything beyond gophers yet. She enjoyed seeing the turkeys come in when I took them east

hobbes said:

I used to put my oldest up first every hunt assuming I'd need to clean up occasionally. I can only recall one time that happened. I finally had to start saying "it's my turn now".

Enjoy every minute of it Phutch. My oldest hunted almost every day with me from 10 yrs old to 15 (we homeschooled at that time). Now he's turning 18 and there is always something in the way; school, girlfriend, job, you name it. I've had one day hunting with him this season, and quite frankly miss it. Ive had several days with my youngest son and my daughter, so I cant complain. They just haven't had the desire like my oldest used to.

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U taking them out this weekend assuming there's a weather window?

Maybe Saturday evening, but he's got a track meet that morning.

We hunted this evening and had one hang up at 50 or 60 just out of site. We played with him a half hour before he moved on. Then we found another and had him just over a rise at 20 yards. Son could see fan and two quick glimpses of his head. I was a little higher and had a good view of his head. It was heartbreaking when he followed his one hen back over the rise then pop back up at 60 and strut away behind her.
He's killed two big toms 2 years ago ( an IL Eastern and a stud Merriam's here with the 399 tag) but missed one out east at the end of last season and has now had several close calls this year, tonight's being oh so close. He's ready for #3 to come soon.

Based on your pics and stories I have confidence there's a Tom out there with his name on it. Im trying to find a decent weather window of more than one day somewhere in MT for the weekend to fill a couple of my tags.

This will be long winded but it was quite exciting for all those involved (me and my 870).

I hunted Western Montana yesterday evening and this morning. I had two different groups of birds gobbling at me yesterday but couldn't do anything with them. I put one group to roost and was on them in the dark this morning. It was lightly raining, so I was happy they were gobbling.

The flock consisted of 4 or 5 hens, 6 or 7 jakes, and one tom. They all flew into the edge of a big field and got as close as 70 yards but I couldn't do anything with them. I tried to follow and circle and I'll be dang if they didn't start back along the edge after 500 yards or so and go back by me out of range. The tom wasn't gobbling at this point and the whole flock was scattered feeding in the rain.

I lost track of them and spotted a guy walking his dogs ( I was relatively close to truck at this point), so I headed to the top to look for the other birds from the previous night.

I heard a gobble up high once I got back in farther and started toward it. The bird gobbled a couple more times from a long way off and higher but went quiet after I sat down for 20 minites to listen and call a little.

He finally gobbled again and had moved farther so I wasted no time following a steep old logging trail up the mountain. I've never hunted this part of the,mountain so it was all new once I started climbing. I finally came to a big flat (ish) area that was really green from a previous controlled burn. I was thinking this is where he was gobbling from. I stood there for 30 minites waiting for him to gobble, but he didn't make a peep. There were also two cow elk bedded in there that I watched the whole time. I finally decided that I must have been mistaken and he was lower and i should have stayed on the trail, so I went back down to the trail. I'd hiked the trail a couple hundred yards when I heard a gobble but couldn't tell where due to the echo effect that you'll find in steep mountains. I finally realized that the dang Thing was up where I'd just came from. Back up I headed.

I had to climb a steeper area from where I was at so it took me 20 minutes. He gobbled 6 or 7 times as I huffed and puffed my way back but I could tell he was moving away again. I was convinced that he was following a hen.

I called before I broke over into the open timber and he gobbled from up much higher. He had to have went almost straight up through the steep rocky mountain side and was now 300 yards away and at least 400 feet higher than me.

I crossed through the old burn so that if he came down I wouldn't need him to cross 100 yards of open timber. Once He gobbled at everything I gave him for 10 minutes or so but I didn't think there was much chance of him coming down.

Apparently I was wrong and he must have misplaced the hen he was following. The next thing I know I hear what sounds like a jet airpline coming and I look up to see him torpedo off the mountain top and drop through the tree tops. If you've waterfowl hunted, think of 50 mallards five bombing from a couple hundred yards overhead. He looked like a lunatic and honestly looked out of control. It was one of the craziest things I've seen a tom do.

The problem was that his speed took him 100 yards behind me to my right. I had my head turned as far as I could to see him. He immediately went into strut and I helped when he's go behind a tree. It took him 10 or 15 minutes to make into range and he finally was so far to my right and behind that I was about to lose sight (think double vision around the frames of my glasses). When he went behind a tree I rolled around as quickly as I could just as he came out.

He knew there was a problem and came out of strut immediately. As his head came up I gave him a load of #6s at 34 yards. I called in 4 jakes from downhill immediately after I shot him that came to 20 yards after about 10 minutes and gobbled their fool heads off. I don't think they ever noticed their comrad laying there dead since he didn't flip for too long.

Nice tom and great story. Sounds like a great hunt.

Nice Job Hobbes! Pretty bird

Maybe Rat Fink will post up the story about our morning that ended with big hooks in region 3.