2017 Turkey Season in photos

I've already posted details of our hunts this year, so this is the 2017 season in photos.

I spotted these two strutters a week before season along with three others closer to the guys house. He's apparently been feeding them through the winter. I suspect one of the five was Olivia's first bird since we killed it Close by.



The opener was cloudy (even spitting snow just after this photo).



A friend (He's my pastor also) and I killed these two birds a couple hours apart. Both birds came in gobbling, strutting and drumming.



We doubled on these two toms the following morning when they strutted in behind three hens in high winds. We first spotted the one I killed gobbling and strutting in the grass on top of the cliff behind us just after flydown and before the three toms followed the three hens to the bottom along the top of the cliff.



One of them had an injury to his leg and thigh that was only visible after skinning.



I had several good hunts but two of them really stood out. The first of those were my daughter's first turkey. That was one of the biggest smiles I've seen out of her.



I did a solo hunt in the far western mountains of Montana following up some work that I had to do out there. I told the story before, but this guy turned into a true kamikaze dive bomber after he lost his hens on top of the mountain.



This is some steep country.



Boyd and I tried to fill his limited tag on multiple occasions and had a number of birds come in that always managed to avoid getting shot. Boyd was so frustrated that I never told him that the day that I took my wife out with the same tag, a day he decided to stay home, we had two toms run straight in to 25 yards and my wife clean missed the lead bird.

We worked birds here on at least three occasions. Had one in range for 10 minutes but couldn't see to shoot him because he decided to go above us.



I believe these are called Arrowleaf. They get incredibly dry just about the time archery elk comes in and can make being quiet nearly impossible if there are many of them.



The second of the two hunts that stood out so much this season was when Dad was able to kill his first Merriam's at 11 yards.

I would have loved to have killed another tom myself in the riverbottom that I hunted last year, but couldn't squeeze another hunt of my own out. I finished the season off with my two sons in the western mountains. We had several birds respond, but could not pull them away from the hens. Then when you'd expect the hens to wander off, the toms would just shut down and not care. We still had a good hunt together. Time together used to be easy to come by, but that isn't the case anymore. Isaac just turned 18 and Boyd is now 14.

It snowed at higher elevations before we left home.


He's not quite asleep here, but he wasn't digging the set up...... neither was I but the birds had unexpectedly gobbled just below us.


Above the clouds.



Same hat, but not the same little boy that used to tag along behind me on most of my turkey hunts.


I should add that it's difficult to keep teenage boys out hunting all day. Their stomachs won't have any of it.


We hunted some lower ground when we should have been back after that morning's birds up high. There were four jakes in a private field past the trees ahead of the boys that had no interest in the calls. We were down to the end and both boys were itching to pull the trigger......even on a jake.


We finished up the next and last morning of our hunt watching three jakes, a tom, and two hens completely ignore us in this country.


I really wanted to do a Memorial Day weekend hunt in NE or WA, but finally decided that I really didn't need to add any more to the credit card than I'd already done driving all over Montana. So.........that was the end of the 2017 season for us. Looking forward to 2018.

Looks like a fun year. Congrats on it all!

Truly amazing country in which you get to chase your turkeys. It is obvious by your body of work this spring that you have a good handle on Montana turkeys. A wonderfully successful spring!

Congrats !!!! Looks like a great time !!!

Awesome year! Its all about the memories.