Congrats Reeve025 and I’ve never seen anything like that before. So to start this story off I have never had any problems with other guys walking up on me on public land. With that being said when I do go to public every road I hunt on the gate is always shut and if there is someone there I do the right thing and go elsewhere. Well today I had a bird roosted for me and one of my good friends to get on this morning knowing our chances were very good since I done knew where he was traveling every morning. So we get there early and walk in way before daylight to where we roosted him and just waited for him to sound off. Well about 15 minutes after we was in there I heard someone hoot in the direction of my truck and I told my buddy surely they want come down the road since my truck is there. Well after ten minutes I see a someone walking towards us on a old trail that comes off the road we was hunting. (The same one we walked down.) Not to mention he had a head light on so every bird in the woods would see him. So I got my phone and shined my light at him to let him know we was in there because we was just 75 yards off the road waiting to hear the bird so we could make our move in the bottom. Well he stops and turns his light off and we are like he is turning around and we was not close enough for the bird to see him so we should be good. All of a sudden the bird sounds off and that guy turns and almost in a run goes flying past us to that bird even as we are hollering at the guy asking him what the hell is he doing he never slows down. So I’m pissed now so we get back on the trail and we walk to inside 200 yards of the bird and we let the bird know we are there and on the way out we blew the horn the whole way down the road behind the bird. Listen I understand it is public but have respect for others out there. This guy parks right beside my truck knowing someone is down that road and goes on in like owns the place. I’ll be headed to private in the morning.

Congrats on bird Reeve. I've never seen that before either pretty cool.

Limbhanger that's tough right there. You handled it pretty well considering.

Should have had number #2 but my stupid butt put a decoy out on the ridge with plans of just cat napping the afternoon. Well soon as I get there I do a light call not expecting to hear anything and boom one gobbles 300yds away. I thought to my self man I should really go pick that decoy up and have him search for me but said naw he prolly ain't even coming over here he has been on that ridge all morning. Well i sit back wait awhile and do a couple of yelps and boom he is 100yds. Now it's to late to move and I just had that gut feeling I should have got rid of the decoy. I don't like them except for lazy afternoons sitting on fields. Well I go quiet except for some scratching every now and then. I finally see him about 70 yds away and closes the distance to 60 yds when he seen the hen and takes a few more steps and blows up halfway behind a tree. There he sat strutting and cleaning his feathers for about an hour and would not close the distance anymore. After that he made his way back to his original spot and would never come back but would gobble his head off. I followed that bird around the ridge all day. Only good thing about it is I know his routine now and where he really wants to be so there will be more opportunities.

I almost had #2 yesterday morning. Buddy went with me to film and went after a bird that I've been narrowing down his routine. Well figured out that it's 2 different birds so my plan didn't exactly work out like I wanted. The closest bird had hens and we got them alittle aggravated but they didn't come looking for us to fight. After we give them alittle time we decided to move and try to swing around on them and if we ended up bumping them we might also be in a position to work the other bird. We had to top a knoll and we let out a call and a bird hammered about 100-150 yds out. Buddy called again and he cut my buddy off so we find a place to get setup. This knoll has a pretty steep drop off to it and has a small creek at the bottom so we are figuring we'll have to shoot him at the bottom of it. Well we get set and let out a few cuts and the bird answer and has gotten alot closer. Alittle bit later and I start hearing him drum. Shortly after we see him and he making his way perfectly. He gets to the bottom, crossed creek and start a angling to left. Not the direction he needed to go. We end up losing sight of him. He continued to gobble and told my buddy to be watching to his hard left cause he could pop up over the hill. Well he does at about 15 feet, he puts and goes back out of sight. Buddy cuts at him and i start scratching leaves and he gobbles. I continue scratching leaves and he gobbles a few times. Then we see him pop up in front of us. He working to our right and I just needed him to make one more step to have a shot. Well he turns around and putts again so I told my buddy to shoot him if he had a chance before he leaves. So buddy lays the hammer down on him. Was only a 2 yr old but it was a fun a hunt. And that bird went down a hill, across a creek and up and steep hill to come to us!

We also got a game plan on the other bird so hoping to go back after him on Wednesday.

Congrats! Y’all be sure to post your birds in the team score thread.

Have we come up with a team name yet?

I'm good with any of them. I finally got around to posting 3 birds. Hopefully I'll have a few upgrades through the coming months.

Whoever wants to go post a team name it will be good with everyone I'm sure. I'll post Smoke'n Tom's tomorrow if someone doesn't post one first. Looks like everyone is in the birds pretty good so far. Yesterday was my first day not hearing a gobble I was very frustrated but hey that's part of it. I'll be back after them in a few days and hopefully a few hens will start to lay in the mean time and help me out because right now they are kicking my butt.

We were close again this morning. Bird was rooster close like I hoped and hit the ground in our direction. Then it went downhill. He cut off to our right and got behind us. He got close enough that we could here him walking, spitting and drumming but never got to lay eyes on him. Then he disappeared. I can't hunt for very long in morning but I'll be back hoping he does the same pattern tomorrow.

Any of you guys going to be on public tomorrow that want to meet up?

Not tomorrow. I was today though. Pretty well sucked!

Y'all interested in a group text? I sure don't mind traveling around over the next month and calling for some of y'all, if you know where some birds are.

Austin Toler 205-356-6385

Public land has been hard but I leave for Texas Thursday so I hope to have some pictures come Sunday.

My# 256-476-7782 names Nathan group text would be okay. Like hearing about people's hunts. Y'all text anytime.

My #256-302-4538 be good to hear what y’all are hearing and pictures of some butterballs.

Got $2 and #3 today and yesterday. Wooohooo

Good job buckbrush! If anyone needs help posting pics in the scoring thread text them to me and I’ll take care of it for you. My name is matt 205-285-6950

Congrats Buckbrush! Also congrats Southwood on limiting out.

I've got a bird that I think is gonna have to be deer hunted as much as I hate it. But he's gonna be a good one if I can get him. Other that they aren't talking as much as they usually do on my place. I'm heading to Florida this weekend so hopefully I can pick up a bird or 2 this weekend.

Here are the pics. One bird didn't have any spurs so I was glad to get him out of the gene pool the other was a 2 year old.will post them but they will be low scoring. Hopefully I'll get a few upgrades. Get to hunt tomorrow before heading back to work good luck all.

One from yesterday day he had some hooks.

Awesome bird buckbrush! We’ve got a chance to win this thing.