I got in my spot this morning before daylight and was greeted with rain and about a 20 mph wind. It's starts breaking daylight and I don't hear squat. I let out some tree yelps just to let them know I was around. Thought I heard a hen to my left cluck a few times but wasn't real sure. I sat there until about 7:30 and looked back to my left and 4 hens were coming up the woodline in the edge of the plot and tagging behind was the two bearded gobbler that was with the one that I killed on Saturday. Now this gobbler must have 9 lives because in my younger days, I would have got the pair of them on Saturday. They keep feeding toward me and he will half strut is about all. All he's interested in was feeding on the clover in the plot. The hens get to about 20 yards and the lead one sees something that she doesn't like. She turns around and starts feeding back the way they came. I couldn't get a shot at him then so they walked back in the woods where they came out. I give them about 10 minutes and reposition myself where I was when I killed that one Saturday. I sat there about 45 minutes and here they come back out. This time they all come to about 20 yards and are just feeding away. Again, the gobbler ain't interested in nothing but feeding. He's got one beard about 8-9 inches and the other is about 3" and he's got my FF3 red dot right on his waddles at 20 yards maybe. I just can't make myself shoot him. I know that I didn't call him in, he was just following the hens who I didn't call in either. I take my iPhone out and start videoing them. I snap some pics of them and just watch them feed off. The videos turned out to be crap and you can't see a lot on the pics but he's a very lucky gobbler today. They were right here about 20 minutes probably.

That's him in the center:


I left this spot and went to another that we had pics of a gobbler hanging around a log landing on the end of a road. I ease down there and can see his tracks since it stopped raining so I know he's close by. I get to where I want to be and sit down and start getting my stuff out when I look up and there he is. He knows something aint just right so he eases off. I give him a few minutes and then give him some sweet talk with a Billy Buice trumpet and in just a minute he's right back out. He starts for the woods again and I cut to him and he blows up. I'm thinking my good deed from this morning is about to pay off. He struts around for 15-20 minutes but won't budge from the log landing. I've been silent thinking he will come up the road looking for me but he doesn't. All the sudden he breaks strut and starts walking fast into the woods on the opposite side that he came from. I'm thinking what the hell when another big gobbler appears in the log landing. He's in a steady walk/strut after the other gobbler. He doesn't pay me any attention while he's after the other gobbler. They go off in the woods and don't come back. The woods are thick there and I didn't want him to circle me and bust me this early in the season so I just eased out. BUT, I will be there in the morning. I hope letting the one pass this morning doesn't come back to bite me in the arse in the contest, but its still early.

You are a better man than I am!

I can't imagine letting a gobbler walk....heck, I don't think I could let a jake walk...

You possess more restraint than me. LoL!

WTF? Ha!

Cool story.... Would read again.

Gotta let the small ones go. Good job.

Never turn down a gift from the turkey gods. They dont like that.

I have called in quite a few birds on our place to within twenty yards strutting and gobbling there heads off and let them walk off. I just love watching them do there thing!

I may have gotten myself into a turkey funk, huh????

3toe took the words out of my mouth great story and good luck

Especially if their "thing" is flopping while my boot is on their neck!

Dr. B

You better read what Tom Kelly says about winning the game. Hope you didn't jinx yourself and season. Lol....
I like calling them up too. Sounds like you in them. Good luck.

Oh, don't get me wrong, if he would have acted like a gobbler is supposed to, he would have gotten a ride in the back of my truck. Like the old turkey saying, act like a man, die like a man. If I go back in there tomorrow and he acts like a big boy, he will get shot. Today he acted like a Jake trailing some hens.

Your a whole lot nicer than me!

hmmm...

Tough making that decision...

Nothing wrong with that hunt!!

It was a success, and you know you could have killed them more than likely. I won't say it was a sure thing, but the odds were so heavily in your favor, no one would have bet against you.

I do like to have them respond to the calling and have played some sort of game with them before I shoot them, as well.

God Bless,
Davdi B.

Stony you are better a better man than me pal. I would have introduced him to a load TSS #9's. However your Bama season plans are much longer than mine so I understand.

I take no prisoners can you give me his address.

Way to go Stony. I'm not sure I could of held off like you did. RTR & WE

Guess if you good with that decision to not shoot than so am I, just don't think I could have done it. Good luck in the morning

I think this is a cry for help.... hi im stony and I dont like killing turkeys....hi stony

X2

X3. To tell them you are sorry, you have to go limb launch him in the morning!

He's dead he just doesn't know it.

Naaa, never say you are sorry unless you run over him dry humping a speed bump.

Man that's a tough story to hear especially when I don't know if I'll get to hunt this year

LOL!!! I know exactly how you feel!! All of you!!!

After reading this and much deliberation, I get to thinking I would have probably done the sa................ Pffftttt! Who am I kidding? I'da turned that a flip

Stoney I hope you are repaid for your good deeds with a different turkey that gobbles his head odd and puts on a show for you. You got more restraint than me buddy.