We got settled into our first spot just before 5am and then we waited for light.We only heard a couple distant gobbles from the roost and they sounded like jakes to us but since I hadn't properly scouted this spot for turkeys I didn't know exactly where they were roosting.We made our move to my second location and got a response instantly from a hen and the pair of jakes. They were on the field edge across the bush lot from us maybe 150 yards and they were holding their ground.The hen went off on her own but the jakes stayed where they were. We decided to put the call down for a while and let them think about it.
Half an hour later I changed calls from a slate over glass to a crystal over glass pot for the higher pitched calls it makes. This time the tom cut me off on the third note and started to fire up. The jakes went silent.He was clearly coming our way and we figured it wouldn't be long before he would appear through the tree's right in our laps. We were wrong.We first spotted him strutting back and forth on a small ridge about 80 yards in front of us.He was hot and gobbling but soon that first nasty old hen returned and he toned it down a lot.For the next hour we watched him strut back and forth without coming closer and then we couldn't see him any more. I softly purred to him and he cut me off and now he was closer.This was it,he was on his way in.
A few minutes later he popped out from behind a tree at about 50 yards in full strut drumming and dancing for the hen that was in front of him. She came right by us at less then ten yards and then the two jakes appeared right on her trail. This was more then the old boy could handle and he made his way right down the logging trail until he filled Tony's scope at twenty five yards.Down he went like a sack of potato's! And what a bird he was!! Just a giant! Gonduckin truly has that magic horseshoe this year because this big fat headed gobbler was double bearded! Congrats buddy!!! We earned this one!
His stats are:
25.2 pounds
1 3/8" + 1 5/16" inch spurs
11 1/4" + 8 1/2" beards.
It's been one heck of a year for me this season setting a new personal record for number of birds called to the gun and jakes passed. Amongst the highlights are this 25 pounder and a 24 pounder and three double bearded longbeards !
Goose smasher
