Long-time no post … like many , there never seems to be enough time in the day to get things done.
February / March snows saw us trying Coyote calls from the sheltered 2nd floor deck behind the shop.
When I am outside , I still use the outhouse behind the shop > one day found some critter moved in for the winter ?
One quick live trap set up and I was able to relocate the culprit …
End of March into April the snows melt but while I’m doing the rounds one day ( scouting ) I still manage to find a patch of snow that traps my truck ….
Some digging ( David L. helps out ) and a quick pull with the tractor but me back on track …
Here are three more pictures from March thaw = some deer getting at the left over corn cobs > the 3rd picture is a buck that dropped his rack and shows a scar from a survived high hit back shot .
Middle of April my pet Tom Turkey starts getting aggressive …
And I notice the hen is laying on eggs …
My daughter is away at school and we have her dog for now … It always keeps an eye on the rabbit when I’m cleaning the pen.
Between chores I find time to do some gun sight in’s ….
You can see the 100 yard target in the background …
Still lots of chores to do > mostly spring clean-up ( Spring is always a muddy time ) .
And of course > Find time to scout different farms and set up blinds for opening day of our Ontario turkey season … ( It opened on a Monday this season April 27th )
One last trip to Lindsay Ontario to help my daughter clear out her apartment now that school is done till the fall.She and her boyfriend are actually on the road right now driving to the Yukon to work till August , so my truck was packed with their cats ( my wife and I are temp babysitting them for the summer ) .
And with that done I was freed me up to do some Turkey hunting > Rob Hopf and I put a few days in and managed to ground a couple birds. We had some fun watching other critters during our set ups as well.
Rob snapped a picture of a couple deer heading back to bed down after a night out foraging …
Rob’s tom weighed in at 22 ¼ lbs , 1 1/8 inch spurs , 9 ¼ inch beard … Taken with some heavy # 4 shot from his Hatsun Escort Shotgun . ( 35 yard shot over a jake and hen decoy set up ) . ( I told him to smile for the picture but he said if he did nobody at work would recognize him ! )
Mine was 20lbs , 1 inch spurs , 9 inch beard … Called in without decoys > 40 yard shot in a mixed bush area > using left over waterfowl loads ( #4 Blackcloud ) launched thru an extra full turkey choke out of my Hatsun Escort Shotgun .
Got the meat all carved off it and it will soon be in the slow cooker > I’ll let you know how it turned out . ( A guy from work text me and said it didn't look like a lot of meat on the small styrofoam tray> Then I told him that the meat is sitting on a full size plastic cafeteria tray )
Now that we have one in the pot we bring out the crossbows and look forward to filling # 2 tag .
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During The 2nd week of the season Chris H. scores a nice heavy mature Tom .
I move from farm to farm > find a few groups of jakes … So far during the season I have had two hunts interrupted by hunters on neighboring farms ( Late set ups that spooked birds ) And one landowner cruised thru the bush on her Gator during a set up … A minor interruption and small price to pay for permission on a new property . Overall an excellent week with awesome weather !
I eventually locate some mature Toms and get lucky with a 7 yard shot in a cedar swamp edge set up , using an older model Excalibur Relayer ( 1985 ) > ( This is the 2nd bird I have taken with this crossbow since I bought it ) . I hit him a little high and he flapped into the swamp area > Eventually passed on due to head trauma from a cedar club !
18lbs , 3/4" spurs , 7 3/4 " beard .
And here are some of the other cool pictures I pulled off the camera this week …
1.A raccoon having its midday sleep in a tree .
2.A couple small creek ducks scoping out a nesting area .
3.The 1st turtle I’ve seen this season .
4.A cool series of pictures of a barn cat hunting mice !
As I wrap up the week , I see farmers taking advantage of the beauty weather to prep fields on pretty well every property I hunted .
Good luck to all that are out chasing turkeys … Have Fun / Hunt Safe / and take lots of pictures as visual references that we all can enjoy as you share your hunt stories on the forum !
