2016 Ontario Turkey Season , couple weeks in review ...

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R.J.
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Location: Innerkip , Ontario , Canada

2016 Ontario Turkey Season , couple weeks in review ...

Post by R.J. »

Well the first couple weeks of the season showed us some beauty weather !

I managed to bag my first bird with my Exocet 200 on opening afternoon .

http://www.excaliburcrossbow.com/phpBB2 ... =1&t=61926

And then we moved around in search of another mature Tom … I was lucky to get permission on 3 new properties ….

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With a good Physio routine , I had a quick recovery from arthroscopic surgery on my right knee . ( Got the stiches out May 3rd and cleared for work May 6th ) Many of my turkey set ups were within close walking distance of my truck ….

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One of my recent favorite properties is a place that Monica knows ( VixChix ) hunted with me last season … There is an old sugar shack ( out of commission ) that I am able to drive up to and park my truck beside …. Then I have a little cubby of wood debris piled up that makes for a great hiding spot I can camo/blend into and it also provides great shelter !

I have a great view of the bush ( over top of a wood debris pile ) and a great view of the field as well .

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My parked truck never seems to spook turkeys and have had several encounters on misc properties where they walk around my truck with nothing more than a curious glance …

One afternoon last week , I had another one of those close encounters …. After waking up from a midday nap in my chair , I can hear Frank V. calling ( lone hen call ) in the distance ( about 200 yards West of my position ) … next thing I find , I’m surrounded by birds ! … One group of three jakes passes within 7 yards and I was able to get a quick picture , then another single jake passes by following them ( I had multiple hens around as well ). I took one picture of that Jake , then ….

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Then I noticed a big blue head bobbing thru the bush coming my way ( full fan tail with a couple other mature fanned tails behind him ) > He was strutting for two hens that were pecking under a bush pile ( the bush had been recently logged with many tree top bush piles around ) I had a hen real close so couldn’t raise my gun > Then when she left my peripheral view I slowly raised the gun as the big tom had his head behind a tree , I gently reached for my box call and gave a quick one handed cluck …

He stepped from behind the tree and lifted his head up / out to gobble and at the same exact moment , I slapped the trigger to launch a tight pattern of Remington 4/6 shot combo ripping towards his outstretched noggin …. BOOM and a loud echo thru the bush !

Then the walk up and pictures …. Frank hung out at his blind location > Saw many of the birds I had seen , but they all stayed out of range when they passed him … Later while reliving my successful hunt story , he had to laugh at the “ after I woke up part “ … Here are the pictures after the walk up … I gently spread the birds feathers out to display the awesome plumage .

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At home ...he weighed in at 23.4 lbs with a 9 inch beard and matching 1 1/8 spurs .

Also that week , I found myself in the right place at the right time again over and over for some real cool nature pictures > A fox/pounce/mouse series …

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A goose on a stump ?

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A ground hog after his run and duck in to his hole ….

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And a hungry Osprey !

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As more and more hens are bread the Mature Tom’s seem to be searching further now … Vic R. score a beauty last week as well …

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Page break ...

Fast forward > today May 24th ... Frank V in his first season chasing turkeys hunted 7 days with me and 4 on days on his own > many farms / many set ups and / saw many birds but none presented a good shot until today !

He connected on this beauty Tom @ 40 + yards with a Winchester 3" load of # 5 shot launched from his Remington V3 Semi thru and extra full turkey choke and dropped it in his tracks ! ... 22lbs 8 1/2 inch beard with the longest spur measuring 1 3/8 inch ... A beauty first bird !!

Congrat's Frank !

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Also forum member (CH ) and his son checked in last weekend > they closed out the season with a tom and a unique bearded hen > Cool !

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Good Luck to all that are chasing Turkey’s thru to the May 31st seasons end > Hunt Safe/Have Fun … and take lots of pictures !
Last edited by R.J. on Thu Jun 02, 2016 7:53 am, edited 4 times in total.
See Ya. ... R.J. > " Remember , Trophies are measured by the time and energy expended to get them , not the size or quantity of the quarry "
Pinpoint
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Re: 2016 Ontario Turkey Season , couple weeks in review ...

Post by Pinpoint »

Congrats!! Thanks for the pictures, they were awesome!!
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Reinyrooster
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Re: 2016 Ontario Turkey Season , couple weeks in review ...

Post by Reinyrooster »

Great story and pics!
Boomer81
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Re: 2016 Ontario Turkey Season , couple weeks in review ...

Post by Boomer81 »

Good work! Nice read and pics thanks for posting this! :)
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Sandman
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Re: 2016 Ontario Turkey Season , couple weeks in review ...

Post by Sandman »

Awesome pics RJ - Congrats on #2.
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R.J.
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Location: Innerkip , Ontario , Canada

Re: 2016 Ontario Turkey Season , couple weeks in review ...

Post by R.J. »

Thanks all ...

Looking forward to a relaxing summer ... Then like the rest of you , I will be busy with the prep routine for fall season .

1. Scouting.
2. Equipment tweaking.

The things we do to put meat on the table ! :lol:

June is almost on us > Have a good summer !
See Ya. ... R.J. > " Remember , Trophies are measured by the time and energy expended to get them , not the size or quantity of the quarry "
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Doe Master
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Re: 2016 Ontario Turkey Season , couple weeks in review ...

Post by Doe Master »

As always Rick . A good read to go with the pictures . :D
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R.J.
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Re: 2016 Ontario Turkey Season , couple weeks in review ...

Post by R.J. »

Page break ...

Fast forward > today May 24th ... Frank V in his first season chasing turkeys , hunted 7 days with me and 4 on days on his own > many farms / many set ups and / saw many birds but none presented a good shot until today !

He connected on this beauty Tom @ 40 + yards with a Winchester 3" load of # 5 shot launched from his Remington V3 Semi thru and extra full turkey choke and dropped it in his tracks ! ... 22lbs 8 1/2 inch beard with the longest spur measuring 1 3/8 inch ... A beauty first bird !!

Congrat's Frank !

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Good Luck to all that are chasing Turkey’s thru to the May 31st seasons end > Hunt Safe/Have Fun … and take lots of pictures !
See Ya. ... R.J. > " Remember , Trophies are measured by the time and energy expended to get them , not the size or quantity of the quarry "
Sandman
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Re: 2016 Ontario Turkey Season , couple weeks in review ...

Post by Sandman »

Nice added pics RJ~!
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W.Miguire
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Re: 2016 Ontario Turkey Season , couple weeks in review ...

Post by W.Miguire »

way to go , sounds like you all had a good time . congrats
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R.J.
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Re: 2016 Ontario Turkey Season , couple weeks in review ...

Post by R.J. »

Yep we had a good time ... hunted with some other friends as well and covered a lot of countryside > many strategy meetings during rural restaurant breakfast or lunch sessions ... got some permission on some new farms ... all the things associated with quality time spent in the field !

I have to admit ... the last fall deer season and this spring turkey hunts were challenging to locate game that would cooperate with the plans we made ...

Although we were successful during both seasons , I found overall turkey and deer numbers were lower than usual in the areas we hunted > the deer and turkey were well educated and ( "super spooky" ), many times we had deer or turkey bailing out before we even got set up... that is why we branched out to some new properties , to ease the pressure on some of the properties we usually hunt .

Anyway ... anybody that spends time in the field knows it's not an easy task putting yourself and others on game consistently ... some days they seem to fall in your lap and other days even the best laid plans fall short !

They are "full time" deer and turkey and we are just "part time" hunters ... I look forward to the pictures and stories from other forum members > It's better than picking up a hunting magazine IMHO ... So keep the stories and pictures coming !

Hunt Safe > Enjoy your time in the field and take lots of pictures !
See Ya. ... R.J. > " Remember , Trophies are measured by the time and energy expended to get them , not the size or quantity of the quarry "
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Big John
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Re: 2016 Ontario Turkey Season , couple weeks in review ...

Post by Big John »

Excellent job RJ! :D
Your crew done good. Agree that the numbers seem down.
We ended up with none. Had game cams all over and they showed only two birds total ! :shock:
Glad to see some nice pics and birds. Congrats!

Big John

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MADMAX2
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Re: 2016 Ontario Turkey Season , couple weeks in review ...

Post by MADMAX2 »

Great pics and story did you encounter any coyotes at all?

Half my hunts this year had I had a coyote come in!!

Noticed the birds were very weary only gobbling off the roost.
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R.J.
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Re: 2016 Ontario Turkey Season , couple weeks in review ...

Post by R.J. »

Yep saw a few yote's during hunts that put the birds on high alert for sure .

Each season is different > On my property the bush wash flooded which had turkeys moving to higher ground , well away from my place . I had a flock of about 30 birds ( fall into winter months ) , but when the snow melted the forest floor was underwater in my low area bush lot .

We saw many single hens nesting on their own in the first week of the season so I believe the turkeys breeding cycle started earlier this year than it did compared to previous years ... I read this passage from a Wildlife Biologist
"For any animal, the most complex period of its life is that time surrounding its reproductive cycle. For the wild turkey, this period occurs from about mid-March through June, although some related activities may begin as early as mid-February, and late nesting attempts may take place well into the summer. During this critical period, there are many environmental and behavioral mechanisms acting on the turkey"
Bottom line ... in my area the numbers seemed down and many veteran hunters I know had similar experience .

As I mentioned before " they are full time turkeys and we are part time hunters " ... it was still awesome to get out and hunt them though ... some long hunts some short hunts and another chance to see a fellow hunter get his 1st bird after all the time and effort he invested in the game ... that was real cool !

As Sandman mentioned > We have Oct 1st Whitetail opener to look forward to > mid October fall turkey hunt and all the fishing / small game hunting / bear hunting / moose hunting in between . ( when chore completion permits ) :lol:

Remember to have fun in the field and take lots of pictures !
See Ya. ... R.J. > " Remember , Trophies are measured by the time and energy expended to get them , not the size or quantity of the quarry "
DaverV
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Re: 2016 Ontario Turkey Season , couple weeks in review ...

Post by DaverV »

Congrats on another great season! Well done, wicked pictures as always.
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