Cabin Fever

Sounds like a great memorable hunt with Dad! Awesome Tom too! Congrats!! BTW, just noticed that your Dad shoots hevi 7's? I really need to reconsider and try #7 shot! Guess I always just assumed #7 was too small for turkeys! I've read a lot lately on various forums that #7 is very popular with turkey hunters! I'm gonna do it!!

For this reason, I always keep mouse poison, glue boards, or mouse traps in my sheds where I keep my ATV and tractor! Mice suck!!

LOL! I can just see that!! I live in town and sometimes leave for work ~3am. On several occasions, I've had my keys in my pocket, bent over to tie my shoes, then BEEP-BEEP-BEEP!!! Never good, especially at 3am!! The neighbors must wonder what the hell I'm doing! It's quite a joke around my house though!

As I posted last weekend, my daughter got her first turkey (jake) during the youth season. It was missing it's center 3-4 tail feathers, those that count! LOL Anyway, she has big plans for a tail mount, but it sure looks awkward without those center feathers! If anyone gets a jake and does not plan on keeping the tail, I would gladly pay for shipping if you wouldn't mind sending it to me. I have the jake tail drying in a fanned out position now. She hasn't mentioned anything about the missing tail feathers. I would like to slip in the missing tail feathers, without her knowing, so it makes a nice tail mount that she'll be proud of. Let me know! Thanks!

Got up a little late this morning and raced to the cabin to be there by first light to listen for turkeys! Didn't even take time to stop for coffee just so I could be there at 5:30am! I pulled up to the gate at 5:33 and wished I had been there ~10 minutes sooner! I didn't want to risk driving all the way out to the cabin, as the turkeys tend to roost within ~150 yards behind the cabin, so I parked down the lane ~100 yards away. As soon as I opened the door, I heard a gobble coming from behind the cabin, right in their usual roosting spot! I very quietly got out of the car, closed the door as gently as possible, and slipped the keys into my pocket..... BEEP-BEEP-BEEP-BEEP-BEEP!!! OMG!!! I must have inadvertently hit the %@!^% panic button!!!! I was so pissed!!! It was silent for a couple of minutes, but he did gobble 5 times until 5:45am. I also heard 3-4 hens back there with him. That damned panic button on the key fob gets me a lot!! NEVER fails during bowseason either, when I have my keys in my pants pocket (UNDER my bibs), and I bend over to put my boots on or something, as something presses against that panic button, and it lights up the whole woods... BEEP-BEEP-BEEP!! God I HATE that thing!!!! I keep threatening to glue it or something to disable it!! I can't be the ONLY one!?!?!? LOL

Great pics and experience!! I never thought about a female having that many pups before! No wonder their population has exploded!! Cute or not...... yeah, we better not go there....

LOL! Does look like they posed for the shot!

Am I correct in thinking this attaches to a sprayer (backpack or hand held) and you wipe the weeds as you walk along, instead of spraying with a wand? If so, should work well for you. I've heard of people making them for ATV boom type sprayers.

Those gobblers are just begging to be shot!!! Very nice!

He is a dandy!! Bet he'll be lighting the woods up!

Yeah, that sure gets the blood flowing!! Very nice!!

I sauteed some leeks in oil and then added some canned venison. The flavor the leeks added was AMAZING!!! I will definately be stocking up on them and trying with different foods!

Located several areas with leeks recently. The bulbs are really small, but the tops are ~10". Is it better to wait until the bulbs are bigger, before harvesting? Can you just freeze to preserve? How do they hold up? I would like to hang onto a few for when I make soup in the winter. Also, I've never tried those chives before. Do they have the same flavor as scallion or small onion?

Took a walk today to my old morel hunting area. Looked for at least an hour, but never found any. Considering it's been cooler than usual for April, maybe they will be a little late this year. Grabbed a few leeks though, to cook up with some venison for dinner!

For years, I use to eat morels by the skillet full! Loved them!! Then one time, got violently ill, I'm talking severe stomach cramps and projectile vomiting! Couldn't understand it, as I'm eaten a ton of them in other years and figured it was just a fluke. The next year, I couldn't resist making a skillet full, and again puked my guts out! WTH?? Still couldn't accept the thought that it was the morels causing this, so I decided to only fry 3, just to test the waters. Again, barfed my guts out!! Did some research and found out that you can develop an allergy to them, that causes stomach cramps and puking! GREAT! To this day, I still look for them, but don't pick them, unless I know someone that wants them. Sure as hell miss eating them too!!

I'm registered, but mainly lurk.

Thanks! She's already got big plans to top this one!

Good thing you didn't hit him!! Wowza... what a bear!

That would be the first rifle I'd pull out of my gun safe, if we get the green light! That was my favorite-go-to deer rifle! I have a Remington 700 BDL in 7mm Mag. Would love the opportunity to blow the dust outta that thing!!

I would LOVE it! I have an assortment of rifles, from growing up deer hunting in PA, that just sit around and collect dust now, as I haven't hunted PA in 10+ years. No one will be forced to hunt with a rifle, so hunt with whatever weapon you choose!

Just cut mine today, but it should have been done a couple days ago! It's been growing like crazy!

The weekend before youth season, we were out scouting and checking trailcams. Part of the woods was flooded. I took an alternate path, so we wouldn't have to wade through the water. I kept hearing water sloshing behind me. I told her it was easier walking where I was, but she said it was more "fun" walking through the water! LOL At one point, she was standing in front of me in water almost above her boots, hair in a pony tail, camo bibs, just staring out at the open woods in front of us. I just stood there and smiled thinking, "And her mother wanted to take her formal dress shopping today for a dance that is coming up!" Thats my girl!!!!

I don't place them so that they are directly in line with where I "think" the turkeys will be coming from. Being off to the side kind of diverts their attention, instead of having them looking directly at the decoys when they come in, with me being 10-15 yards beyond them.

Very interesting. The pattern in my daughters Rem 870 20 gauge looks similar to those posted, using the same loads too. Not "great", but they'll certainly do out to 30 yards. My dad always used 4 or 5 shot, so that's all I've ever used. I was reading on other forums about a lot of people using 7 1/2 shot 3" mags and saying they are great for turkeys. To me, I guess it just sounded like too small of shot size for turkeys, so I never considered it (Geez, I never use anything smaller than #6 for even squirrels). I would feel more comfortable seeing more shot in my daughters patterns. I've been on the fence about trying #7 1/2, but I think you might have just convinced me!!

Thanks! It was a special day, for sure! Before yesterday, I had gone to camp (30min drive) every morning for 9 days, so I could be there at daylight to listen for gobbling and get a feel for our best plan of attack for youth season. I was dragging ass by yesterday! On the drive home, we were reflecting on the hunt. My daughter looked at me and thanked me for all the pre-dawn trips that I made and all preparation that I did, to make everything come together for her first turkey... Sure made me proud... GULP!!