518BowSlayer

Went to my first spot on the edge of what I call the lower field, set out a Jake and hen decoy. Heard 2 gobbles on the roost, heard him fly down but never saw him. Maybe 15 minutes later I hear a few gobbles in the upper field. Try to call him in but no response. Had 3 deer stare and stomp at my dekes for almost an hour. Knowing I might have to go to work I decide to check the upper field on the way back home. Didn't see anything so I'm about to throw in the towel then a hawk flys off a tree and screams causing this Tom to shock gobble. He was in the field but behind just enough of a rise where we couldn't see each other. Quickly I set out the hen deke and sit in some thick stuff nearby. Give him a couple clucks and I see the periscope head pop up. He was about 80 yards to my left and the brush I was sitting in was pretty thick so I had trouble keeping eyes on him. But he quickly started strutting and pacing back and forth but wouldn't come any closer. I'm guessing he couldn't see my decoy because of the terrain. He looked like he was going to leave so I gave him some soft yelps. He gobbled and slowly headed my way in full strut. Got with 15 yards but I couldn't get a shot through that thick brush. He stayed within 20 yards of me for like 20 minutes but wouldn't walk out for a shot. He gobbled once so close I could feel it! He started to lose interest and slowly headed back in the direction he came from. He would take a few steps then look back at the deke for a while. I waited for just the right time and stuck my head out the brush, then waited for him to put his head down to raise the gun. Head came back up... trigger got pulled! About a 40 yard shot with the mossberg 500 20 gauge. Smallest spurs I ever saw on a gobbler with a full fan. Only measured 5/8 but had an 8 inch beard. Think I'll do a gobbling mount! Sent from my SM-G975U using Tapatalk

Got him! Have to run to work so I'll post the story later Sent from my SM-G975U using Tapatalk

Got him! Have to run to work so I'll post the story later Sent from my SM-G975U using Tapatalk

Hearing quite a few gobbles way off in the distance. The chances of me calling them in and flying over this creek?... very slim. Beats working though Sent from my SM-G975U using Tapatalk

Got out there a little late because I almost got the 4 wheeler stuck in the mud. Had to walk quite a bit further than I anticipated and had a bird gobble from the roost a lot closer than I thought he'd be. Belly crawled to set up dekes where I thought he could see them then set up as fast I could hoping he'd fly down to them. He did not. The silent hen he was with flew down into the fenced in solar panel field and he quickly followed. They were slowly headed towards the gate at the other end so my plan was to wait for them to walk out of sight then swing wide and cut them off on the other side of the gate(they usuallykeep it open). Well they went from walking slowly to running because 2 hunters spooked them just before I was about to get up. Oh well. Still a beautiful morning to be out there. So that was down at my in-laws... I get home around 1pm or so and start doing some yard work and what do I see? A big ol gobbler strutting 50 yards behind my garage. He hung around for almost 2 hours, even gobbled twice when my neighbor started his mower. If I get home from work before noon this week he's in big trouble! Sent from my SM-G975U using Tapatalk

About to head out. Good luck all! Sent from my SM-G975U using Tapatalk

I'll be out but it'll be on private land. If I get done with work early enough on Saturday I was thinking of sneaking down there late afternoon and seeing if I could roost some birds. Never tried it before. My biggest obstacle always seems to be the creek that is also the property line. Many times I've heard them roosted in the trees right on the edge of the creek but it's at least a 60/40 chance they fly down on the neighbors side instead of ours. Once they're down I've never been able to coax one to fly over the creek to me. But it will just be nice to be out. Hearing some gobbles would be nice, seeing some birds would be great, and throwing one over my shoulder would just be the icing on the cake. Good luck all Sent from my SM-G975U using Tapatalk

Thanks everyone! Spent the day moving my mom into a new place. Not the most ideal way to celebrate a birthday but I'm a professional furniture mover so it was par for the coarse!! Hope everyone is ready to knock some birds down soon! Sent from my SM-G975U using Tapatalk

Sprayed my clothes 2 days ago. Good luck in ct! Sent from my SM-G975U using Tapatalk

One more pic of this bird. As I was carrying him out of the woods I passed one of my cams and gave a thumbs up! Sent from my SM-G975U using Tapatalk

I have 2 500's, 12 and 20. Wrapped both with the mossy oak gun wraps and have truglo reflex sights. The 20 was a gift from my father (shot my first and biggest turkey with it) then I bought the 12 and gave the 20 to my wife for a turkey gun. After 1 season she gave up interest in turkeys so i think I'll make the 20 my official turkey gun and remove reflex sight on the 12 and try waterfowl with it. Haven't ever hunted waterfowl but it looks like loads of fun. Never owned an 870 but my mossberg's have never let me down yet. Hope I didn't just jinx it Sent from my SM-G975U using Tapatalk

I'll take this full circle. Here's me with my gobbler from last year plus him mounted next to my fireplace and his breast wrapped in a bacon weave about to hit the smoker Sent from my SM-G975U using Tapatalk

Appreciate it fellas! Keep em coming! Sent from my SM-G975U using Tapatalk

Saw 3 strutters in a field with maybe 7 - 10 unidentified turkeys yesterday while driving. Getting excited now Sent from my SM-G975U using Tapatalk

I try to avoid politics like the plague. Life is way too short to even bother with it. Also arguing with people on the internet might be the biggest waste of our valuable time. No one benefits from it. But it only takes a few seconds to scroll past any political posts and find something you're interested in. Just because a lot of people on here like arguing about politics is no reason to leave this forum in my opinion. I've gotten so much valuable information from this site and met some awesome members who I now consider friends. Taking a few seconds to scroll past stuff you don't like is a small price to pay if you ask me. Sent from my SM-G975U using Tapatalk