C
COGriz
Guest
Well, DeerKing was giving me a bad time for not visiting MM anymore (not because I don't love it... just because it is toooo addicting!), so I figured I would share this year's turkey hunt w/ old friends and new. First the pics, then the long winded story.
'04 Elk Shed Turkey (read story)
The Set-Up/Country
Turkey Horse
(I can't figure out how to get bigger pics w/o getting too big?)
Alright, now the long winded story...
My brother (Dan) and I arrived in our hunting area late afternoon/evening the night before the opener (Friday, 4/9/04). This was the 3rd year in a row we hunted the Colorado Uncompahgre Plateau for Merriam Turkey. We set up a great camp this year now that I have a Kifaru 6-man tipi w/ a medium stove (to go w/ my brother's heated canvas tent)! We enjoyed heated eating and sleeping quarters! Troy Boy/Two Elk (our periodic elk, turkey, deer hunting partner) showed up LATE as usual (1:15am). The next morning was wet (snow and rain) and cold, so we slept late and hung around camp waiting for the weather to clear. That afternoon/evening the skies cleared enough for a quick look around/hunt. Nothing for our efforts but got us out of the tents! The next morning Dan and I loaded up our backpacks/the horses and hit the trail (it appears that Troy Boy/Two Elk decided to head for home -- wimp!). Dan took his horse Nitro (Mustang gelding) and headed up a plateau/point for a two day/one night hunt I took my horse KC (Quarterhorse/Arabian X mare) up another plateau/point for a similar two day/one night hunt. I struggled a bit walking KC up the steeper part of the mountain. I was getting over a nasty cold and had put on more than a few pounds over the off-season due to an extremely demanding work situation. Fortunately, we made it to the top of the plateau/point with several hours of hunting light left. I dropped off the excess gear, jumped back on KC, and hit the trail/road looking for fresh turkey sign in the fresh snow and mud. It didn't take long before I crossed some fresh sign. I decided to ride a bit farther to see what other options I had (other sign). After a mile, I decided to turn back and get on the turkey who's sign was all over the road. I tied off KC, and was about ready to work the area when I got a call from Danno on the radio. He had an encounter w/ his 1st gobbler but was unable to seal the deal. He was disappointed/discouraged. I told him to enjoy the experience and keep after it. Not everyone can be the turkey hunter his big brother is!
After approx. 30 minutes of excited cutting/yelping on a raspy hen diaphragm call, I decided to give my box call a try knowing there WAS a gobbler in the area. I hit the box hard and for an extended period. Sure enough, for some reason only a turkey would know, it took about 1-2 minutes of loud, excited, cutting/yelping on that box call to get the Tom talking. I quickly put on my camo cap, mask, and gloves. I decided to head up hill in hopes of getting on the same elevation as the Tom. Before I could get to my destination, that Tom let me know he couldn't wait much longer to meet me. I hit the nearest tree and got my gun in position. Fortunately, I was only about 50 yards from the crest of the knoll in front of me. Within seconds, the Tom was strutting his stuff at the top of the knoll. The vegetation was pretty thick where he was, but pretty sparse around me. I was concerned about finding a shooting lane and also about being seen (I didn't have much cover and was sitting in the sun). The Tom kept moving forward looking for the eager hen he had heard. After moving about 10 yards in my general direction, he strutted into a small shooting lane, which gave me the opportunity I needed (see The Set-Up picture). I took the 40 yard shoot... he fell backwards... and it was all over but the picture taking! I had noticed just before taking the shot that there was a nice 5 point bull elk shed just off to my right. It only seemed appropriate to remember this hunt as my Elk Shed Turkey hunt. The Elk Shed Turkey only had a 4-inch beard (bummer) but had respectable 1-inch spurs. He supported a mature set of tail feathers, so I can't account for the short beard. After backtracking his tracks for a ways, it appears he covered a good 100+ yards in less than 5 minutes! Nothing like horseback hunting Spring turkeys in the Colorado Rockies!
Theodore Roosevelt once said, "The nation behaves well if it treats the natural resources as assets which it must turn over to the next generation, INCREASED and NOT IMPAIRED in value."
'04 Elk Shed Turkey (read story)
The Set-Up/Country
Turkey Horse
(I can't figure out how to get bigger pics w/o getting too big?)
Alright, now the long winded story...
My brother (Dan) and I arrived in our hunting area late afternoon/evening the night before the opener (Friday, 4/9/04). This was the 3rd year in a row we hunted the Colorado Uncompahgre Plateau for Merriam Turkey. We set up a great camp this year now that I have a Kifaru 6-man tipi w/ a medium stove (to go w/ my brother's heated canvas tent)! We enjoyed heated eating and sleeping quarters! Troy Boy/Two Elk (our periodic elk, turkey, deer hunting partner) showed up LATE as usual (1:15am). The next morning was wet (snow and rain) and cold, so we slept late and hung around camp waiting for the weather to clear. That afternoon/evening the skies cleared enough for a quick look around/hunt. Nothing for our efforts but got us out of the tents! The next morning Dan and I loaded up our backpacks/the horses and hit the trail (it appears that Troy Boy/Two Elk decided to head for home -- wimp!). Dan took his horse Nitro (Mustang gelding) and headed up a plateau/point for a two day/one night hunt I took my horse KC (Quarterhorse/Arabian X mare) up another plateau/point for a similar two day/one night hunt. I struggled a bit walking KC up the steeper part of the mountain. I was getting over a nasty cold and had put on more than a few pounds over the off-season due to an extremely demanding work situation. Fortunately, we made it to the top of the plateau/point with several hours of hunting light left. I dropped off the excess gear, jumped back on KC, and hit the trail/road looking for fresh turkey sign in the fresh snow and mud. It didn't take long before I crossed some fresh sign. I decided to ride a bit farther to see what other options I had (other sign). After a mile, I decided to turn back and get on the turkey who's sign was all over the road. I tied off KC, and was about ready to work the area when I got a call from Danno on the radio. He had an encounter w/ his 1st gobbler but was unable to seal the deal. He was disappointed/discouraged. I told him to enjoy the experience and keep after it. Not everyone can be the turkey hunter his big brother is!
After approx. 30 minutes of excited cutting/yelping on a raspy hen diaphragm call, I decided to give my box call a try knowing there WAS a gobbler in the area. I hit the box hard and for an extended period. Sure enough, for some reason only a turkey would know, it took about 1-2 minutes of loud, excited, cutting/yelping on that box call to get the Tom talking. I quickly put on my camo cap, mask, and gloves. I decided to head up hill in hopes of getting on the same elevation as the Tom. Before I could get to my destination, that Tom let me know he couldn't wait much longer to meet me. I hit the nearest tree and got my gun in position. Fortunately, I was only about 50 yards from the crest of the knoll in front of me. Within seconds, the Tom was strutting his stuff at the top of the knoll. The vegetation was pretty thick where he was, but pretty sparse around me. I was concerned about finding a shooting lane and also about being seen (I didn't have much cover and was sitting in the sun). The Tom kept moving forward looking for the eager hen he had heard. After moving about 10 yards in my general direction, he strutted into a small shooting lane, which gave me the opportunity I needed (see The Set-Up picture). I took the 40 yard shoot... he fell backwards... and it was all over but the picture taking! I had noticed just before taking the shot that there was a nice 5 point bull elk shed just off to my right. It only seemed appropriate to remember this hunt as my Elk Shed Turkey hunt. The Elk Shed Turkey only had a 4-inch beard (bummer) but had respectable 1-inch spurs. He supported a mature set of tail feathers, so I can't account for the short beard. After backtracking his tracks for a ways, it appears he covered a good 100+ yards in less than 5 minutes! Nothing like horseback hunting Spring turkeys in the Colorado Rockies!Theodore Roosevelt once said, "The nation behaves well if it treats the natural resources as assets which it must turn over to the next generation, INCREASED and NOT IMPAIRED in value."
