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Early to Rise, Early to bag that bird
(5th day is a charm)
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 As I share my experience with you, I am reliving a tale that is a first for me in many ways. First experiences are often the most memorable as they require a person to draw upon all their senses to internalize each and every second that passes by.
Because this hunting experience for me is a ‘first’ it is funny how I can replay it back in my mind moment by moment almost as if in fast forward rather than real time – which took about a total of four minutes.
Day five out of five for season-3 turkey hunting in Wisconsin and it all happened in a matter of minutes. A very enjoyable experience that I am just relishing in - probably because it was five days in the making. Earlier in the week I had two opportunities to shoot a turkey and I missed both times - mainly due to ‘buck fever’ as they call it or a complete blankness of thought and mind process. Basically after doing the same mistake twice, I learned that I wasn’t holding my gun in proper alignment to allow the sights to line up on my shot gun. Therefore, both times I shot, I cleared the birds’ head by at least three feet.
Bound and determined to make the most of my last day hunting third season, my hunting partner Ryan and I went out early in the morning while it was still dark to set up our hunt with a B-Mobile Tom turkey decoy along with one hen decoy. About ten paces or yards away we set up our blind.
No more than five minutes of sitting in the blind listening to a few gobbles in the distance a turkey walks the edge of the field that we are sitting in. Because of its distance it was hard to tell if it was a hen or a Jake but we concluded that it was a hen due to the absence of a beard.
 We watched the hen peck along the field edge for a while until another turkey flew out of its roost close to the ground checking out our decoy setup but continued on into another field. And here is where the tale begins as I don’t remember all of the details because I was just trying to stay calm and collected.
I was positioned at the back corner of the blind with Ryan to my right with the video camera. I had my gun resting atop shooting sticks to insure that my gun sight was in proper alignment and to support my wavering ability to hold steady. Ryan had the camera on a Tom in full strut off to our right. I could not see the Tom or how fast he was approaching but, I was able to watch the viewfinder on the camera to see his every move, in our direction. As the Tom worked its way toward our decoy setup – I took it all in with the sounds of him spitting and drumming to the sight of him puffed out and in full strut. All the while my stomach was in knots and I had to take many deep breaths to calm my nerves. Ah, what an exciting feeling. I didn’t know what to expect but I knew that this time I was ready.
 When the Tom came into view he had worked his way in covering almost 80-yards toward our decoys and he was starting to pick up speed. I kept my cool and placed the beads of my sight on him and just kept on him panning my gun with him as he continued to strut towards the B-Mobile decoy. I panned my gun clear to the other side of the blind and was soon in need of a readjustment or more room to my right to scootch over. Ryan was to my right video taping the whole scene and before he knew what to do; I was leaning into him and eventually starting to push him over to allow me a straight shot. A moment before I lost my stability and a fraction of a second before Ryan fell of his chair the Tom was in full strut facing the blind. I took my shot.
It all happened so fast; aim, shoot and bird down.
You can imagine the relief I felt in successfully getting a clear and straight shot on the last day of the season at 10-yards away. After pulling the trigger, I just melted… I may have even cried a tear of joy - Ryan let out a yelp of joy too. In that moment we looked at the down bird and noticed that his head was up and he looked like he may be ready to get up and bolt!
In an instant, Ryan lifted up and threw the blind out of the way – quickly finishing the harvest that I had started and we had a confirmed bird down.
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4-29-07 6 A.M. Turkey. Heidi with Turkey and B-MobileTom turkey decoy.
Bird weighed in at 24.9 Ibs, 10” beard and 7/8” spurs.
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A little shaky on my knees I walked over to my bird and inspected his overall appearance – NICE TURKEY! After a few phone calls later and a replay of the events that just occurred we took in the moment with a series of pictures.
I mentioned in the beginning of my tale how this hunting experience was a ‘first’ for me in many ways; first turkey hunt with a shot gun, in a blind, using a B-Mobile Tom turkey decoy with my new hunting partner Ryan on hunting land that belonged to a friend.
As I look back upon this memory, I don’t think there is anything I would change. I wouldn’t even change how my third season went. I am glad I was able to hunt every day. I learned so much from each turkey hunting scenario we came across and the two missed birds helped me learn how to be still as well as excited about the new experience but how to put all that energy into being prepared and taking my time with the shot. Most of all, I feel privileged to have had the opportunity to hunt and many thanks go out to the landowners who allowed Ryan and I to hunt their land or who drove us to the ‘special spots’ all to insure a safe, fun and memorable hunting experience. I will certainly remember all the moments that led up to my turkey harvest but most importantly I will remember the opportunity I had to be outdoors, continuing to challenge myself and learn through new activities and how I was able to build relationships as my hunting experience unfolded, that I can only share with others, again and again.
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