Turkey hunting in the Mountains of Western North Carolina is tough. Private land, that we have access to hunt, is being developed and is littered with posted signs. There are so many hunters on Forest Service land that everyone is sitting on top of each other, if you can find a tree that is unoccupied. But the turkeys are thriving - we see them everywhere, driving on main roads or off road during a walk through the woods.
My husband Gary and I started hunting this year on private land, owned by my parents. They have a large flock that has taken up residence in the pastures and is becoming a nuisance. Hens are pecking at the sliding glass doors and eating the feed that spills from Mama’s bird feeders. We just sit in their den and watch the turkeys, waiting impatiently for opening day.
Opening morning found us setting up before daylight at the edge of the field and it wasn’t long until a lone hen eased her way passed us. Later in the morning several birds flew across the road and into the field. Our Quaker Boy calls (Eradicator Slate Call and Old Boss Hen mouth call) did the trick and several hens and a couple of very young jakes came up to the decoys. We held our breath as the birds came closer and although we kept looking for beards we were denied the coveted sight. The birds finally worked their way up the side of the ridge and Gary and I started to breathe again. We stayed there the remainder of the morning but no other birds wanted to play and none would answer our calls. We decided to call it a day and went home empty handed.
The following Saturday we decided to try another piece of property that we have leased the hunting rights to. The clock went off at 4:30 a.m. and I decided to sleep in. Bad idea!! Gary went to the woods and by 9:00 a.m., he was home with a turkey and a tale! The gobblers had started “talking” to him from the roost at daylight that morning. The birds were on top of the ridge and he tried to ease into position to get within firing range. He caught sight of two jakes and a longbeard crossing the trail but they were too far away to get a clear shot. He kept slipping around the trail and finally found a good place to set up. He set up the decoys and started calling using all the tricks that he has learned over the years. The gobblers answered from every direction and were coming straight towards him. With heart thundering at each gobble, he patiently waited. One tom came up behind the tree where he was sitting but there was no way he could turn all the way around the tree without being seen. A gobbler finally stuck his head out across the trail and Gary took the shot. He had his turkey! It turned out to be a jake, but this one had three beards! Patience and perseverance pays off!
The third Saturday of the season came and there was no way he would be leaving without me after last weekend’s adventure. We went into an area that we had previously scouted and had seen a lot of turkey sign. We set up well before daylight. One gobbler started “talking” on the roost and never quit. It seemed like he was gobbling every few seconds but he would not come into us. Nothing we tried worked. We kept calling and finally heard a turkey coming from a different direction. It sounded like it was coming our way. We patiently waited and when the bird finally came into our view, it was a tom. I took the shot as he came into my line of sight and we ended the morning with another jake.
The final day of turkey season, nothing was moving in the woods. The hens were nesting and the gobblers paid no attention to our calls. Turkey season ended with neither of us bagging that big tom. Hunting is tough in Western North Carolina but we will be set up before day break on opening.
