I counted last night, I had killed a turkey for 17 years in a row in Indiana. That includes a luck bird that still stands as the longest bearded turkey taken in Indiana and ranks 10th all time with the NWTF. 18 1/4 inches!

Then I had the hunting gods show me some humility, alot of humility.... SIX years worth! And it looked like a seventh, until yesterday morning.

I have a plan, birds are in a small wooded area every day I hunted, they don't come to call just walk away I'm going to go silent and set up the way they walk away every day. Great plan but no one checked with the birds, they didn't roost there! Drive and find another bird after daylight, jump in a blind, he gobbles twice and never shows. At 10:30 I have had it and head back to house, as I round a curve I see four toms and one hen. The toms gobble at my truck as I drive by them and walk off. I relate the sighting to my friend BZeb and go reheat last nights left over pizza.

After eating Zeb and I go on a scouting trip to see if the birds are still in the field I spotted them in. We are looking from a wooded hill side almost 700 yards away and see 2 toms in full strut. Zeb says "You saw them go kill one." We hike back to the house and I get head gear and glove, that's right I only picked up one glove the one for my trigger hand.

I seak up to the last tree on field edge and set down and then I see two fans. Hens come out on farm road as well as two toms at 60 yards. Now I know folks kill birds at some long ranges, but a wounded bird is not worth the risk, at least in my opinion. The birds go back the way they came and are going back to the middle of the field, I have to risk moving..... Belly crawling, yes this fat old man acted like a worm! 100 yards later I ease up from a brush pile and am looking eye to eye at a very red headed tom, Snap shot and I miss at 15 yards, birds flying everywhere! I look as I stand up and hens jakes and long beards are flying away!Eight or more birds with at least half bearded males flying in all directions. I'm not shooting at a Jake, I'm looking for a long beard ...

Then I see a lone tom running broadside, BOOM! he falls gets up and runs again..... BOOM........ he falls again and is done.........Good thing...... Barney was out of bullets!

Anyway here he is.......glad the drought is over!



2 year old 22 pounds with 9 1/4 inch beard, 19mm spurs

Congrats Joe. Sounds well earned! It's tough when your not as nibble as the young guys out there.

Congrats Joe, I'm glad I was there to witness the breaking of the drought! Although I got skunked again this year, I appreciate the hospitality that you and the guys at Cedar Branch Farm continue to show me. Thank you for letting me be a part of these good times and great memories!

Delaney...... I'm not as nibble? What has changed is turkey hunting and the number of birds in my area. Birds don't run into a set any more. And it isn't dates affecting it, thye dates have been the same for as long as I can remember. The toms hang up on decoys many times. And we have WAY fewer birds at least in my little corner of Switzerland county. we use to hear 20 or more birds from the back deck... now maybe 3?


Yup I'm getting old, now I hunt harder......... I realize my hunts are now a limited number. I want to remember each and every hunt. Get to share all the hunts with friends and a near future son in law...

He aint seen any of the reserved wells or cysterns for bad son in laws......LMAO

Congrats and a great story

"He aint seen any of the reserved wells or cysterns for bad son in laws......LMAO"

I will do the wedding BUT what YOU do to him after that is all on you!!!

Nice bird. I will add that the birds get pushed and hammered during youth season before Bill and you even have a chance to get out there. Makes a difference for a while.

Nice one JB. Last year I shot mine on the last day also.

Yeeeehaw! Congrats again Joe! Here's to another 17 in a row!

By the way work with a guy who's neighbor has a place down in switz and he has said the same thing about way fewer birds now. I wonder what gives? I remember when you graced me to come down there to get my first bird it was hard to pick out WHICH bird you wanted to go after as there were so many sounding off.

Joe, we're the same age. I know your not as nimble, and I can't spell anymore!!!! You and I both are now counting the hunts left and it does make every experience out there pretty meaningful.

Just a theory Varmit but, one has to wonder about the bobcats, we have several and any cat is a far superior predator to a coyote.

I want to make it clear......... I don't want the spring turkey season to change at all. We DO NOT need to hunt these birds until afte April 15th, they need time to mate.

It could be a thicker understory, and it could be several bad hatches...... just saying the hunting for spring gobblers has changed.

For the good??????????? yep Kroger sells Butterballs.

Nice Joe! I didn't get any this year but had some good times!!!

I hunted Kroger.. I couldn't find a bird there either! Glad you broke the drought! I hope mine is over next year!

Way to get it done Joe! Nice bird!

That was one hard earned Tom.....congrats!

Thanks guys, we all look forward to the kid's hunt but,............. there is a trend happening on the regular season. It IS NOT the youth season.

I really hope Switzerland county misses the fall season.....

awesome story and hunt.. congrats... yeah those droughts make up for the average, still your doing well

Congrats on a fine bird.

Congrats!
That's a funny story!

congrats!

so you think the problem is the fall season? How many birds get killed in the fall though?

How significant could the effect be?

Good read Joe! Way to get it done. I BELIEVE the turkey population "problems" are due more to nest robbers, and clutches not even making to hatch, than predators getting to them once they are up and going. I know you have a trapper. I would make sure he is trying to catch every possum, coon, and skunk on the property! As you know, they are very hard on turkey and quail nests. This is the first year in many, I never stepped foot in the turkey woods. I did enjoy watching a good tom, and three hens on the farm most of the spring! Maybe one day……………..

Congrats on ending the streak. Hopefully this is the start of another streak of success.

+1 on the predator control!

just some anecdotal evidence

3 season ago I caught 35+ coon, many opossum, skunks, a fox, and several coyotes from a ~80 acre farm

2 years ago, ~20 coon, trapped/killed 6 coyotes

last year, ~10 coon, 3 coyotes from this farm


turkey sightings (trail camera and in person while hunting) have gone way up over this time period. It started with one hen, 3 years ago, now I see 15-20 turkeys including some nice toms regularly


with the same level of trapping effort, I am seeing fewer predators, and MORE turkeys!

The plan for this fall is to catch and kill every coon, skunk, opossum, and coyote I can!

We are working on predator control. We use to find several broken egs from mauraders on the interior farm roads, over the past several years we are seeing way less broken eggs.

Hey Joe if your killing any coyotes tell me on predator&varmint hunting at fun coyote hunting contest.

JB, congrats on getting the job done!! Reminds me of my ordeal last year stalking and crawling to get a tom on the 12th day of hard hunting.

Regarding a trend, I am waiting for more good information before seriously playing any blame game. I do know that the weather this past winter and early spring was significantly different from most previous years. The weather’s effect? It seems that some people almost always speculate about a poor poult production the previous year or two. In the areas that I hunted turkeys this year they did not spend much time in the picked corn fields. Last year they spent a lot of time in the picked soybean fields. This year they seemed to mostly stay in the woods all day long, like there was not much to eat in the picked fields, or they were "afraid" to get out in the open very much. Could this have been in part due to more animal disturbance just before turkey season (e.g., 4-legged predators, mushroom hunters, wood cutters, hikers, other trespassers)? Could turkeys be adapting to more 4-legged predators in the woods heavily infested with thicker understory (spice bush, bush honeysuckle, etc.) by keeping relatively “silent?” It will be interesting to see the actual harvest figures for this spring season, although I don't know how much that will tell us.

I really think winter kill. I'm gonna call Steve backs tomorrow and see what I can learn..

I agree with ya gundude

My father found 5 carcasses that had been there a LONG time. He is assuming winter kill. WAY less turkey sighting for him this season. On a side note…He also said the birds acted "funny" in the areas he hunted. Not vocal at all, an not in the fields.

Weird

Gundude, when you talk with Steve you might want to ask about a roadside survey of gobbling counts that they used to do each year, maybe still do. Or, was it grouse drumming counts? Or, bob white calls? Oh well, some estimates of turkey population using a consistent methodology each year --- and, not merely based upon total season harvest numbers. Also, any statistically significant observations of turkey carcasses, bones, and feathers that he may have. And, what other Midwest states north of the Ohio River have determined for their turkey population. Thanks for checking with Steve.

All the past reports on Turkey seasons are here.......


http://b3.caspio.com/dp.asp?appSess...1&CPIsortType=desc&CPIorderby=ReportYear

Congrats Joe!