A Fall Turkey

Well, I have some good news on the hunting front. After missing a pretty nice buck at 20 yards one evening last week (the buck ducked down when he heard the shot and the arrow flew right over his back - a first for me...) I heard several turkey flying up to the trees near the river to roost. So, the next morning I sat at the base of a nearby tree, set up a decoy, and did a little calling. Within about 30 minutes I see a group of hens making their way over toward me. Not sure if the decoy and calling made a difference or not, but they felt comfortable enough to wander in my direction. At about 15 yards the lead bird got spooked (pretty sure she saw me lining up the shot) and started walking away from me. But, since she was still only about 20 yards out it was an easy shot. It was a clean kill and I was back up into my stand deer hunting within the hour.

Another cool thing happened last week. It has been very warm here in Michigan, which is not good for hunting but very good for bringing out an 8-year old boy to sit in the stand for a couple of hours. Grant and I did an evening hunt last week - and it was a beautiful night. About an hour into the hunt I prayed "please Lord, at least let him see a deer". No lie, within 5 minutes I catch some movement down by the river. And sure enough, here comes a young buck heading right towards us. The buck stopped at about 50 yards and looked our way (did I mention that 8-year old boys have the wiggles?). At any rate, he veered off at about 40 yards and never presented a shot, which is a good thing - he was too young. But the point here is that Grant and I shared that experience, and it was pretty exciting. Can't wait to have him out with me for real.