# Sometimes less is better - 2007 gobbler



## hunterm (Apr 22, 2004)

I was in the woods @5:45 this morning. I heard 2 birds start to gobble on the other side of the woodlot I was hunting, I slipped in and setup facing into the woodlot with my back to a beanfield. I'd put my decoy out about 30 feet in front of, and slightly to my right. Once settled I heard both birds gobble again and then I gave a soft purr, cluck on my "FREAK" slate call. Almost immediately a hen began clucking back at me. With my mouth call I gave her a gentle return yelp and that was all I needed. This hen began yelping, cutting and clucking as she was coming toward me, looking for me, and carrying on like crazy. One of the gobblers had drifted to my left and he gobbled back at the hen. She kept coming until she was right in with my decoy. She pecked at it a couple times then went back to clucking and yelping all the while no more than 20-30 feet away from me. I froze, I was sure the slightest movement would tip her off that I was there. This continued on for about 15 min, I could see her out of the corner of my eye, scratching in the leaves, yelping, cutting. All of a sudden the gobbler fired off again, this time much closer but still to my left. I raised my eyes and began looking for him, the rest of my body still frozen so as not to alert the hen. Suddenly to my right, over by my decoy I hear "drummmmm" "drummmmm". The other gobbler is in full strut, drumming, right between my decoy and the hen, not more than 25 feet from me. I very slowly begin to move my barrel toward him and inch my head down on the stock...It seemed to take forever before I saw the gobbler in my scope. Just as I settled in the hen gave one loud alarm "PUTT" and the gobbler broke strut and stuck his head up. I pulled the trigger and nailed him cold at 25 ft. 

The lesson to this story is that if you can, let the hens work for you, sometimes less calling or no calling is the surest way to get a bird in.

Bird stats" 23 lbs, 9" beard, 1 inch spurs. Shot at 6:30 am/ 5/11


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## bigcat46 (Dec 15, 2004)

That's a great story.
I had basically the same thing happen to me last week, except I was setup on a field with turned up dirt (planted wheat). And as long as the Gobbler could see the hens he just kept strutting and wouldn't come any closer (about 60 yards). The boss hen came right to my hen decoy and was very mouthy with her. ( I told old henrietta she didn't have to put up with that stuff... . I wish I had had that happen in the woods because for sure the gobbler would have come in to that hen calling 10 ft away from me at one point. As soon as the hens left the field so did the gobbler, I soon found out later that another hunter had moved into the calling and came and setup on the same edge of the field as me and was within 50 yards of me and I didn't know it. I thought the birds acted a little weird before they left, and that was why. 

I'm hunting with my bow now so I've been staying on the field edges. Even though my previous bow kills have been in the woods. I guess I feel there's less chance of me hitting a twig or something if I'm on a field. 

anyway good job on the big Gobbler.


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