Took advantage of the small weather window on Saturday to do some turkey hunting. As usual, SteveO and I started by parking up high on a hill and listening to the birds waking up everywhere. You could hear so many flocks calling that you couldn't tell where they were coming from or how many (this is somewhat normal here as the bird population is insane and it's 100% private land everywhere in the area) It was still very early at 6:30am and the sun wasn't even close to peaking over the mountain yet. We listened for a bit and then decided to split up. I took my truck and went to the west side of the property. That section is relatively open, but it has draws and fingers that lead off into treelined canyons. I prefer to hunt turkeys like deer via spot and stalk. I like to move much more than sitting in a blind calling. I DO call, but often it's just to locate the birds. SteveO hit the east side, which is dominated by a year-round spring creek in a steep canyon.
I was hoping to get down into the Turkey Grotto...a single 100-yard-long tree line on the ranch that seems to be a turkey magnet. I didn't see any birds when I reached the ridge top in my truck, which was not surprising for how early it was. I DID hear them everywhere though in the draw about a 1/4 mile below me. This draw is over the property line on a neighboring ranch, but birds cover so much ground that they come and go all day. I have a tree stand erected in the single tree that's in this open section. I was hoping to get there undetected and then decide whether get up in it and do some calling or keep moving down towards the Grotto. As I got close to the stand, I saw a tom walking and strutting in the little dip about 75 yards below the stand. He saw me (they always do) and slowly made his way out of sight and down to the safety on the canyon. No use getting in the stand now, so I just kept working my way down further towards the grotto.
I hadn't made it 20 yards when I caught movement in front of me. I saw a hen's head at about 60 yards; now I know why that tom was strutting. The ground was soaked from rain the day before, but I didn't care. I got down low and scooted forward to stay out of sight. I didn't go 10' and I saw the telltale red head looking at me. I froze and stayed where I was at. The tom puffed back up and then I saw he with a flock of hens. Even though he noticed me, he ignored it and went back to strutting. I spun around to sitting position and got the FX MKIII .22 700mm into a good shooting position with a knee rest. I'm zeroed at 75 yards and shooting 31.2 gr. NSA slugs, so this was a perfect scenario as long as I did MY job. If I'm not hunting with a big bore (which I have), I do not take body shots. Far too many birds have escaped through the years. So, I committed to head/neck-shot-only before I even left the house; basically, traded raw horsepower for pinpoint accuracy. That being said, I had to wait a long time for the bird hold still and to get the right angle. Thank goodness he was reasonably distracted. For a good while he was either turned away fanning or obscured by fence posts, barbed wire, and tall grass. I passed up a few 'okay' chances and waited until I was comfortable, and everything was right, and then made the shot. He dropped like a sack of potatoes and with the exception of some flapping, never moved. Bird down at 7:15am opening day!!! Now for the work. It's a long way back uphill to the truck in wet/tall grass and adobe clay. I'm older than I'd like to admit and still have my 'winter layer' of fat. I won't complain though...packing out turkeys is way more fun than a treadmill. Once back at my truck, it was off to find SteveO and see how he was faring.
Steve had been perusing the creek section and could hear birds. He ended up seeing the 'periscope heads' and put in a stalk. As he got closer, the long necks and heads turned out to Canadian geese that decided to venture to the creek bottom, lol. We met up on the road and decided to return to northwest corner of the property, on the rim above the bowl where I had killed my bird. This is not a great place to 'kill' a bird, but the vantage point is unmatched with how far you can see. Not only can one see everything around the immediate area, but also for than mile in just about every direction. Birds were visible at various places in the distance, both at our level, down the mountain, and up the mountain. We noticed a group of hunters on the property below that were working their way into a section where there were a lot of birds. They were @ 500-600 yards below us, and I had a hunch that maybe they would 'push' birds up towards us. At any rate, we were where we needed to be to be able to 'glass for turkeys' and then put in a stalk and we were good with that.
It was windy and cold as heck up on the ridge, so I (being that I had my bird already) sat in the heated truck and glassed for a while. SteveO moved around the ridgeline to a couple of different vantage points and did the same. We continued to hear birds gobbling, and one particular gobble seemed to be getting closer. SteveO had noticed this too and had taken cover standing behind a lone power pole (use what's available) and made a couple of calls. He started to get the look of a dog on point, and sure enough here comes two toms right out of the draw below us. They were about 200 yards out, and SteveO made his move to get into position for a shot. I stayed in the truck and didn't get out until both he and the birds were out of sight. I knew where he was going; he dropped over the rise to little gap in the hills that funnels game. We've seen birds use this highway innumerable times, mostly to our disadvantage. Today was different, and SteveO made a brilliant game-time decision. Once I was confident that I wouldn't ruin anything, I got out and made my way up to a high spot to watch. I knew where SteveO went, but didn't know EXACTLY where he was set up. I watched the birds make their way up the hill and sure enough, they tracked right to where he expected. The two toms reached the gap, and I kept waiting for the shot from SteveO's .357 Bulldog. Just then they stopped and had that worried look. CRACK/thunk! I saw the first bird flopping and running out of sight. The other stood for a second wondering what happened and then took off like Usain Bolt back down to where he came from. Then I heard a second shot. I was hoping that was nothing more than a security shot on a not-dead-yet bird vs. trying to stop a missed or wounded & running bird.
I took my time and went back to the truck and drove down the hill to where SteveO was at. Sure enough, he'd set up in a perfect spot in some rocks. The bird was dead in the gap and he was making his way down. It had been trying to get to its feet after the first body shot, so he wisely put another one in him and that did it. This is I believe the first time that we both got birds at the same time. The number of times that we SHOULD have had two birds is laughable, but variables always prevented it. So here we were, @ 9:00am and both of us with NorCal airgun turkeys.
What a way to kick of the 2025 turkey season! However, things went from an incredible high to a shocking low in a hurry. It involves a medical emergency which is still evolving, and perhaps some amazing luck (that remains to be seen) fate and circumstances. If you've made it this far into this story, please think happy thoughts for my friend and project some good vibes westward. I will update later but now is not the right time. Regardless of how terrifying the way yesterday ended, I don't want that to diminish or cloud over the amazing morning that we had. It's a reminder to us all to cherish every moment in the outdoors, because you just never know when life will change your best laid plans.
Love you, Bro. We'll be back it again soon, I hope.
I was hoping to get down into the Turkey Grotto...a single 100-yard-long tree line on the ranch that seems to be a turkey magnet. I didn't see any birds when I reached the ridge top in my truck, which was not surprising for how early it was. I DID hear them everywhere though in the draw about a 1/4 mile below me. This draw is over the property line on a neighboring ranch, but birds cover so much ground that they come and go all day. I have a tree stand erected in the single tree that's in this open section. I was hoping to get there undetected and then decide whether get up in it and do some calling or keep moving down towards the Grotto. As I got close to the stand, I saw a tom walking and strutting in the little dip about 75 yards below the stand. He saw me (they always do) and slowly made his way out of sight and down to the safety on the canyon. No use getting in the stand now, so I just kept working my way down further towards the grotto.
I hadn't made it 20 yards when I caught movement in front of me. I saw a hen's head at about 60 yards; now I know why that tom was strutting. The ground was soaked from rain the day before, but I didn't care. I got down low and scooted forward to stay out of sight. I didn't go 10' and I saw the telltale red head looking at me. I froze and stayed where I was at. The tom puffed back up and then I saw he with a flock of hens. Even though he noticed me, he ignored it and went back to strutting. I spun around to sitting position and got the FX MKIII .22 700mm into a good shooting position with a knee rest. I'm zeroed at 75 yards and shooting 31.2 gr. NSA slugs, so this was a perfect scenario as long as I did MY job. If I'm not hunting with a big bore (which I have), I do not take body shots. Far too many birds have escaped through the years. So, I committed to head/neck-shot-only before I even left the house; basically, traded raw horsepower for pinpoint accuracy. That being said, I had to wait a long time for the bird hold still and to get the right angle. Thank goodness he was reasonably distracted. For a good while he was either turned away fanning or obscured by fence posts, barbed wire, and tall grass. I passed up a few 'okay' chances and waited until I was comfortable, and everything was right, and then made the shot. He dropped like a sack of potatoes and with the exception of some flapping, never moved. Bird down at 7:15am opening day!!! Now for the work. It's a long way back uphill to the truck in wet/tall grass and adobe clay. I'm older than I'd like to admit and still have my 'winter layer' of fat. I won't complain though...packing out turkeys is way more fun than a treadmill. Once back at my truck, it was off to find SteveO and see how he was faring.
Steve had been perusing the creek section and could hear birds. He ended up seeing the 'periscope heads' and put in a stalk. As he got closer, the long necks and heads turned out to Canadian geese that decided to venture to the creek bottom, lol. We met up on the road and decided to return to northwest corner of the property, on the rim above the bowl where I had killed my bird. This is not a great place to 'kill' a bird, but the vantage point is unmatched with how far you can see. Not only can one see everything around the immediate area, but also for than mile in just about every direction. Birds were visible at various places in the distance, both at our level, down the mountain, and up the mountain. We noticed a group of hunters on the property below that were working their way into a section where there were a lot of birds. They were @ 500-600 yards below us, and I had a hunch that maybe they would 'push' birds up towards us. At any rate, we were where we needed to be to be able to 'glass for turkeys' and then put in a stalk and we were good with that.
It was windy and cold as heck up on the ridge, so I (being that I had my bird already) sat in the heated truck and glassed for a while. SteveO moved around the ridgeline to a couple of different vantage points and did the same. We continued to hear birds gobbling, and one particular gobble seemed to be getting closer. SteveO had noticed this too and had taken cover standing behind a lone power pole (use what's available) and made a couple of calls. He started to get the look of a dog on point, and sure enough here comes two toms right out of the draw below us. They were about 200 yards out, and SteveO made his move to get into position for a shot. I stayed in the truck and didn't get out until both he and the birds were out of sight. I knew where he was going; he dropped over the rise to little gap in the hills that funnels game. We've seen birds use this highway innumerable times, mostly to our disadvantage. Today was different, and SteveO made a brilliant game-time decision. Once I was confident that I wouldn't ruin anything, I got out and made my way up to a high spot to watch. I knew where SteveO went, but didn't know EXACTLY where he was set up. I watched the birds make their way up the hill and sure enough, they tracked right to where he expected. The two toms reached the gap, and I kept waiting for the shot from SteveO's .357 Bulldog. Just then they stopped and had that worried look. CRACK/thunk! I saw the first bird flopping and running out of sight. The other stood for a second wondering what happened and then took off like Usain Bolt back down to where he came from. Then I heard a second shot. I was hoping that was nothing more than a security shot on a not-dead-yet bird vs. trying to stop a missed or wounded & running bird.
I took my time and went back to the truck and drove down the hill to where SteveO was at. Sure enough, he'd set up in a perfect spot in some rocks. The bird was dead in the gap and he was making his way down. It had been trying to get to its feet after the first body shot, so he wisely put another one in him and that did it. This is I believe the first time that we both got birds at the same time. The number of times that we SHOULD have had two birds is laughable, but variables always prevented it. So here we were, @ 9:00am and both of us with NorCal airgun turkeys.
What a way to kick of the 2025 turkey season! However, things went from an incredible high to a shocking low in a hurry. It involves a medical emergency which is still evolving, and perhaps some amazing luck (that remains to be seen) fate and circumstances. If you've made it this far into this story, please think happy thoughts for my friend and project some good vibes westward. I will update later but now is not the right time. Regardless of how terrifying the way yesterday ended, I don't want that to diminish or cloud over the amazing morning that we had. It's a reminder to us all to cherish every moment in the outdoors, because you just never know when life will change your best laid plans.
Love you, Bro. We'll be back it again soon, I hope.
