Alabama Spring gobbler season, 2018 day by day

[bamaranger]

Folks in AL have been hunting spring gobblers since 15March. Season has come in my zone 31March. I no longer make the drive south to hunt in March, so started hunting locally this past Sat. With access to quite a bit of property, I had about 12-15 gobblers located before season.

31March- I roosted the evening before, and heard turkeys go up left and right of me in a certain hollow. No gobbles. The next AM, multiple birds gobbling well to the south......somebody shot at 7AM. Another bird well to the west cranked up at 9AM, well to the west, and sombody shot. The birds in my hollow did not gobble. I heard the rt hand bunch fly down, nothing came to call, I left a bit flat at 1:00PM

1April Easter Sunday- in deference to my beliefs, I did not hunt Sunday AM, but went to service, then another. A big Easter meal at 2PM. I slipped off near dusk to roost near home.....and promptly flushed a BIG bird from the roost walking in.....arrrrrgh. A second (?) gobbler sounded off 10 times way off in the big hollow to the SW, too far to pin down. Up where I was, there had been 2 gobbling before season....I elected to return the next AM despite bumping the roosted bird. Seemed foolish to leave turkeys to find turkeys.

2April-Set out dekes and a put up blind, right on the edge of the pines/cutover from the evening before. At daylight turkeys started sailing out of the trees into the cutover, and another walked down the skidder path right past my blind, all hens. No gobbles, even from the SW, where I now there was a bird the night before.....I heard him. Very foggy. Did some light calling. About 8AM, a bird appears front center, just beyond the decoys, 35 yds +. Its so foggy, hard to make out details, but eventually I see a beard swing, and color on the head. An easy shot, and down he goes. The new See All sight on the old 870 is areal boon to my 60 yr old eyes, I will do a separate post. The gobbler has mature, full fan, but very petite. Not quite 14-3/4 lbs, 8-1/2" beard, little more than blisters for spurs, barely 1/2" inch. Half jake, half tom, but in the bag.

That evening, I roost in a new location, and hear two in the distance, I will start "over there" the next AM.

3April- a long ATV ride, and a down/up to the next ridge, puts me about where I think the birds from the night before will be. At dawn, I hear gobbling to the south, but nothing seemingly close. After 20 min or so with better light, I drift south along the ridge crest. Further I go, clearer the gobblng gets. Its WINDY, but in a lapse, a gobble rings out clearly, close. I'm there...the wind was deceiving me, these birds are much closer than I thought! I drop to all fours, and scamper to the nearest big tree. As I swing myself into a sitting position, the gobbler pitches out of a tree to my left, a mere 125 yds or so away, and lands out of sight on the point of the ridge to my front. I figure he saw me. But much to my delight, a minute or so later, I hear not one, but two gobbles. Mouth call yelps brings a pair of gobbles in response. A minute or so later, a gobbles again, closer still but right. I swing the gun right , and answer, and get gobbles in reply.......then a long silence. Look HARD. By magic, as my eyes dart left and right, a gobbler head appears, in range to the right, but past my gun barrel. He steps in the open, but I cannot move. He preens, moves more right behind some foilage, and I swing over to where I think he will emerge. When he does, the same cover obstructs a shot, and I hold off. I am at the limit of my swing to the right.....my arms burn. my left knee and hip are killing me. He goes behind a big tree, it is clear beyond, I've got him now!!!!!!!!! I adjust and wait. I see the second gobbler trailing go through the initial opening. They are both right there. I wait for #1 to appear, and wait, and wait......till I can wait no more, the old 870 feels like an Olympic bar. I lower the gun. No more gobbles, no more turkey....I've been beaten. I stick in the area for another 2 hrs, till a lunch date obliges..I roost that evening in a new location, but hear nothing.

4April-back to the pine/cutover set up. At daylight, 2 gobblers get with it half mile or more to the SW, in the big hollow, then silence as they likey get in the open of the big cutover. More high wind. I call off and on for over 3 hrs, no answers, no gobbles. That evening, I set up the blind and dekes at yet another location and see or hear nothing, and roosting there yields nothing either.

5April-back to the area of my first days hunt. The first ridge I'm on, I hear birds to the N., way off. After 30 min, I fire up the ATV to move that way, but hold up about half way to listen down another hollow. Immediately, I hear gobbles. Ride that way, and upon topping a rise, there sets a truck. I back off and let that guy have at it. I continue back N. but hear no more gobbles there. I also hear no shots back where I was. I ride to a third ridge, and immediately hear gobbles, WAY to the north. It is a long way over there, all by foot, and I hesitate. The hip the doc's want to replace is killing me. When that bird really cranks up an hour later, I start off. By the time I make it over there, and up the steep side, he's gone around the point and out of hearing. I should have started that way upon first hearing him, but hoped I'd hear one closer. I hobbled back to the ATV, whooped again.

6, 7April- weather down right awful, temps drop 20 degrees, rain, thunder, I rest up at home, go to a wedding Sat PM. Obligated on Sun, but I will roost Sun PM, and hopefully be on one for Mon. Keep you posted.

[bamaranger]

9April, Monday-Took a roost trip Sunday eve, and found lots of gobbler tracks in the area where I killed bird #1. In there before daylight today with blind, dekes and a comfy chair......I planned to make a long sit. Big pines to my rear, a low cutover out front. Turkeys gobbling at first light, back in the pines. I resist going back in there after them, every indication is they will come out into the cut, and walk this road along the edge of the two. Some gobbles sound close, some way back.......I can't tell how many birds I'm hearing. I answer with slate call, assorted strikers, even my mouth call, but no real responses. By 7:30, gobbling has tapered off, and I have not seen a bird.

I will wait. At about 8:00, a gobble rings out in the cutover, way out there, maybe 400 yds. I crank up the slate, he gobbles back. A minute or so later, I try him again, and he answers. Then he just starts hammering, and closer by the second. I am going to see this bird. He pops into view at about 60 yds, goes into strut, and gobbbles, seemingly with every breath. He has to see the dekes, but he' will not close. After a minute or so, a SECOND gobbler eases between us, about 10 yds closer, but still farther than I wanna shoot. He locks up to, but never struts or gobbles. But the leader just tears it up.

In 15-20 minutes, I hear foot steps coming up rt side, out of the pines. I figure, hens, he's gobbled up some hens. I was shellshocked when 3 more mature gobblers stepped out of the pines, a mere 15 yds away. I've got the gun out the front of the blind, not the right. I manage to get the gun repositioned ww/o getting busted. These 3 on the right are agitated. They gobble, purr and flap, and are weaving about themselves in a snake dance. But instead of walking up the road, past my dekes and into the cutover to confront the two toms there, they move to the far edge of the road and begin to cross into a depression there. When they drop out of sight, they likely will not emerge in range.....I figure I must shoot. I cluck, they all three stop......and I could cover their heads in a bucket. Can't shoot, I may kill them all.

The leader drops out of sight, the second one too, the 3rd one pauses for a moment, and I trip the shot. Turkeys go everywhere. The one I was on runs down the bank, I take another shot and I miss him again. .....the two in the field run and flush. All I can figure is #3 juked his head right as I shot.....plus, at less than 20yds, I was working with a pattern about the size of a softball. I'm smashed.....perfect set up, and I did not connect. I wanna blame my new sight, but in retrospect, the shot/set up was not ideal, too close, and bobbing heads.....I half blew it, and bad luck too boot.

I sit there, licking my wounds....what to do? Relocate and call these same birds........come back later this afternoon? Mostly I'm just aggravated. I eat a Poptart, sip some water, sulk in the blind. I'm tired too. Fifteen minutes must go by.......I look out the front window, there stands a jake at 20 yds. Never saw him, don't know where he came from.....but it's his unlucky day. I make very sure of my sight picture, low on the wattles, and bust him. Bittersweet, I don't feel bad about the jake, heck I just saw 5 mature birds, there's lots of turkeys here....but I would have liked to have a longbeard instead!

[turkeestalker]

*smiles*
You've certainly got me anxiously awaiting opening Monday here in Missouri... good read, thanks for the spark.

[bamaranger]

Tues, 10April- I elect to hunt hardwoods, where I worked 2 birds just after Easter. About halfway to the ridges, I run up on two guys ahead of me. We determine we are all legal (it's pvt property) they wanna set up on the fields nearby. I wanna ride on through to the ridges. If I do, I will screw up their hunt. In the least, it would be disrespectful. I let them have it, motor back to the Bronco, and head somewhere else. But I loose critical time in the process.
I do hear two very distant gobbles, and the hardwood hollow I end up in is all scratched up......but by noon, I'm beat, nodding off, and call it a day. That evening, I roost elsewhere and hear nothing.

Weds, 11April- back on the cutover/pine ridge where I've killed two and saw so many others. Nothing, no gobbles, no sightings, no fresh tracks. I'll have to figure out a different way to hunt this. I'm beat too........fell asleep twice in the sun. My snooze tactic has worked before, it's all how you wake up!!!!!

Thurs, 12 April- early wake ups get to me.....I oversleep, pretty day too. I work to run down ATV parts, my machine is acting up, and hope to hunt this afternoon, then roost. Had chores around the place....bamawife coming home today. Better get those dishes!!

[bamaranger]

12April, Thurs- Since I slept in this AM, I resolved to make an afternoon hunt. The weather is clear and warm, but the wind is blowing hard......I figure if I want to see turkeys, I better hunt in low, protected areas. The hardwood ridges where the pair of gobblers slipped past me on 3April are all connected by a narrow hollow with a stream running in it. On the east end, there is a long narrow food plot. I figure I may see birds on the field, or traveling the length of it to protected roosting areas deeper in the stream hollow. I'm in place by 3:00PM, blind set up, two decoys. I call every 20 minutes or so. Even in the bottom here, the wind is gusty. I use the slate call hard, and I wish I'd brought my big slate, or even the old Lynch box, but I only brought the small pocket slate. I stake the decoys on two sides two keep them from spinning like tops. I have to stake the blind down too, it wants to sail off like a balloon.

By 6PM I was ready to quit . Glancing out the right side of the blind, I am shocked to see two big gobblers at about 45 yds, eyeing my decoys. I have no idea how long they've been there, and the lead bird seems spooky. I get the gun out the window, and the spooky one is now too far, but the second seems still just in range. Line it up with the new See All sight, and trip the shot. The bird goes down hard, I watch for a moment to make sure, then begin to leave the blind......

And then the comedy begins. Normally, after a shot, I just flip the blind over and go, but I've got all four corners staked....I've got to clamber out a window. Sitting for 3 hrs, I'm not moving so good. I get one leg out and stumble wildly getting the sore, left one to follow. Plus, I've got my right boot half off, as my right big toe was killing me. I hobble over to the bird, one boot on, one off, limping like Festus. Would have made a hilarious video.

The bird is a dandy, 20-1/2lbs, 9-1/4" beard, spurs of 1" and 15/16" on the other side. I feel certain this is the same pair that duped me on 3April. I'm not 200 yds from the big point they were roosted on that AM. From the blind to the middle of the pile of feathers was 49 hobbled paces.

13April Friday- I try to repeat my PM success with another field hunt on a second location but see nothing.

[bamaranger]

Multiple waves of steady rain, wind, and some thunder/lightning rolled in Fri night, and continued through Sunday morning. Then the temp dropped about 20 degrees. I did not hunt Sat (14), or Sun (15), but did make a little loop in the pickup Sunday afternoon. In a certain set of pastures, I spotted two gobblers in the open, feeding with 2 hens. I cannot hunt the pastures, but the pines and hardwood hollow behind it, I can. My normal access to that area is to come in from the north, (hollow runs E-W) by ATV, and drop into the hollow by a cut on the that side. Problem is, my ATV is down, and the walk from the N. side is just too far. Pulled out the maps and Google earth and did some thinking. On the south side, a strip of pines comes out to the county road, ....and it is part of the property I can hunt. Never tried to get through those pines, but I'll see about that .

16April-Monday -Monday morning is gray, windy and flat out cold, I sleep in, with a promise to myself I will scout the pine strip leading towards the hollow behind the pasture. About 3:30PM I wrap up some tasks and hit the woods. Happy to find level ground, and a fair path that leads down into the hollow. I've hunted this area 3 yrs now, but didn't know that access was there. I drop into the hollow that afternoon, move west a bit, and set 'till dusk, hoping that birds from the pasture will drift past on their way to roost, but see and hear nothing. The creeks full and a bit hard to hear there as well. But...walking out in the twilight, I flush a turkey from the roost, very near where the trail bottoms out in the hollow. Could be more....I stay 'tiil full dark, and sneak out. I'll hunt this tommorrow AM

17-April- I'm halfway down the trail, in near darkness, when a turkey gobbles at an owl the next AM. I hotfoot it down the trail, tugging on mask and gloves. When I reach the crest of the hollow, I pause. The owl sounds off again, and TWO gobblers sound off, about 100 yds away. They sound like their on the opposite side, about halfway up the hillside. The bottom is relatively open, if I can get there, they may well march right up the bottom to me. I ease down the switchbacked path, hit the bottom, and move in their direction about another 20 yds. When they gobble again, I'm startled how close I am. I pick a tree and sit. Clip a sapling to my front to allow the gun to sweep. Dig out the pocket slate and the wooden striker. I let them gobble on their own in the gathering light, till it seems reasonable to answer. On the next set of gobbles, I tree call, softly.
They do not readily respond, but keep gobbling on their own every few minutes. I tree call in response about half the time. I can hear a live hen somewhere in their direction, maybe more than one. It's plenty light now, and the hens are getting more vocal. Up high, a hen cackles and pitches out, staying high and landing on the top of the bluff to my left, out of sight. I yelp on the slate, and put it down, get the gun up. A bird pitches out up where the gobbling was from, and sails down to land on the steep hillside, hard off my left shoulder, maybe 20 yds away. I swing the gun over, and a really small jake steps out from behind the tree, I don't want him and hold off. A second bird sails out from the same area and flys down the creek towards me. I thought he might sail past, but at the last second he flares right and lands immediately in front of me, between two large trees. I can see him from the wing butts back, but cannot see his head, or his beard. The turkey locks up and does not move a muscle. I feel certain he saw me just as he landed.

And the stand off begins. I'm not sure how long that bird stood there with the tree between us, and the other tree preventing him from moving directly away. He had to step left or right, and when he did, I was ready. A long time passed. Finally the bird shuffled his wings, and reversed his stance, exposing his head and neck on the left side of the big white oak. I've got bamaboys Mossberg 835 (it's lighter than my 870, since I was walking in) and it's got fiber optic sights) and push the orange bead between the green dots, line it up just under the birds head, and trip the shot. Down hard, and feathers go everywhere. It's 15 paces to the bird......which turns out to be a jake. I'm not dissatisfied, I'd worked hard to locate the birds in bad weather, find a way in, and get close the morning of the hunt. I've earned him, and his brother is still alive for seed. It's 6:30AM.

I take my time walking out, the day breaks bright and clear. I stop in the morning sun for pics, eat a snack and sip some water. Good heavens, do I love to hunt spring turkeys! More than any grown man should.

[turkeestalker]

Congrats, I've harvested more than one jake with no regrets.
We only get two birds a season here in Missouri and that second bird is often very hard won.
They have the same 10x binoculars for eyes and are afraid of everything just like the big boys, and they eat the same... maybe better.

Yesterday was opening day here in Missouri and I took the day off work as always.
Never had snow flurries on spring season opening day before, made it interesting but mostly just windy and cold.
Only one tom gobbled on the roost here behind the house that I could hear over the wind, then fell silent on the ground and never showed himself.
I'll hunt the next three weekends with my sons, but the second week I'm taking the week off work to hunt the weekdays for me, as always.
Hoping it's a little warmer.

[bamaranger]

The weather plays a huge part in spring hunts, hot, cold, wind, rain, all have a direct effect on how the morning goes. Pretty mornings are great, but getting to hunt on a work schedule, and all the obligations a fella might have with family, church, etc, can limit how much a guy gets to hunt and scout. One only gets to spring gobbler hunt about 30 days in most states. Time is precious.

Folks where I worked used to laugh at my fussing about turkey season. I used this argument, feel free to apply as you see fit.....it may have won me a few days.

Suppose there was a ........(insert hobby/pastime of your choice, preferably your boss's favorite), lets say, "golf season"? You can play golf for JUST 30 days. If you play before or after, you are breaking the law. Plus, if somebody plays the course before you do, it changes the game and the holes get tougher. If it rains, cold, hot, the game changes again. You can get your clubs out, practice in the yard, fool with your golf cart, but you cannot get on the course. If you do, you are breaking the law. Now....are you gonna play golf every chance you get in that 30 days of the golf season? Bet your bottom dollar you are. I've used "motorcycle season" as an example too.

I'm lucky, retired now and mostly healthy enough, that I can spend nearly all the time I want chasing gobblers. The first year I was retired, I hunted EVERY DAY of the season, except Easter....and I roosted that evening.

Turkeestalker, you hang in there and best of luck.

[Erno86]

Congrats to both of ya'all...

I bagged a Maryland jake at sunrise this morning (first day, two per spring season) on public hunting land. Youth day was last Saturday. I heard about 4 or 5 gobblers sounding off at first light. They were shock gobbling to almost any sound they heard --- especially the barred owl hoot. And after I gave a couple of nearby roosted ones some soft tree yelps...I gave them a fly-down cackle, along with one of my hands slapping my thigh for some simulated turkey wing beats --- when one of them then cut me off with a racious gobble. I knew they were coming in, so I stopped calling.

They came in at full strut...when they saw my turkey hen decoy, set at 20 yards, and I let one of them have it with a Federal 3" 12 gauge, #5/6/7 load --- with my black laminate Winchester 1300/Wild Turkey Federation- (turkeys engraved on my receiver).

I just finished plucking him, and I found that my titanium blade coated, sapling ratchet tree lopper works great for cutting off the head and feet.

[bamaranger]

18April-Weds-Happy with my success from the day previous, and wanting to hunt a new area, I head out to a huge hollow where I heard 2 birds before season. I returned several evenings since, roosting, listening, but no more gobbles. About a week ago, I found gobbler tracks in the mud where I park and listen, so there was at least one there 6-7 days prior. It is a huge hollow, maybe 1000 acres, and I've never been in it, simply listened from the access road on top of the northern ridge.

On arrival at twilight, the wind is howling. If I wanna hear toms, I will have to get out of the wind. Leave the road and walk a draw into big timber, and emerge on a beautiful bench full of mature white oaks. I'm a bit lower, the wind a bit less, I'll listen a bit. Move to the lip of the bench so I can hear down below. At 7:00 AM a gobble warbles in across the wind, way off, to the southwest, lower down. I've got to search for a way off the bench, it's steep drop where I'm at to get lower. I find a cut and scramble down. Big rocks, fallen timber, I find level ground 200-300 ft down. But it's not the bottom of the hollow! It's another pretty bench, still open and timbered, but scattered with big rocks as well. I had no idea.....no wonder I wasn't hearing birds from the road, no way sound could get up these faces, across the clearings up top, for me to hear it from the road. Drift west along this second bench, work the crow call a bit....nothing. Again I sit and listen.

Perhaps 20-30 minutes later, a flurry of gobbles breaks out, still southwest, but clearer now. I'm closer, the wind is less still, I can place the sound better. Definitely at least two birds, perhaps slightly up the opposite side, 1/2 mile or so away. I drop off the second bench onto the hollow floor, easy this time on a moderate grade. At the bottom of the hollow, a creek runs, and an old woods road runs west. I ease down the road, and the bottom opens up and timber thins. The creek slows as well, I can hear fair. I better wait a bit and see. Again I sit, masked and gloved this time, ready to call. Its about 8:00 AM.

Shortly a thready gobble rings out from the opposite hillside, higher up and acrosss the creek. Sounded like a jake. I don't want to shoot another jake, but at least I seem in the right area. I try the old wooden Olt crow call, and get a raucous full gobble in response, much closer, again from the opposite hillside, and higher up. He's in calling range, but the old adages of "never call a gobbler downhill, and never across water" ring in my ears. Ever so carefully, retreat back the old woods road, and some 200 yds back, cross the creek and climb the opposite hill. I find a bench up there, not as pretty or wide as the others, but definitely a terrain feature the tom could hold on or walk to my calls. It's a bit thick too, and all the big trees I'd like to sit at do not have good shooting lanes. I end up on a phone pole size tree on the lip of the bench, where I can see the bench flat, but also the hillside I just climbed.

Once settled, I give some yelps on the treasured pocket slate using a ceramic /carbon striker (cuts the wind) A gobble rocks out in answer, less than 100 yds away and on the flat. I respond, and he gobbles again. Put down the call, get the gun up and start looking. It doesn't take long. The gobbler appears slightly left, walking hard. A noticeably long beard arcs from his chest. He gobbles on the move, keeps coming a bit, then pauses and looks around, I'd say 65 yds out. I risk some soft yelps, he gobbles again and starts drifting my way. At 50 or so, he stops again, scans, gobbles, then fans. Will he lock up? I hate to call to a bird this close. No, he pulls out of fan and continues to drift closer, working left. I have to move the gun as he goes behind timber, and he emerges in range, but there is cane between us, he's not really clear. I wait and he drifts a bit closer, then stops and scans, periscoping his head up to see. I've got a clear line on just his baseball sized head. But I've got tremendous confidence in my gun/ loads and the new sight system. I line him up and shoot. He crumples, barely flopping. I hustle over and admire him. Mature bird, near inch spurs, and the bird is heavy when hefted. It's 8:30AM.

Much later the beard will go 10-1/2 inches, the spurs 15/16", and he weighed 19-3/4 lb. ( I bet twenty pounds live). I find 2 different shot sizes, healed over in the bird, lead #5, plated #6. My plated #5's are easily recognized by size and fresh trauma. This old bird been around, I say 3 yrs old. The shot turned out to be 40 paces, 38-39 yds.

I spend the next hour soaking in my success, and the spring sun. I take pics, search and finally find my spent case, do my little feather monument after the kill. Scouted, located, moved on to call. This is my "limit bird", #5 for the year.

And even more special, it's my darn birthday!!!!!Great gift.

[turkeestalker]

That's a happy birthday!

[turkeestalker]

On the job site now, but had two gobbling nearby while standing on the porch before I left the house this morning.
Looking forward to next week.

[bamaranger]

Yeah, that work business tends to get in the way of a fella havin' a good time. I try and avoid it these days.

'Stalker, if you can hear birds from the house, good for you. I can say the same, but it is an occasional thing. The land around me is largely woodlot and pasture, some years it holds birds, some years not.


I hope all get to hunt as much as they want, the weather holds and everyone hears lots of gobbles. I had a great year, score wise, but I tell myself every season that it it about the HUNT and not the kill. Enjoy those pretty mornings in the gorgeous spring woods. Don't worry about who kills what and how many. Most years, I do not give my score openly to to other local turkey hunters, and it just tears them up.

We had a birthday get together the other night, a pal, who does not turkey hunt asked.."what you gonna do now?" I told him, "Now we fish".