More than just turkeys

by May 16, 2018Turkey Hunting

More than just turkeys

For three days leading up to my turkey hunt, I woke up and looked at the clock to figure out how much earlier I would need to wake up to be at Staci’s house on time.  Aside from ticks, the worst part of turkey hunting is the early start time. 

The day of my hunt arrived and armed with my coffee, I drove to Staci’s house to find some turkeys.  Her husband, John, agreed to be our designated turkey caller. Deer ran through the woods off to our right and a partridge drummed continuously as we walked to our first spot.  The world was waking up all around us but there were no turkeys to answer our calls, so we moved.

I spotted the first birds of the morning, a tom fanned out with three hens (or two hens and a jake) so we parked the truck in the next field over and started making our way towards the birds.  Staci and I crawled on our stomachs to the edge of the hill and watched as the tom answered every time John called but it would not cross the field to come towards us.  We skirted the field in an attempt to get closer but by the time we made our way closer, the turkeys were gone and would not answer us.

We got back in the truck and continued driving.  The sun was coming up and we kept an eye out for the sleek, reflecting backs of turkeys in the fields.  We were going slow enough that we were able to see a different animal out and about; fox kits!

There were 4-6 kits playing and eating along the side of a bank.  We knew that we shouldn’t waste too much time, but they were adorable and didn’t seem to mind the truck stopped on the edge of the road.  A couple of them were eating.  Others were pacing the ridge and watching their siblings.

I had never seen fox kits before; especially not out in the open and playing like they were.  Experiencing things like this make getting up SO early worth it.  Staci and I snapped a few more pictures of the kits and mom and continued on our way to find turkeys. 

0 Comments

You May Also Enjoy…

Trail cam obsession

I have been saving all of the 'good' trail camera pictures over the years partially because it is fun to see the animals that were around but also because it is a reference check for what the norm is for our area. We have not had a lot of bucks on the trail cameras...

If you want me to write for you

I started writing here in 2009 and have steadily watched the number of folks, like yourself, who read my blog, grow. It has been fantastic to hear from you in emails, read your comments and see you liking the Facebook page. It is my responsibility to you that I have a...

Watching Great Horned Owls

When Staci and I headed to our last spot to fish, we flushed two birds from the trees.  Initially, I could not tell if they were hawks, turkeys or what... it wasn't until they landed on a tree across the stream from us that we could see them! Young Great Horned...

Recent Posts

Meet The Author

Erin Merrill, author of And a Strong Cup of Coffee, is president of Women of the Maine Outdoors, a senior writer for Drury Outdoors, a contributor to the Northwoods Sporting Journal and passionate all things Maine, Hunting, and the Outdoors.

LEARN MORE >>