Tag Archives: Turkey Hunting

Dan Andrews Print Creekside Strutting Wild Turkeys

 

A Partial Image From “Creekside Strutting” by Dan Andrews. A Colorado Ducks Unlimited 2001 Sponsor Print

Hunting For Colorado’s Mountain Gobblers Is Always a Thrill (On The Grill)

By Michael Patrick McCarty

 

Michael Patrick McCarty Poses In The turkey Decoys With His 2017 Colorado Merriam's Longbeard
Decoys and Calling Are A Deadly Gobbler Combination

 

Spring 2017

Springtime is turkey time in my hunter’s world. Snow season slowly yields to mud season in the heart of the Rockies, and milder nights and that sweet, sweet green-up simply cannot come fast enough.

No doubt that the turkeys are quite happy about their prospects too. It is the time of yelping hens and owl hoots and gobbles from the roost. It’s the time of the hunter’s moon, and of hurried walks to one’s favorite ridge or field well before fly down.

Anticipation hangs thick in the air, for turkeys, and hunters too. They must fulfill their need to breed, and we, in turn, must hunt. And, I say, is there anything more thrilling than spying a wary old bird slinking towards the decoy, suddenly halting to lay its head back and roar as that big, magnificent fan jumps to life?

Such are the joys of turkey hunting, and the mere possibility of those memorable moments are calling us out, just over here, and there. It is a serious outdoor addiction waiting to be born. Once acquired, it must be respected, nurtured, and satisfied. Sometimes, you may even kill a turkey.

I did just that, late last week, as did a great friend and hunting partner (and master caller too!). As you can see, pictured below are two fine examples of Colorado’s turkey hunting opportunities. The hunting can be grand, though almost always challenging.

Colorado offers a vast catalog of public hunting lands, and the turkey population is expanding every year. That’s some very great news for the turkey hunter.

With that being said, one of the downsides of hunting in Colorado is that much of the turkey hunting areas are easily accessible, and hunting pressure is increasing exponentially. Frustration can run high, and success can be a rare and elusive target.

But it can be done.

Both of these birds were taken on some of the heaviest hunted public lands in northwestern Colorado, and they both came to a call. We left a few in the woods too!

So, get out there and burn up some boot leather. See what’s over the hill and down in the draw, and listen for that unmistakable springtime exaltation!

The birds are there, ready for action, and a thrill. I wouldn’t miss it for the world…

 

Michael Patrick McCarty Poses With His Spring 2017 Shotgun Turkey Gobbler. Photo by Rocky Tscappat
Spring Turkey Hunting is a Blast! Photo by Rocky Tschappat

 

Wild Turkey Spring Gobbler Harvested at The Snow Line in The Colorado High Country
Climb to The Snow Line – It’s What the Merriam’s Do! Photo by Rocky Tschappat

 

And by the way, did I mention that wild turkey can be most excellent table fare.

SPRING TURKEY HUNTER’S BRUNCH

  • 1 turkey breast, cut into strips, or cubed into small pieces
  • yellow mustard
  • italian dressing
  • garlic powder
  • cracked black pepper
  • 1 pound mushrooms
  • 1 package fresh spinach
  • small package of goat chevre (or other cheese)
  • sourdough english muffins
  • unsalted butter

Mix and cover turkey meat with mustard, garlic powder, and italian dressing. Refrigerate for 24 hours.

Saute mushrooms and spinach in butter. Fry or grill turkey meat until just cooked through, about 170 degrees. Spread Chevre on toasted sourdough muffins, and top with meat, mushrooms, and spinach.

Serve with chilled Champagne, or a Mimosa on ice.

Enjoy!

– Marinade Recipe provided by Rocky Tschappat, who was given it by a grizzled old turkey hunter whom we would all no doubt like to meet…

Pass it on…

 

Close Up Photo of a Wild Turkey Breast Ready for Preparation and Marinade and the Grill. Winner Winner Turkey (Chicken) Dinner. Photograph By Michael Patrick McCarty
Winner Winner, Turkey Dinner

 

By Michael Patrick McCarty

You Might Also Like They Grow Them Turkeys Big…

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Outdoorsman's Edge Guide To Advanced Turkey Hunting. By Richard Combs.

Here Offered:

Outdoorsman’s Edge Guide To Advanced Turkey Hunting. By Richard Combs. Published by Woods N’ Water, Inc., 2001, 165 pages. With chapters on scouting, setup, advanced calling strategies, blinds, recovering turkeys, the optimum turkey gun, fall turkey hunting, and much more. Photos throughout.

In Fine condition, and Near Fine dustjacket.

$12.95 plus $4 shipping (US). Subject to prior sale. Paypal and checks accepted.

Email huntbook1@gmail.com to order.

You Gotta’ Love The Spring – And The Turkey’s…

“Some men are mere hunters; others are turkey hunters”.

Archibald Rutledge, From Those Were The Days, 1955

May 2018

My plump and healthy 2018 Gobbler, taken in the ever-better turkey country of Northwestern Colorado.

Maybe, just maybe, I am really getting the hang of it after all of these years…

 

A Hunter Poses With A Large Male Wild Turkey, Taken in Spring 2018 With A Shotgun and a Heavy Turkey Shotshell Load in Northwestern Colorado
I Don’t Believe I Will Ever Lose The Thrill Of Standing Behind The Bird!

 

A Wing of a Wild Turkey, Harvested in Northwestern Colorado in the Spring 2018
An Early Morning Prize

 

A Close-Up Photograph of the Wing and Body Feathers of A Male Wild Turkey
Wild Feathers of Iridescent Beauty

 

You Might Also Like Girl…Do They Grow Them Turkeys Big In Wisconsin

Boy, (Or Should I Say Girl) Do They Grow Them Turkeys Big in Wisconsin

skeeze / Pixabay

 

A Young Wisconsin Girl Poses With Her Trophy Spring Eastern Turkey, Taken on a Youth Hunt in 2017
Jenna McBride Celebrates Her 26 Pound Wisconsin Gobbler

A big thumbs up to Jenna McBride, who took this magnificent  Wisconsin Eastern Turkey in April 2017.

Jenna is becoming quite the huntress too! At fourteen years old, this is already her second bird…

“It was an interesting day,  we were in a blind and I called once or twice early when the turkeys were still roosting.

We then had a hen come to our two decoys and stay by the decoys for 2.5 to 3 hours or so until this tom came in.  We had one other tom that stayed just out of range for almost two hours before leaving once it started to rain.  So I never had to call again as I had a very cooperative hen with us all morning.

Jenna did all the gun work though.  She told me if she gets a shot, she would get a turkey.  She didn’t miss!

And I forgot, I’ve never got one that big”. – Kevin McBride, Proud Father

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Not to be outdone, 16 year old sister Molly McBride followed up in May with an even bigger 27.1 pound tom.

Now that’s a turkey hunting duo to reckon with!

A teen-aged girl poses with a 27 pound eastern wild turkey harvested with a shotgun in central Wisconsin
A Beautiful Day To Be a Turkey Hunter

Dad had a tag in his pocket too but never picked up the gun.  He says that it is much more fun to be their guide. And yes, Kevin also acknowledges that “the girls had a good year”.

Now that’s the turkey hunting understatement of the season…

My biological nature makes me wonder if there is something in the water out there, or just what in the world these turkeys had been eating to get so big. Whatever it was, it certainly did the job. If registered, both birds would fall in or near a list of the top 50 heaviest birds ever recorded with The National Wild Turkey Federation in Wisconsin.

Search The National Wild Turkey Federation Record List Here

As for Jenna and Molly, something tells me that this will not be their last turkey hunting adventure. I can only hope that I get a chance to hunt with them sometime, or at least follow them around for a bit. No doubt they could show me a thing or two about how it should be done.

Congratulations all!

A Young Women and Her Dad Celebrate Her Trophy Eastern Gobbler, taken with a shotgun on a wild turkey hunt in central Wisconsin during the spring hunting season.
Like Father, Like Daughter – A Hunter’s Bond Runs Deep

Now that’s a mean set of wheels, and some spurs to be proud of!

A Close-Up Photo of the Spurs of a Trophy Eastern Wild Turkey, Harvested in Wisconsin During The Spring Hunting Season
A Spur To Make You Glad That You Are Not Another Male Wild Turkey

 

Posted by Michael Patrick McCarty

You Might Also Like Hunting For Colorado’s Mountain Gobblers Is Always a Thrill

Doubled Up On Kansas Rio’s

Posted By Michael Patrick McCarty

Spring 2017

Rocky Tschappat poses with a pair of Rio Grande Turkeys, coaxed to a call in Western Kansas and doubled down at 40 and 55 yards.

Yes, Kansas does offer a two bird limit in some areas.

And By the Way “The Funky Chicken” Turkey Decoy (in background photo) strikes again.

 

A hunter poses with a pair of Rio Grande wild turkeys taken on a Kansas Spring Turkey Hunt. Photo Provided by Rocky Tschappat.
Any Day of Turkey Hunting is a Good Day…Even Better Times Two. Photo by Gary Smith

 

A Close-Up Photo of the Spurs Found on the Legs of a Wild Turkey
The Leg Spurs of a Wild Turkey – A Most Formidable Weapon. Photo by Rocky Tschappat

Five Minutes…And Done – With Wild Turkey That Is!

a colorado bowhunter poses with a wild turkey harvested with a recurve bow in spring of 2017
Ray Seelbinder Poses With His 2017 Colorado Archery Tom

April 29, 2017

“5 weeks of scouting , 5 minutes of hunting , 5 yd shot

3/4 spurs, 8″1/2 beard !!!

Now maybe 5 beers !” – Ray

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Enough said, I say…

Congratulations Ray!

Posted By Michael Patrick McCarty

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Mountains Are For Merriam’s

There’s Nothing Like Hunting Turkeys at 8,000 Feet (If You Can Take It!)

Sometimes you have to go a long, long, way up in the land of little air to find a turkey…and if your hunting in western Colorado, I can just about guarantee that you will.

Merriam’s are the name of the game, and they, of all the other subspecies, may be the most challenging wild turkey of them all. If you have any doubts in that department, just take a long, hard gander at where they live. It may force you to reevaluate your hunting strategy…and your hopes.

But then again, maybe not.

The terrain is usually steep, and deep, and big. Really, really big. But the turkeys are there for the undaunted, and it is after all, a Rocky Mountain adventure.

Did I happen to mention that there is very little O2 hanging about?

 

 

Michael McCarty poses with a Merriam's Turkey taken in western Colorado in Spring 2016
Spring is for Merriam’s Turkeys
Michael McCarty prepares to set up while hunting Merriam's Turkeys on a full moon morning in Western Colorado
Moon Over Merriam’s

For some tips on hunting The Merriam’s Wild Turkey, see a great article here.