I had the best hunt in years earlier this year. I couldn't hunt until afternoon so I just started walking a ridge top where I would stop and call every so often. I came to a peak on the ridge top and decided to call before cresting teh peak, so as to not spook whatever may be on the other side. Almost immediately four jakes popped up over the hill and were staring at me, just twenty yards away. I wasn't ready for that, so had to just watch them mill around and retreat back over the hill as I couldn't get my gun up without spooking them. I started calling to try adn coax them back over the hill, but had no luck. I decided to try and sneak over the hill to get a visual so I could maybe circle around on them. When I crested the hill, I heard the most aweful sounds just down the ridge. I soon identified the sounds as turkeys fighting. As I was creeping closer, I could make out three very large mature gobblers flogging the snot out of one jake they had pinned to the ground. they kept taking turns spurring the on ejake while the others would chase and spur the other jakes. It was the loudest and craziest thing I have seen up close. As They fought, I managed to crawl within gun range of them. After watching them for two minutes or more (seemed like an eternity) I finally got one gobbler to stand still with his head up, for what I thought to be a good shot. Somethning went wrong, because I ended up walking out of the woods without a turkey that morning. Just goes to show that even when patient and taking a "good" shot, there are other variables, and nothing is for sure. Even after not getting a bird, it was still one of the best hunts I have ever had.
I did end up taking a two year old bird days later in the same location. That morning, I had the bird answer me from teh roost, fly down, and start walking toward me, when I heard some now familiar noises once again just down the ridge. The bird I was watching folded up his feathers and came out of strut mode real quick when he heard that fighting. I couldn't get that bird to move for I bet five minutes. He just stood there dead still looking in the direction or the sonds of fighting turkeys. Fortunately for me, he did start moving again and when he did, he was ready to close the deal in a hurry and get the heck out of there. ....and that's exactly what he did. After getting shot, he got out of there in a hurry while riding piggy back hung over my shoulder.
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