Post by huntergks on May 12, 2015 14:23:24 GMT -6
Thurs 04/30 – I got to Ron’s between 2:30 & 3:00 in the afternoon after an 8 hour drive from Ohio. After giving Ms. Kathy her usual goody package, Jams & Jellies from Cooper’s Mill, brats from Carle’s, & a starter batch of squirrel chowda, I surprised her with about a quart of the finished chowda. She luvs my squirrel chowda! Ron had to go back to the cemetery to pick up a propane tank & I headed to The Roost to unload. We had squirrel jambalaya for supper, it was OK but I probably won’t make it again. Job showed up between 8:30 & 9 & I think it was 10 or after when Walt arrived.
Fri 05/01 – Hunted the small meadow today. I heard 4 different gobblers for a total of 9 gobbles. 1 was a long ways across the road to the east. Another was at the far end of the long meadow & gobbled twice. The 3rd was fairly close & workable, I thought. The 4th was a long ways up in the woods above the long meadow & gobbled 5 times. They all gobbled within 30 – 45 minutes. After those 9 gobbles, it was dead silent. Not a peep. I saw 1 hen cross the corner of the meadow below me & that was it for the morning.
Sat 05/02 – No gobblers seen or heard this morning. 3 hens walked past the dekes with 1 circling back about 10’ from the blind then turned rejoining the others to feed out of sight.
Ron volunteers to help with the annual Friends of the NRA banquet every year. He called me around 1 & asked me if I wanted to take some pics at the banquet for supper. I said sure, can Walt be my assistant? Yep. So after cleaning up & visiting with Archie for a bit, it was off to the banquet. I took about 100 pics & will post some after I get the camera card from Ron. I had been up since 3:45, no nap, & didn’t get back to The Roost until about 9:30 totally whipped. The alarm will go off extra early in the morning.
Sun 05/03 – Saw 1 hen cross the corner of the field again. No gobbles heard or gobblers seen.
Mon 05/04 – Success!!!! Story & pics will be in another string.
Tue 05/05 – Hunted the small meadow again seeing 1 hen feed up to the blind from the west & turning around & going back the way she came. Again, no gobbles heard or gobblers seen.
Wed 05/06 – I literally emptied my vest today using every call I had: 3 mouth calls, the travel call pot, Super Aluminator & Ole Yeller pots, & my Thanks Giving box call from Ron Clough. I used 5 different strikers on each of the pots. Nothing heard or seen, nada, nil, zilch, zero, zippo.
Every other time I have hunted this area, I have always heard gobblers, some near & some pretty far away but I could always hear them. Ron, Walt, & Job pretty much experienced the same thing. This was the same situation that I encountered in Ohio. Something is amiss but nobody has any idea what.
At least there were 2 constants when I hunted the small meadow this year:
1. Someone tried all morning, every morning to start a 1 lung tractor.
2. A metalpecker was hard at work several times every morning.
As with all good things the time had come for the trip to end Weds & I headed back to Ohio early Thurs morning to try to close out my season with 1 more bird. Thanks again Ron for allowing me to share The Roost & your hunting spots. Looking forward to seeing all y’all again this Oct.
Fri 05/01 – Hunted the small meadow today. I heard 4 different gobblers for a total of 9 gobbles. 1 was a long ways across the road to the east. Another was at the far end of the long meadow & gobbled twice. The 3rd was fairly close & workable, I thought. The 4th was a long ways up in the woods above the long meadow & gobbled 5 times. They all gobbled within 30 – 45 minutes. After those 9 gobbles, it was dead silent. Not a peep. I saw 1 hen cross the corner of the meadow below me & that was it for the morning.
Sat 05/02 – No gobblers seen or heard this morning. 3 hens walked past the dekes with 1 circling back about 10’ from the blind then turned rejoining the others to feed out of sight.
Ron volunteers to help with the annual Friends of the NRA banquet every year. He called me around 1 & asked me if I wanted to take some pics at the banquet for supper. I said sure, can Walt be my assistant? Yep. So after cleaning up & visiting with Archie for a bit, it was off to the banquet. I took about 100 pics & will post some after I get the camera card from Ron. I had been up since 3:45, no nap, & didn’t get back to The Roost until about 9:30 totally whipped. The alarm will go off extra early in the morning.
Sun 05/03 – Saw 1 hen cross the corner of the field again. No gobbles heard or gobblers seen.
Mon 05/04 – Success!!!! Story & pics will be in another string.
Tue 05/05 – Hunted the small meadow again seeing 1 hen feed up to the blind from the west & turning around & going back the way she came. Again, no gobbles heard or gobblers seen.
Wed 05/06 – I literally emptied my vest today using every call I had: 3 mouth calls, the travel call pot, Super Aluminator & Ole Yeller pots, & my Thanks Giving box call from Ron Clough. I used 5 different strikers on each of the pots. Nothing heard or seen, nada, nil, zilch, zero, zippo.
Every other time I have hunted this area, I have always heard gobblers, some near & some pretty far away but I could always hear them. Ron, Walt, & Job pretty much experienced the same thing. This was the same situation that I encountered in Ohio. Something is amiss but nobody has any idea what.
At least there were 2 constants when I hunted the small meadow this year:
1. Someone tried all morning, every morning to start a 1 lung tractor.
2. A metalpecker was hard at work several times every morning.
As with all good things the time had come for the trip to end Weds & I headed back to Ohio early Thurs morning to try to close out my season with 1 more bird. Thanks again Ron for allowing me to share The Roost & your hunting spots. Looking forward to seeing all y’all again this Oct.
