So, May 7th and we are off once again in pursuit of the wild Utah turkey.  Turkey re-introduction in the state is probably THE number one, best on the list, things the state DWR has done.  I don’t know how long it has taken, but I remember back many years we had a couple down on the farm.  Those got eaten quickly by predators and I figured that was what would happen with the others being planted.  Well, I was wrong, big time.  Now it is not uncommon to see turkeys where you least expect to see them.  They have done well.

Besides the lack of sleep a turkey hunter gets, he/she also gets to see what is going on in the woods in the spring time of year.  It is far different than in the fall when we usually find ourselves in pursuit of deer, grouse, elk and other game animals.  We also get to see the “hard core” hunters that are out there chasing these very illusive animals.  There is a slim chance you can bag one from the road, but very slim.  These are “get your butt out of the truck” animals and usually FAR from any road.  I’m still learning a lot from these guys.

Today the weather is raining.  Why would anyone go turkey hunting when it is raining?  That is something you do for ducks and geese.

Here is something I THINK I know about hunting turkeys in the rain.  1) Other hunters would rather stay in bed when it is raining.  2)  Turkeys don’t like rain because they can’t hear their enemies coming up on them from behind or overhead.  Especially in the canopy of a forest.

So, for me, there will be less hunter interaction, which means I’ll have the woods to myself or at least with other hunters who “care” about what they are doing and probably will turn around if they come into my area and see my setup.  I think.  Also, it means the birds will be out in the open, away from cover in order to “see” rather than “hear” their predators coming.  That is, all but me.  I’ll be waiting near by to blast the fist legal tom that comes up the trail!

So, me and “head hammer” will once again be in the woods.  OH YA!  Weasel too!

More to come later in the day!  Wish us luck!

Bears Butt

May 7, 2015

UPDATE:

Our longest day in the turkey fields!  We got home about 3:30….Almost 12 hours from the time we left.  So, let me tell you about the day!

I said hunting in the rain huh?  We got to our normal spot and donned our rain gear and headed off.  A steady rain until about time for fly down and then it quit.  Everything was wet and muddy!  The mud up there sticks to everything and causes your boots to fill up and you don’t have any traction.  Color us mud!  As for the birds….no gobbles…and we saw two hens go up and over the hill.  No toms to be heard or seen.  So, off we headed to Hardware.  On our way we saw a gobble off the side of the highway!  A quick stop and hot pursuit but no bird.  Never saw it again!

Coming down the canyon we decided to drive over into Left Hand Fork and while there I talked Weasel into going and looking for some morel mushrooms I had seen a couple of years back.  We did find a couple but only picked one of them.

I think leaving one for seed just might be a good thing.  Also, as we were looking around we found a turkey nest full of eggs….all busted and pecked!  A gobbler had found the nest a week or so ago and did his thing breaking them up to keep the hen “hot”.  If she would have been sitting on that nest there is no way you would have seen her or it.  I just happened to see an egg that was laying outside of it and thought maybe it was a mushroom.

Back on the road we decided to go inspect another area we knew about but had never gone into to hunt.  The hike is steep and if you plan on going into it, make sure your legs are in good shape! Mine are not, but I made it and am glad I did.  About half way to a place we figured might hold a turkey, we were catching our breath.  Weasel said, that looks like a good strutting area down there.  He put his glasses up and sure enough there was a turkey walking across the field.  Upon further investigation we both saw a beard on it!  We watched as it started to climb the hill up the canyon from us and put a plan together to intercept it.  We hurried as quickly as we could to get above it, but we didn’t go far enough and it crossed above us into the next drainage.  There we saw it traversing another clearing.  Again we watched as it appeared to going in a certain direction.  To intercept it we would have to hustle and get over and up a hill without being seen.  So, be backtracked and made a quick dash for the spot.  We separated, me low, Weasel high.

AND THEN THE RAINS CAME!  Boom!  BOOM!!!!  Flash!!  FLASH!!!!  BOOM!  BOOM!  For a rain it was awesome!  For the dry year we have been experiencing, it will help with our water problems.  For two turkey hunters without our rain gear (back at the truck), it was a soaker!  And God didn’t have enough fun with the rain, he threw hail at us the size of marbles!  BAM!  BAM!  It was ripping the leaves off the trees and I went to hiding under the canopy of the biggest oak tree I could find!  To heck with that gobbler, I’m getting wet here!

I didn’t know at the time, but Weasel had an emergency rain parka in his backpack which he put on and stayed somewhat dry….me I looked like a drowned rat fink!  I have a hat that has a drop down face mask attached to it and I put that on to cover my ears which were getting pelted from the hail!  Ouch!  Ouch!

After about 30 minutes of getting drenched the sky started to lighten up and the thunder and lightning moved up the valley.  I left my position and went looking for Weasel.  He was down the hill a little bit trying to locate me.  When we got together we started back to the truck.

Now for a little testimonial:  I have a brand of skin tight under clothing made by “Under Armour”.  It is advertised to help keep you warm in the cold weather by trapping your own body heat and wick away moisture from your own sweating while doing just that!  I’m always skeptical about advertising like that.  BUT LET ME TELL YOU RIGHT NOW!  If it wasn’t for that Under Armour I would have frozen my butt off in that rain and hail!  Not only did I get soaked to the bone, the temperature dropped at least 20 degrees and the wind was blowing.  Sure I was wet and I knew it, but at least I wasn’t cold!  My body heat kept me as comfortable as possible thanks to that Under Armour.  Good stuff folks!  Bears Butt Approved!

Well, we didn’t get any turkeys today, but we learned a thing or two….One biggie for me is to pack an emergency poncho rain jacket in my pack!

And I saw an upcoming buck that just might turn out to be a biggun!  It already has buds about 3 inches long and some mass to them.

Maybe we need some of these umbrellas!

Bears Butt