A lot of behind the scenes things going on with the Youth Turkey Hunt. It always seems to go that way with an event of this size. Just when you think everything is in order, something new pops up. Nothing big on this one mind you, but a bit of extra “doin”.
One thing about this camp and the whole event that amazes me is the number of volunteers that have come forward. Lots and lots of helpers. Maybe it’s the event and the desire to help some young hunters bag a bird and maybe it’s just that the weather is turning pretty good and people just want to get out and go camping and hiking around. Whatever it is, I like it!
Only three more days until we get to head out for the Youth Turkey Hunt and everything seems to be falling into place. The camp arrangements have been solidified, we just got a copy of the menu for both weekends and the meals are going to be rather easy on the cooks and wonderful to eat!
It looks like we are set!
I’ll tell you this for sure, 6 lucky kids and their parent are in for a heck of a treat! I just hope there are 6 to 12 very unlucky tom turkeys out there!
I’ll have to admit I have only made a couple of these things and they are very easy to make. I also believe that with all the calls that are on the market being used on the turkey’s out in the field, by the turkey’s out in the field, that something just a bit different than they are used to hearing just might turn the tide in your favor…who knows for sure.
To begin with you have to have a turkey wing. I have read on the internet that domestic turkey wings don’t work…hmmmmm….I tend to think that a turkey is a turkey is a turkey and that the domestic wing bone will just have to do. So, next Thanksgiving, don’t throw those wing bones away…make a call like this.
Sherry and I cooked up a smallish (14 pound) turkey a few weeks ago and I saved the wing bones just for this story. I rinsed them off and let them dry on the counter until today.
Try not to get the rights mixed with the lefts, you probably could still get the job done, but I’m not sure about that. I think that the first people who ever made these calls each had a whole wing in their lap…let’s just go with that theory.
The bones need to be pretty clean and so I like to boil them for about 10 minutes. Boiling makes the job of stripping the cartilage and excess meat off a lot easier. These bones have been boiled and are ready to go. I will leave one set as an example of what we started with and you will see the transformation into a wing bone turkey call as we go along.
As you can see from the picture above, the knob ends are not cleaned too well, that is because we are going to cut them off and toss them away, there is no need to spend time cleaning those ends. We have better things to do with our time.
Where to make the cuts is up to you but let me warn you, it’s better to have the parts too long than too short, even though you will still be able to make a pretty decent call, I think longer is better at this point and we will make adjustments later on. The key here is to get those ends cut off so we can clean out the marrow that is inside the bones.
To accomplish the cleaning out task use a stiff wire to push through the inside of the bones. Look closely at the smallest of the bones, the wire I had to use on that bone was quite small. Bigger turkeys have bigger wing bones…and bigger wing bone calls have a deeper sound when you use them. So, clean out those bones. Get as much of the stuff out of them as you can. A hollow tube is the goal here. Rinse them out when you think you have all the marrow out of them and let them dry.
The largest of the three bones has some rather tough bone like material criss crossing through the ends and that needs to be worked out. I take my wire and press it sideways to break the material out. You could use a pocket knife or awl to do the same thing. Make sure they are hollow tubes when you are done.
Now take your pocket knife and ream out the ends of the bones. Don’t forget the smallest bone as well and be careful with that one so as not to split it. When that is done, it’s time to use some sandpaper and smooth off any rough edges that were a result of the sawing off of the ends.
Nice and smooth. I like to round off the outer edges while I’m doing this. It makes for a nicer looking finished product.
Ok, now is the time we begin fitting the pieces together. The largest end of the smallest diameter bone will fit inside the smaller end of the middle sized bone, the opposite end of the middle sized bone fits inside the smallest end of the largest bone.
In the picture above, the middle bone will have to be cut off some more in order to fit inside the larger bone. How much needs to be cut off? I like to look closely with both bones side by side until I can see a point on the one needing to be cut that almost exactly matches in diameter.
Once you are happy about the cut, sand and smooth it and don’t forget to ream it out a bit. Now press fit the parts together.
It looks pretty neat at this point and is perfectly capable of being used, however it will fall apart if you are not careful, so let’s glue it together. In an emergency situation you could tape it, or lash it together with leather, string or what have you. Even using grass or leaves as compression joints would work. Just wrap the grass or leaves around the end of the one being pressed into the other. Push hard and there you go…turkey hunting!
I like to use Gorilla Glue as it forms a tight seal around the joints, it’s water proof and just plain is stronger than the bones themselves.
Keep in mind a little Gorilla Glue goes a long way. Just some small dabs will do.
Now you have to wait until the glue dries enough that you can work with it and not get sticky old glue on everything. Once it’s dry, you can paint it, scrimshaw on it, add a strap or just stick it in you pocket and head on out.
I have added a leather strap to the one I use in the field. It just hangs around my neck and is ready when I need it.
The one I use came from a 24 pound domestic turkey…of course the died in the wool turkey hunters who make their own wing bone turkey calls say it doesn’t work..to me it sounds just fine.
OK, so there you have it. Simple tools (opps I forgot my pocket knife and the glue) to do a simple job and create a very nice sounding turkey call, one you can call your own creation.
So, how do you make a sound using this little devise? The sounds you are trying to emulate (big word for “sound like”) are those of hen turkeys or young turkeys and the internet is filled with folks making those sounds. But the bottom line to using this call is to place your lips on the smallest end, cup the larger end in your hand and sort of “kiss” the end. Some people say you are to make a sound similar to getting your dogs attention.
This is a video that I find very interesting and makes the sounds you will most likely be using in the field. This guy’s name is Curtis Terrell, and he adds another dimension to turkey calls by his cow horn call. Really a cool idea:
The week long projected weather forecast is calling for highs in the mid to upper 60’s and little to no chance for rain! WOOOPPPEEEEEE!!!! A perfect temperature for a youth turkey hunt weekend!
Yesterday I took a look at Google Maps of the area where this hunt is going to take place and I noticed a couple of small ponds that I did not know were there last year. Of course last year was our first time hunting this area and what we did see was all new to us. However, these two newly discovered ponds could just lead a young hunter onto a big old tom bird. They are located just down a drainage that Wapiti and I saw a very nice tom strutting next to a large pond of water. So that big boy and his hens were down in there before heading back up the drainage to their roost that evening.
I think that spot deserves a looking into as a spotter.
Today will be dedicated to getting my things in order and contacting some of the guys who have volunteered to help with the camp set up and take down. A couple of them have not responded to my emails and so I’ll have to call them. Not a problem as we have almost got everything in order for the camp. A couple more cooking stations and coolers seems to be about all there is left to have promised.
Things are starting to come together quickly for the youth turkey hunt. Still a lot of gathering of items needed at the camp, but with the crew available, we will giterdun!
12 extremely excited kids are out there all pumped up and ready for their chance at a dream hunt of a lifetime and it’s up to us to provide as much comfort and pleasure that we can in it for them. The camp itself is filling out to be a great environment for this hunt. The food plans are laid out for a super two weekends of great eating. The guides are going over and over their respective roles and you know dang well the kids and their fathers are practicing with the shotguns and gathering their gear up as I am typing.
As the weekend draws to an end tomorrow evening, the kids and their fathers should have all the shotguns patterned and the kids will have been shown a hundred videos of how turkey hunting is done. What they don’t know yet is how the guides for this hunt are going to go about getting them close enough for that shot. Every hunt is different and every situation has a million outcomes that can come from it. We saw that last year.
As for me, to say I’m excited is an understatement. I wish I could take my sleeping bag and pillow down to the Weasels and put it in the trailer and get the rest of my gear down there as well. I have pulled the turkey decoys out of their hiding places twice already today alone! I’ve looked over my calls and even made some hen turkey noises on them just to make sure they still work…and I’m not even a guide! I have camp duties!
Firewood, camp stoves, propane, BBQ grills, water, coolers, tents and cots, tables, garbage cans and liners and EZ-Ups….that’s MY job! Why am I worried about turkey decoys and calls for?
Today is the start of a mini vacation for us. Sherry and I are joining Tracker and Bones for a trip West. For our little dog MaPa’s however it will be his first overnighter in a animal care facility…sort of sad for us to think of his lonely little self stuck there in a strange place all day and all night.
We have included his little bed and one of my shirts as a comfort to him and hopefully he will get along with the other dogs that are staying there as well. They promised us he will be taken care of.
Well it ain’t like this:
And our hopes are it will be like this:
Check back tomorrow or perhaps Saturday for more of what the old Bears Butt is up to.
At this moment I’m not sure where I can see a list of the lucky youth turkey hunters, but I did get to talk to one of the mom’s of one of the lucky kids yesterday. She works for Smith and Edwards in Farr West, Utah and she was so happy to share the news with me when I went in there to do some shopping. She had heard from another employee how I was helping with this hunt last year and so when she saw me she was really anxious to let me know.
The excitement in her voice and actions really tells me this is a BIG DEAL, not only for the young hunters but for the parents as well. I have not met her husband yet, but I well be next weekend for sure. I have known the young mans Grandfather for nearly 40 years…I guess when you get to be nearly as old as dirt, you get to know others who are farting dust as well.
This morning “the mom” posted up a picture of the reaction of the young man when he read the email saying he had been picked as one of the lucky winners of this years United Wildlife Cooperative Organizations winners:
Does it get any better than that?
Talking with this young mans mother yesterday, she said he was with his father and they bagged a turkey last year. She also said he is a very good shotgun shooter, picking off clay pigeons better than she could. I think the birds are in for a rough time this year!
How can anyone turn down helping with a youth hunting camp when there are kids out there that get this excited? You just can’t and I’m sure glad to be a part of it again this year!
Sherry opened the mail and in it was a piece from GM announcing a recall on our Pontiac Vibe…recalls as you know are something I take pretty seriously and those of you who are my friends on Facebook see me posting recall notices all the time on there.
So, I read the recall…”The Electronic Control Module (ECM) for the Supplemental Restraint System (SRS) in your vehicle could have been manufactured with integrated circuits (ICs) that are susceptible to short circuiting when exposed to certain electrical noise from various vehicle electrical components”.
(That in and of itself is one very long sentence and almost impossible to read aloud with one breath…try it). It goes on:
“If internal short circuiting occurs, the front airbag(s) and /or seat belt pretensioners could inadvertently deploy. An airbag that deploys inadvertently can, under some circumstances, increase the risk of injury and the possibility of a crash”.
Well heck yes you are going to crash! Imagine driving down the road at between 55 and 75 depending on where you are driving and suddenly the airbag blows out into your face! What do you think you are going to do? You are going to first off think you just hit something that caused the airbag to deploy, or at least wonder what in the hell just happened. That plastic part in front of you on the steering wheel is going to smack you right in the face and then the whole cab around you will fill with this rubber bag, blocking all vision of anything else, while at the same time pushes your head back toward the rear of the car. Of course your next move is to crash into something!
The recall goes on even further:
“PARTS ARE NOT CURRENTLY AVAILABLE, but when parts are available, your General Motors dealer will install a sub-wire harness (filter) to minimize electrical noise from the other vehicle electrical components, This service will be performed for you at no charge”.
I have a problem with all of this. Why are they allowing me and my fellow Vibe owners to continue to drive these pieces with the risk of this happening? Why are they not having us take our cars to the nearest dealer (slowly and carefully, knowing that at any moment the airbag could deploy), leave it there and drive away in a loaner car?
So, my friends, today I am going for a drive, something that has been planned for quite some time, and I’m driving this Vibe that could deploy an airbag at any moment. Should I die from a crash while driving today, please show this to the attorney and have my family compensated for GM’s lack of care for my safety and well being.
If I was to have one of these pictures show up on future postings, which picture should it be? The top one or the second one?
Cindy, Thank you so much for finding this little bear carving and bringing it to me…There are NO accidents in this world and this guy just polishes off “Bears Butt Dot Com”!
The week ahead is going to be a full one. Lots to do to get ready for the upcoming Youth Turkey Hunt. Today is the day they are to announce the lucky winners of the hunt! I can hardly wait for the announcement and I sure hope the lucky ones are as excited about it as I think they should be.
With the caliber of guides that have volunteered, the private ground offered by the R&K Hunting Company, the Whitear Property campground and facilities and the UWC, this is going to be a classy event! I’m glad to be a part of it.
The other day we were in a local thrift store called the Deseret Industries and we ran into a good friend. We visited with her for a few minutes and then decided it was time to go. She went on shopping and before we got out of the store, she came running up with a small wooden carving in her hand and said “You Need This”! I took one look at it and said…Yes I do need this! And I bought it.
Today I added some paint to it and now you need to see just what it was I bought and painted.
Thanks for visiting Bears Butt Dot Com! Enjoy your day!
Utah Fishing Reports
