Turkey Hunting – Close encounters with a Merriam Turkey

After a busy day, we made it home, threw on our camo then grabbed the shotgun and decoys. We still had about three hours of hunting time left. We hiked to our hunting spot, threw the camo netting up, and decided since this would be the last day to hunt this mesa, we would “hit them hard.” We would do some aggressive calling and try to make it happen.

Hank, with his Cane Creek Pro Custom Aluminum, and me, with my Primos “Ol’ Betsy” Slate started our run. He would cluck. I would purr. I would cluck, and he would cut me off. We chattered and waited and chattered and waited. We didn’t wait as long as we ordinarily would, just due to the amount of time we had. We carried on with our concert for a couple of “sets” of calling.

Hank headed to peek over the hill and see if anything was down in the valley. Suddenly I saw him trotting back. He snatched up my decoys, and I knew just what to do. Below were two toms headed our way in full strut. We would have to double back to cut the distance so they wouldn’t see us. We needed to drop off the edge to get a set up further down the hill. We high-tailed it and tried to hide behind the juniper and sage.

I braced on the hill’s side, ready for the two toms to show themselves. We called, and they gobbled around the bend. I knew this would happen quickly.

Then I heard another gobble. This one was from the “wrong” direction. This one seemed to come from above, where we had just come. I signaled to Hank, and he gave me a signal back of “Yeah. I heard.”

We paused and waited, then called again, and then multiple gobbles from atop the mesa where we had just been. I looked again at Hank and gave him a “What the heck?!” look. He gave me the “Get ready. Here they come!” look. We were amazed because just days before, it had been silent in here. There hadn’t been a single hen cluck, much less a gobble, or in this case, multiple gobbles!

I slid my legs down the hill, careful not to knock any rocks loose. I rolled over onto my belly. The gobblers at the top were coming faster than the two toms below. I hid behind the root of the juniper and knew that Hank would be stuck in the wide open if the toms came in from the “back door.”

I lay on my belly and looked at him as if he had no cover. That is when I saw it. Two blue heads poked over the top of the ridgeline.

With Hank in between me and them, I signaled. TWO. He held still and steady.

I watched as they appeared and started down the trail Hank and I had come down moments ago. Then I saw MORE. What?! I made BIG eyes at Hank. He could see nothing of what was happening behind him and remained still. I signaled to him. FOUR! His eyes got big, and he mouthed, “Can you shoot?” I signaled, “NO WAY!” He had no idea, but the toms came down not five feet behind him. The two first, then the next two, and then four jakes. All came right past him, knocking pebbles loose, which tumbled into him.

I figured if I were going to get a shot, I would have to wait until they passed Hank and they got around me. Once they got to Hank’s left side, the tree I was hiding behind would obstruct the view. I waited patiently, and then, when the tree hid me from the tom’s view, I drew my knees to my chest. The decoys were directly to my right, and I needed to pivot 180 degrees to face their direction again. I waited until the tom arrived at the location of the decoys, then pushed up on my toes, dug in on the steep hill, pivoted, and as he heard pebbles rolling down the hill, he stuck his head up, and I shot.

With my toes dug in, I watched the tom go cascading. He tumbled to the bottom. Hank jumped up and came and give me a high-five. A high-five for me?! I think he deserved one more than I did. He remained so still that those gobblers never even looked in his direction. The scenario was incredible, considering his wife was making BIG EYED expressions of excitement in his direction, and he couldn’t move a hair.

HAHA! What a hunt! It’s always an adventure!

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Mia Anstine is an outdoor writer, licensed outfitter, hunting guide, life coach, keynote speaker, and range safety officer, firearms instructor, and archery instructor. She is the founder of MAC Outdoors and Host of the MAC Outdoors Podcast. 

Mia Anstine strives to encourage others to get outside, hunt, fish, shoot, and survive life with others in a positive way.

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Mia Anstine
MAC Outdoors LLC
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Ignacio, CO 81137-0031