Georgia Turkey season

It was a good year. Plenty of birds where we hunt, but with declining populations in the State, my son and I decided one bird each. He got his fairly early and I babysat the first several weekends so my DIL could hopefully get her a bird.
I finally got a chance for my self last Sunday and made it work. Tied my heaviest weight at 22#, and had a double beard of 10.5” and 6.5”. Also had a matching pair of 1 3/8” spurs.
My son was extremely excited with his bird because he used nothing but a trumpet call all year. Don’t know what it is about that call, but turkeys will respond to it when nothing else works.
I leave tomorrow for a 2 week NW turkey tour, lol. Flying into Spokane Washington and hope to get a bird in Washington, Idaho, Montana, and possibly Oregon. Plan to do a some fly fishing for trout and some smallmouth and walleye fishing while out there as well.
My son will be joining me on Monday for a few days of hunting. That should be real fun!
Here’s a few pics of our birds and of course my granddaughter, lol.






Of course when you hunt by yourself you have to improvise to get pics where you actually killed the bird. Had a camera set up about 60 yards from where I shot him, lol.

Congrats.

Nice!

I still have access to a few birds also, but its nothing like it used to be 15 years ago. It has been a gradual decline.

But, still enjoying good hunting....I'm blessed!

Took the 2 gobbler limit this time but from 2 seperate counties.....Echols and Turner.

Echols


Turner


Good luck on your hunting trip!!!!

Thanks for sharing. I love these turkey hunting threads, if you have the time share the story on your bird, actually all the pics and more stories from your Turkey Tour 2022 as they come in! Good luck and be safe.

Good job!! Nice birds

Swamp, you strayed over near our area in Turner Co. Great birds and congrats.

It’s a long story but here’s my story I wrote in my notes section of my phone…
This is Georgia’s first year with a reduced season and bag limit. Regular season for private land started a week later than normal and public land started 2 weeks later.
My season had been spent mainly babysitting the mornings on the weekends so Brennan could take Kayla.
Brennan has already taken a bird and Kayla hasn’t.
Sunday May 24 was my day.

I had no plans other than to come in from the North side of the creek and cross where the two creeks meet at the sandbars.
I was actually on the firebreak when a bird sounded off on the North side of the creek so I snuck inside of 100yds of him and set up. Brennan had been getting his butt kicked by this bird and I didn’t have high hopes.
After what seemed like this birds 100th gobble and it being light enough to fly down, I did something we hadn’t been doing…a fly down cackle. He double gobbled and I thought I was set.
Once he flew down though he went farther out in the burn. From past experiences I knew better than to chase him, so I got back on the firebreak with cover and went to my original plan of crossing the creek.
I was calling as I went and went silent while crossing the creek. I was maybe 75 yards on the South side when I called again and he answered MUCH closer. I called from there and beat it back towards the creek.
With 3-5 minutes after sitting down he came down the firebreak and crossed the creek.
What happened next is still a mystery. He crossed the creek to my side and came up the bank and started acting nervous. I could’ve swore it was clean between us when I touched the trigger.
I saw him turn and flap and thought I’d hit him. The next scene was him running up the other side of a feeder creek!!
I stared in disbelief and immediately started looking for him.
I spent at least an hour searching when I heard him gobble again in one of his usual spots South of the creek near James Young!!
I was relieved and still ticked at myself for blowing that opportunity, but when he answered my calling again I thought maybe I might have a chance again.
So I started moving his direction and set up. I’d call, he’d gobble. This went on for about 20-30 minutes with him not getting any closer. So, I decided to make another move.
When I stood up to move I saw a redhead out in the burn on the south side north of the small pines we normally approach from. Except this wasn’t the bird gobbling.
I went ahead and moved another 50 yards or so hoping it would get the one I’d missed moving my way.
Turns out he wouldn’t budge and the “redhead” I saw was a jake. Actually 2 jakes.
I had fun with them and got them gobbling at everything I threw at them.
It was fun for a while and then my bird shut up and the jakes worked there way the way I needed to go to get back across the creek.
I thought the jakes had left and got up and started moving that direction and called one last time to “my” bird. He didn’t respond but the jakes did and I heard a sho’nuff gobble from a gobbler.
I sat down and went silent. I gave it another 15 minutes without hearing anything and jumped down in the mostly dry feeder creek and started working my way back to the crossing.
If only gone 50-60 yards or so and spotted the jakes just chilling in some shade. When I put the optics on them I saw a full fan and red head behind them. I actually dropped the optics and did a double take.
This gobbler was coming in from the West and neither he nor the jakes had seen me and I was only 40 yards to so away. I dropped down below bank level and scooted up a little closer. When I raised up the gobbler was running the jakes off farther away.
I yelped as soft as I could on a mouth call and ole boy turned around, went back in strut, and started back my way.
He was absolutely gorgeous walking in and out of the shade to the sun. At 25 yards and gave a little cluck and shot when he raised his head!
Talk about a rollercoaster of events all in the span of a few hours!! Missing, then realizing the bird is still alive and well, playing the game with jakes, and then an unknown gobbler comes strutting in!
And this bird was stout too! 22 pounds. 10.5” and 6.5” beards. And…1 3/8” spurs. And absolute STUD of a bird.

The bird I missed is still alive and kicking as I’ve heard his gobble a couple different times since last week.
Blessed to be able to hunt where I do and pursue these majestic birds!!

Yeah...I have a thousand acre tract there.

Good hunt story btw.

Great story! I bet your were up and down and back up again with that hunt. The low of missing a great opportunity and then a second chance. Awesome. The adrenaline rush I get when I hear that gobble getting closer is hard to beat. Thanks for sharing