JonS,
I hunt turkeys here in CO, and usually take a tom every spring.
I tag 'em, take them to the truck, open the tailgate, and proceed to filet the breast meat. CO requires the beard to stay on the bird until final destination, not a problem to cut around it and leave it attached to the breastbone. Skin out the legs and detach, put the breast halves and legs in Ziploc bags, and transport along with the carcass back home. At that point, I remove the beard, maybe the tail if it's really nice, and the rest goes into the trash. Very quick, and easy.
Where are you doing your float trip? Seems like the same method, sans the tailgate, would work just fine.
As far as eating goes- there are some great recipes for grilling wild turkey that I use. They involve marinating before cooking, and result in very tender, non-dried out table fare.
Last edited by Bighorn; 02/25/18.
