Stepped out on the porch this morning and had to smile. Eight different birds were talking about the weather and how glad they were that for the first time in a couple of weeks their not waking up cold, nasty and wet. Monday should be a fantastic opening morning.

As a side line. I'm not one who goes out for the latest and greatest gadget, but because I wanted to hunt on a piece of MO Conservation ground this spring that now requires hunters to use non-toxic shot, I forked out the cash for a box "Heavy Shot" and a .675 choke for my rusty-old Mossberg 500. Dang ! A load of #6's of that stuff sure printed a tight pattern out at fourty steps. I got an honest 23 pellets inside the 2" circle I was aiming at, and most of the pellets went right through the sheet of tin the target was taped on. Tryed a 2oz load of Federal copper plated #4's at the same range and it only dented the tin. I've never had a desire to shoot a turkey out past twenty five steps, but I guess now I can if I feel the urge to.

Good luck to all who are lucky enough to get to go in the morning!

Have a great opener, sounds like a deserved break in the weather. Gotta love the technology, go on and try one at 40 just to see what all the buzz ia about.

I'm ready as well. It is supposed to be in the upper 30's in the morning and sunny, warming to mid 60's by afternoon. I picked up some Heavishot last year on clearance and it patterned nicely and killed a couple of toms pretty well. I am like you, however. I like 'em 25-30 yds. Pattern opens up nicely into about a 12" cloud of death. At those yardages, a 2 3/4" or 3" load of #6 will do the job just as well.

Give us a field report on performance. Maybe a couple of graphic pics as well. Good luck in the AM!
Sam

I'll be out there too! Yikes, it's 10:45 and I'm getting up at 4AM. This old boy is going to bed...

Went this morning...and I didn't hear a single gobble! What a shocker. The past week has been really cold, windy, and rainy. Yesterday broke the spell somewhat with much better weather, and, the opening of the season today was a gorgeous day with light wind, sunny, and considerably warmer weather. I didn't hear a single gobble in the woods from before daylight until I gave up around 11:30.

Any other Missouri hunters do any good?

Don't feel alone MOGC. I heard one a good ways off on the neighbor's place at dawn and only heard two shots the whole day...neither of which were from me. Didn't see anything strutting in the fields today either, which is what really seemed strange to me.

My friend tryed over at the Callaway Nuke plant this morning, but he said competition was fierce. Every parking lot was filled. He heard a lot of cackle's, yelps, and clucks but not a single turkey.

Oh well, what can you do? Reckon I'll try it again in the morning.

I was going to add to my post above that I didn't hear a single shot anywhere in the distance today either. A fellow at Fort Leonard Wood said he heard several gobblers at dawn and not a gobble after 7:15. He hunted until 12:55 and heard no shots at the Fort within his hearing. I have to work tomorrow, but took off Weds & Thurs, maybe they'll be talking as the week warms and stabilizes.

I worked late last night so I got out there about 6:45. Made about a 1 mile loop around checking several fields that usually hold birds most years. All I saw was one hen. Looped back around up on top, about another half mile and was standing at the edge of a field when I heard a gobble just down the ridge. Now we're talkin'. Set up at the base of a tree and gave a couple of yelps on the slate and nothing. A little later the bird gobbled farther down the hill so I tried to loop ahead of him. Set up and called again and two birds gobbled farther down below me. Moved in closer and called again. This time both birds gobbled less than 100 yds away and gobbled again closer. I gave a few quiet yelps and here they came. They hung up about 80 yds out and strutted for about a minute then moved away downhill.

Made another big loop and was standing on top of a hill when I heard a faint gobble far away. It was about 9AM at the time. He gobbled again so I decided to go for it. He kept gobbling and I eased up a hillside in the woods. I could hear him gobbling very close on the ridgetop and I set up just below the brow of the hill. A couple of yelps got an immediate gobble. I yelped again quietly and waited. He came into view at about 80 yds and proceeded to strut and gobble and crane his neck around. I gave a couple more quiet yelps and then shut up. After about 15 minutes he couldn't take it anymore and came down the hill looking for the hen. He gave me a nice clear shot and down he went. Ten o'clock straight up. Not huge but a nice 2 yr old bird with a decent beard and 3/4" spurs. Maybe 18-19 lbs (no scale). I saw no toms in the fields and heard very little gobbling early.
I hope you guys have better luck, I think the birds will be more active with continued warm weather.
http://i12.photobucket.com/albums/a230/sambo3006/TurkeyMOApril162007GaarRanch.jpg

sambo,
Look out... There's a damned cat right behind you! Farm cat or family pet? Anyway, congrat's on your bird! Good hunting for you, good deal. One thing I noticed today was that the woods look like deer season, literally, there is nothing green in the woods. They are barren and drab, gobblers can see a long way through the timber and will definately be looking hard for that hen from a distance. Closing the deal without decoys might be a little more difficult than normal. I hunt public land and don't use decoys...

Got out at around 5:20AM and moved into my area. Heard first gobble at around 5:35AM right back by the truck. Gave it about 15 mins and decided to head back that way after not hearing anything close to me. Set up just inside the timber of a ridge field and was between two sets of multiple gobblers. They gobbled constantly till about 7:00AM and then moved off with hens. Made a huge circle back to my original area and found a hillside that had lots of sign. I made two calls with my mouth call and waited about 10 mins. Was in the process of sanding my slate when I caught movement about 45 yards in front of me. A nice gobbler was giving me the bad eye and made tracks over the hill. Got back to the truck around 9:45AM and saw two bubbies that were both successful. I moved on down to the ridge where I worked the birds earlier and spent an hour with no response other than hens. Went to camp and ate a late breakfast with three other guys, all who were successful. I went across to the other side of the farm and walked to the back of a old food plot. I made a couple of calls with my slate and waited, five mins passed and I repeated with my mouth call. 10 mins later I moved back to the slate and got more agressive with my calling. About that time I caught movement at about 40 yards. He moved to with 35 yards and started strutting. I waited until he cleared a clump of brush and lit the fire. 24 pounds, double beard (10" and 5"), 7/8" spurs. The turkeys around here act like they have been worked before and seem call shy.

CK

Way to go Crappie Killer, thats what I`m talking about.

Way to go CK! That is a great bird, congrat's. You're in them, good luck for next week and your second bird. I go again on Wednesday and Thursday. The weather forecast has a cold rain moving through tonight and temps the following couple of days (Wed/Thur.) being 15 degrees colder than today. Bummer... Maybe they'll adjust, I know I'll have to.

Crappie Killer,great bird lets see some pictures!

I've got a couple, will try and post tomorrow night.

CK

Walked five miles of long, rough, winding ridgetop today without a single gobble heard. Hunted from daylight to 12:45. There were no shots heard in the far distance either. Set-ups in likely places with a little blind calling netted nothing. Couldn't strike a bird and force a gobble either. This is so unusual, I'm trying to figure out has happened to my birds. I did find the absolute largest cat track I've ever seen in a mud puddle along the ridgetop. I mean HUGE cat track!

Did another four miles yesterday (Thursday) on a long ridgetop. I heard two gobblers gobble exactly one time each from the roost a long way off and never heard another peep all day. Again, I did not hear any shots anywhere either. I'll be out over the weekend with my wife tagging along. Hopefully she'll be my good luck!

Sounds like it has to get better.

Exactly right...

Good Luck, I am going to take my daughter out in the morning also.

CK

Got up Saturday morning and had a flat tire on my truck. Went back to bed. The wife and I decided that after I got the tire fixed we'd use the day to catch up on some yardwork, landscaping, flower bed, and garden stuff. Turned into a bigger project than I anticipated and we'll finish it today. I've taken off Tuesday and Thursday next week and we'll see if the gobblers temperatures have risen some by then.

Sorry to hear how your lucks been going MOGC.

I finally got through with my stinking work week and headed for the woods Friday night. Went over to Settles ford and tryed to put a bird to bed, but nothing felt like talking. Saw some fresh scraching so I wasn't too worried about finding turkeys in the morning. Got in real early and was drifting in and out in my truck when I was awoken by the sound of glass packs, and the smell of gas fumes. A couple of guys decided that they liked the looks of the area too! I asked which way they were heading so I could go the opposite way, and danged if they hadn't planned on going the same way I was wanting to go. Oh well. Whatcha gonna do? I headed the other way from them.

Anyways, to shorten the story a bit... I ended up cropping a nice jake at around 12:30. I'll post pictures as soon as the fiance gets back into town. she's the computer guru around here.

I went to another conservation area this morning and had a blast! About 6:00am the hillsides starting ringing with gobbles. I'd start one way and then hear another one that "sounded" better for some reason or other. Finally decided that I'd set up close to the one that sounded the hotest and also get inbetween a couple of other toms that were yelling loud. I slipped through stick and dry leave heaven to about 80 yards away from tom #1. I gave him some soft tree yelps and fired him up until I was sure he got the point that I was available.

I caught some movement at my 5 o'clock and slowly turned to see what was sneaking in on me. Three goofy doe's decided to bed down about 50 yards away from me. I suppose they wanted to watch and see what was going on in the neighborhood. As if turkey hunting ain't tough enough without an audiance over your shoulder!

Tom #1 pitches and starts strumming and drumming just out of sight. I let him gobble at me a couple of times without answering just to get him nervous and then I hit him with a soft purr. That did it! I heard him heading my way. Through the early morning light I saw him ghost into about 40 yards. I held tight and tried to keep it together as I watched him puff up and jogg to withen 20 steps. He went behind a tree and I got ready to line up on him. As soon as he was about clear of the tree I drew a bead on his wattles and was saying to myself "Man, it's almost sin to end all of my fun this early."

If I hadn't had been so focused on the bird in front of me I might have heard the one in the brush creeping up on me from behind. I was pressing the trigger on #1 at the same time that Bird #2 let out a yell from about 50 yards directly to my 6. This caused my sinal atrial node to kick my heart into a moment of V Tach!

Feathers flew as both birds tore out of the A/O. Dust filled the air where the three dumb deer had been watching the show from, and I was left shaking and grinning from ear to ear. You know...that Heavy shot leaves one heck of a tight pattern on the side of a Swamp oak! Best morning of turkey hunting I've had in a long, long time.

Good story! Thanks for sharing, you have been having some fun. Well, I heard that Saturday they really cut loose and were gobbling hard all around my neck of the woods. I'm going tomorrow with the little lady in tow. She took a day off and this will be her first turkey hunt. I think I'm more nervous than our first date, which was a long time ago. I really want to show her a good time...

Took the little lady turkey hunting for her first time today. Arrived about 20 minutes before first light on a 2 1/2 mile long ridge with a nice wide top and plenty of spur ridges leading off the sides into cool spring branch hollows. It was warm, humid, and still, there is a thunderstorm front moving in this evening. We listened as the woods came alive for a gobbler - nothing. We walked it out trying to shock a gobbler - nothing. We set up in some of the prettiest turkey woods you can imagine and did some soft calling in hour long stands - nothing. There is sign there, tracks, scratching, droppings, and a few long feathers laying along the ridgetop. Not one sign of another hunter having been on the ridge in this century. If she hadn't been a little tuckered and hot, we'd have dropped off into a few of those hollows looking for turkeys in the shade and down where there is cold water flowing. I didn't want to make this the Bataan Death March or anything so we took it easy along the ridgetop. I get to go again on Thursday so I plan on hitting some of those low areas and checking them out. Dang, a fella oughta hear a gobble now and then. Getting a little personally frustrating, I usually have a bird by now. I guess that's why it is called hunting and not shooting... All in all, we had a good time today even without a gobbler showing off for us.

Man sorry to hear about you and the little lady drawing a zero. I have been reading this post and sound like it is either feast of famon. Hope you have better luck next time out.

Got out there yesterday morning about 6:45 and it was already in the 60's. Walked about a half mile to check a field along the creek where I had been seeing a strutter. Sure enough he was there with some hens. I elected to duck down along the creek bank and close the distance. I worked along about 300 yds and got ahead of where the birds were slowly moving. Tried to crawl out to a spot that I felt would be close enough to draw the tom away from the hens.

I lost sight of him at one point and had heard a gobble from behind me. I wondered if he had moved past me so I slowly rose up on my hands for a better look. You guessed it, the tom was still there and had me picked off. He didn't run but walked away mildly spooked. Decided to leave him alone and go after the other gobbler behind me. Looped around to check that part of the field and no bird. I checked around the side of the metal shed that was there and the danged bird was walking over to where I had been 10 minutes before!

Snuck back around and he was out in the middle of the field. I had no cover except a low ridge that I was able to duck below. I crawled closer through the wet grass and peeked my head over the ridge. I gave a couple of soft yelps and he craned his neck around looking for the hen. He gobbled a few times and continued down the field slightly angling towards and past me.

I crawled some more and peeked over again. Same deal, he gobbled at my soft yelps and kept moving. There was a fence between us and I figured he might cross it. I slithered farther down the low ridge and peeked into the field again. No gobbler. Where did he go? I catch some movement to my right and there he is. He had ducked under the fence and was coming towards me at about 50 yds. I was on my knees but was totally out in the open. I wasn't skylined and I think my Mossy Oak Obsession camo blended in perfectly with the grass. I managed to ease my shotgun to my shoulder in full view of the tom as he closed to about 35 yds. Amazing! I lined up the fiberoptics on his neck and smoked him.

He summersaulted over and over down the ridge and trashed his fan. Half of the tail feathers fell out. I stuffed them back in for the picture. 1 1/8" spurs and 10" beard. Probably 3 yr old. This was bird #2 so I am done. I got completely soaked and got a couple of ticks but it was worth it. Good luck to everyone else!
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Good going sambo! Congrat's on a nice hunt and good field decision making.

Congrats on a nice bird and a great hunt

Some days it just all falls together don't it! Congrats on the long tom, and sad to hear you have to put it up early this season. Hopefully there's a kid or a buddy that needs some help getting theirs.

Good shooting sambo!
Don't pack it up, find someone that has never been and take them once or twice. Calling them in for others is just as fun!