Chasing the Wiley Tom Turkey

Iowa has four turkey seasons.  The last one is the longest, lasting 2 weeks. I like to hunt the last one because the toms have most of the hens covered and they are more receptive.  Inclement weather and a spring cold have kept me out of the woods.  Both finally broke with some nice balmy days and a warming trend. 

My wife and I had been feeding the cattle with our grass cuttings in the wooded pasture.  In the past I had great success there.  We saw a few hens, a few jakes, but no big toms.  We did see a lot of Angus cattle following our truck around the pasture waiting for a hand out.  They remember our truck and we always say, "How can we eat beef again."

Click on the pic to price and buy from Gander Mountain.

The landowner told me the turkeys were all on the west side of the levees down to the river.  This is really heavy timber and will be tough hunting.  One evening I drove across the levee and entered their ground.  Following a road around the ground that ran close to the levee, the farm ground was to the west of me and the timber beyond that.  With the sun getting close to setting, the hens were thick, pecking and scratching in the corn field.  They saw the truck moving along and took off running into the woods.  Wow, the vision of these birds is so acute, and it does not take much to set them off.  I am still amazed how they can stand along the side of a roadway, pecking and scratching with cars and trucks speeding by and totally ignore the traffic.  They did not ignore me.

Click on the pic to learn more about this call from Gander Mountain.

I took special note of where they entered the woods and also noted that there were two different flocks.  One went straight west into the wood, the other angled southwesterly into the timber.  There was not one tom with them.  I could not make out any jakes, but I assumed they were there.  The road circled the ground and ended up right next to the timber.  What I would be up against just to get into the woods looked daunting.  Three years ago, this ground was all under water from the raging flood of the Missouri River and the majority of the standing trees were totally submerged.  There was a lot of trash to get through.

Click on the pic to price and buy from Gander Mountain.

Driving along, deer runs were spotted.  The deer always find good access into timbered areas.  The decision was made where to go to access a hunting spot.

This was part of the opening I was working.  It is hard to see much and the cover is all in favor of the bird.

Next morning the hunt was on.  I attempted to enter the timber carrying my folding chair, a sack of decoys, my game bag carrying my supplies, and my Benelli.  This was a nightmare.  Crawling over fallen logs, ducking under limbs, brush and weed and then more large logs, was turning into a bad idea.  I knew most of the trash from the flood would be deposited at the timber's edge where it was the thickest, but I needed to get inside the woods.  I set everything down and fought my way into a beautiful opening.  I could see through the fallen timber and there was room to set up.

Off to my left is a better opening.

With all my gear hauled in and everything set up, I finally found a place to hide.  Generally I wait 20 minutes to let the woods settle down, but this time the wait was 45 minutes with all the noise and crashing around I had made.  When it was finally still, the slate call was taken out and some clucks and purrs were made.  Then I made a serious call of a hen and waited.

There they are, Pretty Boy and Pretty Girl combination.  I have decoyed a lot of turkeys within shooting range with this combination.

Off in the distance to my right, the gobble of the tom was well pronounced.  Now, what I would like to believe is he was saying to her," I hear you my darling.  Wait there, for I am coming to find you and we will make beautiful music together."  After waiting ten minutes I made the call again.  I like to believe that she was saying to him, "Hey big boy, you are a fast talking man.  Come on over, and let's get acquainted."  He gobbled again, and this time it was much closer.  The gun was slowly moved to a better position and the call continued to cluck and purr, letting Don Juan know just where to go.

Click on the pic to price and buy from Gander Mountain.

The next call he made was 20 feet from me.  It was right behind a tree in my line of vision.  The sun was at my back, but the whiteness of the cottonwood tree reflected back into my hiding place.  I am positive he could not see me.  I needed the tom to step forward three feet and he was mine.  Something was not right, and he did not come into sight for a shot.  I heard nothing so I made the call again.  Unfortunately, he was done and  hit the brick for places unknown.

An hour later, a bird from the south came to the decoys, but not as close as the first one.  He circled to the west and stayed out of sight and shooting range.

After an analysis of my experience, I determined that my hiding place was too hidden for me.  I had no field of vision.  I should have picked out a better spot so that I could have seen Mr. Casonova when he came to visit..

Turkey hunting is really exciting!

Good hunting, good fishing, and good luck.  Hank.

In Search of an Outfitter

The search is on for an outfitter that will meet my needs for a Caribou hunt in North America.  Fortunately, we have the Internet to do our homework, and visiting with fellow hunters, the old days always come up.  How did we find places to go and get good information?  It was difficult and the opportunity for unscrupulous operators existed.  For this trip, I merely typed in, "Caribou outfitters" and several pages of lodges, guide services, and marketing organizations popped up.  It took days to get through all the material.

The search started in Alaska.  There were some exciting adventures available there, but they were out of my budget.  The search was moved in a southerly direction because getting as close to home as possible was a major requirement.

 What I found is like anything else that you are doing in the great out doors.  It always boils down to what are you willing to pay.  My requirements are simple.  Results are the first order of business.  A hunter can take a trip into fantastic locations, but still not be in the right place to fill the tag. First class operators will brag about their results and they will back it up with references.

Second in importance has to be suitable accommodations.  I have done my fair share of sleeping in the four walled tent.  When you are in the mountains or a wilderness setting, and when the sun goes down, it always gets really cold.  My main sleeping bag is rated for 20 below, and getting out of it at night to take a quick bathroom break from a good night's sleep is a miserable experience.  First, you have to unzip the bag and expose yourself to the cold temps that have crept into the tent.  Then you have to get your boots and your coat on, grab your flashlight and step outside.  It always is a good idea to take your pistol with you as who knows what is creeping around the camp after the fires go out.  When you go back into the tent, you have to stoke the fire in the stove with a couple of logs, then stay awake to make sure the smoke is going out the chimney. 

I like four walls made out of wood with indoor heat and an indoor bathroom and shower.  I am too old now to continue finding a suitable log for the restroom.   Additional details are not needed beyond this point.  Most important is an indoor shower.  Maybe you can go several days without one, but I want to be clean when I go to bed at night.  Shower facilities are a must.

At this point, I am beginning to sound like a real pansy, but why not be comfortable.  Having said all of the above, I eliminated a lot of camps that would have cost less money than the one I selected.

Guide service and meat preparation is most important.  A good guide will put you on the game or at least know where to put you so that you will have a decent shot.  A knowledge of meat preparation and field dressing the animal is important.  We want all the meat we can get from the animal available to take home and not be tainted in any way.  My preference is to go one on one with a guide, but none of the lodges that met my requirements made that a possibility.  No one in my circle of friends wanted to take the trip.  Visiting with the outfitter, they stated that they always have single hunters come up and they would match us up.  I hope this works, but I am an easy person to get along with.

 Since the ultimate goal is the meat, this requirement pushed my choices over toward Churchill, Manitoba.  To fly up north with weapons, coolers and gear would get really expensive.  I found a lodge in northern Manitoba that could be accessed from Fort Thompson.  This can be driven from my home in Council Bluffs, IA through Winnipeg, Manitoba and up to Fort Thompson.

After a month of research, Webber's Lodges (http://webberslodges.com/caribou/) was selected.

My next writing will tell you about what it takes to go to Manitoba and a little about my contacts with the outfitter. 

 

Good hunting, good fishing, and good luck. Hank

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In Search of Caribou

I have been told by hunters and friends that of all the wild game they have dined on, Caribou was their favorite.  With this little piece of information, the decision was made to start the research about the animal and where in North America would be a reasonable place for me to go.  Of course, success is what it is all about first, and then comes the dining. 

The Caribou is also known as the Reindeer and in Europe and Eurasia is known as the Wild Reindeer.  Now this opening sentence stopped me right away.  I am not interested in shooting  Santa's Reindeer.  However, the animal is a member of the Cervidae family which also includes elk, moose, and deer.  That fact just eliminated my first objection.  The range of the animal extends from Alaska through northern Canada, the Northwest Territories, and into Manitoba near the town of Churchill.   This animal is a specialist for cooler climates with hollow hair fur that covers almost all of its body.  This provides protection from the cold weather and gives added buoyancy for swimming rivers and lakes during the migration.  What is really unusual in some of the sub species, both male and female grow antlers.  On an average the animals weigh around 200 to 240 pounds and stands about 5 to 5.5 feet tall at the shoulder.  The largest of the specie in North America is the Alaska Caribou that can weigh in as much as 680 pounds.  Dressed meat would come in at around 40%, similar to that of a deer or elk. 

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When it comes to feeding, the Caribou is classified as a ruminant.  That means they have a four chambered stomach.  In the winter they eat mainly lichens and are the only animals that have this ability.  This is due to the bacteria and protozoa in their gut.  Otherwise, they will feed on grasses and other foliage that grows on the tundra. Reading about their dietary habits makes me a little cautious about how they will taste.  My decision to go as of this writing, has not been made, and more research about the cooking and taste will have to be determined.

In the fall the Caribou migrate from their summer feeding grounds to their winter grounds.  It is during this time that the mating season takes place.  The large antlered animal loses its velvet and the antlers harden for the fighting that will take place.  After mating has taken place, the antlers will fall off and a larger pair will grow back in the spring.  The cycle will repeat itself.

In the fall the migration is in smaller groups as mating is taking place.  But in the spring, they will form herds ranging from 50,000 to 500,000.  Covering 12 to 34 miles per day, nothing will stop them and they will swim any lake or river in their path.  The swimming speed can range up to as much as 4 mph.

Besides hunters, their predators are bears and the wolves that will follow the migration.  Other animals will feed off the kills made by the larger predators.

Spending several hours on Caribou recipes, I found the majority of them were for stews, casseroles and pies.  Also, there were a lot of really upscale restaurants that advertised Caribou dishes prepared in all sorts of ways.  Where they get their meat was not mentioned, but the recipes looked very good.

Since the hunt would involve going out of the country, the research will take place to find an outfitter.
My usual requirements include a reasonable price, good history of success, fully guided with meals, and a warm place to sleep.  We will see how this comes out. 

Good hunting, good fishing, and good luck.  Hank

 

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