West Virginia turkeys have been tough and uncooperative and the plight of the working man has hit me with not so much time to get after home turf birds. So it was with anticipation that I looked towards the Pennsylvania opener. A state that I had hunted before but had never killed a big Keystone Gobbler. I had done my scouting well and had gained permission from a friendly farmer in Washington County. I had used Cuddeback trail camera to help me pattern the birds and just to see what this farm held. The camera idea did not disappoint! Longbeard after longbeard showed up on the sd cards!
I arrived at the farm and was not disappointed to hear birds gobbling upon the slam of the truck door! I hurriedly headed up the mountain and set up my Avian X strutter and breeding hen. I then settled against a white oak and listened to the birds and morning come to life.
I was shook to reality by two gobblers sounding off at the bottom of the mountain towards my truck. I peered down the woods line and saw two strutters 500 yards away. I turned my gun barrel down hill.
I called lightly and non agressive as I knew the gobblers could see my decoys. They slowly started my way gobbling and strutting.
As I was fixed on them a gobble boomed behind me on the ridge break. I turned my head slowly and say a big bird about 60 yards away, strutting and spitting and drumming for the dekes.
I slowly turned the ole Longspur slayer barrel his way. I kee keed on my Hen O the Woods call real lightly. All the birds lit up. Mr. Big just didn’t want to budge if that ridge! The two birds below me boomed their gobbles and I turned my head to see where they were. They had closed the 500 yard gap to 200 and they were running hard right for my decoys. I turned my barrel very slowly back to cover the decoys. It was a great decision! At 50 yards the two younger toms started purring loudly as they ran. Big ole ridge boy got all excited and decided to run down the mountain and what ensued next was just plain turkey hunting ecstasy. All three birds met at the strutting decoy on the run and they gang tackled him like some of Joe Pa’s old Penn State linebacker crews!
They flogged and tossed my decoy and started on each other! I quickly picked out Mr Big from the ridge and I pulled the trigger. He hit the ground flopping. The other two started on him. I let them have their jollies of beating on a former foe then I walked out and to gather my trophy.
Now I didn’t get my nickname longspur because I just run out and check beard length! I always look at sours first. As I grabbed him I was very surprised to see that my first ever PA bird had no spurs! No bumps but just an enlarged leg scale where the spurs should have been! Imagine that. First time in my many years and holding hundreds of birds of seeing one with no spurs. I picked him up and headed off the hill. He had a 10 1/4 inch beard and weighed 20 pounds and 14 ounces.
I headed south and I picked Chrissy up and we drove to Weston, WV and went mushrooming. I tell you, Chrissy is an amazing woman. She’s a good turkey hunter and a superb shroomer but best of all she’s my best friend.
We hunted the mountains hard and Chrissy started spotting them. She pointed out several as I negotiated the ATV over some log roads. We looked at every slip, below gas wells and on the disturbed areas on the downhill side of the log roads. Together we found new patches and right at 400 big yellow morels! What a Saturday!
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