Austin's Turkey Bow Kill

The morning started out with lots of excitement. I had birds shock gobbling very close to my set up before sunrise so I knew that I was on the "X." Just after sunrise the resident boss gobbler strutted in with five hens. He was huge and he guarded the spot for over an hour. I came to full draw on him a couple of times but he never quite presented a good enough shot. After he left the area, several hens and jakes worked their way within bow range.

At 10:00 a.m. I pulled up the binos and saw a nice tom at 70 yards but he was moving away from me. I hit the slate call and then yelped softly with my diaphragm call. He came running right in but hung up in some thick stuff just out of range. Things really heated up when he began to strut and fight with two other toms nearby.

At around 10:30 a.m. he worked himself up into quite a frenzy and decided to walk into the field to go after a live hen. He gave me a broadside shot at 24 yards. I drew my bow and touched off a shot. My arrow passed through him like butter and he folded in a few seconds.

This hunt was all about redemption for me. I made a few mistakes on a previous hunt with Jesse Swann and I was pretty down about it. Jesse convinced me to stay focused and to keep my head in the game. I definitely appreciate all of his help and encouragement!