Well now fellers since Joe has welcomed me back to the fold I figgered I owed him a huntin' story. See, I been huntin' turkeys for about 20+ years and the last coupl'a years I wuz boun an determined I wuz gonna kill one with a flintlock. (I've actually only kilt 2 birds in 20+ years by the way) Anyways, I worked up a right smart stout load for this Pedrosoli Brown Bess I like to drag around. It's a .75cal./11ga. like the redcoats used from 1715 up until sometime in the mid-1800's. Come april I'd located a small flock o' birds..2 hens, a gobbler and 2 jakes, not far from the homeplace. I watched em' for weeks and they wuz there every day. Opening morning I was on the south corner of that field with 2 decoys and a passel of calls. They stayed in the north corner. Next day..switched sides..they come out in t'other corner. ++++! We kept this up fer a week. I got there at 4a.m and sit till noon every day...always in the wrong place. I called, tied strings to the decoys ta wiggle em' an used every trick I knowed. Nada. Zip. Them hens trolled them jakes&gobbler around like fishin' lures and wouldn't come near me. At the beginnin' of the second week I'd had just about enough. Time to rethink this. I figgered if they wasn't comin' to me..by dang I would settle fer an ambush! I know some fellers don't condone ambushin' turkeys. Well, try huntin' them with a 250yr. old flintlock sometime. So the next Mon. I headed fer the fields at 3a.m inna full Ghillie suit and left the calls an decoys in the truck. Time was runnin' out and so was my patience. Part 2 is comin'! Audie...the Oldfart!

 

Well boys it was 3a.m. on a crisp spring morning....full moon and a heavy dew on the fields. I hadda walk about 1/2 mile to my hide and most of it was through waist high alfalfa. DANG! Ya'll ever try an walk through that stuff? A mere mortal man cain't hardly pick his legs up high enough to make any headway!! But by 4a.m. I'd snuck in as close to the roost as I figgered I dare and got sit down. Mind ye...I'm only about 30 yards away from that roost!! So I sit....an sit....an sit. By 7a.m. I still hadn't heard ner seen a bird an figgered I'd gammahooched mysef' tryin' to git too close and was just about to stand up when I heared....FLAP!..FLAP!...FLAP!...wings comin' off the roost right behind me! Ain't much stirs a mans blood like turks flyin' down now is they?? Of course they flew down about a hunnard yards out in the field. ++++! Not much I could do but watch as this ole flinter is only good fer about 20/25yds. at the most. So I sit an watched em' as they fed and made this huge circle way out yonder....and then...then..they started circling back my way! I figgered by gum..might have a chance at one of them birds yet! So I skrooched way down behind a little cedar tree on the edge of that field and waited..an watched..an they kept on a'comin'! More to come!! Audie..the Oldfart..

 

Well boys...there I was..all scrunched up tryin' to make a two-hunnad an fiddy pound geezer look like part of the scenery. With a long barrel wobblin' out in front of me like a flag an my heart poundin' so hard little tufts of dust was flyin' up. 100yds......75yds.....50yds.....40yds...theys comin'.....30yds.....then the lead hen poked her beak around the other side of that little cedar I was hidin' behind....20yds. out in the field. I figgered she had me pegged when she stopped an looked right at me. But..the jakes an the gobbler peered not to notice and they kept on comin'!!! I held the front sight on the first jake that was in the clear and at 10 ft. (yes..feet..not yards) I swept back the trigger an started a fire in the pan of that flintlock.....SNAP!WHOOSH!WHOOOOMMMM! 100grains of Goex finest 3fg. black powder exploded and 1 5/8 ounces of chilled #4 shot was on it's short journey. Cedar limbs went flyin' and feathers blew up in the air...an before the shot went silent I was on my feet an runnin' like a mad-man after that bird!! Now, mind ye..after sittin' fer 4+ hours jumpin' up an runnin is not a very smart thing to do!! I got about 3 long steps in when the leg cramps hit....after that it was kind'a..hop a step..scream an curse..hop another step. But I was headed his way! It looked like he was gittin' to his feet at one point and that's when I screamed..."IT"S ON CUZZZ!!!!" and made a flying tackle. I can't imagine what must have been going thru that poor creatures mind. Something explodes right in front of his beak...then a 6ft. tall two-hunnad an fiddy pound cedar tree (remember I'm in a ghillie suit) comes screaming out of a fencerow with mouth wide open..rotton stumps of teeth bared and the stench of pyareah laden gums blasting at him. Hollerin'! One final installment fellers.....Audie..the Oldfart.

 

Well fellers..that bird was down but not out. We commenced to gittin' er' done right there in the cut cornfield. I snatched aholt of a leg and one way er' t'other he was comin' home with me. He wasn't havin' none of it! He got in a few good licks...an I got in my share to! He dragged me about 100yds. around the corn stubble..knocked my bi-focals off an spurred me a time er 2. I finally got my full weigh on him and he soon tuckered out then. In the end it was an incredible day. He was a fine 16lb. jake with a 5in. beard an put up a helluva fight. (the boss gobbler was twice his size with a 10/12in. beard...I didn't care..) Only thing left to do was kneel an give thanks..take a photo or 2 and head home with my prize. He was right tasty eatin to an I saved the beard an some feathers for my hat. And that gents..is the end of the story. Ya'll be blessed. Audie..the Oldfart....lost in the memory.

 

Just 10 minutes ago I had 7 Turkeys in my back yard. 3 Were big sexy gobblers One Female and the rest Little ones. I didnt wanna wake my neighbors by fireing off a 12 GA out my bathroom window!

 

Great story Audie and it is great to see you back

 

Happy to have you back Audie. One of these days I'll have to cruise by your way and nibble on some of this game you catch. And, if it's a dry spell, we can always munch on baked goods.

 

Excellent story Audie.

 

Great hunt Audie, well deserved!