McManus Camp Turkey Mustang Ranch Turkey Turkey References F.A.Q.'s - Turkey

ADOBE LODGE SPRING TURKEY HUNTING Finest Rio Grande Gobbler Hunting In Texas FOR McMANUS CAMP AND MUSTANG RANCH CAMP TURKEY INFORMATION AND REPORTS, CLICK THE LINKS AT THE TOP OF THIS PAGE 2006 SPRING TURKEY SEASON REPORT AND STATISTICS The 2006 Texas turkey season will be remembered as the year when the turkeys just never did really act like turkeys.  Calling gobblers - the reason most hunters like to hunt turkeys - worked only sporadically - occasionally hot and heavy - but often not at all.  What we were hearing at our hunting camps was similar to what we were hearing from other hunters we'd see at the airport or the sporting good stores - the gobblers seemed to be henned-up unusually long and strong all season.  So it was a good year for the "old-pro" turkey hunter armed with a full bag of calls and tricks to use on his adversary.  For the first-timer or for the hunter with but a small collection of beards, it was a tough year.  It’s a challenge to hunt gobblers when those birds don’t act like the hunting books and t.v. shows say they’re supposed to. Statistics summarizing our hunter's success tell a part - but only a part - of the story.  Since we're incurable statistics-keepers, here's our numbers for the season combining all three of our camps:  71 hunters collected 134 birds, of which 20 were jakes.  (We did not include Hunt # 7 because the two hunters, here to be featured stars in an Americana Outdoors television show, were limited to only one bird apiece - which they got).  25 hunters (35.21%) took their limit of three birds. 19 hunters (26.76%) took two toms. 21 hunters (29.57%) took one bird. 6 hunters (8.45%) took no bird. For whatever it's worth, we could account for 20 missed shots. The main part of the story, however, is not how many birds found their way to our tally boards.  What’s important is our hunter's level of satisfaction with their hunt with us.  All 71 hunters received a post-hunt questionnaire from us.  We have received back 46 responses and comments.  Here's what you would want to know about these hunter's opinions of us - the most important statistic of all: 98% of our 2006 spring turkey hunters were either ‘satisfied’ (24%) or ‘very satisfied (74%) with their hunt.  Only one hunter did not indicate a level of satisfaction. 100% of the respondents said they would recommend this hunt to a friend.  So it's hard to do much better than that. A complete list of our references and their comments (both for deer and turkey) can be found on our ‘photos’ website.   It just cannot be said too often:  "References are your best source of information about any outfitter."  We encourage you to check with several of ours.  Then give us a shout to learn what open dates we might have available for the upcoming deer and turkey seasons.  You don't want to miss a chance to hunt with Adobe Lodge.   5-7-06    Hunt # 8 Re-Cap  The last turkey hunt of the 2006 season ended today.  Earlier we thought Hunt # 6 was to be the last one.  Then, Hunt # 7 came and went, and it, too, wasn't the final hunt.  So how do we know, for sure, that # 8 is "it"?  We don't have any more hunters scheduled for this last week of the season.  So, folks, for us,  it's over. Hunt # 8 was put together less than a week ago when John Gibson, Dermott, AR,  called to say that he and his amigo, John Payne, Birmingham, AL,  were working on a Grand Slam of turkeys and just HAD TO HAVE a Rio.  Their collection of all four species is being completed in the year 2006.  It's quite a feat to climb a four-gobbler-hill all in one short spring season.  So with the reports we'd had back on Hunt # 6 of the amount of turkeys that were being seen on our Home Ranch we said "Come On" and they did.  Bringing yet another hunter, Nicky Groce, from Monticello, AR.  So we had a group of three. They collected five birds.  John Payne limited out with three, and John Gibson and Nicky Groce finished each with a fine gobbler.  All the birds appeared to be at least three-year-olds.  Then, to complicate things a bit further,  Rhett Butler and Welby Young from Jonesboro, AR found themselves back in San Angelo after a turkey hunt over to the east somewhere.  They had a whole afternoon with nothing to do.  Did we have a place they could hunt for the afternoon?  Sure did.  We took them to a Mertzon area ranch and although they both saw and worked gobblers, they killed no birds.  Oh well - they were out there hunting and that's what counts.  Rhett and Welby then joined the rest of the hunters back at the main lodge for ribeyes that night, and we enjoyed getting to know these guys, as well.  It rained a bit, and stormed a lot on the first night of the hunt.  The hunter's accounts of what they were seeing in the field would lead one to believe that the breeding season is just about over - as you would expect now that the season is ending.  Toms were being seen in groups, but were still coming to the calls,  albeit tentatively.  And they are still gobbling a lot.  So it was a fitting end to a good season.  Here's some photos: John Payne, Birmingham, AL, collected two fine gobblers on the first afternoon in camp. Got both'em with one shot. Nicky Groce, Monticello, AR John Gibson, Dermott, AR Question: Did the rattlesnake choke on the rat? Hunt # 8 - Hanging out in the skinning shed after supper. The third bird for John Payne 4-27-06  -  Hunt # 7 Re-Cap     Until about three weeks ago, we thought that the sixth hunt would be our final turkey hunt.  But when we were contacted about hosting a t.v. show to be done just a few days after our regular season, we said - "Why not?  Maybe a little exposure on t.v. couldn't hurt."  So we said come ahead.  (Now we even have Hunt # 8 coming up next week.)  Anyway, Hunt # 7 came to be. As a result, we got to meet some mighty fine folks and we learned a little something about the many details that are involved in putting a t.v. show together.  The theme was to have both store managers of the two new Cabela's super-stores in Texas (now about a year old) hunt turkeys.  Interestingly enough, both store managers are native Texans and surprisingly, both are avid turkey hunters.  Not too many Texans hunt turkeys, you know.  Come to think of it, maybe that's the idea:  get Texans interested in hunting turkeys and sell more turkey hunting equipment.  Anyway, both Jeff Lang from the Ft. Worth store and Craig Newburn from the Buda store played their part splendidly and collected handsome longbeards.  Both birds are supposed to find a spot somewhere on a Cabela's wall (if they can find room - mercy - you'd wonder where they could hang anything else in the Hamburg, PA store, the only one we've had a chance to visit.)  Cameramen were Cody Prather, Georgetown, TX and John Doolen from San Antonio.  These guys are pros in every sense of the word.  You would just have to see a video shoot in progress to understand the volume of work involved.  But when time permitted, we could pry a story or two out of these guys about their work filming sportsmen in the field around the world.  Maybe one of them will write a book someday. And as is our habit, we complicated the event by inviting a high-school class to ask questions of the video professionals.  Cam Kleibrink who guides both deer and turkey hunts at the Mustang Ranch doubles as a high school teacher.  His class of budding journalism/video tech students spent over an hour peppering Cody with questions about his work as a professional videographer.  With the pressure off now after his hunter, Craig, was successful that morning, Cody graciously answered all questions thrown at him by the eager students.  No doubt a great learning experience for them. The hunt was put together by Aaron Booth who works for Careco Multimedia in San Antonio.  Our deal with Aaron was for each hunter to take a single gobbler.  And they could budget only two days for the task.  So it wasn't our ordinary hunt where a hunter gets to take three birds in three days - (a bit of a challenge in the 2006 season with these henned-up gobblers).  Taking only one bird sounds easy enough.  But having a camera crew along to record the hunt is a major challenge.   Why?  Here's the catch: the event  positively has to be captured on film.  If things don't happen as they should, there is no show.  Period.  And as you might imagine - turkeys seldom read the script.  There are a gazillion things to think about - the sun; possible airplane noise; where will the birds come from and  where is the hunter?  Can the camera get on them and get both in the same field of view?  All report outstanding success.  The camera guys were very well satisfied with the footage they got.  Both hunters did exactly what they were supposed to.  And both collected mature longbeards.  Craig's was exceptional in that his spurs proved to be the best we've seen the entire season. When we learn when the show is supposed to air on Americana Outdoors, we'll have a notice on this website.  Here are some photos of the abbreviated hunt: Hunt 7 - This isn't a fun hunt - it's a job for everyone involved. And they all worked at it. Equipment, equipment and more equipment. Cameramen have to plot strategy, too. Cam shows a DVD to some students. Cody Prather, in camo on the far side of the pit, fields questions from the students. Crain Newburn wasted no time - a first morning turkey and a good'un he is. What do you think of these hay hooks? Last day bird - but worth the wait. These steaks will be on t.v. - - - - 4-23-06  Re-Cap, Hunt # 6 -  Hunt # 6 was our final regularly scheduled hunt at the Home Camp.  It started off the way we like - it rained.  First really good rain for us and it ought to do a world of good.  The hunters arrived in a sprinkle.  We got them moved into the lodge and finally out hunting.  But most were driven back to camp that first afternoon when a big thunderstorm dumped over an inch on us.  Wonderful.  No one in West Texas ever complains about a rain. The next day then, following the storm, it simply could not have been a prettier day.  Perfect temperature.  No wind.  And the gobblers seemed to be renewed and refreshed and ready to come to a well-played call.  Hunters reported hearing lots and lots of gobbling before daylight.  Unlike Hunt # 4 when some of our troops heard hardly any gobbling.  No doubt this rain will help the 2006 hatch, too.  Just what we need - more turkeys. A close study of the results of Hunt # 6 would show these facts: Seven hunters took sixteen birds.  Ten were gobblers and six were jakes. Three hunters took a limit of three toms.  Three more hunters had two/each.  The hunter with the single bird might have had another if some shooting signals could have been more clearly communicated when he and his hunting partner were surrounded by birds.  Oh well.  Such are the fortunes of those on the front lines in the turkey wars.  It's not the first time we've heard of this kind of mistake. More turkeys might have found their stats on our tally board, but a couple of misses occurred.  And one sportsman in the group passed on several gobblers which were inferior to the ones he'd already taken - a common occurrance this season.  It's one of the reason we love turkey hunters. Predictably we didn't weigh a bird over twenty pounds.  It's getting late in the season now, and those gobblers are coming in with little or nothing in their crop.  Breeding season will do that to a fat gobbler, you know.  The heaviest bird nearly made it with 19.5 lbs. on our scale.  He was taken by Shane Dunning, Dickson, TN.  Shane's big bird also had a couple of 1 1/4" spurs. Danny Noles, a turkey hunter if there ever was one, brought in a fine gobbler that had  a 1 3/8" spur coupled with another of 1 1/8".  And Jim Hershey, Auburn, GA found a couple of 1 1/4 inch spurs on one of his turkeys.  Jim's first bird had a similar measurement on one spur, but the other was broken back to 7/8".  So there were several gobblers taken on the hunt with exceptional spurs.  Danny found a hair in the beard of his gobbler that stretched out to 12 1/4".  Hightlight of the hunt was having Phil Dubeau here.  Phil hunted with us back in the late 1980's and although we've seen him several times since then, we've not had the pleasure of having him visit our camp in pert-near twenty years.  Phil, originally from Orlando, FL has had an impressive hunting career with a world-slam of sheep to his credit.  Nowadays, he makes his living as a PH (professional hunter) in Africa.  His stories of his adventures are simply amazing.  Surprisingly, Phil is not a turkey hunter.  Just never got bit by the bug, he says.  But Phil accompanied Stephen Smith, Lubbock, TX who had bought the turkey hunt we had donated to FNAWS a year ago.  Stephen couldn't come last season and had to postpone until '06.  What a treat to have these guys in camp. Hunt 6 was to have been our final turkey hunt of the 2006 season.  But now we have one more scheduled next week.  A t.v. crew is bringing some v.i.p.'s in to film their hunt.  When we know more about the details, we'll let you know via this web site - so stay tuned. With all the cast of characters and good stories that were being told around camp on Hunt # 6, we just never got around to posting any photos to the website until the hunt ended.  So there's a bunch of news to catch up on.  Here 'tis.  Just click on a photo for more info: Rain - thank goodness. Moving in. Hurry - you'll get wet. Danny Noles, Huntsville, AL Now you don't. Here's the proof. Or is it? The formal photo. A thief visits camp Snakes again. First night in camp Stephen Smith and Phil Dubeau Tommy collects a pair of Rios. Shane Dunning knows a lethal weapon when he sees one. Finally - Chris gets to put his tag on a Rio. Jim Hershey - first Rio. Jerrod Ezell and his dad Kyle - both are experts in a kitchen. Pork tenderloin - well worth the effort. How do you get the tails fanned out? Ahh-Haa. Trick photography. Hunt # 6 - the final regular hunt of the season Danny Noles and some dandy spurs. "The monkey's off my back now". Jim Hershey and Tim Blevins But wait a minute - what's this? Ribeye night Relaxing around the fire waiting for supper. Hunt # 5 Re-Cap    Home Camp Hunt # 5 didn't put many birds in our freezer, but the hunters all said they were happy with their hunt and their Adobe Lodge experience - so we'll take Happy Campers over a bunch of birds any day. The final morning of the hunt found the Northern Cambria group back over on Dove Creek again, this time hunting a bit further up-river from the other times.  Again, plenty of gobbling was heard and numerous gobblers were seen.  And of course, there was a multitude of hens.  For a minute there, according to Jerry Tibbott, they had a big gobbler headed their way, but somehow he disappeared in a depression.  The last sight of him was his head slowly disappearing downward and - isn't this all too frequent in the sport? - they never saw him again. So the finall tally shows these figures: Tom McDonald got three birds, one of which was a longbeard. Joe Pavelko took two jakes. Eight year old Austin and his dad, Jerry put no birds on the board.   To be fair, it must be noted that Jerry didn't even carry a shotgun.   Doing the calling and coaching, he acted as a guide for his son .  A post-mortem of the trigger that failed to pull revealed that, speaking of coaching, Austin just might have been the victim of a bit of "over-coaching".  Jerry's final advice to Austin: "Remember - just squeeze the trigger - don't jerk it."   How many times did you hear that when you were a kid?   That fateful day, a couple of gobblers were coaxed in by some good calling.  Jerry admits that he could have easily taken them both if he had been the gunner.  But that's not what he came for.  He wanted Austin to do the shooting.  And Austin, faithfully following Dad's instructions, just flat didn't pull the trigger hard enough.  But at least Austin got the experience of what turkey hunting is all about.  Call'em up nice and close.  He heard the gobbling and he saw the strutting toms.  From all the birds seen and heard these three days, Austin will probably wind up with an incurable addiction to turkey hunting - if his dad has anything to do with it, that is. Both Jerry and Austin will be back just after Christmas to hunt deer with us, and we're predicting there will also be successful hunt for a turkey, as well.  Just to even the score with those lucky rascals.  But remember, Austin, when you get that big buck in your rifle sight - that's the time to SQUEEZE THE TRIGGER.  With a shotgun, you can jerk it a little bit - but not too much. Hunt Number Five 4-18-06   Hunt # 5 finds only four hunters in camp.  Too bad.  Why?  We have a special treat for this bunch.  Our cook is a chef.  A real chef imported all the way from the ski area at Aspen, Colorado. Guide Kyle Ezell said his son, Jerrod, would be between seasons at the ski area and we could get him to cook a couple of hunts.  Holy Smokes - he's putting weight on all of us after only a few meals.  Folks - this lad can COOK. We have in camp Jerry Tibbott, Northern Cambria, PA and his 8 year old son, Austin.  Accompanying them is amigo Joe Pavelko.  Their goal is twofold: call up a gobbler for Austin and capture the entire event on film.  Joe's the cameraman and Jerry is doing the calling.  This morning, as the story we heard goes, everything went according to plan except poor Austin couldn't get the trigger pulled.  Literally.  He tried and tried and the darn thing wouldn't pull.  The gun never fired.  We have to find an expert look at that gun.  Joe collected a couple of jakes this morning, and we haven't yet got the full story on that event, either.  Stay tuned. Tom McDonald, Summit Point, WV wasted no time in collected two birds the first morning and limited out the next morning with a fine gobbler.  The weather is powerful hot.  It's near 100 degrees almost every afternoon now.  Cooler weather is predicted for later in the week - thank goodness- but the weatherman is not being very optimistic about our chances for rain.  We're thinking the turkeys have taken a "time out" in their breeding cycle to let the hot weather pass a bit.  But all of Tom's birds were called-in, so maybe the calling has finally gotten better.  Gotta get some further reports from the field.  All are reporting hearing plenty of gobbling, however.  So that's good news.  Where there's gobbling - - - you know the rest.  We wish you were here for Jerrod's cooking.  He'll be here until the end of the month and the good news is that we could make room for a few more hunters before the season ends.  So give us a call.  We can make things happen fast on this end. Jarrod Ezell - Adobe Lodge Chef Catfish? Yep, catfish. Tom McDonald is in for a treat with this meal. Eight year old Austin Tibbott isn't a bit afraid to hold up this snake for a picture. Tom McDonald takes a couple of - - - Tom again - this time with a - - - Joe Pavelko, Northern Cambria, PA Hunt # 4 Re-cap    The fourth hunt of our season was the first Home Camp hunt this year to see all hunters take at least one bird.  No one got skunked.  That's the good news.  As the hunt started, we were hopeful that our gobblers were becoming a bit more receptive to the calls.  The bad news is this: gobblers don't read or follow our predictions concerning their behavior.  Here's what's hard to figure:  two hunters from Alabama - Mark O'Bryant and Billy Kirby - (both being experienced, young, energetic, patient, eager and resourceful) heard very little gobbling and saw very few turkeys, despite hunting some of our best areas.  When Plan A didn't work, we went to Plan B;  and then to Plan C.  Both hunters finally collected birds, but they earned them the hard way.  Darty Abell and Frank Shelton, both from Paducah, KY together with Jamie Quinn, left a day early in their private plane in order to get back home for the opening of the turkey season in Kentucky.  Our tally board shows they took six Texas birds home but a miss cost them a seventh gobbler.  The weather has now turned mighty hot.  It's getting to the mid-90's in the afternoon, and bottled water has become more important to take hunting than your shotgun.  It's still windy, too.  Mercy - we need a good rain bad (to borrow a phrase from western-artist and sculptor Garland Weeks, who so-titled a great bronze of a poor rancher sitting on his horse who is standing on dry and parched ground.) With every hunter being after their first-ever Rio, and with all collecting same, we can therefore, pronounce Hunt # 4 to be a success.  Vermont's Scott Harrison and New York's Ray Neufeld teamed up as a pair and Ray's experiences during his stay with us will be told to the third and fourth generations of children born in New York City.  A careful study of our tally board shows these facts about Hunt # 4: Nine hunters collected thirteen birds.  All were longbeards. One hunter collected three birds and a missed shot prevented another hunter from getting his third bird, so he took two birds, as did one other. Everyone else got one bird, but again, missed shots by two hunters kept them out of the 2-bird column.  Missed shots are all-too-common among turkey hunters and it always amazes those who hunt only dove or quail how a turkey hunter could possibly miss such a large and stationary target.  Only you spring-time hunters who seek the majestic gobblers can understand and sympathize with those unfortunate souls who miss a shot at a tom turkey.   Heaviest bird of the hunt at 21.2 lbs. was taken by Brad Rouse, Jonesboro, AR.  Indeed, his was the only bird to top the magic-twenty barrier.  But Jamie Quinn nearly did it with a 19.3 lb. tom. Mark O'Bryant, Tuscaloosa, AL found spurs of 1 1/4" x 1 3/8" on his bird. With a  9 3/4" beard on his gobbler, Frank Shelton, Paducah, KY topped the list of longbeards on the tally board. Day One - six birds; Day Two - three birds; Day Three - four birds. Birgit Kilpatric cooked and Jerry Watts guided on Hunt 4. Billy Kirby, Tuscaloosa, AL finally found a bird after some hard hunting. Brian Long, Reidsville, NC and father-in-law Brad Rouse, Jonesboro, AR Scott Harrison takes a great trophy Rio. What ??? Mark O'Bryant, Tuscaloosa, AL It's Mark again. Frank Shelton, Paducah, KY Speaking of ribeyes - - - - Early morning activity Hens, hens, hens. Great photo, great illustration. 4-13-06    Hunt # 4 completed the first full day of hunting at noon today, and already we are seeing some great success.  More importantly, it appears that the toms might, just might, be showing tendencies of being a little more "call-able".  Indeed, Jamie Quinn, Madison, AL, has already tagged out with three nice Rios and all were called this morning in the classic manner.  Jamie also harvested  a rattlesnake.  (We are being politically-correct here.  Usually snakes are simply killed, but snake-lovers might be reading this website).  You would be interested to know that there are no bag limits on serpents wearing  noise-making devices on their tails.    During the past 24 hours, three rattlesnakes have been seen, captured or killed and we take this as a good omen.  Why?  Some of us have noticed that snakes crawl more in the days just before a rain.  Ergo - maybe a good rain's on the way.  We'll take a good rain and nevermind the snakes. We have nine hunters on Hunt # 4 from six different states.  All are hunting the Adobe Lodge for the first time and none has ever taken a Rio.  So we're looking forward to making a bunch of new friends.  We've borrowed a couple of photos off our trail camera  to show here below.  Maybe we can illustrate something with them.  Click on a photo to enlarge it and read more information about what you're seeing. Trail camera photo - check the time. Better light - better photo Ray Neufeld, Elmhurst, NY and his first-ever gobbler. Scott Harrison, Rutland, VT Darty Abell and Jamie Quinn filled up the truck with turkeys. Finally, after a few stories, we get to take the formal photograph. Jamie Quinn collects a triple in one morning. Plus a bonus. Second time this season. Hunt # 3 Re-Cap -  The third Home Camp hunt of our turkey season ended at noon, April 11.  Of the eight hunters in camp, all collected birds except for Kelly Martin, the  eleven-year-old daughter of Walker Martin, Savannah, GA.  Walker admitted that Kelly had a hard time doing what the sport demands of its participants - sitting still.  Nevertheless, Kelly might have been bit by the turkey hunting bug even though she still can't claim one for her own. We had another girl in camp, too - Julie Losacano from Bristol, CT.  Julie's dad, Evo Rondini has hunted gobblers with us several times and just had to introduce Julie to the pleasures of hunting Rios. Andy Chisholm, Savannah, GA was responsible for getting his party of five here and it was good to see Andy again.  He and son Kip hunted with us a number of years ago when we produced rabbit hunts.  We remembered what fun that was.  Probably ought to offer such hunts again.  If anyone might be interested, let us know. Finally, Brad Milner, Atlanta, GA was back for a spring hunt after his good hunt for deer last fall.  Brad has hunted both species with us numerous times and it's always great to see him to get a tip on a good book to read. A close study of our tally board reveals these facts about Hunt # 3: Eight hunters collected fourteen toms, only one of which was a jake. Two hunters limited out with three birds; three hunters collected a pair; two hunters took only a single bird; and one hunter struck out. The rest of the story might put a different light on the statistics - there were four misses and one DNF (did not find).  So there should have been four taking three birds and three taking two.  Oh well - as long as there are turkey hunters, there will be misses. Day 1 - six birds.  Day 2 - three birds and one miss.  Day 3 - five birds taken but three misses and the dnf. Evo Rondini collected a 10 1/4" beard.  Longest spurs were found on Walker Martins bird - 1 1/4" each.  And Julie Losacano's gobbler was the only twenty-pounder weighed at 20.7 to be exact. Windy conditions dominated a couple of the hunt days.  It's been around 60 degrees at daylight and warms to the mid-80's in the afternoon.  Our mesquite trees are trying to leaf out again after that freeze of a couple weeks ago.  Visibility for our adversary, the turkey, is still in his favor.  But another couple of weeks will show a huge change.  Still no rain, dog-gone-it.  It's getting dry. Below are the final group of photos harvested from Hunt Three.  Click to enlarge. Evo Rondini collects a pair of longbeards Walker Martin, Savannah, GA Jimmy Hungerpiller and his antique shotgun John Hungerpiller, Savannah, GA The story - it is as important as the hunt itself. Finally, we get everyone together for a nice photograph. Relaxing around the firepit after the ribeye supper on the final night of the hunt. Turkeys visit our Home Camp 4-10-06 -  What with each turkey hunting camp in the Adobe Lodge Empire now full of hunters, it's a busy time for sure.  For the McManus Camp and the Mustang Camp, we have now created a special turkey page for each.  Both camps conclude their second hunt of the season at noon on Monday.  We have some, but not complete, photos and statistics from both camps.  The Home Camp is mid-way through Hunt # 3.  Five of the hunters missed the first half-day of their hunt (couldn't get the right plane schedule).  Nevertheless one of them has already tagged out with three birds.  We'll let the photos we've collected tell our story today:  Our scale for weighing turkeys. The solution: a nice container which sits on the scales. One touch of a button will zero the scale. A nice, heavy bird. Kyle Ezell (foreground) is measuring the beard of this bird. Ahh-Ha ! There you are, you rascal, you Julie Losacano, Bristol, CT and her dad, Evo Rondini. Brad Milner, Atlanta, GA and his first bird of the hunt. Home Camp Hunt # 3 eating supper the first night in camp. Andy Chisholm, Savannah, GA Monday morning, April 10 All turkeys - no decoys What would you call this? The challenge: Hunt # 2 Re-Cap - Hunt Two ended at noon Friday, April 7.  With the next hunt beginning at noon, Saturday, and with our other two camps now active, it's a busy time.  But any turkey hunter knows that there is precious little time in the year when these majestic birds are doing their thing and you just gotta take advantage of every single minute. Here's some quick stats on Hunt # 2: Originally we had nine hunters on this date, but when one had to leave quickly following that first afternoon's hunt, let's call it eight hunters in camp.  (By the way, that hunter has been offered a free hunt in 2007 if he wants it.) Four hunters took three birds; one took two; two took one/each; one took zero. Of the sixteen birds taken, three were jakes.  But we're here to testify that a jake can be as much of a trophy as a big tom if the jake was hunted correctly. Heaviest bird and longest beard:  Bill Hill's 21 lb. and 10 1/2".  Longest spurs:  Mark Henson's last bird had two at 1 1/4" each.  Theo Dinkins' gobbler lacked an eighth of an inch on one spur to equal that. Our scales are very, very accurate.  Interestingly, only two of the birds on this hunt exceeded twenty pounds.  This early in the season, we expect more. Of the eight hunters, four are medical doctors.  All four of the docs collected their limit of birds.  None of the others did.  Lesson: we do a heck of a good job for physicians.  Or better said - doctors are our best bird killers. Looks as if these henned-up gobblers might be getting just a bit easier to work.  Several lone gobblers were found on this hunt, so we're taking that as a sign that the trend is slowly moving toward the turkey caller instead of the turkey stalker/ambusher.  But with the mesquites just barely leafing out now, those turkeys still have their powerful advantage of - EYESIGHT.  Don't ever forget it.  Those birds are seeing you the minute you step into their playing field.  So you have to turn into an Indian.  Back in deer season, Andy Young reminded us of a John Wayne saying:  when you don't see nothing, that means the Indians are there.  So we'll be telling Hunt # 3 to hunt like an Indian and don't let yourself be seen by your quarry. Mark Henson helps Charles Heywood. Buddy Griffin and Theo Dinkins Bill Hill, Zanesville, OH Putting socks on a bird Preparing the bird for his last long ride. 4-7-06   Today is the final morning of Hunt # 2 and plans were laid last night to get a few more   birds onto our tally board.  Goodness knows plenty are being seen and heard, but it's time to bring in "Plan B".  So here's what we've done: Mark Henson, who tagged out quickly, took our new digital camera on a photo safari and got some good shots, the best of which is reproduced below.  Since Charles Heywood has yet to collect a gobbler, and since Mark thinks he knows a perfect set-up where he was doing the picture-taking, Mark has graciously agreed to guide Charles to this special "Honey-Hole" on this final morning.  Then, Alan Manas from Arizona tagged out with his third bird on Thursday afternoon, but he also graciously agreed to take Bill Hill and Matt Hill to his own "sweet-spot" where he's been seeing so many turkeys.  Both Hills have been frustrated in their attempts so far, and we're all hoping that this change to the "B" plan will produce results.  Stay tuned.   Here's a few more photos we've collected. This is what it's all about. Bill Brown and gobbler # 2 Buddy Griffin is found cleaning a gobbler. Jakes visit our Home Camp Alan Manas tags out with his third bird Alan Manas tells Clay Graves about his morning's hunt. Bronze beauty 4-5-06   With Hunt # 2 at the Home Camp having started Tuesday at noon, by midday on Wednesday (today) our nine hunters had put seven birds on our tally board. Unfortunately, one of the hunters had to fly home on an emergency.  We are praying for a good outcome and we wish him the best.    So we are left with eight hunters in camp.  The weather is decent - a bit hot and a bit windy in the afternoon, but Wednesday morning it was perfect for calling.  All hunters report hearing plenty of gobbling before daylight.  Some of the hunters in camp are true old-pros in the turkey hunting game.  And some are rank beginners.  But these rookies will wind up with plenty of experience before their hunt is over.  And the veteran hunters will be able to add plenty of stories to their already-full bag of treats. Here are the photos collected since our last posting.  Each has a  tale to tell if you'll click on it: Hunt # 2 at the Home Camp Bill Brown gets one and Alan Manas gets a pair. Are these all Rio Grande turkeys? Theo Dinkins collects a fine Rio. Mark Henson takes four trophies. And you thought our limit was three, didn't you? 4-4-06  -  While Hunt # 1 was concluding on Monday, we visited the Mustang Ranch Camp to meet and greet the hunters there.  Unfortunately, two of them had already departed.  They left with zero birds, but claiming pressing business back home in Arkansas, and given the silence of the toms, they felt like they were spinning their wheels in giving it one more day.  But photos of our visit are posted below. A similar pattern in the tom's behavior could be found back at the Home Camp, but perseverance paid off big time when Mark Luthman from Hubbardston, MA took his limit of three birds on the final afternoon of the hunt.  A couple more birds came in, as well. So as Hunt # 1 ends, here's the re-cap for the nine hunters in camp: Six hunters limited out with three birds each. One hunter collected a pair of birds One hunter took only one bird. One hunter failed to take a bird, but there were rumors of a miss. Day One produced 13; Day Two - 3 birds; Day Three - 5 birds   Three birds on the final afternoon John Adams, Franklin, KY Don Ayars, Woodstown, NJ Measuring birds Six spurs on three gobblers - each and every one exactly the same at 1 1/4 " in length. Ben and Ann McCulloch Lunch-time at the Mustang Ranch Camp. Hanging out behind the Mustang Camp Steak cooker at the Mustang Ranch Camp. The Mustang Ranch board after two days. 4-3-06 - Talk about hot and cold:  Some of our Home Camp hunters are already tagged out; some haven't collected their first bird yet.  We visited the McManus Camp on Sunday and found a similar trend there, too.  Here' what we are being told from our troops in the field:  the birds are plenty vocal in the trees before fly down.  After they are on the ground, it's virtual dead silence.  All day long.  A couple of hunters saw and worked zero birds all day.  But Mark Luthman hunting at the Home Camp saw 150 birds on Sunday, including at least 30 longbeards.  Mark says he worked four separate gobblers during the afternoon but nary a one came in sight. Three birds came into Home Camp on Sunday and the three more hunters thereby tagged out with their three-bird limit.  Going into the final day today, the Home Camp has three hunters with zero birds and one hunter with only one bird.   The McManus hunt did not start until noon on Saturday, so by noon Sunday, that was the first full day of the hunt.  There were two birds in camp for the four hunters, but one of them had 1 1/2" spurs.  Oh Boy - a trophy for sure. McManus Camp Hunt # 1 Paul's final bird Judy and Fife tag out. April 1, 2006 - Spring turkey hunting started off with a bang today, no pun intended.  Here's what happened at the home camp:  two hunters limited out with three birds each.  Three hunters collected two birds each.  One hunter took one bird.  So on the first day of the season, we already have thirteen birds on our tally board.  The two hunters who tagged out are leaving at daylight on Sunday.  Mercy - they are going to miss several more good meals including ribeye night on Monday.  Poor guys.  Here's a few photos of what the opening day produced: Hanging out in camp on the Friday before the season opens. Bo Prestidge draws first blood Donny and Bo tag out Three hunters take two birds each on opening day. John Adams, Franklin, KY Contact us to receive a copy of our spring turkey newsletter from last season.  Photos and statistics galore.  To see our spring turkey references from last season, click the button at the top of this page. Skipper Duncan                        325 942-8040 - office skipper@adobelodge.com            325 374-7024 - cell