| ADOBE LODGE SPRING TURKEY HUNTING Finest Rio Grande Gobbler Hunting In Texas |
NOTE: FOR McMANUS CAMP AND MUSTANG RANCH CAMP TURKEY INFORMATION AND REPORTS, CLICK THE LINKS ON THIS PAGE. FOR OUR HOME CAMP REPORTS, SCROLL DOWN THIS PAGE. HUNTS ARE LISTED IN REVERSE ORDER WITH THE MOST RECENT HUNT LISTED AT THE TOP.
ALSO NOTE: IF YOU WOULD LIKE TO RECEIVE OUR NEWSLETTER SUMMARY ON OUR 2007 SPRING TURKEY HUNTING, PLEASE SEND YOUR MAILING ADDRESS TO: skipper@adobelodge.com
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Hunt # 7 April 30 - May 3
What a way to end our season ! Not only did we have some dedicated turkey hunters in camp, we also had three rookies who took their first-ever birds. And to top it off, we got three - count'em - THREE dandy rains out of the deal. Folks, we haven't seen a springtime this good in years.
No doubt, the rain affected the hunting, but you'll never hear a West Texan complain about rain, no matter how deeply his truck is stuck or how far he might have to walk to get help. The night before the hunt started, it rained almost all night and we found 1.7" in our lodge gauge at daylight. Although the hunt kicked off at mid-day in beautiful weather, wet roads affected our mobility. We simply couldn't get to all the honey-holes we'd saved back for this hunt even though we pressed both ATVs into service.
On those turkey hunts where lots of birds get hauled into camp, three things come into play. It's to your advantage if the turkeys are visiting the feeders. Oops - not so anymore as we noted in our report of Hunt # 5 of a week ago. Secondly, we also noted then that mid-day water-points would become hot-spots for turkeys. But with the wonderful rain we had, guess what? Puddles could be found in every cow track. Gobblers were up to their spurs in both feed and water. Thirdly, you'll still do well if you put a camp-full of very-experienced veterans into play. Huh-o. We had only one such hunter on the roster. So as a result, few birds were tagged during the first part of the hunt.
These problems were compounded on the first night in camp when rolling thunder boomed almost all night. We got another .9", but the morning dawned foggy as London, and some of the hunters had heck finding their way around. As you would suspect, the Rios were mostly silent under those conditions. Surprisingly, one of the rookies collected his first-ever gobbler which caused a mini-celebration in camp. Did we mention that this was a group of eight old friends from Arkansas? Well, they know how to have a good time, and never mind the weather. Such folks are used to rain anyway and with us West Texans being giddy about the moisture, it was like Christmas.
Then during the second full day of the hunt, another massive storm system moved through West Texas during the middle of the day. Tornado warnings and all that. It rained an additional .7" and there was a bit of hail, but no damage, thank goodness. By mid-afternoon, the skies had cleared and it was beautiful. So was the hunting. Six gobblers were brought into camp that afternoon and by now, all the rookies had birds on the board.
Hunters reported hearing and working numerous gobblers. Indeed, they marveled at the number of birds they were finding this late in our season. Comical mistakes spared several of those toms. For example, Greg Clairday and Willie Young, hunting as a pair, agreed that the first shot would be Greg's. When the gobbler came to within 25 yards, Willie closed his eyes and covered his ears as Greg drew a bead on the bird. But doggone the luck - Greg's gun snapped, and Willie's gun was propped on a tree behind him. When the hunt finally concluded after three days, Greg noted that he'd heard and/or worked probably twenty different gobblers during that time. He went home with no bird, but anyone could tell he'd had a super time during the entire hunt. The same was true for the others who left camp bird-less.
This late-season hunting seems to produce more action with the hens now probably sitting on their eggs. We're tentative here because it's pert-near impossible to find one of the old biddies on her nest to know for sure. But in any case, a hen-lonesome tom is preferable to the henned-up kind. And with all this now in play, there is a definite change in the bird's roosting-patterns and daily movements. We have found new hot-spots for hunting that didn't exist early in the season.
Here's the stats on our final spring turkey hunt of 2007: eight hunters took ten birds. One took three; three took two; one took one; and three got no birds. The three rookies did great, each taking two birds apiece. Ray Nickle's second tom had a powerful set of spurs, too. But it was Ray's first-ever turkey that topped the scale with 18.55 lbs. Welby Young, the old-pro hunter of the group, collected his limit of three gobblers, one of which had a 10" beard. Welby spent most of his time calling birds for his friends. Welby will do to hunt with, and we'd like to make him a part of our staff. Welby could call you a turkey through a pack of hound dogs.
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| Hunt # 7 - All from Jonesboro, AR except one from KS. |
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| Hunt # 7 Staff |
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| First - ever gobbler |
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| Uncle and nephew. |
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| Ken Dillehay and Ray Nickle |
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| Show'em how to do it, Welby. |
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| Two happy hunters. |
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| Hey, Ray - show us that bird's spurs. |
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| Birds galore when the weather finally gave the hunters a break. |
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| Jonesboro turkey blind. |
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| Save that fan, beard and spurs Charlie. |
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| Sundown spurs. |
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| Ray's spurs - a better look. |
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| Bryan and his gobbler |
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| Another look at Ray's spurs. |
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| Willy Young and his second bird. |
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| These hunters had to bring their own trailer. |
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| We've saving this bird to mount. |
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| Cooking taters for ribeye night. |
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| Relaxing around the camp waiting on supper. |
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| Brandon Ezell - bird processor delux. |
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| Logging info on to the tally board. |
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| Finally - it's steak night. |
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Hunt # 6 April 26-29
We kind of figured this hunt would turn out to be a good'un and it was. Great weather, too. We only had one Adobe Lodge veteran in camp, Bro. Danny Noles (see Hunt # A below). Danny brought three of his amigos, too - all new to us and fine hunters they were. There was also a single hunter from Alabama. Finally, to make a camp-full, we had a party of three young men from Mississippi.
Now don't be fooled by their youth - you never judge the skill of a turkey hunter strictly by age. (Remember Brad Swindell on Hunt # 2). There was just something about the trio that told us they were super-serious about the sport. With all the rest being similarly addicted to the spring wars, we went into the fray with some battle-hardened troops. These are our kinds of hunters. It's not the size of the dog in the fight, etc. etc.
How did this stellar group do, you ask? Well, a re-cap of our tally board showed the eight took a total of eleven gobblers. Two took three each, and another hunter would have joined the limited-out group except for a DNF (did not find) bird that was rolled with a couple of loads of heavy bird shot but somehow managed to get away. Three hunters took one each, and two took zero. So how can we call this hunt a good one? Easy. They worked birds and worked birds and worked birds. Everyday. To measure success in turkey hunting, you can't just count the numbers of birds that get tagged. It's always THE HUNT for the quarry that makes an ordinary turkey hunt into a great adventure. Never mind the statistics. This was the kind of hunting we like to see. We'll say it again: it was a great hunt.
The final morning was typical. Danny, who had been hunting alone, finally accompanied friends Greg and Karla Parker whom he'd known back in Alabama. They set up as a three-some and you'd think that by triangulating like that, it would be a cinch. Not so. Danny had a bird at twenty-five yards, but like the gentleman he is, he deferred to Karla. She had her sights on a gobbler at eighty yards. That rascal bird never came closer while poor Danny's gobbler finally wandered away untouched. Indeed, before that unfortunate incident, Greg said he and Karla were working 10-12 toms every day. Saw and heard plenty of gobblers. Had them at 80 yards and hung-up. Had them behind them spitting and drumming. Had fifteen gobblers in a roost tree before daylight. Neither Danny nor Karla was able to tag a bird, but both seemed plenty satisfied with their experiences over the three days.
Others told similar stories. The gobblers were active but didn't necessarily read the rule book. It was the kind of turkey hunt that increases the hunter's addiction to the sport. So that's why we say it was a good'un. The hunters were having a ball, and Bert Jones from Alabama said it best: he declared he thought he'd died and gone to turkey hunter's heaven.
Here's a first: Danny's amigo, Bill Sladovnik from Dallas, hunted his final bird with his muzzleloader. We've not seen that weapon used here on a turkey hunt before. Although Bill never shot at a bird with the smoke-pole, we have no doubt he could have hit one with it.
As we expected, the gobblers are getting lighter since we are along toward the end of the active breeding season. Indeed, five of the eleven mature toms weighed less than 16 lbs. None weighed over twenty. Most all the beards taken were in the 8 1/2" to 9 3/4" range. Several spurs were measured at 1 1/8" or more. Justin Vandevender's third bird had not a double beard but a split-beard - very unusual. It was a keeper.
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| Three young turkey hunters from Mississippi |
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| Two from Texas, three from Alabama. |
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| Staff - Hunt # 6 |
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| New Adobe Lodge vehicle???? |
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| Bill Sladovnik collects a pair of Rios. |
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| Bert and # 3 |
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| Justin Vandevender and his first of three. |
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| Greg Parker and his gobbler. |
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| Stan and Gil. |
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| Stan and the formal portrait. |
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| A Texas bird in a Mississippi truck. |
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| Gil and his gobbler. |
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| Bill and his muzzleloader. |
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| Brandon Ezell has a new pet. Now what breed of birddog do you suppose this is? |
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| These Mississippi hunters hunted hard. |
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| War wound. Stung by a spur. |
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Hunt # 5 April 22-25
Let's call this one the rattlesnake hunt. To date, we haven't seen but one of the serpents all season, and that was on the previous hunt. This hunt date, however, produced a number of the bell-tailed reptiles. Reason: a storm was brewing. Sadly, we didn't get any rain out of it. We only saw a sprinkle as the storm was building and finally moved east to hammer the Dallas area, but such weather always seems to make all kinds of snakes crawl.
But hey. We are a turkey hunting camp. What about the turkey hunting? And shut up about those snakes.
Most of our troops in the field reported good hunting. Indeed, one very experienced veteran, Kerry Jones from Kentucky, tagged out with his limit of three birds. Folks, this guy is a turkey hunter with about 300 birds to his life-time credit. Experienced veterans who employ a multitude of tactics generally do well, and Kerry fits that description to a "t". He hunted a couple of different ranches and found birds most everywhere he went. Our other hunters had mixed results, but most seemed to be pleased with what they saw / heard.
One thing for sure: the bird's movement is no longer necessarily toward our feeders. The lush, green weeds (which turkeys now prefer to grain) are providing a veritable banquet for the birds. Out of the trees in the morning, any direction they pitch will land them in plenty of groceries. Mid-day water points have become increasingly important and can be a gold mine if worked properly. Lesson: after the early morning battle in the roosting area, get yourself to a water point and be patient. Indeed, patience is a valuable trait for the successful Rio hunter nowadays. The birds are here and you have to wait'em out. That's easier said than done.
But maybe, just maybe, the hens are finally sitting on their clutch of eggs. It's hard to get a handle on the exact timing of this important event. If true, the final two hunts of the year ought to be "gang-busters" as those now-lonely gobblers will be coming to even a poorly-played call. Stay tuned and we'll update our reports with further developments.
Here's the re-cap of Hunt # 5: seven hunters took ten gobblers. (We aren't counting the snakes). One took three gobblers; two took two each; three took one each; and one took zero. Seems like we heard of a miss or two, but that information got garbled amid the snake reports. And a fumbled opportunity for a double-kill kept that particular bird off our tally board. Oh well. We are happy to report that none of the shots at snakes were missed. So that puts a positive spin on the whole hunt. Kerry's first bird topped every statistic we keep with 19.7 lbs, a 10" beard and a pair of 1 1/4" spurs. But Sid Chambless got the season's second double-beard with 8 3/8" + 3 1/2".
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| Hunt # 5 - Four from TN; two from VT; one from KY |
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| Kerry, Amy, and Dennis |
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| Imagine that ! A flat tire here in West Texas. |
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| Al Hatman and his fine gobbler. |
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| Dennis Tatro and his 18.45 lb, 8" gobbler. |
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| Kerry Jones - Master Turkey Hunter |
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| Sid Chambless and his second bird. |
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| Guide Jerry Watts gets the story from Eric and Sid. |
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| Sid and his double-bearded beauty. |
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| A better look at the two beards. |
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| Eric Sutley with one of his two. |
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| Kerry and Eric watch Jerry process a turkey. |
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| Rick Buerger collects a couple of dandy spurs for his collection. |
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| The formal portrait of Rick. |
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| Kerry Jones and a couple of snakes he "harvested". |
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| The staff on Hunt # 5 |
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| Finally, the ribeyes are done. |
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| Al Hatman makes a guest appearance with The Adobe Lodge band. |
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| Eric and Sid - waiting to leave. |
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Hunt # 4 April 18-21
Seems like every season a hunt will come along where the dog-gone gobblers will throw everyone in camp a curve ball. So it was with Hunt # 4. We put only a few of those rascals on our tally board, and the spring games with those birds got mighty tough. You can't blame the weather. Crisp at daylight. Eighty during the afternoon. It was a bit windy at times, but we can't hide behind that excuse. Most of the hunters in camp were either rookies or barely experienced and that, too was a factor.
Even with the gobblers winning this round, our troops can can claim some measure of success. And here 'tis: Tom Caron from Vermont got the first bird of the season sporting a double-beard with a 9" plus a 5 1/2" pair of whiskers. Tom also got the season's first rattlesnake and in his excitement over this encounter with the reptile, he almost ran out of shells blowing the poor serpent to Kingdom Come.
Sadly, Tom's hunting partner - Chris Masson (both are from Canaan, VT) hunted, and hunted, and hunted some more but never collected a gobbler. And Chris wasn't the only one in camp to go home empty. Bill Hill from Zanesville, OH, back for his third hunt with us, also got zip. And then there was Ray Newfeld from Long Island. Ray missed some shots at the majestic birds and similarly left here bird-less, but he claimed to have had one heck of a hunt. So it was easy to find some mighty big blank spots on our tally board.
Evo Rondini (who reminded us that he was on his 7th turkey hunt with us) again this year brought his beautiful daughter Julie Losacano for the second year in a row. The pair hunt as a team with Evo doing the calling and Julie doing the shooting. This tactic is normally effective and deadly. But after drawing a blank for the first half of the hunt, these two Connecticut hunters finally got things going their way and managed to take three gobblers between them, two toms coming on the final morning.
Bill Hill's sons - Billy and Matt - also collected a total of three toms with ole Matt waiting until the final morning to take his first-ever Rio. Indeed it was Billy who drew first blood on the first afternoon of the hunt, but it was well into the second half of the game that even one more bird from any hunter appeared on our board. It was looking to be a complete disaster until the tide slowly turned in the final quarter. But you gotta give the game to the gobblers. They are probably congratulating themselves right this minute. High-fouring and all that. (Turkeys don't have enough digits to high-five.)
All hunters reported hearing a decent amount of gobbling on the roosts early in the morning. Everyone's calling, however, brought few gobblers close enough to take a gun off safety. Most everyone reported seeing and working birds, but few came within range for that kill-shot. It seemed as if the gobblers simply refused to play the game according to the rules.
So here's the summary of Hunt # 4: eight hunters collected a total of seven toms. Two took two each; three took one each; and there were three hunters who got zero. Best beard honors were easily taken by Tom Caron with that double-bearded dandy. Best spurs were found on Julie's first tom who had 1 1/4" x 1 3/8" hookers. That same bird was the heaviest of the group with 19.20 pounds on our scale.
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| Hunt # 4 - All are Yankees. two from CT; two from VT; two from OH; one from PA; one from NY |
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| No birds come into camp, but there are plenty of stories. |
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| Chris found a turtle's house. |
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| Billy Hill collected the hunt's first gobbler. |
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| A new bird in camp always draws a crowd. |
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| Hey, Grandpa - what's for supper? |
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| Julie and one of her two gobblers. |
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| Evo Rondini finally connected on a fine gobbler. |
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| Billy Hill and one of his two Rios. |
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| Tom Caron and his double-bearded beauty. |
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| Here's a better look at those two beards. |
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| The formal portrait of Billy. |
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| The final morning's hunt. |
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| Waiting for ribeyes. Hey cook, when is my steak going to be ready? |
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| Come and get it. The steaks are done. |
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Hunt # 3 April 14-17
When Hunt # 3 started at noon on Saturday, the weather was less than ideal. A dry, chilly wind was whipping out of the northwest. So the hunt started a bit slow, but on Sunday, the day was picture perfect. And the hunting turned good.
We had three father/son pairs hunting with us, plus a couple of others making a total of eight hunters. As is our policy, we scattered the hunters out over three different ranches totaling over 16,000 acres - about a third of our total Home Camp area. Each incoming group rotates to a rested area. Some hunted in pairs; some hunted as singles.
Turkeys are almost impossible to figure. Virginia taxidermist Todd Rapalee his 13-year-old son, Dillon were after Dillon's first-ever turkey. We put them on a ranch that has been loaded with turkeys. We have photos of droves of the birds there on that ranch numbering probably seventy-five indivuduals in just one flock - and we've seen numerous groups everywhere on that property. So what happened? For the first 1 1/2 days, Todd and Dillon could not work a gobbler or get a bird on the ground despite lots of good hunting. What's going on? How in the world could things turn out so badly on this great ranch?
So we went to Plan B. Todd and Dillon moved to another spot on another ranch and wound up taking a total of three birds, finally, after batting zero for the first half of the hunt. And doggoned if Dillon's first-ever turkey wasn't the second-heaviest bird of the hunt with a dandy set of spurs to boot. (No pun intended).
Only Brad Milner from Atlanta, GA was the only Adobe Lodge veteran in camp. Ole Brad "done good" by taking three good toms in short order and left camp early to get back home to tend to business. Brad will be back in '08 for another go at the Rios.
We had a couple more taxidermists on this hunt, too. A father/son pair from Monroeville, NJ - Steve and Rob Hildebrand were here and these craftsmen would meticulously skin-out the several birds they collected to haul back home. I wish we could see their finished work. Maybe they'll send us a photo when they're done.
Here's the stats we found on our tally board at the conclusion of the hunt: eight hunters harvested nineteen birds. Five hunters limited out with three/each; one hunter collected a pair of gobblers; and two hunters took one each. Heaviest bird was a 21.55 pounder and only Dillon's tom was the only other to break the twenty pound mark. Five of the Rios had beards in excess of 10 inches. But it was Andy Hoglen's third gobbler that had the best spurs of the year so far - 1 1/2 x 1 6/8 hay-hookers. Lethal weapons for sure.
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| Hunt # 3 - Five from NJ; two from VA; one from GA |
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| Staff - Hunt # 3 |
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| Arrival in Camp |
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| First things first. |
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| Pretty flowers, handsome gobblers. |
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| First-ever turkey. |
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| Andy and Drew Hoglen |
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| Rob and Steve Hildebrand |
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| Brad Milner - the only Adobe Lodge veteran in camp. |
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| Tee Wilson |
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| Here's the best spurs of the year so far. |
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| Rob Hildebrand and his gobbler. |
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| Todd Rapalee |
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| Todd and Dillon |
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| Rivers are a big deal in this part of Texas. |
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| Both of these will hurt you. |
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| Cactus Flower |
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| Look at this beard. Looks like it was cut. |
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| Red sky at night - sailor's delight. |
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Hunt # 2 April 10-13
Thankfully, the weather on Hunt Two returned to normal. Indeed, it could hardly have been better. We hosted a group of four from PA, a pair of brothers from Tennessee, plus a hunter each from NJ and WI. On the previous two hunts, everyone knew everyone. Not so this time.
On our pre-hunt documents, hunters are asked to indicate their own experience and skill level. Such information helps us plan our hunt strategy. Sixteen-year-old Bradley Swindell from Everett, PA marked the "Very Experienced" box. Hmmmm. Could this be right? Yep, it was. Young Brad took his limit of three gobblers on the first afternoon of the hunt. Remember the immortal words of the legendary pitcher Dizzy Dean: "It ain't bragging if you can do it." We've known Brad's dad, Boyde, for many years now, and Brad has probably been tagging along on turkey hunts since he was in diapers. Boyde is afflicted with that incurable addition to the sport, and Brad surely inherited the trait, as well. Which is proof of the adage: Like Father - Like Son.
Now it is time for Boyde, the dad, to take lessons from Brad, the son. Why? Bradley downed his three birds with three good shots. For the first two days, poor Boyde couldn't hit one. The only thing Boyde kept bringing back to camp was empty shells and plenty of stories. Good grief, Boyde, we said. What's got into you? Finally, and thankfully, Boyde finally put a good gobbler on our board. Below in the photographs from this hunt, you'll see the evidence and what we made Boyde do with that gobbler.
Both Peter Seeler, New Jersey, and Joe Appleby, PA each collected one bird each, also, but both admitted they were here as much for the relaxation as for the hunting. Hanging out in camp on the easy chairs under the shade of the skinning shed is not a bad way to spend the day.
Everett, PA hunter Ron Griffin got into a bunch of turkeys and quickly put his three birds on the tally board. So being the opportunistic operation that we are, we converted Ron from a hunter into a guide. Ron took the Hill brothers from Erin, TN to that Honey Hole spot and finally they, too, began to bring turkeys back to camp. The Hills took a total of five birds between them after having been skunked the first day of the hunt.
The only bad deal of the whole shebang was Chris Simon's failure to collect a Rio. Chris, from Fifield, WI, took an Osceola bird recently in Florida and she is going after a Merrium's bird later on this spring. Somehow, nothing seemed to work for Chris and doggone the luck anyway. All the hunters in camp were pulling for Chris, especially on that final morning, but the stars just weren't lined up in her favor.
Despite this large disappointment (and Boyde's shooting skills), otherwise it was a good hunt. The eight hunters took a total of fourteen gobblers. Three hunters harvested their limit of three; one took two; three took one each; and one took zero. We counted four beards of 10" or more. We noted several spurs that approached the 1 1/4" length. But as is normal, the weights of the toms are coming down somewhat as the breeding season pulls that flesh off. On this hunt there were only two twenty-pounders weighed on our scale, both collected by the Hill brothers. Indeed, Barry Hill's gobbler at 21.95 lbs is the heaviest bird we've weighed all season on our super-accurate scales.
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| Hunt # 2 - from PA, TN, WI and NJ |
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| Staff: Hunt # 2 |
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| Bradley Swindell - very experienced turkey hunter |
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| Boyde and Bradley Swindell, Everett, PA |
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| Where's the turkey? |
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| When you're hot, you're hot. |
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| Joe Appleby and his fine gobbler. |
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| Peter Seeler, Williamstown, NJ |
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| The Hill Brothers from Tennessee |
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| Ron Griffin, Hopewell, PA |
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| Finally. Boyde gets his gobbler. |
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| The formal photo. |
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| Are you guys hunting gobblers or deer horns? |
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| Right out from the camp. |
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| Donnie Hill took one of the two twenty-pounders. |
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| Kyle Ezell checks out those spurs. |
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| Donnie Hill and Barry Hill |
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| Jarrod Ezell, master Adobe Lodge chef. |
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| Steak night. |
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Hunt # 1 - April 6-9
This was a turkey hunt for the history books. Not likely to be another one like it for a long time. Why? It was the most unusual weather anyone could ever remember for Easter weekend. Arriving in camp about noontime on Friday, the hunters found the temperature was about 50 degrees. Ominously, a high cloud cover began to move in from the east with a chilly breeze. Even at that point, we Texans needed a coat (although we happened to run into a Massachusetts guy hunting at another camp up the road who was still quite comfortable in his t-shirt). That mark of 50 would have looked plenty good for the next three days. It quickly got colder - lots colder.
By Saturday morning, the temperature was in the high 20's. Things went downhill all day long. Drizzle became snow, then finally turned to sleet. If the spring ground hadn't been so warm from the recent weather, no doubt we would have accumulated several inches of frozen precipitation. The cloud cover hung on for the next three days. And that strong wind would go right through most any coat. How in the world our hunters braved those conditions, we'll never know. But they did. They brought birds into camp all along, except during the worst of the weather on Saturday.
This Arkansas group of eight turkey hunters were continuing a long-running contest among themselves. Space doesn't permit listing all their self-imposed rules and conditions, but it was plenty easy to see that these guys are serious about this annual contest. What's a little inclement weather if you are in a struggle for superiority over your companions? This was the group's first time to hunt with us, having lost their long-term place somewhere down to the south. They say they'll be back again next year, but we made no promises about the weather. Remember: this is Texas. Things change quickly here. For example - it's supposed to be 80-something by Tuesday. Go figure.
Of course the hunting was far from traditional. Gobblers didn't sound off much in that blizzard. Who knows what the poor hens were doing? If they already had a nest, were they tending their eggs? Will those eggs survive 28 degree weather? Will everything have to start over when warm weather returns? Inquiring minds want to know. Leaves on the mesquite trees were already affecting visibility, which actually aids a turkey hunter. Old-timers swear that large mesquites won't put out leaves until after the last freeze, but they were badly fooled by this storm. No doubt, all the leaves will now turn brown and the process must begin anew. This is one screwed-up month of April.
Despite hunting the worst storm ever, those Arkansas guys did mighty good and put some good numbers up on our tally board. The eight hunters took a total of eighteen gobblers. Four took their limit of three each. Two more took two apiece. The final two collected one bird each. Most of the weights are in the 17-19 lb. range with the heaviest bird of the group putting 20.25 lbs on our scale. One beard in the lot exceeded 10 inches with most in the 8-9" length. We could count eight spurs that measured 1 1/4" or more. So it was a productive hunt, despite the weather. Below you'll see some of the photos collected during this cold, miserable time. No doubt by the end of the season, someone will be complaining about the heat.
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| The start of the hunt |
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| Hunt # 1 - Seven from Arkansas, one from Mississippi |
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| A dusting of snow? Well, maybe - - - |
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| The photo studio is iced up. |
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| Road damage. |
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| Too cold to hang out outside. |
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| Cooking fish in a deep freeze. |
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| Waiting for supper |
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| A modern dryer. |
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| The weigh-in |
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| Contest Winners |
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| Warren Jr and Warren Jennings, Sr. |
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| L-R James Gibbs, Harry Chisum, Warren Jennings, Sr, Steve Weaver. |
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| Eight hunters - eighteen gobblers |
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| More contest winners. |
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| James Gibbs and his tom. |
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| Saturday's temperature |
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| Steve Weaver |
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| Harry Chisum |
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| Mike Smith |
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| Mark Bennett and his three birds. |
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| Ed McKinley |
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Hunt # A - Mar. 31- Apr. 3
Why, you ask, did we have a "Hunt A" before "Hunt 1" which now will begin on April 6? Easy. We first thought the Texas season began on Saturday, April 7. When we discovered our mistake, gosh - there was a whole 'nother week for turkey hunters. So we booked a group from Florida for this windfall, and they got here on Saturday to begin hunting at daylight on Sunday. The good news in all this i | |