The Fall 2015 turkey archery season is just over a month away.
Hunting turkeys with a bow is legal between October 3rd and October
23rd. Time to get the bow all tuned up, start a bit of scouting, and
practice a few kee kee runs and clucks.
As part if the
turkey hunting tune-up, the resident Canada goose season will become
part of the training routine. Starting September 1 and running through
the 25th, it is legal to take the Canada goose by any legal means.
Taking geese with a bow is fully legal and its time to have a go. My
home is almost on the border between the Connecticut River zone and the
Interior Vermont zone which presents a lot of opportunities for
hunting.
With an incredibly smooth draw cycle, the
Elite Energy 35 is the bow of choice for hunting turkeys. During the
summer it has been my mission to have the bow tunes well enough to
properly launch the guillotine style broadheads. The Magnus Bullhead and
the leftover Muzzy M.O.R.E. heads (which I panned in an earlier post)
are in the growing pile of archery stuff so we'll see if they will fly
right and be put into use. A bit of bow tuning and dialing in of
broadheads will be the fodder of a near future post.
The
last post of any merit was made on July 19 and the turkeys are
beginning to flock up. In addition to large groups of poults and hens,
there are a few toms lurking along the edges of these gatherings. On
occasion there are a few small gangs of birds sporting impressive
beards and taking a mature tom is most definitely on the fall "to do"
list.
I hope you enjoy the photo essay of the gathering and growing flocks here in Vermont.
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| Turkey and cows both seem to graze out in fields. |
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| If anyone ever wonders if turkeys blend in then please take a look here. The flock had about 20 birds in it and most of them are in or just outside this photo. |
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| Tough to see the beard but this tom is sporting something near 9" |
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| These two are typically with the bird in the photo above. |
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| These hens had just corralled and herded the poults into the ferns on the right side of the road before running for 20 yards and cutting into the woods. This is the first time witnessing any misdirection to take pressure off the little ones. |
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| Lotsa little heads poking up from the grass. |
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| The photo doesn't due these toms the proper justice in terms of showing them as toms. The red head of spring is all but gone and the camera didn't pick up the beards very well. Shooting straight into the sun doesn't help. |
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| The birds in the flock were all within 30 yards of each other and segregated into gender and age appropriate groups. |
