Talking Turkey

Yesterday was a pleasant hunt - sunny with temperatures in the mid forties.  In the sun it was delightfully warm.

 

The snow is rapidly melting but sill ranges in depth from zero (bare grass) to fourteen inches.  And it is wet, wet, wet.  Low areas in the trails are the consistency of a giant ten-inch deep Slurpee.  In other locations you punch thru the crusty top layer to the slushy layer at the bottom and the suction makes it difficult to extricate your rubber boot.  There remains enough snow pack that I'm still using a winter camouflage smock.  My pal Lawyer pointed-out that if I had my scoped Mauser with me I would be reminiscent of a German soldier wintering on the Eastern Front.

I set-up again where the turkey track comes thru adjacent to a semi-frozen sinkhole. 

I enjoyed a secure place of concealment, observation of all approaches to the point of ambush and plenty of warming sunshine. On balance the conditions and my set-up were about as optimal as they come - under normal circumstances.  This spring has not been normal - it has been abnormal.

I had no birds responding to my calling.  Nary a yelp, kee-kee-kee or gobble.  For a moment late in the day I thought I heard some yelping coming from my neighbor's woods to the northeast.  There again - it was not repeated so it was unconfirmed.

All is not for naught however - I remembered to apply sunblock (I did not get sunburned nearly as badly) and I had some sociable chickadees pay me a call.  Wished I had the presence of mind to have packed a handful of birdseed.  Friendly songbird the chickadee is - if you have food they'll alight on your finger.

click on images for a better look

 

Back at it today...