I found myself in West Virginia last Saturday and hunted hard until noon, battling a wise gobbler from 6am till 10am only to be completely schooled by him. I would return.
Yesterday I took the day off work to go up to JMU and take a final exam for a class I am taking, the exam was at 1:30pm, so I decided to wake at 3am and drive over to wild wonderful and try an abbreviated morning hunt. I was on that same joker at 5:40am, in the same roost, but I think somehow I bumped him. There is not as much vegetation in the mtns over there. He was gobbling like mad, but then just stopped. Not sure what happened. I was pretty bummed though.
Only thing to do was to hoof it around and find another bird maybe. Well, around 6:45-7am, I got on another bird luckily. I really thought I was done since you don't always get 2nd chances on national forest, but I found myself to be fortunate. I worked this bird for what seemed forever in some of the thickest cover I have ever hunted gobblers in, I had no choice, he was in this stuff and would not come out! He quit gobbling at one point, but I could hear him drumming and spitting off in the timber somewhere.....I was about to loose my mind trying to pin point him!! I finally gave in after being completely silent for 20 minutes and cutt hard at him, he gobbled, only this time far off and in the next hollow over behind me, I swung around as best I could and got real aggressive with multiple calls and while balancing on my side I was able to catch him coming in with ANOTHER silent tom, it was so thick he worked his way through a blowdown and I let him have it at EIGHT yards!!!! Wow that was up close and personal! I blew out like 2-3 digits out of his neck vertebre! Talk about no flop!
19lbs, 10"beard, 7/8" spurs. Great hunt. The check station was full of Marshall stuff, those people love their boys in Green and White. Like 17,000 people at the spring football game. That's not bad at all.
Not long till college football!! Just a couple months!
Good luck in May everyone!
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