This past Thursday I was able to get out and hunt after being promoted and now working M-F. I got to spot #2 as someone was parked at spot #1. I walked in taking in the sounds and the cool air. As I walked along the old access road, I heard a lone gobble. It was about 6am. I work my way a little further up and sit down. Wait a few and call...2 gobbles! I call some more and they are fired up, but up on the ridge above me. I call more and they answer but they aren't coming off that ridge top. I can see them walking back and forth. So I wait until it sounds like they're moving off and I make my move. Left flanking move to the draw and up the side of the ridge behind them. I sit down and get 3 yelps out and both gobble...here we go! No more than 5 minutes pass and I see two birds come into view. Once starts to get nervous, so I take aim on the one on the left. There's a small tree to his right and I'm afraid it'll affect my pattern, so I lean out put the bead on him (so I thought) and squeeze the trigger...he flies off with his buddy! Clean miss! No feathers, nothing! Oh well.

I move on to to spot #3. Sit and call for about an hour...nothing happening. So I decide to walk the field edge. As I near the end of the field, I stop and call. I catch movement off in the woods. I freeze and watch...it's a cat...a BIG cat! Bigger than a bobcat and had a long tail. I want to get a pic but I know my smartphone just won't get the photo I want, then it dawns on me that I might want to unshoulder my shotgun just in case. Anyway...I was slightly freaked out by now. I know what I saw and it wasn't a large house (ferel) cat nor was it a bobcat. Really wish I could have got a pic of it!

If you go back to that spot I would keep an extra eye out while calling.

what color was the cat? I had an encounter with a big cat last fall while bowhunting...ran down a ridge in front of my treestand and stopped at 40 yards and took off again. This was a very big cat that was tan in color with a long round tail.

Same thing! Tan with a long round tail...but we don't have those in VA...

Yep, no wolves or elk there either. I bet DNR is putting them in there.

Vic