When Steve finally triumphed over the elusive turkey, it wasn't just a win for him—it was a collective victory for all of us who've shared in his journey from fledgling to ace hunter. We crack open his story, spilling the secrets of dogged persistence and the split-second decisions that can make or break a hunt. Whether you wield a bow or shotgun, you'll find kinship in our tales of chasing after these wily birds. The camaraderie of the hunt is strong in this episode, as we recount those heart-pounding moments that only a fellow hunter can truly appreciate.
Kyle, a seasoned veteran with many a story, takes us through the exhilarating highs and the taxing lows of his own turkey hunting escapades. His transition from novice to seasoned hunter is a road map for anyone looking to embark on a similar adventure. Meanwhile, I stand by my bow, swearing by the quiet precision it demands, yet understanding the undeniable allure of a shotgun's power. Our discussion isn't just about preference—it's about the essence of each method, the discipline they command, and the intense joy they deliver when everything comes together.
Our episode wraps with a vivid retelling of the time I nearly let a prize bird slip through my fingers because of a minor, yet potentially costly, oversight. This humbling experience serves as a stark reminder of the relentless attention to detail the hunt demands. Kyle's tales of strategy across multiple hunting zones and the successes that follow infuse our conversation with tactics and tips that can turn any promising hunt into a tale worth recounting. Join us as we share these stories, not just as a tribute to the hunt but as a homage to the hunters themselves—their patience, their skill, and the unbridled joy they find within the wild heart of the pursuit.
Hope you guy's enjoy! Hit the follow button, rate and give the show a comment!
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When Steve finally triumphed over the elusive turkey, it wasn't just a win for him—it was a collective victory for all of us who've shared in his journey from fledgling to ace hunter. We crack open his story, spilling the secrets of dogged persistence and the split-second decisions that can make or break a hunt. Whether you wield a bow or shotgun, you'll find kinship in our tales of chasing after these wily birds. The camaraderie of the hunt is strong in this episode, as we recount those heart-pounding moments that only a fellow hunter can truly appreciate.
Kyle, a seasoned veteran with many a story, takes us through the exhilarating highs and the taxing lows of his own turkey hunting escapades. His transition from novice to seasoned hunter is a road map for anyone looking to embark on a similar adventure. Meanwhile, I stand by my bow, swearing by the quiet precision it demands, yet understanding the undeniable allure of a shotgun's power. Our discussion isn't just about preference—it's about the essence of each method, the discipline they command, and the intense joy they deliver when everything comes together.
Our episode wraps with a vivid retelling of the time I nearly let a prize bird slip through my fingers because of a minor, yet potentially costly, oversight. This humbling experience serves as a stark reminder of the relentless attention to detail the hunt demands. Kyle's tales of strategy across multiple hunting zones and the successes that follow infuse our conversation with tactics and tips that can turn any promising hunt into a tale worth recounting. Join us as we share these stories, not just as a tribute to the hunt but as a homage to the hunters themselves—their patience, their skill, and the unbridled joy they find within the wild heart of the pursuit.
Hope you guy's enjoy! Hit the follow button, rate and give the show a comment!
GET YOUR HECS HUNTING GEAR :https://hecshunting.com/shop/?avad=385273_a39955e99&nb_platform=avantlink&nb_pid=323181&nb_wid=385273&nb_tt=cl&nb_aid=NA
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/bdhunting/
Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCZtxCA-1Txv7nnuGKXcmXrA
Welcome back to the Garden State Outdoors and podcast presented by boondocks hunting. I'm your host, mike nitrang. I'm frank mistico boys turkey talk. We are almost done with turkey season, but before we get into kyle, you know who is the well known turkey man. You know the the legend. When it comes to turkeys, we have a special announcement. Somebody got their first bird on the ground. It was not me, me and, to quote him, he has graduated, which I think this is the best quote ever. I have graduated from a turkey hunter to a turkey killer, steve, congratulations, welcome to the elusive club that I'm trying to get into still.
Speaker 2:Oh, thank you so much And's, uh, and you know what. And so this is my second year of turkey hunting and uh, it was is kind of interesting because last year I think I got out about four days. Uh, this year, uh, this past week, the day that I took the bird was my third day this year and uh bought way more permits for different zones and periods this year than I did last year and uh, one of which I didn't even. I didn't even get to hunt period C, which which is fine, but uh, you know, I was just a an amazing opportunity to get out there and I, I, so I talked to Kyle actually I think it was Sunday, last Sunday, the Sunday before this this passed and was like man, where should I go? And that kind of threw out a Hail. Mary, honestly, was like you know, got a tag for his own 15 and period D and I, you know, have nowhere to go.
Speaker 2:At the time. I had some other opportunities on some private that kind of fell through. I had some other opportunities on some private that kind of fell through, and so I was kind of I was like all right, Wharton's huge, and didn't get a tag in my particular zone where I live, where I do know where there's birds, and so threw it out to Kyle and he was like, hey, you should go here, this, here, this and that room, you know, through some pins and some areas. Just that looked good and which is hilarious because I had literally already scouted those exact same spots, like the week before, and so it was good to know that I was on the right track.
Speaker 2:Um, but even so, I hit up probably four different spots, uh, for about five hours on that mond Monday and just did, came up completely and completely empty handed, and then I had the opportunity to get out again and, man, what a, what a hunt, I mean. And and so you talk about, obviously, hunting deer and getting hooked, you know, on your first, your first buck or your first your first deer in general, and the thrill and the adrenaline and, um, I'm not really sure I understand it now, kyle, I understand the eyes, I will you know, I will say for sure, you know, um, I don't know what it is about this year, steve, but you know, for us, who are complete rookies when it comes to to turkey hunting, this year, you know you finally got it done.
Speaker 1:I've been closer than ever. I mean, I'm at that one yard line trying to punch a, punch, a touchdown in and I can't. You know I haven't gotten there yet, but listen, I'm extremely proud of myself and proud of you too. I mean, in the chat, everyone I just the the morale in the boondocks hunting group chat has been at an all-time low because we've been like this close and we've had a bunch of misses or or birds that have been shot and or whatever the case is. And you know it's like what, when the hell is it gonna gonna happen?
Speaker 1:And I I literally wrote in the chat I can't like the other day and I'm like, listen, I know someone's gonna do it, like one of us is gonna do it, and I'm pretty sure like, uh, steve, you said something like well, at least one of us is confident. It's it's giving like a a morale boost. And I was out that day and also when I got that first text message, I was like, yes, I was, I was freaking out, I was like they, I was like they're finally, like you know, really well-deserved. And you know, I know you wanted it with the bow, but you can't, you know, you, you can't choose and you just you got to get it done any way you can. And you got it done with the gun.
Speaker 2:You know what, and that's a really good point. And on a lot of levels there and I'm sure Kyle will agree you know, there's something that, as I think we talked about in one of our previous podcasts being bow hunters. Probably first and foremost, you know, there's a strong desire to want to be able to take every animal with a bow, because of the challenge, because of the drive, the intimacy, because of the proximity to the game. And, you know, I think I learned, I think I think I learned, I think I, I think I learned some really good lessons, as far as I wouldn't say modeling myself after other hunters, but seeing what other people have accomplished.
Speaker 2:It's so easy on YouTube or Instagram or the social medias to kind of see what people are doing and to try to not necessarily it's not necessarily chasing inches or, you know, beard length or whatever it is, but chasing an experience. And I think, for myself, when it came to trying to take the turkey with a decap, you know, with the bullhead broadhead, I spent time in building the arrows for it this year, practicing and yardage and setting up the bow for it, which was fun, and it was great, practicing and yardage and setting up the bow for it, which was fun and it was great. But that's a very specific scenario of taking a Turkey with that weapon, with that broadhead and that and that setup, whereas the limitless possibilities of running gun with a boomstick. So I think it just trumps everything. I, I, I totally see that now.
Speaker 1:Yeah, no, it's. And I and I think Kyle said that. You know I, I know Kyle, had a goal, what last year I think it was to to kill one with a bow. Was it last year or two years ago, I can't, I can't really remember to accomplish it with a bow. And you did. But then I asked you, I think this year, I was like, oh well, are you going to bow hunt them? And you're like you know what With the gun, that's what really gets the heart pumping and it's, I don't know, like I think like more that I hunt them this year.
Speaker 1:I think I kind of agree, like, don't get me wrong, I am a hundred percent going to kill a turkey with my bow. I would like to kill every animal at least once with my bow. But I think, like, just like with waterfowl, like I want to do that with the gun. I kind of like it's a different style and I kind of want to just be able to go out there and have fun because, like this isn't deer hunting for me. Deer hunting I, you know what I know and I and I do, and I will never probably not bow hunt deer. I just don't want to shoot one with a gun, but I feel like it's the direct opposite.
Speaker 1:I feel like once I accomplish it with a, with a bow, I'm just going to want to use a shotgun still, because it's when you're talking about hunting, especially turkey hunting. When you're talking about turkey hunting, you're picturing, just dropping them with, you know, with the shotgun, and just you know shooting it right in the face and running after like a madman and you know stepping on its neck or whatever, like you know. That's that's kind of what you envision turkey hunting, and I, you know, yeah, you can do it with a bow, but I feel like that's just something that I feel like I'd rather do it with a gun. For sure, kyle, you could speak on that.
Speaker 4:So, yeah, two years ago I was like you know what? I've killed a decent amount of birds in my lifetime. What's the next step? And obviously, shooting a home to bow is the next step, obviously. So after I shot that bird, was I pumped? Yeah, of course I am. How I was at 10 years old is exactly how I am at 30 years old. I mean, I my the the video that I posted on my YouTube channel of my Kentucky hunt.
Speaker 4:I wanted that to be like nothing was staged, was like I didn't edit stuff out, I just kept the camera rolling and you saw like the rawness of how I am when it comes to turkey hunting. I'm screaming, I am jumping up and down, I'm cursing, I'm all jacked up. And that's how, like I said, that's how I was when I was 10. That's how I am as a you know, being 30. Um, so, shooting one with the bow, it really was an accomplishment. Yeah, it was. You know, it was awesome, it was great, but that power behind it wasn't there for me.
Speaker 4:And would I shoot another one with a bow? I probably would, just because I'm a hunter and I'm a hunter first. Would just because I'm a hunter and I'm a hunter first If the opportunity was presented to, where I was able to hunt somewhere and I couldn't use a gun, and you know, on private land, and they said, yo, you're not allowed to use a gun here, but you can turkey hunt. I'm going to turkey hunt and I'm going to use a bow, but a bow isn't going to be my first option. It never will be when it comes to turkeys.
Speaker 2:But a bow isn't going to be my first option. It never will be. When it comes to dirties, I would say that I was really glad that I didn't take my first bird with a bow, because I severely underestimated the amount of adrenaline that was going to be flowing in that moment, at least in the scenario of the hunt that I had and I'm relatively certain that I probably would have botched it I probably would have missed that bird with a bow.
Speaker 1:It's, it's a game of inches, when you know when you're. When we're talking about boat, just like with deer, just like it's, it's always a game of interest. So it does. It's a different element, but you're right, it also doesn't have that, that power to it as well. It's weird because, like I don't know how to really explain it and I hope our listeners or whoever's listening can, can understand, like I don't know, there's just something different with shooting a gun at a, at a turkey. And it's just like at that moment when you're patterning in your shotgun, your shoulder hurts, but in that very moment nothing matters. Like your shoulder doesn, but in that very moment nothing matters. Like your shoulder doesn't hurt your ears. Really, like you're, not like you're. You're just thinking is that bird down? Let me get my ass up and start running towards, towards that bird to make sure you know he's dead.
Speaker 1:And with a bow there's so much, so much more can wrong. I mean, look at all the people that have bad shots on deer and look at how big of a target we have there. What? How is the? The? What? The vitals of a Turkey Is it like? Isn't it like your fist or something like that? Like it's, it's so small, like your margin of error is like minuscule, like there there't a chance, or if you know you're shooting, you know what you had Steve and trying to take off its head.
Speaker 1:But I've even heard that's kind of risky too as well, and it's not always. You know, of course, when you have a big blade like that and it's supposed to decapitate someone. Your shot looked great when you're practicing and it looked like perfect. But you know what? Your shot looked great when you're practicing and it looked like perfect. But you know what, when you're out in the field and doing it at like, your margin from error is even bigger. Now, with you know a broad head like that and we already talk about from mechanical to fix and everything like that, like what's most accurate and everything like that, that thing's really not even supposed to be accurate well, and, and I mean they are too, they definitely are to a certain extent.
Speaker 2:And the thing is is we're going back to what I was saying about watching videos.
Speaker 2:I guys have probably watched probably five or six dozen videos of turkeys getting their heads whopped, you know, lopped off with these broadheads or different variations of them, and every time it was some guy in a blind or in a makeshift blind, you know, in a, in a cabela's lounger or in a chair, at 15 yards max, maybe 20, but most likely within 15 yards the bird was strutting or trying to mount a hen decoy and you had room to make and time to make that shot. The other side of it too is if you miss, you miss completely with one of those, there's no like, whereas if you're trying to hit a bird in the vitals, you know that fist size spot of the vitals with a broad head. If you miss that, that bird could take off and there's a good chance you're not going to get it. So I don't want to try to make an argument saying that you know decaps, as far as archery is concerned, is more ethical or not, but you know at least. Either you miss or you win. You know, with those, it seems.
Speaker 1:Yeah, I would definitely agree. So you know, take through the, the hunt and and all the deep. We need to know the, the nitty-gritty details of of this hunt and how your first bird went down well, hold on, hold on.
Speaker 2:I I want to know, because I didn't get the official count, how many birds has it been for you this season, kyle? What was this last one?
Speaker 1:four say that's not well. What is your mat? What a couple years ago you had?
Speaker 4:what seven, I think no, last year I had five. I always averaged three, four a year. Oh my gosh, it was five.
Speaker 2:This year's four um how many different zones and states? First one this year was kentucky.
Speaker 4:How many different zones and states? First one this year was Kentucky Opening morning shot Three different zones.
Speaker 2:Each bird I kill is in different zone this year.
Speaker 4:That's awesome Phenomenal. My goal is to kill a bird in each zone in this state. So what so far I've done pretty well, yeah, except zone 10 is pissing me off a little bit.
Speaker 1:So but so far I'm done.
Speaker 4:I'm doing pretty good what?
Speaker 1:um, I know it's, it's early to you know saying to your is there a specific zone that you're looking into already for for next year that you want to get off the the books and accomplish?
Speaker 4:not, really, there's not. I, just like I said, I've killed. Out of 22 zones, I've probably killed in seven or eight. No, that's more than that, probably like eight or nine. I gotta go back to my my log and see, um, but like next year, I'm gonna start like zone one, which I've obviously killed in zone one. Yeah, um, I've killed a bird, I think almost every zone in north jersey. But I'm gonna go through like one, two, three, four, I see where the gap is and then fill that gap and then keep going and then fill that gap. You know what I mean? I don't know, it's just something, something different to do. You know what I mean?
Speaker 4:it's gonna be a surgical surgical zone strike.
Speaker 2:I love it, that's awesome, all right. So I had done a bunch of e-scouting and again, I really didn't think the opportunity was going to come up to get back out. But it did and I was looking in different areas and in 15, which wasn't as familiar with, and if you're not hunting and Morton in there, then it's most likely going to be private or one of the smaller ones and and one of those, one of those state forest that I completely overlooked in that zone was actually the Wlow wma and kind of looked through there and different spots, and if you're on the north side of atlantic city expressway then you're going to be in zone 15 and if you're on the south side then I think you're in 22, um, so I was like all right, you know and that's the other thing too is I think that whether it's deer hunting or turkey hunting, I have looked completely overlooked state land and especially WMAs, because I get this negative impression in my head that they're overcrowded or there's too much pressure, things like that. But I didn't really have a whole lot of options and I just more than anything wanted to get out, and that's always my focus, whether it's deer or turkey or any hunting, is just being out there in God's creation and enjoying it. So I got out, I had a couple of places I wanted to look at, a couple of areas I wanted to run and gun in.
Speaker 2:So I went out and I set up in a few different fields within that WMA and as the morning was progressing into the afternoon, I had this one area in this field, in this back section, and it was completely lined with Russian olive trees which essentially they are these big gnarly trees that if they're unmanaged, they, the branches, start a foot off the ground and just go all the way up and they're intertwined and tangled and it's gnarly. And so I was like, you know, let me check out this spot. And so the last 25, 30 yards I had the military crawl just to get into this field edge and it was. It was an uncut field and the grass was knee high and I went in and sat up, uh, set up my cameras out, get everything together, and I let out seven or eight yelps, real soft y Yelps, and I got a gobble immediately and I was like I can't believe this, because I went an entire season of you know, not an entire, because I hadn't been out a lot, but every other place that I had been so much calling with nothing, whether and not just calling on the pot or mouth call, but trying to locate with an hour or co-call nights before and all that and just just silence. So, and I'm sure you guys, you agree, would 100% agree. But it's like when you get that first gobble of the day, it's just everything turns on. It's like the switch is on, the main breaker's on and you're, you're going, you know all 200, 200 amps into the service is flowing and there's nothing stopping you.
Speaker 2:And so from that point I just was slowly calling them in, moved to clucks and purrs and trying to be very quiet. Less is more I wanted to put. I had a decoy with me, but I didn't put it out because I didn't want to take a chance, because the field was uncut. I didn't want to take a chance of going out there and blow my cover. Uh, I had no idea what was in the field. So it, which I think turned out to be the right move, especially that late in the season, with that much pressure, the birds may have not come in at all if they had seen a decoy, uh.
Speaker 2:And so once, uh, I kept kept hearing him gobble and he was getting closer and closer and I was just about to call, probably about eight minutes into this exchange. And I was just about to call, I look up and I see a head bobbin and it's a hen. And so now I have what I'm guessing is the alpha hen coming through looking for this other hen who's trying to get her man and she's just bobbing her head through and it just also made because she was only 15 yards away. She passed me at 15 yards and it made the perfect time frame to be quiet to get him even more riled up, I think, to come in further. So once she finally got past me, I went back to call him again and he just came in on the string, no strutting because the grass was so high, and it was basically just step, step, pause, step, step, pause, the whole way in, head bobbing back and forth, and he got perpendicular with me. I got the shotgun up, put on my crosshairs, pulled the trigger, click and I'm like you gotta be kidding me. What I can't believe. I just did this. I'm such an idiot.
Speaker 2:When I was in the parking lot I had loaded around into the chamber and closed the chamber, loaded two more rounds into the, uh, into the, into the pipe in the bottom, and I guess I had pulled the trigger previously. I didn't fully chamber the round, which was a complete idiot thing to do, but within that next 15, 20 seconds I was able to quietly unchamber that round, rack another round in. He was probably another seven yards away, quartering away, looking away from me, and put it up and I just dropped him and it was. It was just poetic, it was absolutely amazing. And uh, he flopped immediately and was able to go out and uh, collect them and and it was. It was unlike anything I've ever experienced.
Speaker 2:It was and especially after you'll see this too, mike, if you don't take a bird and you know this year, once it happens, it's kind of like. It's kind of like deer hunting or anything else. You're like it's, it's finally happened. Like this is this is amazing. Everything that you, everything you put it in and it's it's finally happened. Like this is this is amazing. Everything that you, everything you put it and and it's also much like other certain things in life it happens entirely too quick and it's over well, that's why you got to be like kyle and shoot multiple a year absolutely it's, it's.
Speaker 1:It's funny to like you know, steve and frank, you know we, we know kyle looks forward to to this time of the year. Every you know he's probably already thinking about next year, everything like that. But so am I. Like I'm not and don't get me wrong, I'm not saying I'm not excited for deer season, because I even said it today like, like I just cannot wait to get deer season going and everything like that. But I've become and I'm pretty proud of myself, I'm becoming this all-around outdoors owner where I'm starting to hunt everything and that kind of was my goal. Like I'm extremely excited for waterfowl season, but I cannot wait for turkey season because I saw all the mistakes I made this year and I already know what I am planning to do next year.
Speaker 1:The scouting, like scout as much as you know, as I did this year, even more next year like, and if I don't get it done on Friday, you know what? It just makes the story just so much better. Like, yes, of course I want to get it done, but you know what this is, what hunting is. It's not always killing, it's not always. You know. You are going to have hunts where you're not going to kill something you know. Yes, you want to get to the point where you know what You're going to kill something almost you know, at least once a season or whatever the case is. But I'd rather struggle now because when it starts clacking off, if I do have a bad year, I'm like, okay, I used to struggle in the beginning. This is nothing new. Like having one bad year, let's, let's get after. And that's how my mindset is with deer. Like I can go a season without killing the deer and you know it's okay because I've.
Speaker 1:When I first started, look at all the non-success that I have versus now. Look at all the success success I'm having now and this season for turkey already has been a huge success story for me personally. Like you can't count it any other way of you've accomplished almost everything that you've never done before. You know you shot at a bird, you misjudged it and I think I can't remember if I was talking to you, steve. But you know I feel like, yeah, I think we talked about in an episode I can't remember if we did or not and I'll go through that on the wrap-up but my freaking range finder was in my bag and I thought it was in the truck, right? Yeah, not my bag. I would have found my rangefinder. I'd be able to tell like, oh, that shot's too damn far away. Just just hold your horses a little bit. But you know what? That's what it is. This has been a an addicting year and it's only going to keep growing, for sure well, and that's.
Speaker 2:It's interesting. You say that because you're I'm imagining at this point you're coming at it from the same perspective, perspective that I had last year. I had I had three, three decent encounters of the four times that I was out, and I mean, I don't, don't know, I'm curious, actually, your opinion on it, kyle, your perspective. Even just interacting with the birds, even if you're not able to get them in close enough for a shot or get on them or whatever, just having that interaction, do you see that as a success? Because I know I did last year, coming from somebody that I didn't grow up having a father who I went turkey hunting with.
Speaker 2:I haven't had a mentor, I haven't had anybody. It's literally just something that I picked up and I was like I'm going to get a shotgun and I'm going to get the gear and I'm going to go try this. And I think what was it? My last hunt last year, I called in two Jakes and a Tom and two hens 500 yards across the field and they just, I just couldn't get them to come into the woods because they were with hens and they couldn't see hens in there. So there was no reason to do it. So there's another thing that I learned, but just the experience of interacting with those animals is gorgeous animals.
Speaker 4:Um was enough of a success for me and, and you know, then you build upon that yeah, and a lot of it comes from from scouting too, like march, like you know, shed hunting. I'm always looking, you know, for new turkey spots and everything like that. But, um, you know, a lot of it is watching the birds and seeing what the birds do. So you know, there's times where I'll go sit on the field and watch the birds fly to the roost. Okay, so you know they flew up this way. You know I wonder what they did in the morning? Did they fly back down in the same spot that next morning? Or whatever the case may be? But you know it, it comes down to. You know, if I see a bird, I'm happy. If you know I hear a bird, I'm happy. Either way for me, and even when I you know started 20 years ago it was, you know you hear that gobble like that's a success right off the bat. Whether you know we get that bird or not, you know it is what it is. That's why success right off the bat. Whether you know we get that bird or not, you know it is what it is. That's why it's called hunting.
Speaker 4:But you know, just being able to see birds and watch birds, you know, like I said, preseason just watch them to see what they do, listen to the birds, see how they communicate. There's a lot that you can do and learn by just driving around and watching birds. And learn by just driving around and watching birds, just see what they do on a day-to-day basis, figure out why they do it, listen to the sounds that they make and you need to figure out what their needs are. You know, obviously it's breeding season, so you know, watch them and see. You know you just got to learn the flock. That's what. That's what it comes down to.
Speaker 4:But as far as seeing birds and stuff, you know, like I said, you hear them, that's a win. You see them, that's a win. I mean, I've, I've hunted spots. Um, was it last saturday, I think two saturdays ago? Um, me and brie went out and we went to a spot where I had killed a bird opening day and, uh, just watch. I mean I called in a Jake to 10 steps, a hen to literally eight steps, and but it was just cool to just watch them and see what they do and how they do it. And you know, overall it was a success. We didn't shoot anything that day, but to me it was a win in my book.
Speaker 2:Yeah, I don't see how you couldn't yeah.
Speaker 1:Man, I muted myself, you know, and it's that's what that's a huge part of just hunting in general, you know. Same with deer I take a success of just finding deer and seeing deer I mean that's the first step, right there. You can't kill a deer if you don't find them first right. So I always take that. And same with the mindset of now of turkey.
Speaker 1:I heard my first got in close bone, shaking, shaking eardrum, like rattling, you know gobble, and it was absolutely just incredible. Like I can't even imagine what an elk is like. Like you talk about the two most vocal animals when it comes to hunting, like if that's what a turkey does and they're really not that big. You know what is what is elk hunting going to? Look like? Um, and also um, a a quick plug there. You know and I know, kyle, you said you, you've shown, you've, you've thought of it and and had interest and you've heard about this. But I'd say this so far for the whole turkey season, using hex has worked like a charm for a lot of it.
Speaker 1:Not, and not just like, not just what turkey's like. I had birds like ducks that almost literally, almost like walked on top of me the other day until I moved I've had deer, almost I had a deer literally walking right towards me and got to maybe seven yards until I moved. And then she noticed something was moving, but didn't didn't blow, didn't didn't do what normally would happen and just kind of like, and the wind was actually not the best in my favor either, but just casually just walked off and then eventually went out to the field and I could see her in the field and everything like that. But I know, um, steve, for you like, uh, you you're a Raven about it. On, uh, on on this hunt as well.
Speaker 2:Yeah, and I was really surprised, because I think even as much. We had a phenomenal podcast with Mike Slinkard from hex and I think that we've all seen enough videos and but now we've had the experiences to actually use, uh, use the clothing, use the gear, actually use, uh, use the clothing, use the gear. And I can attest personally just on this hunt that hen was within 15 yards and she she came by cause she was not coming through as fast as that Tom was and she, she was staring right at me the whole time Like she was eyeballing me slow and cautiously the whole way through but still came through. And then he came through. Obviously he had other intentions, but the biggest thing was, after I took him and I came back to the field edge and I was filling out my tag, I happened to look up across the field about 40 yards and there were two does to, actually pretty nice mature does, and they were just they're just standing there looking at me and they didn't know what to make of it and it was pretty amazing.
Speaker 2:At one point I stood up and she bounded off like two yards away to the other, the other doe and to just kept staring and then they went back to eating and they never went away. They didn't blow, they didn't do anything. I couldn't believe it. Um, and we're out of season, you know, as far as uh deer season is concerned, so maybe the pressure is off and there's a lot of things that you could maybe mitigate in your mind as far as the success uh of that product. But still, I think I had enough good, good interaction with animals using it to believe that that it does work yeah, yeah, I have to have to agree with especially birds.
Speaker 1:I definitely, like you, get a little like I don't know when you're, when you're sitting down, especially turkey, like when you're in deer woods and you're up in a tree, it's like all right, nothing's really gonna. You know, nothing's really stalking me, you're not really worried about like things. But when you're on the ground in turkey season and you just hear things just literally like right behind you, right next to you, and you you look and you notice like birds have, and I think mike said that like birds get even closer to you than like ever before. I think he said that like he had a bird land on him or or something like that, and it's like the birds have just been all around of just landing right next to me, flying without a care, and usually it's. It's not like that for me, like I, it really not. And yet again, that could be, could just be in my imagination.
Speaker 1:But you know what, so far I feel like we've we've had pretty good um success with it. And you know, I know kyle, you you said you've heard about them before and everything like that. And you know, I gerard from racket or he says he doesn't leave his house with without it. Um, so you know, and then of course you got you know joe rogan and stuff they they use and everything like that. But, um, really'm really impressed. Really impressed because I know that was the start of our, our Turkey talk, how we kind of, you know, with Mike Chamberlain and then with you know Hex and saying that you know we're really excited to use it and you know it's, it's definitely definitely showed for for this year.
Speaker 1:But, kyle, you've been on fire since we last talked. Now that's three birds, three different areas. Like you said today, just talk about today's right now. Like you don't have much time to hunt, so you have to get out there early, quickly, get it done and then be able to go to work, like like right after that. How you know what's that? Like you know and explain, like for the people out there that are working and mostly everyone, 99.9% of the people listening to this podcast right now, they have to go to work every single day. How do you balance the home life, the kids, single day?
Speaker 2:how do you balance the home life, the kids and be able to get up, go kill yourself a bird before you go to work. I can't wait to hear you tell all about this so my wife can listen well, I think I'm going to disappoint way like.
Speaker 4:Everybody's got hobbies. Everybody likes. You know guys wake up four o'clock in the morning, go to the gym. They have their routine, all that stuff. Listen, man, I'm all for it.
Speaker 4:Turkey season you ain't catching me in the gym. Sorry not having it. So this is why I like D-Week, because when the sun comes up, the half hour before sunrise and everything as the season progresses, it gets earlier and earlier and earlier. So the beginning of D week it was tough because I was, I was, it was cutting it close because the birds were still in the trees when I had to leave. So I would go in, listen for the birds. Okay, I'm on them, maybe they'll come down, maybe they won't. They wouldn't. I look at my watch, dude. I got to go Like I can't wait a minute longer, so I would slip out, wouldn't bust them out. Now I know for next week or the next couple of days or whatever, it's going to start getting lighter. I try to get out as much as I possibly can. This morning I had about 45 minutes.
Speaker 4:I was sat in an area last night and I was like man, like I don't know, like pretty common area but not really. Um, I said, you know what, I'll get up early, let me just go drive and see what it's about. Maybe, um, you know, friday afternoon or or thursday afternoon I'll go and maybe try to get on something, if I hear anything, whatever, right? So I stopped, like three or four spots and I'm like man, like looks good. But you know, now the fields are almost four foot tall. It's kind of tough, you know. So I checked another two spots, two more spots after that, like some wooded oak flats, I thought I heard a hen. That wasn't a hundred percent positive. So then I went all the way around. I checked one more spot. I walk in the woods like 30, 40 yards, and I just I just let off a soft yelp because it went up to a field. I didn't know what that field looked like on the map. It looked good. But what a map looks like versus, obviously, what we see when we go to a spot totally different, right? So, soft yelp, all of a sudden, boom, this bird fires off and I'm like, oh crap. I look at my watch. I'm like dude, I, I don't have much time I ran all the way back to my truck, grabbed all my stuff. I circled all the way around. I'm like counting the minutes to when, like I gotta leave. So I was like I got back to where I called that bird and I was looking at the map and two things went in my head. I'm like he's either going to being this late in the season.
Speaker 4:I assumed right off the bat that this bird was not going to come in. He was going to be call shy. That was the first thing. The second thing how far did I think he was out into that field? I predicted he was probably between 40 and 60 yards, play safe. Third thing if that bird goes straight away from me, that's a wrap. If this bird goes left, that's better. If that bird comes straight at me, left, that's better. If that bird comes straight at me, that's best meaning. Am I going to set up or I call that bird, or am I going to flank him in hopes that he just starts going parallel to me? So the reason why I flanked that bird was because, like I said, a lot of the birds now have been called to a million times, so I didn't think he was going to come in. So I flanked that bird.
Speaker 4:I got above him in the field a little bit. Sure enough, he was with two or three jakes, three h hens, and he was dead smack in the middle strut, and I'm like, oh boy. So I took my wing out out of my, uh, out of my vest and I'm one arm holding the gun up on my knee, the other, my right arm, is behind me and I'm raking the leaves and I'm purring, raking the leaves, purring these two, j raking the leaves, purring these two jakes' heads went straight up into the sky. All of a sudden they started beelining towards me. I'm like, oh crap. I'm like this is not what I want to happen, because they're going to pick me off this bird's at like 55 yards. I'm like I can make that shot. It just there is. Like I said, the grass was a little bit higher than normal, it wasn't like super tall, but like I can make out where the birds are. So I stopped. The jakes came and all through. When all three of them came at me, the two on the outside like veered, and the middle one like stayed true to coming at me and I'm like, oh no, this is not going to work stayed true to coming at me. I'm like, oh no, this is not gonna work. So I didn't move. Um, that jake ended up peeling off and uh, I waited until, like, they were outside of my peripherals and uh, all of a sudden, I started cutting up a storm cutting, cutting, cutting. He picked his head up. The hens picked up their heads next to him. I saw there was nothing behind him, sent it done. That was it. That was a wrap.
Speaker 4:I ran out, dude, I ran out to that bird so fast. I look at my watch. I was like, oh shit, I ran out to that bird like McLovin on Superbad. I grabbed this bird. I get to the wood line. I pull up my phone quick. I tag this bird in as fast as I can. My phone's working slow. I tag this bird in. Throw one over my shoulder. Dude, I'm hustling through the woods. Get back to my truck Drive to work. I made it to work on time.
Speaker 4:But uh, yeah, it was a quick hunt, man, I really didn't expect to hear anything at all.
Speaker 4:And as soon as I heard that gobble, I was like I'm gonna kill this bird.
Speaker 4:I know I'm gonna kill this bird. And uh, but the deciding factor of this whole hunt was number one don't give up on the first spot that you scout, keep bouncing around, keep bouncing around, try different calls. I was using the owl hoot, I was doing the owl hoot and on my pro call and, except for that last spot, I threw my diaphragm in and I just, you know, called softly, you know, called softly and um, but the biggest thing too was, like I said, like good, better, best type of situation. Like you know, where am I going to set up, cause sometimes, you know, the greatest isn't always the best. You know what I mean. So that's why I decided to not sit where I called, because this time of year these birds will drift and they won't come straight in. They might come in a little bit but, being that they were in a big flock, they're going to parallel you. Essentially they're going to drift. So that's why I went and I flanked those birds and I was able to kill them this morning.
Speaker 1:Very, very, very interesting. Hmm, Very, very, very interesting. And it's like I I do remember you saying, I think, the other day, that they were going to start flocking up again. Um, you know, pretty soon, um, but it's like you said, it's the dedication of just not giving up and just continuing after it, whether you got work or whatever the case is. Listen, you're you, you find a way and it's it's great to great to see. That's, that's for damn sure. Um, and then I think it's been it feels like forever now. I remember the first bird. I think you got in jersey, I think you were. Were you heading home or were you just driving around? Like what happened? Take us through that, because I remember sitting in the, in the truck with peyton and I think you sent me a snapchat. We were like just saw a bird, I'm going in after it, and then like radio silence and then oh, my god, crazy, crazy, crazy opening morning, right.
Speaker 4:So I'm set up on this one spot and you know, normally me and br Bree always hunt there. We always end up killing birds there. Great, whatever. Opening morning was not like that at all. I'm hustling and I'm checking all my spots. To me she even said something the other day about it. It was like why are you always rushing? Why are you always rushing? Because that time frame from the one they, when they're on the roost and they fly down, I give myself an hour to kill a bird because that's when they're going to be, you know. Then they start getting with the hens and then they start screwing around with the hens and then you know the hens will break off and go to their nest and you know they may go with another hen or whatever. So, like I rush, I like want to get a bird killed before like 7, 8 o'clock. That that's just how I am.
Speaker 4:So I'm I'm driving around and I I'm driving past this one field. And this field, bree told me like years and years ago it used to be state land, they sold it, whatever. I'm just like looking at the field and, uh, I just happened to like look in the shadow perfectly in the corner of this field and I can like barely see it through the tints of my truck. So I dropped the window down a little bit and I'm like, oh shit, like there's a tom right there. So I drive past the field like 20 yards. I pulled over. I'm like, all right, let me see where I'm at on x. I see where I'm at and I keep on refreshing the page and it says like I'm next to state land. I'm like there's no way, like it's not refreshing, refreshing, refreshing. I zoom out and I'm like, holy shit, all the woods around this field that used to be state land is state land and I'm like this bird's gonna die.
Speaker 4:So I go in and I go in and it was thicker than all hell. In there I was crawling, I was knocking my camera over, I was getting stuck. It was a nightmare. So I got within like 70 yards of this bird, right, and all I saw was him. That was it. I didn't see anything else. So I called Nothing, called again, nothing Called. Third, fourth, fifth, sixth, like nothing else. So I called nothing, called again, nothing call. Third, four, fifth, sixth, like nothing. Like this bird is not answering me. So I'm raking the leaves, I'm purring whole nine yards. I'm doing what you know I normally do and all of a sudden I I I just hear like gentle footsteps and I'm like, here we go. I'm like this is it. I got the gun pointed this way, the GoPro's facing me this way. We're good to go.
Speaker 4:So I look and all of a sudden I see red through the thicket. I'm like, got the gun up, I put it on him and I'm looking, and I'm looking, fucking Jake. I'm like, oh man, and there's a little hole through the thicket and sure enough, he'd come right through that hole and it was seven yards. So this Jake comes through this hole and he walks literally 15 feet from me. I cannot move at all. I can't move. And I look back at that hole and I'm looking, my gun's still pointed, at this hole in this thicket, at that hole, and I'm looking, my gun still pointed at this hole in this ticket.
Speaker 4:The jake is at my 10 o'clock, just like, staring at me. The hen comes through, she's bubble clocking, doing her thing. She stops and I'm like, oh no, oh, my god, this is it. Whatever. Something made me look to the right and dead, to my three o'clock. I see red. And all of a sudden here I'm like, oh, this is it.
Speaker 4:And I look, all of a sudden he went full strut through the thickest stuff, man, and I'm like, if he makes it five steps, I can lift my gun up and over my camera, screw the camera at this point, lift it up and over, put it on him and shoot. As soon as I turn my head a little bit, that hen putt one time. I look at her, I look at him, he takes one step, comes out of strut. I just lift the gun up and over the camera, sent it. Boom, that was a wrap.
Speaker 4:I didn't think it was gonna work, I didn't think I was, I thought I was busted because, like I said, the rest, 15 feet for me, dude, like I couldn't, like, couldn't move, couldn't blink, couldn't. So I'm like looking down my gun barrel and like trying to look through my peripherals at the other bird, and then, once I turned and I like confirmed exactly where he was and where he you know where I needed him to be she putt, and I was like that's it, I'm going to lift the gun up and over the camera and, freaking, send it. I was so jacked up, dude, I was like, oh my God, I didn't think this was going to work at all.
Speaker 1:That is sick and that was crazy because it was like was like what I was like, of course, and I knew once you said, be right back, gonna go kill, like I was like, ah, he's gonna kill one. And it's crazy to to say, like peyton and I on two on that tuesday we were leaving and legit, you know, we we talked about on this ep on the on the first or second episode, but I don't know if I told you, kyle, we're legit leaving and I said it would be crazy if we drove past and saw a bird. And right when I said that, I said hey, stop, there's a bird right there. And there was a beautiful tom just in the field. We pulled over and I mean you were like we were rushing because we also had to beat, we had to beat the clock because I think it was like 11, 45, 11, 50 at that point. So we're scrambling, like I'd even go grab my gun out.
Speaker 1:Peyton grabbed his gun.
Speaker 1:I was like we only need one gun, like, and we ran all the way to the field and we see him, just like I was able to see him, I get the bino.
Speaker 1:So I sat up top and I was just, you know using my binos and just looking where he went, and he unfortunately crept in and he we lost him somewhere like in there where he was able to maneuver, and everything like that. But it was like when in doubt, like I think, covering as much ground as you can and getting to all these different spots because they will be in in the field, if you, if you're able to, and it's, it's been a cool, like, and we passed, like I don't even know how many people passed this bird and didn't, like, didn't notice, because we could tell that he was in that field for a little bit and, um, somebody must have shot a bird the day before, or something like that, because there's feathers all over the place and it wasn't from, it wasn't from that bird, we don't think, um, and unless he got to fight, but I don't know what they're, how badly the feathers, you know, get all ripped apart and and everything like that it looks like he definitely got shot you know, I, I get like me.
Speaker 4:My boys joke around about this all the time and you hear people say, oh, you're hunting road birds. You're hunting road birds. Well, you know what? Not for nothing. I don't have the leisure to go out and roost birds. I got a family. So if I see a turkey, I'm telling you I don't call my shots, but there's a 90 chance if that bird is on state land, I'm going to kill that bird. And the biggest thing too is if I'm, if I, if I see a bird, I'm going to make that bird. And the biggest thing too is if I'm, if I, if I see a bird, I'm going to make a move on a bird. Now, we're not talking right off the roost. We're not talking.
Speaker 4:I got the binos and glass in the field. I see a bird. I'm going to get as close as I possibly can without spooking this bird, and then I'm going to work that bird. I'm not going to get within 60 yards and then start screaming at him. That's not not what I do. Everybody likes to start yelping. There's nothing wrong with that at all. There's nothing wrong with that.
Speaker 4:But for me, I start raking leaves and I purr. That's just something that I love to do because it brings so much realism to a bird in the woods scratching the leaves, feeding. That's more realistic to me than all of a sudden you don't hear leaves crunching and it's like okay, and starts yelping. Is it possible? Oh yeah, 100%. Have it killed birds like that? 100%. But for me I like, like dude, I've had the same wing in my pack for like 12 years. Dude, I this thing is my, my idol. I rake the freaking leaves, man, and I purr. And I'm not a great purr by any means. I'm not the master purr, I'm not at all. But I do enough to make it, you know, real.
Speaker 4:And, like I said, I get close, purr, rake the leaves and that piques their interest. I'm not looking for a gobble, I'm not looking for this bird to gobble, I'm looking for a bird. If he's with a bird, or him to acknowledge me. Just look at my direction, pop their head up, give me some sort of nonverbal reaction, because then I know I have their attention and then from there it's going to dictate what my next calling sequence is or whatever I'm going to do next. So that's why, like I said, guys hate on hunting road birds and stuff like that. But it's like you know, everybody drives around and looks for turkeys. So what are you talking about? Like you know what I mean Guys hate on everybody for it. Like we were talking about a couple hours ago mike the freaking hunter's biggest enemy is another hunter. Like yeah, yo, you bought a tag, go shoot a bird. Okay, cool, you shoot a bird. You know what I mean. Like it's whatever man. But yeah, that's just some of the things. Like you know, I just try to get uptight as possible. You know as close as I possibly can. And um, I um.
Speaker 4:So my kentucky bird was not. I had a breeder hen and a feeding hen. It was in the field that I was sitting on but I was facing inside the woods so I didn't technically kill him over the decoys, but he saw the decoys and it strung him along a little bit. The opening day bird did not kill him with the decoys. It was way too thick in there. There's no way I would have been able to set up. And you know the bird on Saturday, that was the evening bird. Right saturday was the evening bird, saturday's evening bird. So I was driving around and me and brie had hunted all day. Get back to the house. I'm like you know what this is. The last Saturday I got like I don't know, maybe an hour, maybe we're going, I'm going, I drive around, there's some local spots that I know and, dude, I just happened to be making a right hand turn and I just look and I just see the tip of a fan and I'm like you're done turn around go park do my thing.
Speaker 4:Um, I make a move on this bird and, uh, I get set up where I needed to be. They were working probably for about five minutes, working my direction and I yelped, got their attention. The hen started going like on a 45 away from me a little bit, started purring and then he broke off a little bit. He didn't like. So the hens were, these birds were out like 50 yards, so the hens kind of like paralleled me and then started veering off. He stayed straight but like he came towards me a little bit and made like a half circle to get in line with them. So once he did that I was like that's, it Shot him. So then birds were pressured.
Speaker 4:I mean, everybody in the town was hunting those birds and um, I just happened to see the tip of his fan. Dude, that's what. That's what it was like. It wasn't. I wasn't. You know what I mean, I just got lucky. I got lucky, yeah, but um, I made that move on that bird and it was very I don't want to say it was like super strategic. But like I said, like I said with the hunt this morning, good, better, best, you know, a good, great, whatever the hell, I said it. You know it's what you think would be ideal in the perfect scenario. It's nine times out of 10, not going to be like that. So you got to go with plan B and hopes that they do what they might do, and last two times, it's it's. It's worked out for me.
Speaker 1:Yeah, definitely, definitely, definitely, and and with all that success. You know, frank, we got to hear from you because, yet again, just like, just like you, you know, we've been just so close and yet again it was success, but just an unfortunate situation led you from getting a, a bird on the ground. So before we wrap up, you know, let's, let's hear your story and the the saga to kind of like our, our team season now.
Speaker 3:Besides, steve, yeah, so uh, I guess it all started when we were sighting in our guns. My gun ended up misfiring, thought it was the ammo Bought new ammo Actually shot the gun like probably another four or five times. Gun was perfect. Thought I had this you fix. So I didn't get to hunt Jersey as much as I wanted to close it just every time I went out haven't heard a gobble or doesn't seem bird. So I started focusing on hunting the New York State a lot. So I set up a hunt with Adam Montleone, which is AKA Outdoor and More with Squatch. He's like yo, come up here, I really want to get you a bird. You know I feel bad. I was like all right. So he's like I got a perfect spot picked out, meet me at my house. So I meet him at his house. We go out. It was probably probably quarter to five and we let out a few owl hoots, nothing. He's like look, I know this spot, I know how it's going to go, just be patient. So we just it's gonna go, just be patient. We just sat there, the Oscar, we just sat there. We were bullshit and for her, for a couple hours probably, let out a few crow calls, not. So then he starts calling still nothing. He's like Many, I'm telling you, just relax, these birds are gonna come in here about like 9.30, 10 o'clock. Well, once you have it, the sun comes up, he lets out a crow call and we hear this bird fire off about, probably about 350 yards away, the light. He's cool. As he's calling, we hear like another I think it was like another two or three go, you know. They start firing off like all right, this is a good sign. So he's working, this bird. You can hear the bird in close. He's like alright, so let's back up, we'll get set up. You get in front of me like I'm gonna go like probably 30, 40 yards behind you. I'm gonna video everything. I'm like okay, perfect.
Speaker 3:So we hear he starts going back forth with this bird. It's getting closer, I'm getting more pumped, I'm getting excited and for some reason this bird it was just. It just kept circling up, circling us, and I'm like one minute I thought was in front of me. Then the next minute it's on the side, because the other two that are firing off just went quiet. So I'm like okay. I'm like I'm looking back and he's like I don't know what's going on. He's like I don't know if this bird can't find us or what's going on. He's like just just relax. So all of a sudden he lets out. I hear him. He's raking the leaves all the side. Look over to my left. There was like a rock wall and I see the bird coming over the wall and he's you know he does like a half fan, but then he goes back and he's looking and he's gobbling back and I couldn't really see. He's probably, I want to say, like 60 yards away and I was like all right.
Speaker 3:I'm like you know things are looking good, like we're going to get him now, just so. Uh, as he starts calling them, the bird starts heading towards like his truck and I'm like, what's going on? So he's over there, he's breaking the leads, he's throwing everything he has at this part. But then I guess the bird kind of had an idea where we're at it. So it starts, it starts coming, the bird probably, I want to say like 35, 40 yards away. I let him get and all of a sudden he sticks his head. Now he's out in the open, he sticks his head straight up and I'm like, and I was ready, I was like, here we go, I take my deep breath, pull the trigger, pull the trigger, click. The gun misfires. I'm like you gotta be kidding me, not again. So I didn't panic, I just kept the beat on him. I pulled the trigger again, click, nothing, oh my God. So I start like slowly trying to eject the bullet in my hand. As I'm doing that, the guns go, click, click, and the bird's getting nervous, because I'm assuming he was an older bird. He kind of knew what was up already and you could see him. He starts walking away. So now he's walking back to where he came from. So I was like, well, it's either now or never, because pretty soon I'm not going to be able to see him. He starts walking away. So now he's walking back to where he came from. So I was like, well, it's either now or never, because pretty soon I'm not going to be able to see him anymore. So I just quick I racked in another shell and he started running. He gets to probably about I don't know, probably about 50 yards. I thought he was like 50. And I could just see the top of his head and I shoot and I don't see him no more and I'm like, oh, my god, I got him. And all of a sudden I like look over to my right and and I could just see it's like two little bobbles and I'm like, don't tell me, that's him.
Speaker 3:I turn around and I look at Adam and he's like what happened? He's like I think that was him. We wait a little bit. He starts calling. We go back over there, we go check. No bird, nothing. My heart dropped, man. I was so you want to talk about. I almost slammed that gun against the tree. I was so pissed off. He's like it's okay, man, it happens. I was like listen. I said it's happened way too much, so too many times with this gun, like I've had it. He was like just relax. He's like I don't know what happened. He's like I got it all on video though what kind of gun is it?
Speaker 3:it was. Uh, it's a TriStar Cobra pump.
Speaker 4:Okay, because I have a Remington 870, my old gun. That was old faithful man and it misfired on me one time. One time in the many, many years I wanted to throw the thing against the tree and bash it. I was so mad and I ended up working. But that that misfire man, that's that's and didn't you take it?
Speaker 1:Didn't you guys took it apart and everything like that?
Speaker 3:And yeah, we brought it to his house and he's like he grabs me a couple more loads here, fire these. And what we noticed was that each primer after I shot the the hammer, actually the firing pin was hitting a different spot on the primer every single time. So sometimes you get like a small tap, but on the lighter loads I guess it was enough for it to go off. He's like something's not right, like let's take the whole gun apart. So we took the whole trigger assembly out everything and we found like small plastic pieces, like in between where the hammer is and like where it would strike for the um, for the actual like firing pin to go off. He found like probably two or three plastic pieces and he he thinks that it was probably that that was causing it to be like a light strike and then hit hard at one time.
Speaker 4:I mean I haven't stopped the gun since, but I wonder what that could have been like. Is there anything that you use to clean the gun that might have plastic on it and as you're cleaning it, maybe you know some little particles of plastic or whatever may have fell down in there. Or was it like plastic from, like a shell or no?
Speaker 3:It almost looked like that, but they were so small that they were really hard, like we couldn't really tell what it was. I mean, I really don't, I don't think there's anything that I clean, but again, I, I can't be sure, I don't know. You know, I've only shot that gun a couple times. I've only shot like turkey loads throw it. Yeah, so I'm not sure. But I haven't even shot the gun since because actually we went out on another hunt on Saturday. He came up here and we hit another, another piece by me on state land and uh, I told him I'm like, look, I'm not bringing that gun out, and I actually brought my remington 870 out.
Speaker 3:I'm like I'm not taking it. I'm like the confidence I had in it when it was shooting is totally dominant. I'm like I'm better off going out there with a rock than bringing that back.
Speaker 2:There's something about an 870. I was telling Mike earlier this week the gun that I used to take the bird this past week I bought last year used at Cheyenne Mountain up in Bordentown and I had a whole bunch of other different guns that I was looking at at the time and I was sitting there I was like I really don't want to spend a whole lot of money and I'd been kind of going in there every couple of weeks to see what was popping up on the used shelf. And this 870 Super Magnum, all three shell links, uh popped up in there, 24 inch barrel, turkey barrel. The guy who I guess was trying to sell a consignment or whatever it had a tactical stock on it. So I I've toured that thing off, sold it on ebay.
Speaker 2:I found one of the old remington sure shot uh thumb through uh stocks that I got on ebay for like the same prices that I sold the tactical stock for and I think I with with the true glow site, uh fiber optic site, I think I put the whole thing together for like 320 dollars and and if you had to go buy that new, that setup, you're talking 700 plus dollars for a gun. So anybody that wants to get into this too. You can definitely go to your local shop. You can find a good gun that's well worn. That's the other thing, too, that the fact that that gun was so well worn was probably a credit to my ability to unchamber that round and chamber another one so easily without being noticed. So there's all kinds of advantages to buying a used gun dude, it's so crazy, because I bought, I bought my.
Speaker 4:Uh, there's a period of time in my life I worked. I worked at a where was it? Gander mountain in middletown, new york. I was an archery tech there for a little bit and uh, so, like every time there's a gun sale, I would obviously know about it. So, um, for a while I would go there, like black friday, or you know, there was a point in time where I would go out thanksgiving night at midnight to go shop, but it was specifically for a gun. So there was like five or six years in a row, on Thanksgiving night I would buy a gun. Dude, I ended up buying my 870. It was the retail price on it at the time, dude, was only like 400 bucks, $399. I mean, this was years ago, years ago. And, dude, I got it for like $199. And that was, and will be always be, my favorite gun, like it's just old faithful. You know what I mean. I love that gun.
Speaker 2:This 870 is going to be an heirloom for sure and generations I hope.
Speaker 1:Damn, I just deleted a whole bunch of stuff. Gosh, give me one second. I was gonna. The last topic before we get going, because the state of New Jersey just dropped a bunch of their code changes that they want to do, but they basically they're looking to get rid of the fall.
Speaker 1:Let's see for the record, I didn't even look at any of this yet, so I'm funny uh so up for discussion close fall, either sex season because of declining spring harvest, declining fall, either sex harvest. Other states similar concerns, and it's to protect hens. So, um, it says, spring harvest has gradually declined since 2002. Um, from 1997 to 2016, hen turkeys made up to 50 percent of the total harvest. From 2016 to 2023, hen turkeys made up 30 of the total harvest. Um, now, uh, and this is all for for fall. Why they? I guess they want to get rid of fall. Uh, for fall, they have 2254 individual turkey hunters participated in the 2023 fall. Either sex turkey season, which is kind of that's a pretty high number. Um, and I guess it's because permits purchase. I guess in zone one there's 1905. Number of individual harvest uh hunters, and I think that's two is 195. I'm guessing, or that might just be permits purchase, never mind, um, and let's see oh, I'm all for it.
Speaker 4:No fall season yeah, I mean it's kind of pointless, it's the first step to to replenishing our population is you have to at some point.
Speaker 2:You have to, you got to take a break well, it's semi-pointless too, because most likely you're only going to kill a hen, which I mean. If that's your thing, that's fine, but it's right in the middle of rut. How many people do you know like? I mean, I've bought tags the past two years and I took a shot at a hen this this past year, but it was after being in a tree for five hours and I had a flock of 1300 of them underneath me and I couldn't help myself. You know it's like, but how many people do you know that actually go out. It's funny when they use words like participate Cause I, like you said, I think that just means somebody bought a tag, but you know.
Speaker 1:I think that's because that's what Mike Chamberlain said. It's not like he goes, it's mostly hens, but it's not really. It's not what we're really thinking. I mean it's deer season at that point. But another thing that they're looking to for discussion is remove turkey blinds from any Wma at the end of the legal hunting hours each day, and then turkey blinds must be labeled with a cid number those are those are up for discussion.
Speaker 1:Whether that happens or not, we'll see. And even yet again, you're not supposed to leave your tree stands on saint land either, but plenty of people do and you know it's not. You know nothing's really done about that. And then one more thing that I think will help the Turkey population as well, and I would like to see it all year round. But starting the coyote season August 1st, through daylight hours in August 1st, and no more, no more special permit is what I believe they're. They're looking at is to do it more of a daytime, nighttime thing, and they would divide the regular season up. So it would start August 1st and go to March 15th where you can hunt during the day with you know, bow, shotgun, muzzleloader, any anything like that um.
Speaker 4:Can you use a rifle during the day starting august 1st?
Speaker 1:yeah, um, but no centerfire rifles on uh wmas or parks um, only rimfire, which is whatever I mean.
Speaker 2:Yeah so you, you can use a rifle to hunt predators. Yes, I should say you'll be able to use, okay you've been able to do that though.
Speaker 1:Oh okay, you've been able.
Speaker 4:It was such a short time frame it's it was January 1st.
Speaker 1:To March, always the second week of March. But the problem is what I have. We both enjoy predator hunting but yet again you just, you just don't have enough time to do it. You know. It's also it's the coldest part of the year too, you know, usually by then I'm trying to get back to work also and start picking up my hours again, because you know deer season's been so long and and grueling I I think if you put in an August hunt for them, I mean man, I think that's going to change things big time, I mean.
Speaker 1:I will spend a lot of my time hunting.
Speaker 4:Because right in August every year, my one buddy sends me videos behind his house. It's all the coyotes and the pups and they're all playing around. And I'm telling you what we if you know a lot of these guys really need to start predator hunting. And you know, I always say it don't complain about something if you're not going to be about it. So don't sit here and complain about the predator population. And we need to control this. Blah, blah, blah. If you're not going to go, get your ass in the woods and start killing some dogs, I I say it all the time and yeah, you know your, your normal guy, isn't gonna go out. You know, on a saturday, when it's cold snow on the ground, he's not gonna want to go hunt and shoot a stinky dog, like it's not. But it's not just that, you're also taking out something that may kill or will kill a deer, a turkey.
Speaker 2:You know, you got to look at the bigger even a small child there's never not a good time to take a yoke yeah, but that's a huge, huge game changer.
Speaker 4:August 1st to coyote hunt. Now I always play devil's advocate. You have to look at it this way too. Now, and this is something that people need to be aware of and pay attention to, if you got hunters going in the woods August 1st with rifles, the state needs to make sure that these guys are not poaching freaking velvet bucks, that is going to be a big big thing.
Speaker 4:I see it already. I see it already. I see it already because a couple years ago, like when I started getting down to kentucky and stuff, like you can obviously hunt coyotes all year round down there. But um, my buddy was telling me that there was a case where these guys smoked like 15 velvet bucks, all over 150 inches with their rifles and they said they were coyote hunting, but they weren't obviously um but that's something that's that's.
Speaker 1:That's something that you know people got to keep in the back of their mind, you know yeah, no, I, I, I agree with you that on that 100, because it's like you hate to say it, but listen, I came up, and you know, on a um on what I believe to be a poached bear, on Saturday I found the muzzleloader round still in it and no head with the saw that had fur on it and everything like that, and you could definitely tell that this bear was shot.
Speaker 1:I'm guessing and yet again I can't speculate when, but I'm speculating sometime after the bear season, because I think it was such a big bear that, like who wouldn't want to go tag that that bear like you know what I mean.
Speaker 1:There that's a there, there that's a prideful animal that you're hunting and I mean it would mean the world to me you know me being a bear hunter like to tagging a absolutely beautiful, majestic creature like that. I mean it was definitely a waste to see, but it's like people do bad shit all the time, you know, I mean, and they're always as many of good that we say, and there are a lot of good hunters there are. Unfortunately, if we open this up, there are going to be bad seeds and the state is really going to have to work extra hard. I'm telling you because you don't want to see that, as much as I want the Coyote season to be extended, and listen, I'm not going to be a a beggar, so I'm going to take this august first if they, if they give it to us, but at what cost? Like, I don't want it to affect the deer population, people being assholes and going shooting velvet bucks, because you know. You know what I mean.
Speaker 1:So it's, it's a give or a take, but I think at this point you have to you have to take what you're getting, because what else population's so down right now what else turkey related is um I I small stuff. I think um allowing or something like that, for I don't know if this is for. Give me one second yet again, I don't it? Just an ammunition change.
Speaker 4:Allow 410 and 28 gauge so a little backstory on that. Um, a buddy of mine, um hunter his, his father is big with NWTF. They actually tried doing this pre-COVID. They tried to have you know range officers come out, the state come out and do a test fire and a trial run using 410s and us pretty much saying like yo, there's nothing wrong with a 410. Why can't we use it?
Speaker 3:Yeah.
Speaker 4:You know. Do they think? You know it's not lethal enough? Do they think? I don't know what they think, but I do know that they've been trying for the last couple of years to make it legal in New Jersey to use 410s and I think 28 gauge, I believe I don't it's 28. I think 28 is illegal. I'm not sure.
Speaker 1:I've never heard of being able to use a 28 in. Jersey, so this would be a new thing, that would be awesome that would be.
Speaker 4:I'd buy my buddy's got 410s that he haunts with out of state and he's like dude, it's the greatest thing, in the world. So I'll definitely get one, just to have one.
Speaker 2:Probably get kids into it earlier too. Would be awesome. You know, you know, easily, easily take your son or daughter out with a 410 or even a 28, you know over a 20 or 12 oh, no way.
Speaker 4:Once my kids are 10, they're getting from the 12 gauge blowing their shoulders out. It happened to me. It's happening to them.
Speaker 2:you're having all of us. Yeah, here, son, shoot this.
Speaker 4:I don't even think a 410 was even a thing when I I don't even remember.
Speaker 2:Yeah, the first I ever shot was a I didn't know a 12-gauge existed dude?
Speaker 4:Yeah, me neither. I didn't know it existed until I was like 15 years old, which is because it was always a 12-gauge and that's always what my uncle had. Existed until I was like 15 years old, just because it was always a 12 gauge and that's always what my uncle had. So I was like, well, I guess it's all the ages it is.
Speaker 2:Yeah my first uh, my first shotgun I ever shot was my dad's uh, side by side, winchester, mile 24, and uh 12 gauge and I I think I couldn't have been any older than 10 or 11 years old and uh, I just scared me. It was just, I was, I was done. I was like, you know, didn't even have a rubber, you know, didn't even have a rubber boot on the end of it or anything, it was just straight, you know, plastic to the shoulder. Of course he wasn't showing me how to hold it right either. So, you know, I just absorbed all the pressure, um, but then, of course, after that, a couple years later, he's like, oh, by the way, I have this single shot, ithaca 20 gauge that you can shoot. And I was like, oh, that would have been nice yeah, definitely.
Speaker 1:Well, guys, I I think this is going to wrap it up for today's episode. Um, thank you all for yet again, come on, the stories are great. Listen to you guys kill your birds, it's just, you know, you know it's. It's truly remarkable. I hope all the listeners enjoyed this, this episode, and we'll see you guys next time.