With family in town this past weekend, a bunch of us got in the truck and hit the drove through the Hill Country in search of some property for my in-laws. The short version of the long story is that they're packing up shop out in east Texas and retiring somewhere in the central zone of the state. A well deserved move for them to say the very least! Heading out 290 with no idea on where we wanted to look, we passed through some gorgeous ranches in search of land with the right features and of course, the right price tag. About 2 hours into the drive, we were on some dirt road down in Johnson City when at nearly the same moment my father-in-law and I said "gobbler, gobbler, look!". Like a scene out of some old book, two strutting birds were off the middle of a meadow blown up, looking for love. It was at this point in my day when I felt the bite of turkey season hit me like a freight train.
I might be addicted to deer hunting, but I must say that turkey hunting has always been a very close second place. This year I literally felt like turkey season snuck up on me so badly that I'm almost not ready for it! So with that thought, I got out my gear and prepped everything so I'm ready to rock and roll.
Call it overkill, but I like to sand my calls, pattern my shotgun and practice before each season. I'll admit that I wasn't always this way. There was a point where I would pull out my vest and shotgun the night before opening day and then come the next morning discover that I had broken slate calls and a bunch of other surprises in my vest pockets. Not a good way to kick off the season to say the least.
This season I'll be chasing Rio's in the Lonestar state, something that I've never done before and am over the moon about. Good luck out there this spring and be sure to tweet your photos to @ne_bowhunter!