A bleary-eyed writer is wearily punching the keyboard after pulling into the driveway from Logan Airport at 3:30 this morning. This was my annual Kansas trip and it had gotten off to a rocky start with a SNAFU at the TSA checkpoint last Wednesday but once in Kansas it got better. The trip was my annual sojourn to visit my sister Pat (formerly known as Tish) Wolf in Leavenworth because that is what good brothers do. The fact that Kansas turkey hunting season started last week may have factored into my timing, however.
Over my years hunting Kansas turkeys, Pat and her husband, retired Major Jim Wolf, really take good care of her big brother. Their cellar is a storage unit for my AvianX hen and jake decoys, my two turkey seats (a folding seat and a “turkey lounger”), a Ghost Blind, a turkey vest, a Lynch box call, a gun-mounted turkey fan, and assorted 12-gauge turkey loads. After mentioning to Jim that the newest and latest turkey loads were Federal TSS #7 and #9, costing up to $79 for five, I was delighted when he informed me, he had found them on sale at Midway USA and bought a box of each for me to try. What a great brother-in-law!
Pat is an avid horse person who is presently waiting for her newest thoroughbred jumper, a seven-year-old who will the occupy the third stall in her immaculate stable, to be shipped from Pennsylvania. She foxhunts with the Fort Leavenworth Hunt and really enjoys it when not recuperating from falls. There are some truly great people involved in the hunt, done with English saddles and full riding regalia, and she has been a great sister using these and her other contacts to find me places to turkey hunt and great people to hunt with. Among those contacts is Kin Hickman, whom she first met when she contacted him to do some trapping of nuisance skunks and beavers.
She asked Kin if he would take her brother hunting and a great friendship has ensued. Kin is one of the best woodsmen this writer has ever met. His trapping skills are honed by years of beaver trapping, and he excels at coon hunting with outstanding hounds and a reputation as an excellent field trial judge as well. Deer hunting is another passion of Kin’s, and he has harvested a number of mature bucks and his collection of racks is impressive. It was obvious the first time afield with Kin that he is a very accomplished turkey hunter, and he knows turkey habits and is the best caller my ears have heard. Our hunts are always memorable, and he is a great person to talk hunting with while riding in his pickup.
My first day in Kansas this year was a solo hunt and the first property, where a few gobblers had succumbed to the Winchester SuperX3, was strangely quiet and after two hours it was off to plan B. That meant a drive to another of Pat’s friends’ properties with big rolling pastures and a ridge loaded with oaks. My prospecting yelps soon drew a response, and the gobbler was not far. Needing to set up quickly, the slate call was brought into play and soft yelps and purrs had the tom sounding closer and closer. He hung up just on the opposite side of the ridge and went back and forth. To lure him in, he got the “silent treatment.” After several minutes, he came silently over the crest and offered a shot. Believing that once again this season I only had one tag, a reaction to reduced turkey numbers in Kansas, the safety went back on to save some more hunting with friends I had come to visit. He lost interest and left. Later, I was informed that there were two carcass tags with my license. Damn!
The weather during my stay was extremely cold for Kansas in April, with most mornings in the low 30s. Brrrrr! Gobbling was off from what this hunter had found in past hunts and the only birds that came in after the first day were agitated hens. Monday was my last day to hunt and it was going to be a day afield with Kin. He decided to hunt a parcel where we found birds last season and it was very cold walking in under a full moon. Two groups of deer blew at us in the pre-dawn and then a single hen turkey made her way down the large hayfield, checked out the AvianX decoys and then headed back where she had come from. Next, three raccoons made their way to Kin and he lured them to with a few feet with mouth squeaks.
There had been a gobble from across the road early and Kin decided to give that bird a try. We soon were overlooking Perry Lake, a U.S. Army Corps of Engineers reservoir covering 11,150 acres across northeast Kansas with 160 miles of shoreline. Kin once again began working his magic with the mouth call and slate, softly calling and patiently waiting for a response. His efforts finally were rewarded when a hen yelp came from our far right. The hen became more vocal and after about a half hour the parade appeared.
First, three mature hens slowly walked and picked at the ground moving deliberately past the hen decoy set 25 yards in front of our positions. We were both sitting with backs up against trees, fully camouflaged, and motionless. Then, following behind the girls came a mature tom. He was silently “stalking” the ladies. Behind him, a line of three jakes, immature males looking to get into the action, made their way along the same line. Once the tom got in front of me, the scope was on his head waiting for him to lift it and give me the sure shot that would do the job. When he stopped and presented that opportunity, the load of Federal TSS #9’s proved to be well worth the investment and the bird was down.
We were both wearing camo masks, but our smiles were hard to hide. We finally had finished a hunt with a bird, and he was a beauty! Kansas birds run bigger than the New England turkeys and we both estimated this one to be 22 to 23 pounds with inch-plus spurs. What was a surprise was the fact that the bird actually had four beards! They were not thick and bushy and close together but four distinct 10-inch beards nonetheless. Quite unique.
My time in the Sunflower State was great with outstanding food (particularly Joe’s Kansas City BBQ) and company all around. After all the issues of the past couple years with COVID and the inability to socialize, it was most enjoyable.
There was, however, one downside. My sister’s beloved dog Gracie experienced a series of seizures during the night and early morning right after I arrived. She had also suffered seizures a couple of weeks ago. The vet told Pat and Jim that there was evidence of a stroke and they decided to have her put down rather than prolong the suffering. It was devastating to them as they dearly loved the dog that Pat found four years ago beside the highway. Gracie was a central part of their lives and last summer she rode with them from Kansas to Massachusetts when they came to visit. She will be missed but was loved and lived a great life as part of the Wolf family and a well-known fixture in Leavenworth and beyond.
Massachusetts turkey season opens Monday and runs through May 21. Permits are required and birds must have a three-inch beard. The spring limit is two. Guns must have the official sticker affixed to the gun where it is visible when sighting down the barrel. Hunting hours are one-half hour before sunrise until noon. Be safe and be sure of your target. Do not stalk turkeys! Remain stationary and call birds to you. No shot larger than #4 is allowed. Avoid wearing anything red, white, black or blue.
Reach Mike Roche at mikeroche3@msn.com.