First bird down

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So getting up at 2:30 AM for the drive to Cobden made me question my sanity. Was up and had the coffee, out the door for 2:50 AM. Arrived at Cobden on time for the 4 o’clock meeting. Dropped my truck and loaded in to Cody’s. He shared the plan, and we hopped the fence and went in for the set up. we were in place by 4:50 AM. Light drizzle on occasion. Nice to have a blind. Decoys placed at 21 yards. Few gobbles until well after 6:15. Probably do to the rain. Watched a couple birds appear 120 yards. Some on the Dirt pile and over by the road. Strutting and showing off. Wouldn’t come in. Gobbles started to to be heard. Had a Hen walk out from the right. Very relaxed and kept going. More answers to calls and around 7 am. The bird from the road came straight in at us. Got to the decoys and circled. Lined it up and completely missed the shot. Not a feather. We got up to inspect things and stretch. Decided to sit longer. Cody hit the mouth call aggressively. Got gobbles from behind us. He kept call, nice Tom came from the right. Same line the hen took. He veered to the decoys. Stayed still and was lining him up when Cody nudges me and two birds now come in from the left. 12 yards. Took it slow and easy, but not to slow. Fired on the left ones, bird down! Fantastic. Took some great photos. And had it wrapped up by 9 am. My bird had 7/8 inch spurs, 9 1/2 inch beard. Paper tags suck. Need to find a better way. Lots of feather for tying. Totally worth hiring a guide if you don’t have the time to invest in scouting. You will learn a lot. I hope to file my second tag on my own, on crown land. Going to tougher, but worth it.

not sure why these photos turn sideways.

Well done! That tom was no match for you and the Ithaca!

Using that gun meant a lot. It was given to me by a neighbour as he was dying of cancer back in the 90’s. His kids where not outdoor enthusiasts, or remotely interested in hunting. Jim would have loved to hear the story.

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Originally Posted by Cameracutter

Using that gun meant a lot. It was given to me by a neighbour as he was dying of cancer back in the 90’s. His kids where not outdoor enthusiasts, or remotely interested in hunting. Jim would have loved to hear the story.

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Somehow I knew there was a story with that gun :)

I was gifted a pristine condition Ithaca 37 by friend after his father died (my friend does not hunt). That gun is now my teenage son's. He's taken pheasants and woodcock with it and we're now working on a turkey.

The funny story my friend told me about the gun is that as a young boy he and his mother got on the bus to go Simpson-Sears in Hamilton to buy Dad a duck hunting shotgun for Christmas (pre-FAC days). The gun was the last one on the rack and had no box with it. My friend was thrilled that his mother let him carry the gun out of the store, down the street to the bus stop and ride the bus home with the gun barrel-up between his knees, with nothing but a hang-tag on the trigger guard :D

Congrats! Nice Tom.

Congrats on a nice bird!