Well, you pay your money and you take your chances.....lol.....Headed to San Carlos Indian Reservation with my friend Way (The Fall Guy) for a turkey hunt.....I consider Way one of the top 3 turkey hunters I know.....So, I had great confidence that we would find birds.
We left last Friday at dark thirty and got to San Carlos at around 2:00 pm.....Right off the bat, we see a flock of turkeys (20+).....Thought it was strange, but they were all hens.....We set up camp near by and continued to scout.....What we noticed right off was how dry it was and the tanks we were checking were either dry or had little water.....As we drove around, we saw a few more turkeys. And saw our 1st jakes with 3 hens.....They were very young jakes with a barely visible beard on one of the 4.....We then scouted where we were going to hunt opening morning (walking distance from camp)).....The tank was almost completely dry, but below the tank was a meadow with water in some rocks.....It's loaded with turkey sign.
As daybreak broke the next morning (17 degrees), Way headed for that meadow. Being only a quarter of a mile away and it being dead calm, we noticed we didn't hear any gobbles.....I headed the opposite direction.....As I started to get near where I was going to set-up, I had 3 vehicles go past me.....Not good.....I worked the area and headed towards that same meadow Way was headed too.....Nothing, no sightings, no gobbles.....I head back to camp after about 2 hours.....Soon there after, Way shows up.....He had got near the meadow and as he did, he noticed the turkeys are already in the meadow (5:15 am & almost dark).....Again 20 or so birds and they're all hens.....Way had walked all the way to another tank and with the exception of seeing a big elk shed.....Nothing.....No sighting, no gobbles.
We decide to drive to some other tanks and we are calling at each stop. Only thing we see or hear are other hunters.....The consensus is, the driest and least amount of birds anyone had ever seen.....One local who we could tell knew the area very well called it "devastating".....We finally go back to camp and have lunch and try to come up with another plan.....There was a tank that was kind of out of the way and we decide to head for it in the afternoon.....As we scout, we find heavily used roost trees.....It's now getting pretty late and we decide to hunt up the surrounding hills and watch to see later what, if anything was using these trees near the tank.....We don't hear a thing until almost 7:00 pm and probably after shoot time.....At about that time and almost dark. Hens start coming into the tank.....All hens again that Way could see.....WTF!.....As I come off the hill, I bump them thinking it was so dark that nothing was roosting here.
Sunday morning we decide to get to the meadow early.....We do and there's nothing there.....Then a older couple show up in a Jeep.....We talk to them and they say there's normally 200 turkeys at this tank.....They had scouted the day before and had seen nothing.....It was the driest they had ever seen too.....It was time to leave this area.
When we get back to camp, we have breakfast and start the Toyota Tacoma.....Only one problem.....It wouldn't go forward.....Way put into 4x4 and it would go into reverse, but would drag the back rear left wheel going forward.....Totally froze up.....The gear box sounded ugly too.....Tried everything and we figure we're dead in the water.....80 miles from Globe and no cell service.....The old folks we talked to had camped not that far from us. So I walked to their camp and asked for help.....He brought over a jack (Way's didn't work....lol).....He jacked it up and the wheel spun.....Lowered it and the Tacoma acted like nothing had happed.....lol.....After this, we decided we couldn't take a chance on this happening again and packed up to head home.
As we're headed off of the plateau, Way decided to check and area where a friend of his got a bird in the 1st season (this was the 2nd season).....It's literally, the last place you could hunt turkeys.....We get to a tank and I hit the box call.....Instant gobble.....WTF again.....lol....We make a game plan and up the mountain Way goes.....I head around the back side.....I never heard him again, but Way did.....He liked to gobble and Way got within 50 yds of him and gun was up, but he never showed himself in the thick junipers. And finally just walked away.
We spent the rest of the afternoon talking to tribal folks (very cool) and never saw or heard another bird.....We do decide to spend one more night and listen for gobbles the next morning....Did see 6 hens and for the 1st time, lots of deer.....But again, no toms or gobbles.....Homeward bound.
Overall, it's a very cool place. It had been a long time since I dirt camped and that was fun too....Weather was beautiful and hey, we were turkey hunting and got home safe.....Till next time.....Few pix.
ps....Yes, those are bear tracks.
pss....Tribal center animals.
.
We left last Friday at dark thirty and got to San Carlos at around 2:00 pm.....Right off the bat, we see a flock of turkeys (20+).....Thought it was strange, but they were all hens.....We set up camp near by and continued to scout.....What we noticed right off was how dry it was and the tanks we were checking were either dry or had little water.....As we drove around, we saw a few more turkeys. And saw our 1st jakes with 3 hens.....They were very young jakes with a barely visible beard on one of the 4.....We then scouted where we were going to hunt opening morning (walking distance from camp)).....The tank was almost completely dry, but below the tank was a meadow with water in some rocks.....It's loaded with turkey sign.
As daybreak broke the next morning (17 degrees), Way headed for that meadow. Being only a quarter of a mile away and it being dead calm, we noticed we didn't hear any gobbles.....I headed the opposite direction.....As I started to get near where I was going to set-up, I had 3 vehicles go past me.....Not good.....I worked the area and headed towards that same meadow Way was headed too.....Nothing, no sightings, no gobbles.....I head back to camp after about 2 hours.....Soon there after, Way shows up.....He had got near the meadow and as he did, he noticed the turkeys are already in the meadow (5:15 am & almost dark).....Again 20 or so birds and they're all hens.....Way had walked all the way to another tank and with the exception of seeing a big elk shed.....Nothing.....No sighting, no gobbles.
We decide to drive to some other tanks and we are calling at each stop. Only thing we see or hear are other hunters.....The consensus is, the driest and least amount of birds anyone had ever seen.....One local who we could tell knew the area very well called it "devastating".....We finally go back to camp and have lunch and try to come up with another plan.....There was a tank that was kind of out of the way and we decide to head for it in the afternoon.....As we scout, we find heavily used roost trees.....It's now getting pretty late and we decide to hunt up the surrounding hills and watch to see later what, if anything was using these trees near the tank.....We don't hear a thing until almost 7:00 pm and probably after shoot time.....At about that time and almost dark. Hens start coming into the tank.....All hens again that Way could see.....WTF!.....As I come off the hill, I bump them thinking it was so dark that nothing was roosting here.
Sunday morning we decide to get to the meadow early.....We do and there's nothing there.....Then a older couple show up in a Jeep.....We talk to them and they say there's normally 200 turkeys at this tank.....They had scouted the day before and had seen nothing.....It was the driest they had ever seen too.....It was time to leave this area.
When we get back to camp, we have breakfast and start the Toyota Tacoma.....Only one problem.....It wouldn't go forward.....Way put into 4x4 and it would go into reverse, but would drag the back rear left wheel going forward.....Totally froze up.....The gear box sounded ugly too.....Tried everything and we figure we're dead in the water.....80 miles from Globe and no cell service.....The old folks we talked to had camped not that far from us. So I walked to their camp and asked for help.....He brought over a jack (Way's didn't work....lol).....He jacked it up and the wheel spun.....Lowered it and the Tacoma acted like nothing had happed.....lol.....After this, we decided we couldn't take a chance on this happening again and packed up to head home.
As we're headed off of the plateau, Way decided to check and area where a friend of his got a bird in the 1st season (this was the 2nd season).....It's literally, the last place you could hunt turkeys.....We get to a tank and I hit the box call.....Instant gobble.....WTF again.....lol....We make a game plan and up the mountain Way goes.....I head around the back side.....I never heard him again, but Way did.....He liked to gobble and Way got within 50 yds of him and gun was up, but he never showed himself in the thick junipers. And finally just walked away.
We spent the rest of the afternoon talking to tribal folks (very cool) and never saw or heard another bird.....We do decide to spend one more night and listen for gobbles the next morning....Did see 6 hens and for the 1st time, lots of deer.....But again, no toms or gobbles.....Homeward bound.
Overall, it's a very cool place. It had been a long time since I dirt camped and that was fun too....Weather was beautiful and hey, we were turkey hunting and got home safe.....Till next time.....Few pix.
ps....Yes, those are bear tracks.
pss....Tribal center animals.
.
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