found a strut zone...wow

bamaranger

New member
Overslept Weds morning and got to the woods late. Found a truck on the state road where I'd seen and worked two gobblers the day before....darn.
I hate to pressure another hunter, so I went somewhere else for an hour.

Notta. So I loaded up the rusty Bronco again and moved a third time. In this instance, a gravel road that intersects a powerline on a ridge top. I'd seen a gobbler there strutting before season, and heard two others. (one of which I likely killed on the day I missed, from my other post) So....maybe there's still one (or two) left, I think.

I parked kinda short and walked down to the road/ROW crossing. Imagine this....:
an area about the size of a highschool basket ball court, level, sandy and pea gravel. Give a preschooler a garden rake, and let them walk around for about 30 minutes, dragging the rake, teeth down.

The absolute mother of all strut sign. Strut marks EVERWHERE. I have NEVER seen anything like it.
Fresh too! Maybe from that AM. Heck, I may have run the bird(s?) off driving in, I wasn't real careful 'bout where I parked. Geez did one bird do all this? Or two? Or one over the course of several AM's?

Next part was easy, I'll finish my AM here! I dog trotted back to the ol'Bronc, got my blind, stool and dekes, went back and set up in range of that mess. For two hours +. Calling sparingly. Felt pretty silly setting next to that road. As its within the WMA, its a legal hunt.

A truck went through about 30 mins before quitting time, so I called it a day. Took a brush top and beat strut marks out for 15 minutes, then ran the 4WD over it for good measure 3-4 times.

I may start there tomorrow. I've named this bird..."the Roadrunner"!!!
Meep.....Meep.....Bang (I hope)
 
I've seen nothing like that in the woods around here but the old tom we have out in the yard, back when he was in his prime, would flat tear up a area. Not as big as you describe but fairly big.

As suggested....post us some pictures when it's over...even if you don't get the bird.
 
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