In 2008 I had the opportunity to hunt with Jody Smith, a well known hunting and fishing guide from the Elkton area. Elkton, located in SW Oregon just happens to be one of the best turkey hunting areas in the Pacific NorthWest. One of the biggest obstacles with turkey hunting, however, is not finding turkeys, but finding property that you can hunt on. When you hunt with Jody it's not a problem he has dozens of ranches and farms leased. If you are not successful at the first place you only need to move to the next property.
It was mid May when we were set up, trying to get a gobbler to come close enough for a shot with my Allegiance. Several times that morning we had gobblers talking and strutting around just out of range. That's when Jody pulled another trick out of his hat.
When we went to the next property we quickly located a flock with a nice Tom in it and he laid out the plan. We were not going to set up a blind and try to call this time. Instead, he took me around to the other side of the hill and showed me a game trail. Jody told me to sit right there and be ready for a 15 yard shot. It turns out that he knows the birds patterns so well that he was able to walk up on the birds enough to gently spook them and they came around the hillside on the trail just as Jody had explained. I stayed motionless as the hens came strolling by. As the big tom passed behind the last tree, I came to full draw and waited. Moments later he stepped into the open at 15 yards, unaware that I was around. He jumped into the air as the arrow passed thru him and we he came down, he expired quickly.
This was the first archery tom I had taken without the use of a ground blind. It was an exciting hunt and fun to learn that there is more than one way to outsmart an old gobbler.
If you want to have a great time and a quality experience, give Jody a call.
www.jodysmithguideservice.com
