I was pinned down! There were birds all around me, when just moments before this part of my forest seemed empty. I sunk to the ground right where I was, not daring to take another step. I laid the "secret weapon" on the ground next to me and sat back to enjoy the show. Five or six toms were gobbling in a full circle around me, all within 100 yards or so, while several hens were screaming their heads off straight in front of me. I was 20 yards into the woods off the border of property I couldn't hunt. I normally wouldn't sit this close, but circumstances dictated my choice of spots. I watched 2 strutting long beards shuffle over toward the hens, just out of range. I thought that would have been my shot and set up facing the vocal hens. Now I had to concentrate on the birds behind me as that group wandered into the open grass where I could not hunt. I scooted around the tree, and started to call. One bird started to circle above me where I could shoot, and 2 birds came below me, just over the boundary on the safe side. I tracked the gobbling, but as of yet unseen, tom above me waiting for him to stick his head above a log or step out into the open. This never happened and he wandered down the hill to join the gobbling, fighting, yelping, and generally rowdy flock already gathered in the cut grass.

The 2 long beards below me stopped at about 35 yards, strutting and gobbling an attempt to lure the hen (me) that was making enough noise to try to compete with the yelping and cackling already going on. They finally gave up and headed to join the party they could see. I yelped until I thought the roof of my mouth might blister, and here they came back again, strutting and gobbling with renewed vigor, but on the safe side of the boundary. Tiring of this game they again headed off the join the flock they could see. I fired up the diaphragm and yelped and cackled for all I was worth, figuring I had nothing to lose. Here they come back a third time. This time they circled around me, headed into the woods, and my first personal gobbler of the year was in the bag. The second bird just stood there and stared at his fallen partner, totally oblivious to the shot I had just fired. It didn't seem to upset the group out front either.

As I went to collect my trophy, I picked up the secret weapon and gave a quiet thanks to modern technology. Yes, I'm talking about my thermaCELL bug repellant. I could never have sat still that long without suffering as the mosquitoes, gnats, and no-see-ums were fierce on this warm May morning. I first used a thermaCELL spring bear hunting in Manitoba and was amazed at its effectiveness, but had never considered it for spring turkeys. I think back to all the times I've been chewed on and bitten as I toughed it out waiting rock still for a gobbler to come into range, and I now know that's a pain of the past. ThermaCELL, don't leave home without it.