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Nov. 28, 2002
Hunter enjoys challenge of hunting turkeys with bow
By BRENT FRAZEE, The Kansas City Star
Looking for a challenge this Thanksgiving? Try hunting the main course for your meal with a bow.
It's hard enough to fool a wild turkey into walking within shotgun range -- 30 to 40 yards. But try getting one to move within bow range -- as close as 10 yards.
Now that's a challenge.
"The odds are stacked against you when you hunt turkeys with a bow," said Bill Farley, 46, an archery hunter who lives in Wentzville, Mo. "They have exceptional eyesight. They are very attuned to picking up movement.
"Trying to get one in right on top of you can be tough. I've had times when I've been completely covered up, sitting in brush with only a small opening, and I've watched them spook when I pulled back on my bow.
"I'll get out and look at where I was sitting and say to myself, `How in the world did that bird see me?' But they're good at that."
Farley, who runs a business that arranges hunts all over the world, is one of the hunters who relishes that challenge.
Oh, he will hunt wild turkeys with a shotgun, especially in the spring. In fact, he at one time had the world record for eastern turkeys in the North American Wild Turkey Federation rankings, a bird he took during a spring firearms season.
But when he is looking for a challenge, he picks up his bow in the fall and early winter.
He got his start while he was hunting deer during the archery season years ago, one of the first times he even saw turkeys in the Kirksville area.
"I was up in a tree stand and looked down and saw this gobbler walk within two or three feet of the tree I was in," Farley said. "I hardly even knew what it was. We just weren't used to seeing turkeys in that part of the state."
But as turkey numbers grew and an archery season was established, Farley began flinging arrows at the birds. And he began hitting his target.
He became so enthusiastic about the sport that he became one of the few bow hunters in the state who began going out specifically for turkeys. And he became adept at what he was doing.
He has taken 39 turkeys with a bow over the years, an achievement that not many hunters can match. And he looks forward to the cold days of late November, December and early January, when hunting conditions are prime.
"When it's cold and there's snow on the ground, that's the time to be out there," he said. "That's the type of conditions that will drive the turkeys to the crop fields.
"They'll get predictable. You'll see them feeding in the same corner of a field at the same time every day.
"And with the snow, you can see their tracks and get an idea of where they're traveling. That's when you can really pattern them."
Few days are too cold for Farley to go hunting. He remembers taking turkeys on mornings when the wind chill was far below zero and snow was falling.
He starts by scouting for several days, learning about the turkeys' patterns. That's when he stops being conventional.
At night, he often slips into the spot where he had seen the birds and digs a pit. Then he covers that pit with brush and natural vegetation, leaving just a few small openings to shoot through.
He is in that pit long before the turkeys fly down from their roost trees in the morning, waiting for them to arrive.
He is often so well-concealed that the turkeys will walk within eight to 10 yards of him -- perfect range for a bow hunter.
"I've taken some big adult birds that way -- toms as big as 25 pounds," he said. "It won't work every time. Even in that brush, there are times when they'll spot you.
"But right there at ground level like that, a lot of times they aren't looking for predators. They feel fairly secure."
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To reach Brent Frazee, outdoors editor for The Star, call (816) 234-4319, or send e-mail to bfrazee@kcstar.com
Hunter enjoys challenge of hunting turkeys with bow
By BRENT FRAZEE, The Kansas City Star
Looking for a challenge this Thanksgiving? Try hunting the main course for your meal with a bow.
It's hard enough to fool a wild turkey into walking within shotgun range -- 30 to 40 yards. But try getting one to move within bow range -- as close as 10 yards.
Now that's a challenge.
"The odds are stacked against you when you hunt turkeys with a bow," said Bill Farley, 46, an archery hunter who lives in Wentzville, Mo. "They have exceptional eyesight. They are very attuned to picking up movement.
"Trying to get one in right on top of you can be tough. I've had times when I've been completely covered up, sitting in brush with only a small opening, and I've watched them spook when I pulled back on my bow.
"I'll get out and look at where I was sitting and say to myself, `How in the world did that bird see me?' But they're good at that."
Farley, who runs a business that arranges hunts all over the world, is one of the hunters who relishes that challenge.
Oh, he will hunt wild turkeys with a shotgun, especially in the spring. In fact, he at one time had the world record for eastern turkeys in the North American Wild Turkey Federation rankings, a bird he took during a spring firearms season.
But when he is looking for a challenge, he picks up his bow in the fall and early winter.
He got his start while he was hunting deer during the archery season years ago, one of the first times he even saw turkeys in the Kirksville area.
"I was up in a tree stand and looked down and saw this gobbler walk within two or three feet of the tree I was in," Farley said. "I hardly even knew what it was. We just weren't used to seeing turkeys in that part of the state."
But as turkey numbers grew and an archery season was established, Farley began flinging arrows at the birds. And he began hitting his target.
He became so enthusiastic about the sport that he became one of the few bow hunters in the state who began going out specifically for turkeys. And he became adept at what he was doing.
He has taken 39 turkeys with a bow over the years, an achievement that not many hunters can match. And he looks forward to the cold days of late November, December and early January, when hunting conditions are prime.
"When it's cold and there's snow on the ground, that's the time to be out there," he said. "That's the type of conditions that will drive the turkeys to the crop fields.
"They'll get predictable. You'll see them feeding in the same corner of a field at the same time every day.
"And with the snow, you can see their tracks and get an idea of where they're traveling. That's when you can really pattern them."
Few days are too cold for Farley to go hunting. He remembers taking turkeys on mornings when the wind chill was far below zero and snow was falling.
He starts by scouting for several days, learning about the turkeys' patterns. That's when he stops being conventional.
At night, he often slips into the spot where he had seen the birds and digs a pit. Then he covers that pit with brush and natural vegetation, leaving just a few small openings to shoot through.
He is in that pit long before the turkeys fly down from their roost trees in the morning, waiting for them to arrive.
He is often so well-concealed that the turkeys will walk within eight to 10 yards of him -- perfect range for a bow hunter.
"I've taken some big adult birds that way -- toms as big as 25 pounds," he said. "It won't work every time. Even in that brush, there are times when they'll spot you.
"But right there at ground level like that, a lot of times they aren't looking for predators. They feel fairly secure."
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
To reach Brent Frazee, outdoors editor for The Star, call (816) 234-4319, or send e-mail to bfrazee@kcstar.com
