Chasing Spring: Missouri Rematch

By Ray Eye
May 17, 2011
After hunting eight wonderful days in my beloved Ozarks, the time came for Chasing Spring to travel to Northeast Missouri to KT's Trophy hunts to meet Megan Shipman, my next Chasing spring hunter. I hunted one day with Megan last year without success during the 2010 Mo season, so this 2011 hunt was a rematch to do everything we could to finally get her a gobbler. As we drove six hours north, we left behind terrible flooding, rain and wind as on our arrival to Kt's, the sun was actually shining. My good friend Kevin Small of Kt's trophy hunts, invited Chasing Spring at no cost to hunt his high quality managed properties, and also donated guiding, lodging and meals to help Megan take her first turkey. Northeast Missouri like all other places we hunted this spring, was way behind, a late spring, early season open woods with stubborn gobblers and little gobbling after leaving the roost. Hope you enjoy the photo gallery and from here I will let the photos and video tell the rest of the story of our battle with open country gobblers of Northeast Missouri. My good friend Kevin Small of Kt's trophy hunts, invited Chasing spring at no cost to hunt his high quality managed properties, and Kevin also donated guiding, lodging and meals to help Megan Shipman attempt and take her first turkey.
My Northeast MO chasing spring hunter, Megan Shipman
Kevin Small of KT's Trophy hunts donated a hunt for Chasing Spring and Megan Shipman.
On the first morning Megan takes in a little early morning nourishment while contemplating what this day will bring.
Megan and dad in the back seat of Kevin's truck on the way out to our first morning hunt.
This is a real rarity for Chasing spring, an genuine sunrise. We actually heard some pretty fare gobbling at daylight; we came close, but didn't close the deal.
After our morning set up without success, it was time to run and gun and cover some ground.
Later that morning, Kevin spotted a strutter with hens in a field and slipped in for a set up with Megan. The turkey gobbled but stayed wide of our set up and disappeared behind an open hill side.
Moving and calling trying to get a gobble and locate a turkey to set up on
Running out of time for this morning's hunt, Kevin Small, Scott and Megan deicide to head back to camp and prepare for tomorrow's hunt
On our return to the lodge, we found that several of Kevin's hunters scored big on this sunny morning.
Megan's dad, Scott Shipman and I relaxing on the porch at KT's trophy hunts, and the sun is shining for the first time in many days
Daddy Megan relaxing at the lodge after a long, tiring morning of hunting.
We set up on a food plot and set out decoys, we called several gobblers close to the blind, but we never were able to get a shot.
The rains returned the next morning, thunder rolled and lighting streaked the sky as we went in to our blind set up because of the rain.
My girl Megan and I in the turkey blind on our second day set up.
What a crew! Dad Scott, Chasing Spring team member Joel Shipman, and Megan in our blind set up.
It turns out we would have been better off without the blind and decoys on this hunt as the gobblers came to the edge of the food plot right behind the blind, gobbling all the way, but when they spotted the blind and decoys, went silent and melted back into the timber.
Sometimes decoys are the magic that makes it happen, but they do not work in every hunting situation, and decoys did not work during this hunt.
Chasing Spring departed from KT's trophy hunts after Megan's hunt for our next hunt in Illinois, however our Illinois hunt was put on hold for a few days, so Joel and I had a little time to hunt in Northeast MO. That evening the rains stopped and a rainbow appeared behind our camp which is a promising sign for things to come.
No rain the following morning, as soon as we arrived to our hunting area, we set up on gobbling turkeys on a roost, but didn't do any good, so moving a calling was up next.
This is a great camera set up, unfortunately this time the turkeys didn't think so.
Where he fell. I had to go on to my next hunt , so Joel returned on his own without my camera for a second round and succeeded in taking one of his best gobblers ever.
Chasing Spring team member Joel Shipman killed a monster for Chasing, 25.5 pounds, 3 beards and long, sharp spurs.
Those are some serious hooks; this is an old turkey, probably at least 4 years old.
Joel's northeast Missouri gobbler sported three beards.

After hunting eight wonderful days in my beloved Ozarks, the time came for Chasing Spring to travel to Northeast Missouri to KT's Trophy hunts to meet Megan Shipman, my next Chasing spring hunter.

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