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Alex
Rutledge harvested his first turkey by himself
at age 14. It’s a day
that’s minted to memory, one that he’ll never, ever forget.
“I remember strutting home like a peacock after I shot it,” said
Rutledge, who lives in south-central Missouri and works as a turkey and deer
hunting pro staffer for Hunter’s Specialties. “I shot the jake
with an old single-shot. When I was walking home, I remember I had to stop
every so
often because the bird was so heavy.”
Today, Rutledge is a
turkey-hunting fanatic. So far in 2006, he
has hunted the gaudy gobbler in Missouri, Mississippi,
Louisiana and Illinois, where he
guided
two young hunters during the state’s special youth hunt. His next stop
is Kentucky.
“One of the boys I was guiding harvested his first turkey,” said
Rutledge “He’s on cloud nine right now.”
Rutledge has served as a mentor for countless youth hunters in the last
several years. It’s part of his pay-it-forward philosophy, a way,
he says, to get more youths in the field to experience the joy of turkey
hunting. “I was
lucky because I had an older brother and my daddy who got me involved,” said
Rutledge of turkey hunting. “But there are a lot of kids out there
who aren’t as lucky. If we want more hunters, we need more people
who are willing to take them out and mentor them.”
Youth hunters
need mentors, Rutledge explains, to learn the finer points of turkey
hunting, from safety considerations and tactics
to something
as simple
as being
properly camouflaged. “The education of a turkey hunter really
never ends,” he
said. “There’s always something new to learn, something we
can pass on.”
In that spirit, Rutledge offers some tips to
help new hunters become more acquainted with
the sport:
• Find a mentor. Like he said above, many kids lack adult supervision and
the instruction they need to hunt turkeys successfully and safely. Rutledge recommends
contacting the National Wild Turkey Federation (www.nwtf.org) for help. The Federation
has chapters throughout the United States, and all of them provide mentorship
opportunities for interested youth turkey hunters. “You got to find a friend
who hunts turkeys,” he said. “There’s no better way to learn
than from someone who’s passionate about the sport.”
Another option is contacting your local sporting goods store. Most
store officials know the hardcore turkey hunters in their area, and
they’re more than
willing to assist youth hunters -- assuming their interest is genuine.
• Education: Rutledge says youth hunters
and other newcomers can learn a lot about turkey
hunting by educating themselves when they’re
not in the field. He suggests watching turkey
hunting videos or reading a book on the
topic. “HS has many educational products to assist turkey
hunters,” he
said. “They’re all valuable resources for someone who
wants to learn.”
In addition, Rutledge
says turkey-hunting seminars are invaluable
and are offered throughout the spring
at many sporting goods stores. “Learn from the experts,” he
said. “And don’t be afraid to ask questions. There
are no dumb questions.”
• Calling: Novice turkey hunters should learn the basic hen calls (clucks,
yelps, etc.) with as many different types of calls as possible (mouth, slate,
box, etc.). By knowing how to use several different calls, a hunter can create
the illusion of sounding like several different hens, a major attraction to big
gobblers. Rutledge recommends mastering one call before moving on to another. “You’ll
have more success in calling in a turkey if you can duplicate the sounds with
more than one call,” he said.
Beginning turkey hunters, Rutledge said, may want to try using
Hunter's Specialties' Push Button Yelper 2. The call is simple
to use. Just
push the button and
you’re
talking turkey, he said. “It’s a very good call,” said
Rutledge. “The
main objective with calling is to learn and build confidence.
If you do, you’ll
feel better in the woods and probably have more success.”
The
biggest mistake novice turkey hunters make is calling too much
and too loudly.
Said Rutledge: “Make
the turkey look for you. When a turkey's gobbling
and coming to you, call less
and call softer. The closer the turkey gets to
you, the less you should call. You want that turkey to come
in looking for you but
don't want him to know exactly where you are.”
• Safety: “Safety is the most important
thing when it comes to hunting,” he
said. “You have to identify your target before you
pull the trigger. When I’m turkey hunting, before
I even think about touching the safety, I have to see the
beard of the gobbler.”
Good advice, indeed.
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