True story, no pics.

I was deer hunting alone in the Gila Wilderness back about 1990.

As I hiked alongside a small canyon I heard gobblers on the other side. In a few minutes I saw about five or so and thought that was nice.

I hiked up to the head of the canyon, turned to the right, and began working back into the country that was previously to my right. It was fairly open with scattered Ponderosa pine, Pinion, and some Junipers. Nothing for ground cover other than Gramma Grass and an occassional bush.

I then saw two young turkeys walking straight towards me. I was out in the open and not wearing camo. They continued walking towards me in their slow, "I'm-curious" manner. Then I began to see two streams of turkeys flowing around me, one on each side, at about 20 yards or so away. As the two youngsters kept walking up towards me the two streams of turkeys kept going past on each side. After about twenty or so streamed past I began counting the two files. I counted 66 birds, plus the two who originally started it all. I figured there was at least 100 turkeys there.

The two streams moved past me and the two curious ones got within about ten feet and then they spooked and flew off, subesquently the remainder behind me took off as well.

What a sight and sound!

Any wild animal, in the wild, is a marvelous sight.

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Have guns...will shoot'em.