A group of six aspiring young hunters, aged 8 to 16, traveled from four states to Camp Lowden in Oregon, Illinois, accompanied by their parents. Upon arrival, the young hunters visited a local hardware store to obtain their hunting licenses. Afterward, they returned to the camp for target practice at the Boy Scouts’ shooting range, where their dedicated mentors were pleased to see everyone’s proficiency. Later, they enjoyed pizza for dinner and prepared for the next day’s early morning hunt.
Emma said, “Saturday morning came quickly, and I was so excited that I couldn’t even eat breakfast. We left the camp at 4:45 AM and arrived at our hunting spot by 5:15 AM. My dad and I settled into the blind while my mentor, Donald Hall, set out the decoys. It was around 6:10 AM, and the turkeys were very talkative. Donald made a few calls in response, which stirred them up. At 6:25, my dad and Donald were looking out the side windows when Donald said, ‘Emma, get ready; two longbeards are coming.’ I prepared myself and saw the two Toms heading straight for the decoys. They crossed right in front of me and turned near the decoys. I put the crosshairs on one of them and pulled the trigger. Boom! I had gotten my Illinois turkey. It was so exciting; I couldn’t believe how quickly it happened. My turkey weighed 18.5 lbs, had a 9-1/4-inch beard, and 3/4-inch spurs.”
Maya and her mentors, Dakota Hall and Todd Smith, settled into their blind an hour before sunrise. Dakota said, “Not long after we set up, the birds started to gobble 400 yards away. After they flew down, the gobbling stopped for about an hour. Finally, we got one to respond to our calls, and he started working his way toward us. About 15 minutes later, he slowly entered the field. When he saw the strutter decoy, it was game on! He came running from about 100 yards away. When he reached the decoy, Maya made a perfect shot! Maya exclaimed excitedly, ‘My bird weighed 21.1 pounds, the beard was 11 inches long, and the spurs were 1.25 inches!'”
Pete said, “My mentor, Gerry Grim, my older brother, and I woke up at 4:00 in the morning, had breakfast, and headed to our hunting spot. We arrived at the location, but it was still another mile to the blind, so we took a side-by-side vehicle to get there. Once we were in the blind, we just sat quietly. We heard some birds, but they didn’t come closer. After a little over an hour of waiting, two birds came into view around 7:36 AM. My brother and mentor thought they were hens. The birds then disappeared, only to reappear right in front of me. They were playing a game, with one popping its head up while the other would duck down, going back and forth like that. Finally, at 7:42 AM, I got a successful shot at one of them. My turkey weighed 16.7 lbs, had a 5-inch beard, and 1/4-inch spurs.” He added, “I was very happy that my brother drove from Nebraska to go hunting with me. It was a great time for us to bond as brothers, and he taught me a lot about turkeys.”
Cameron was excited as he headed out with his mother, Kristen, and his mentor, Rick Vandrew, to a blind set-up on a cut cornfield. It started as a very quiet morning for Cameron, as they were not hearing any turkeys gobble, and his mentor was doing his best to call them in. That slow initial start was about to take a turn around 8:30 in the morning as a large flock of about 30 turkeys with several toms came onto the field just out of range. Rick was doing his best to get them to take note of the decoys, but the turkeys continued to work across the field, and the toms were unwilling to leave the large flock of hens. With the flock of turkeys now out of sight, Rick thought they were starting to turn and come back in as he continued to call out to the flock. However, a very large tom shadowing the flock saw the decoy and decided it was to be the focus of his rage. The turkey almost ran across the field to the decoy; the tom puffed up and started walking sideways to challenge the decoy. This provided Cameron with the perfect opportunity for a shot, and with a single squeeze of the trigger, he was rewarded with a very large trophy turkey weighing 23 lbs 15 oz. It had a 10-inch beard and spurs measuring 1 5/16 inches. He was excited and asked his mentor if he could carry his bird outside himself. Rick was more than happy to let him do so. When they weighed his bird, Cameron exclaimed, “Golly! No wonder it was so heavy to carry out!” A big grin spread across his face.
Abby and her dad were all smiles as they headed into the blind with their mentors, Dave Chapman and his assistant, Trent Metzger. Chris, Abby’s dad, said, “Although the sun wasn’t due to rise for another 45 minutes or so, the turkeys were just booming with their gobbles and yelps from the woods in front of us. After the birds flew down from the roost early that morning, it turned out to be slow, with only a single hen coming in and pecking one of the decoys before wandering off. However, things were about to really heat up and get exciting as the 11 o’clock hour approached; a very close loud gobble made all four of us jump in the blind. Dave wasted no time getting Abby ready for a shot. Very quickly, four Jakes came running in for the decoys. As we waited, hoping for a large tom to come in, the Jakes put on a great show about 10 yards before us as they concentrated their frustrations on the decoys. After 31 minutes straight of sitting ready behind the gun, Abby decided the temptation was too much and wanted to shoot one of the jakes. Dave got her set up on a bird and told her to wait until he wasn’t puffed up and would stick his neck out further to give her a better shot. The jake let out one final gobble, and Abby giggled, causing us to giggle just before she pulled the trigger and harvested her very first turkey weighing 16 lbs 9 oz, had a 4-inch beard and 1/4 inch spurs.”
We extend our heartfelt gratitude to Terry Day, the director, our dedicated mentors and volunteers, the generous landowners, and the NWTF Rock River Turkey Chapter. Your unwavering support and commitment have been instrumental in the success of the annual Illinois Dream Hunt. Congratulations to the young hunters who have successfully bagged a turkey! The time spent with their mentors and families will have a lasting impact beyond their hunts. God bless!
If you are a landowner interested in mentoring a child or donating your property for a special hunt, please contact us at [email protected] or (800) 518-8019.