The Story of Ghost

An unkillable gobbler

- Connor Geelhoed

Over the years, I have hunted a large variety of game throughout North America. No animal that I've attempted to harvest has been as challenging as a particular turkey I encountered. This gobbler tested my patience, hunting knowledge and sanity like no other. I call him Ghost.

The story of Ghost starts on an early misty morning in 2019. I was driving past a stubble cornfield when I noticed a large group of turkeys. I quickly hit the brakes and pulled off to the shoulder of the road. With my binoculars, I glassed this group of turkeys. Several gobblers were with a number of hens.

Yet one gobbler in particular stood out from the rest. He sported one paintbrush beard unlike any other I had ever seen. Then I noticed there were actually several beards gracing his feathered chest. His massive size, combined with his long spurs, made him one for the record books. His ghostly presence solidified the name I bestowed upon him.

To take Ghost down, I needed to first hone in on his roost. Luckily for me, public land bordered a majority of the cornfield. After several hours of methodical scouting, I located a few roosts. Unable to determine which tree Ghost called home, I would have to hear where the toms were gobbling on opening day. I hoped one of those gobbles would be Ghost.

When opening day arrived, I shook with excitement. With the aid of my hooter, I mimicked the calls of a barred owl. One tom answered the call. Then, several more joined in. Soon, the whole forest resonated with their thundering chorus. A group of toms were roosted along the wooded ridgeline of the cornfield. After they flew off their roosts, I carefully stalked within 60 yards of where they'd landed. A series of yelps from my friction call attracted their attention, yet none came in to investigate.