I hunted some private land in the Northeast area on the opener. Saw a decent number of birds, but they were real quiet. Thought we had them pretty well dialed in the night before, but the next morning, they had other plans. They gobbled like crazy before they came out of the trees, but once they hit the ground, they never made a sound and we never saw them again.

Checked out some other areas and saw quite a few birds...just on the wrong side of the fence.

Later on that day, I went back in there by myself just hoping to see one at that point. Finally found a group of four toms and six or so hens. I tried calling them, but they showed zero interest, so I just took to stalking them. I was chasing those birds for nearly two hours before I finally got close enough to get a good shot and finally bagged a decent tom with an eight inch beard. Those toms were strutting like crazy, but the entire time I was after them, not one of those birds even made a peep. At least where I was anyway, it might be just a tad early. They had no interest in leaving those hens, but I think once they go to nest, it should really turn on...hopefully in a couple weeks when I head back over.

Oh, and beware of ticks! I found nine of those things on me after that trip. Just thinking about those things makes my skin crawl.