86 Louisiana Sportsman^ | April 2015
Besides calls, the list of turkey hunting gear used by Peyton
McKinnie and NathanPilgreen is pretty simple.
They like using Flambeau FeatherLite hen and gobbler
decoys.
They both shoot Winchester Super X3 shotguns and like 3
1/2-inch Hevi 13 blend shotgun shells, a shell with a mix of 5, 6
and 7 shot in the same shell.
They carry their gear in camo backpacks, and they recom-
mend camo clothing in whatever style and brand makes you
comfortable leaning against a tree for a long time — without
moving.
— Kinny HaddoxTop turkey gear
A more perfect union
continued from page 82
FOR DEALER
INQUIRES CALLSeamless Marine
Grade Fiberglass
Pilgreen and McKinnie’s
turkey tools.“A
turkey has to run to get away from predators, and
they can’t run in a pine thicket or in overgrown
brush. They can fly short distances, but they only
do that in emergencies or going to or from the
roost normally.”
So it’s best to ensure the route you want a bird
to take is unobstructed.
“In all my years of hunting, I’ve only had one exception to
that,” Pilgreen recalled. “We were hunting on one side of
DeLoutre Creek and a turkey was gobbling like crazy on the
other side. We had heard it several trips.
“One day I was able to call him enough to get him to fly about
50 yards over the creek and basin. He came right to us.”
McKinnie laughed at the memory.
“He’s the only one I know that could do that,” he said.
Turkey hunting can be the toughest kind of hunting out there.
But when you get the hang of it, it’s on like Donkey Kong.
“There’s nothing like it,” says Pilgreen. “When you first take
somebody and they hear the
turkeys, then see them get
into gun range, nine times of
10 they’ll be shaking so bad
they can hardly shoot.
“That pretty much says it
a l l .” ■Kinny Haddox has been writing
magazine and newspaper articles
about the outdoors in Louisiana
for 40 years. He also publishes a
daily website, lakedarbonnelife.
com. He and his wife, DiAnne, live
on Lake D’Arbonne in Farmerville.