Outdoor learning flourishes
during youth turkey camps in the mountains
By Rory Aikens, public information officer, AGFD

Courtesy photo: Successful junior spring turkey hunters

COLCORD RIDGE, Mogollon Rim – The mountains, mentors, wildlife officers, volunteer instructors, gobblers, guides and even the wind had a lot to teach 180 or so camo-clad youngsters during the opening weekend of the spring turkey season.

With a lot of able assistance from sportsmen’s organizations, the Arizona Game and Fish Department conducted two youth turkey hunting camps, one along the Mogollon Rim and the other in the White Mountains. Kids and parents flocked to both.

It was a momentous weekend of learning in the pine-scented woods with shotguns in hand at first light or during the afternoon in-camp workshops while gripping steaming mugs of hot chocolate or frosty cold sodas.

Even though youngsters and turkey hunting have long been mainstays on the hunting learning curve for generations, there is something new this year putting big smiles on the faces of kids and parents – this is the first spring hunt ever with over-the-counter youth turkey tags available.

In past years, youth and adults had to enter the big game drawing for the available tags. Now any youth between the age of 10 and 17 can get a turkey tag over the counter that is good for both the spring and fall hunts, although only one turkey can be harvested each year by an individual.

One smiling dad, Mark Arnold of Phoenix, said it is tremendous to have over-the-counter tags for kids, especially since they can use the tags again this fall if they don’t harvest a bird this spring. “It really gives them something to look forward too even if they don’t get one now.”

Arnold and plenty of other dads pointed out that it isn’t always about harvesting a turkey, but learning and even sharing experiences in the wild with family and friends.

Dylan Stewart, age 15, from Yuma said it was pretty exciting when a bearded gobbler came running up at full speed as they were setting up their decoy. “It took one look at us and took off flying. That was our only chance that day.”

Not getting that gobbler didn’t affect the excitement in his voice or the gleam in his eyes while relating the tale of the one that flew away.

For 20-year-old Jason Arnold, it was an opportunity to put his turkey-calling skills to use to try and call in a gobbler for his younger brother. For the Arnolds and most others as well, hunting is a cooperative family endeavor. But youth hunts are even more special – it’s family mentoring time.

Plenty of other youngsters had even more to cluck about. With a note of confident pride in his voice,13-year-old Nick McMullen related the tale of how he harvested his gobbler, which he pointed out, was his third one in four years.

“My dad pre-scouted and knew where the roost was, but on opening morning, it was so windy that we couldn’t even find them,” Nick said.

But the next day dawned on a near-perfect day in the woods with no wind. “We set up the blind and started calling across the drainage from the roost. We could see one large gobbler strutting around, and finally it flew 300 yards across the drainage straight to us in just a few seconds. I shot it seven yards away,” Nick said excitedly.

Nick quickly added that the gobbler had a seven-inch beard.

What a tale. By the way, Nick is the son of Wildlife Manager Craig McMullen, who helped coordinate the youth camp on the Rim. “Every kid seemed to have an exciting tale to tell. This is what it’s all about, why we do what we do,” the veteran wildlife officer said.

Michael Godwin, the Game and Fish wildlife manager supervisor who helped organize the youth camp for Game Management Units 1 and 27, said it was a huge success. “Every kid and parent I talked to had great things to say about the camp and all of the people that were there to help.”

Godwin added that all the parents were very complimentary of the Game and Fish Department establishing over-the-counter junior turkey tags.

Sitting side by side in a turkey blind is a perfect mentoring situation for youngsters.

Both Godwin and McMullen pointed out that lots of organizations stepped forward to help with the camps, and for working with the parents and kids in the field as well.

Groups involved included the Arizona Deer Association, the Arizona Elk Society, Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation, the Chandler Rod and Gun Club, the National Wild Turkey Federation, and Outdoor Experience 4 All.

The universal opinion of everyone involved from kids and dads to wildlife managers and sportsmen was – “Let’s do this again!”