The Kansas youth turkey season was a blast! Kurt Nunnenkamp from Paradise Adventures invited me to bring a youth to hunt on his property near Altoona , KS in April 2006.

One of the young boys I brought with me has been to several Kicking Bear Campouts and Shoots but has never had the opportunity to hunt. After the long drive to Kansas Tyus was quite excited to meet Kurt and to see where we would be hunting. They have a great bunkhouse with lots of rooms so everyone could have their own room.

The first thing we did after unpacking was to set up the target and see how the old single shot 20 gauge patterned on the turkey's neck. We put the target up at 25 yards. Then Tyus got into a comfortable sitting position and the last thing he asked me before he squeezed the trigger was, “Is this thing going to hurt when I shoot?” I told him, “No, just a little kick—keep your bead on the turkey's neck.” Tyus squeezed off his first round and you would have thought he was a pro. The shot placement was perfect! After a few other practice shots, we pulled out our hunting clothes and got ready for the morning hunt. Tyus was able to talk to other kids who were there who were hunting for the first time and also to some who had been there before.

The next morning the alarm clock rang very early. The boys were up and starting to get ready when all of a sudden Tyus looked at me and said, “I feel sick.” Then he ran into the bathroom and began to throw up! Kurt and I were standing there and I didn't know what to do. Kurt said, “I think that Tyus is so excited, that he's gotten sick.” I asked Tyus if he felt good enough to go on the morning hunt and he said, “No, I've got to go back to bed.” So Kurt and I decided to take another young boy for the morning hunt. Then I would plan on coming back to check on Tyus later.

After returning to camp I found Tyus up and ready to go. He was feeling great! So after eating a quick sandwich, we were off to the woods together. On several occasions that afternoon, we had “toms” come into us but none of them came close enough for a comfortable shot.

About 4:00 PM that afternoon we had jumped back into the vehicle and crossed the creek to a different area where we heard a bird gobbling in the distance. We sneaked in along the edge of a wheat field and this time we had our “secret weapon” with us—Mary Lou. Mary Lou is a decoy that Kurt has great confidence in and we had a lot of laughs on the different stories about that decoy.

We set up along the edge of the field where Mary Lou could be seen from a great distance in all directions. After calling a few times, we had a bird respond to us but it was from a far off distance. As the sunlight was starting to shine on us through the trees, its warmth started putting me to sleep. Half dozing off, I thought I'd try the call again and when I did, the tom gobbled and he was only about 50 yards in the wood line from Tyus and me. I don't know who was more surprised and shook up—Tyus or me! I told Tyus to put the gun on his knee and get ready for the bird to come in. The only one of us that didn't appear to be shook up was Mary Lou.

The next thing I saw out of the corner of my left eye was a hen and she was heading right toward Mary Lou making quite a bit of noise vocally. Right behind her appeared the tom. At this point I was holding my breath hoping that they would come close enough for the shot. The tom kept stopping and displaying—stopping and displaying while the hen kept on a steady pace to Mary Lou who was just 15 yards from us. At this point I whispered to Tyus to pull the hammer back on his 20 gauge. That went very well. The tom then gobbled right in front of us! At that point, I don't know who shook the tree we were leaning against—Tyus or me.

The hen was right there with the decoy and she knew something was not a hundred percent with Mary Lou. The tom gobbled again within 20 yards of us. Then he stuck his head up in the air and that's when I said to Tyus to shoot him in the neck. It was dead quiet. Tyus did not squeeze the trigger. The tom was displaying again and I whispered to Tyus to shoot. By this time, the hen was leaving and the tom was confused. He didn't know whether to stay with Mary Lou or leave with the girl he “came to the dance with”. For the third time, I whispered to Tyus to shoot. It was still dead silent. Finally the tom realized that something wasn't right. His feathers unruffled and he turned and started heading in the same direction the hen did. I said to Tyus, “The tom is leaving, shoot now.” Before I could think another thought, boom!—and the tom was flopping on the ground! I found myself running one of the fastest 20-yard dashes I've ever run! What an exciting hunt! The bird was ours! I was holding the bird by the neck and shaking Tyus' hand. Tyus was in complete awe. I asked him if he was excited and he couldn't talk. He just had this great big grin on his face and kept shaking my hand. What an unbelievable bird—23-1/2 lbs., 10”+ beard with 1” long spurs.

As we were leaving with Tyus' large bird, we were packing up all of our equipment and just before Mary Lou was put into the backpack, Tyus gave her a kiss on the beak, much like our friend Jimmy Houston does with his fish! Then Tyus thanked her for her help.

I found again that taking a youth on a hunt and being a part of their life for just a few days is an absolute blast! When you have a bonus of harvesting the animal you're seeking, there are no words to describe the feelings that you get. It is 10 times greater than harvesting your own critters and the memories will last forever.

I want to thank Kurt and Mike from Paradise Adventures for opening up their lodge to all the youth so they can have the opportunity of having a life-changing experience. I'm looking forward to taking Tyus on his first whitetail hunt in Kansas . Kurt not only has numerous birds, he also has a great area with many large whitetails. For more information, contact Kurt Nunnenkamp at 620-568-2010. Great hunts with great people!