Pennsylvania Game News - August 2009 - 27

Carolina’s turkey season. I had the privilege to take Ned to the turkey woods. On that trip, Ned presented me with a personalized scratch box call that he said he used to call fall turkeys. For the avid call collector I was and am, this is a cherished gift. What an experience for me, not only to take one of my heroes turkey hunting, but then to be his student as he described in great detail every plant, flower, tree or crawling thing we encountered. I remember one time that we were on the move to a gobbling turkey, and he chose to inspect some plants he was not familiar with. I said, “Ned, we gotta go. That bird’s going to get picked up by a hen.” We went, positioned ourselves, and called that big tom right down the twin barrels of that Fox, his favorite shotgun. On the report of that second barrel, it was clear that this gobbler would live another day. Ned was in disbelief of what appeared to be an easy shot. I consoled him by saying that it happens to the best of shots, me included. Any miss on a big gobbler is hard for anyone to stomach. It’ll make you cry, swear, quit, or at least say you’ll quit, that is until you hear the next one gobble. Ned didn’t do any of the above, but I could tell he was greatly disappointed and slightly embarrassed. We discussed point of aim and point of impact of a shotgun, directed at a standing turkey, as opposed to the pointing and swinging through a target, like the wing shot of a grouse. Although I never grouse hunted with Ned, I think he fancied himself as a pretty good wing shot. The next opportunity to take him turkey hunting didn’t occur until two years later when he and Marie made another visit to Edgefield. It was early April 1985, and Ned had completed his masterful work, Royal Domain. He brought the original painting for inspection, which would subsequently be produced into an edition size of 1,985 prints. We hunted the first morning and repeated the previous experience of two springs earlier, two times that day. Ned was AUGUST 2009 MEET ROB KECK Don’t miss your chance to meet him at a special banquet event at the Four Points Sheraton in Harrisburg on Wednesday, September 16 at 5 p.m. The Ned Smith Center is proud to team up with the National Wild Turkey Federation for this event, and will share all proceeds. Mr. Keck will be the evening’s keynote speaker, and no banquet would be complete without a delicious, hearty dinner and dessert, along with a hefty serving of raffles, door prizes and a live and silent auction. Tickets are only $50 per person, or $350 for a table of 8. Contact the Center at 717-692-3699 (www.nedsmithcenter.org) for more information and to register. talking to himself after that second bird and stated, “If this happens again, I’m leaving for home.” Considering that he and Marie had planned a 4-day visit, in part because of South Carolina’s liberal bag limit of five birds, I was hoping the next encounter would be a bit more fruitful. I sure didn’t want him to leave early. The next morning, with several toms gobbling from the roost, we finally got one after repositioning three times. The bird put on a show, and we watched him strut, gobble and move ever so slowly through that loblolly pine plantation toward us. Such experiences are the worst, because you watch that bird for such a long time that you lose your composure. At 24 steps, that Fox rang out, and the third turkey of the hunt headed for parts unknown. We just sat there, Ned in utter disbelief and me in despair. He looked down those twin barrels one more time, seeming to ask himself how it was possible to miss such a big bird at such a close distance. When he finally looked up, he said, “That’s enough. I don’t deserve another chance. Marie and I are going back to Millersburg.” My insistence for him to stay was over27

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Pennsylvania Game News - August 2009

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