Retired senior DFG biologist Tom Stone shot this gobbler during the 2005 season, and there’s plenty more where that one came from in Shasta County. Photo by John Higley

Sometimes you hit it just right. Last year, when I predicted better-than-average turkey hunting during the spring season in 2005, I was pretty close to the mark. In fact, I said good production in 2004 offered assurance that plenty of birds would be around for spring 2005. And what do you know? That was the case.

Despite rain that fell sporadically throughout the season and lasted into June, most of my forays into the field were quite satisfying -- and I have the grip-and-grin photos of three nice toms to prove it. It's always nice to write about successes, but I also realize that a large part of productive hunting can be attributed to luck and timing as well as turkey-hunting savvy. After all, there are years when the turkey population, at least in some areas, is either in decline or unsettled, due to factors over which there's no control. At such times, harvesting a single gobbler in a season can be viewed as a major accomplishment.

For example, turkeys were tough to get in Northern California during the spring of 2003. The main reason was an unusual amount of rain during the season, following very warm weather in early March. Everything was mixed up, including their breeding routine; and while there were some turkeys here and there, it was very difficult to find a willing gobbler.

The most productive hunting I had in California that year was on opening weekend -- which was decent, weather-wise. But from there on, it was all downhill. Heck, in my diary I noted a deluge on April 29! Officially, in April 2003 we experienced rainfall that was 176 percent of normal.

Conditions were slightly better in 2004, but unusually warm weather in March threw things off schedule. However, late-spring weather was mild and everything pointed to good production of turkeys, which was certainly the case. I didn't see any jakes (year-old toms) while hunting during spring 2004, but there were plenty of them around in 2005. And, from what I've seen and heard from others, the spring of 2005 -- though rainy at times -- was ultimately favorable for turkey production. True, many early nests were washed out or otherwise destroyed, but hens that re-nested apparently had above-average success.

At least that's the opinion of Ryan Mathis, a regional biologist with the National Wild Turkey Federation, who is based in Northern California. "This year, due to late rainfall, I saw evidence of a lot of re-nesting and good-sized late clutches," Mathis said. "Some of the hens I saw in the foothills had nine or 10 poults, and that's really outstanding."

It's nice to know that Mathis is an avid turkey hunter and that he's on the same page with the rest of us. Last spring, he harvested a couple of nice California toms on hunts in Napa and Mendocino counties, and he hopes to do the same in 2006.

As most turkey hunters know by now, the NWTF has a formidable presence in the Golden State, with 30 chapters and about 5,000 members. Federation members are directly involved in providing funds for local programs that benefit wild turkeys and the promotion of hunting in general. For those who aspire to be turkey hunters, or those who want to be more deeply involved, a good place to start is with membership in the NWTF. You can check the federation out at www.nwtf.org, or call the California regional directors: Brian Yerman, at (707) 432-0369, and Pat McNeil, at (707) 443-4720.