Any of you who have been reading the blog for long know that I take a walk with two of my dogs, Kelee (see previous post A Three Legged Man of the West) and Finn (see previous post Rescue Dog: Meet Finn (Survivor)) every afternoon. My little Skye (see previous post Night Skye) is still too fearful to come with us. We walk out in the land grant behind my house, primarily, which encompasses several thousand acres of forest that never ceases to take my breath away.
There is a flock of wild turkeys that live out there—about ten to fifteen birds I would say. I don’t know how many of you have ever experienced wild turkeys before but they are VERY big, heavy, lumbering birds. I particularly love the huge footprints they leave behind in the snow or mud—as big as my hands, I swear. And they are very shy.
The other day the boys and I were minding our own business walking through the Pinon and Juniper when we startled the flock (and they startled us). You haven’t lived until you’ve witnessed a whole bunch of these flying giants lift off the ground all at once. They took off directly overhead and the racket of their wings was stunning. In fact I’m at a loss to describe it in words. The closest I can come up with is that it was simply grand.
Well, I had my camera in my pocket but those suckers are FAST. By the time I had it out and took a shot, all that was left was just one turkey flying in the distance. But I still wanted to share it with you. Who knows? Maybe one day they’ll get used to me and won’t be so shy. And I’ll be out there with my camera so you, too, can experience the wild pleasure of these turkeys living as they were intended. Free.
Love to you all,
Jeane
Always a great sight when those turkeys fly!!
Simply stunning when a whole flock takes off at once through the trees. Makes me laugh out loud.
It often seems that these not-too-smart, not-too-pretty, sometimes awkward birds fly by strength of will rather than strength of skill! Yet they are ever endearing, aren’t they. A couple of years ago my dog and I accidentally startled a mother with a newly hatched brood of about 12 tiny chicks, and she immediately set about feigning a broken wing, promptly leading us in the opposite direction with an astounding show of dramatic squawking, the likes of which I have never heard. Quite impressive!
Yes, “ever endearing” is a perfect descriptor. And your sweet story just made me love them all the more. Thanks for sharing it.