Turkey Camp

Wild turkeys cast a spell on those who love to hunt them, and this book celebrates these magnificent birds as well as any work of turkey hunting literature. Here’s a short sample: “I caught the movement of his tailfeathers going up and splaying out and he stepped from between two spruce trees on the opposite hillside and stood there on the short green grass in strut with his neck craned out at a funny angle, like a slow-motion image of what their head does when they gobble and he was bright and shiny in the sun, all gold and copper with his head huge and red, candy apple red like a new truck without a scratch on it, blood red like life on display. He was looking right where I was because he knew right where I was, so I froze in place except for the stupid pumping of my heart and my head shaking because I was trying so hard to stop it.”

Wild turkeys cast a spell on those who love to hunt them, and this book celebrates these magnificent birds as well as any work of turkey hunting literature. Here’s a short sample: “I caught the movement of his tailfeathers going up and splaying out and he stepped from between two spruce trees on the opposite hillside and stood there on the short green grass in strut with his neck craned out at a funny angle, like a slow-motion image of what their head does when they gobble and he was bright and shiny in the sun, all gold and copper with his head huge and red, candy apple red like a new truck without a scratch on it, blood red like life on display. He was looking right where I was because he knew right where I was, so I froze in place except for the stupid pumping of my heart and my head shaking because I was trying so hard to stop it.” The best outdoor writing helps you appreciate the parts of hunting and fishing that are not necessarily tied to killing something or catching something. This book takes you on a cross-country adventure to many corners of wild turkey country, with creative, vivid descriptions and impressionistic images that mesh perfectly for a memorable read. Author Mark Strand is a contributing writer for Turkey & Turkey Hunting, Turkey Call/Turkey Country, and many other national and regional outdoor publications. He writes a regular turkey hunting series for Outdoor News publications, and has appeared on numerous television shows and videos on turkey hunting. Strand hunts turkeys non-stop from late March through the end of May, traveling widely to do so. He has hunted turkeys since 1979, after his home state of Minnesota began holding modern spring seasons. He is also Founder and President of the School of Outdoor Sports, a nonprofit group dedicated to helping beginners of all ages get started right in the outdoor traditions of fishing, hunting, and recreational shooting.

Mark Strand has been a writer, photographer, and filmmaker since 1977. He has published thousands of articles in national and regional publications, and has written or ghost written 12 books. Mark lives in Woodbury, MInnesota with his wife and two kids, his favorite hunting and fishing companions. He is Founder and President of the nonprofit School of Outdoor Sports, which helps beginners get started in fishing, hunting, and target shooting. Strand is a certified outdoor mentor through the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources, and these days mentors newcomers much more often than he goes hunting or fishing himself.