Blackberry picking and the killer wild turkey

I had a really cool day yesterday hiking, picking blackberries, and running for my life from a killer wild turkey.

Kodie and I went to a friend's farm in Sadieville, Kentucky, population 263, to hike and pick/eat berries. Unfortunately, I wasn't able to get a lot of blackberries because she has her horses in the front part of the property so there weren't horse trails through the best blackberry patches. I tried to follow the deer trails but they just aren't as big as the horse trails. And walking through weeds and grass taller than my shoulders with gigantic rocks underfoot wasn't worth the effort. I needed a machete or something to get through it all.

But I did get some berries but that wasn't the most exciting part of the day. While I was on the back part of the property in a little shaded clearing, Kodie was sniffing around and doing her dog-like things. I was following her carrying my little bucket of berries and feeling like I was right out of the Little House on the Prairie, minus the bonnet and dress. I rounded a large Cedar tree and out of no where flew a female wild turkey so close to me I felt the wind of her wings. I about died. Kodie of course thought that was the coolest thing ever and chased after her. I started to call Kodie back and that's when I saw the little poults. [Note: a poult is a baby turkey, I just learned that.] Granted, it was no rafter of wild turkeys but it was still cool. [Note: a rafter is a group of turkeys, just learned that too!]

So after I watched the poults for a few seconds I called my dog back and kept on hiking. Kudos to Best Friends Obedience...how many dogs would stop chasing a wild turkey just because her owner called her name? Kudos to Kodie too because she did, and with glee.

After I picked some more berries we had to pass that way again and I was worried about traumatizing the turkeys with another episode. So I purposely walked around through the thicket to avoid going near their home and when I did I could hear their little voices talking to one another.

So really it wasn't a killer wild turkey but it was a really cool day.

Note: All photos in this post came from a search on images.google.com