When they rudely ignored her, she took them for the frauds they were. Her arrival, however, presented a possible advantage to lure the tom downhill. Instead the tom climbed higher. The shot from the other hunter's gun showed itself first in a puff of smoke, then in the blast's echo. And finally in the frustrating view of the bird frightened away by the miss.
Turkeys often stick to ground covering, but they can fly when necessary.
The bird seemed as graceful as a lumbering cargo plane. The errant shot ended this stalk a little after 7 a.m. The hunters tossed out calls from sheltered areas. But the sounds carried away uselessly on the howling wind. The men were trying to talk turkey, but realized they were only talking to themselves.