Gene Kroupa

Sooner or later, it was bound to happen – my final successful spring turkey hunt. That final gobbler hit the deck in April 2025, unbeknownst to yours truly at the time that the strutting bird would be my last after 44 years of hunting turkeys in Wisconsin coulee country and beyond.
You can imagine it came as quite a shock to learn last fall that I have interstitial lung disease (ILD) that landed me in the hospital in November.

Sometimes a gobbler might know better, but his curiosity overcomes natural caution. Take the hefty tom bagged during the 2017 third season in Wisconsin as an example.
When the alarm jangled at 3:30 a.m. the wind was blowing hard, dark gray clouds hung heavily over the horizon, and rain drops had just starting to dribble. So, I did what any sensible person would do; I went back to sleep.