(With the opening of spring turkey season in Louisiana on April 1, I unearthed this article I wrote 13 seasons ago and with your indulgence, am repeating it as it has merit for today.)

Donnie Parkman is a serious turkey hunter and with good reason; he learned from one of the best. His dad, V.E. “Blue” Parkman was a turkey hunting legend long before turkey hunting was “cool” in north Louisiana.

Blue Parkman died in 1995 at the age of 73 but before he passed away, he quietly and without fanfare was part of a handful of turkey hunters who went out morning after morning with dreams of finding a single turkey track or maybe even getting to hear the ringing gobble of a longbeard on the roost.

Today, there are thousands of turkey hunters new to the sport in north Louisiana and
chances are good that today’s hunters will find turkey tracks, hear gobblers and have a chance to bring a strutting tom to the gun. I count myself as one of these late bloomers, having stumbled upon the sport I’ve come to love in 1992.

My introduction to turkey hunting, however, began fifteen years earlier on an April
morning in 1977 when I was coaxed to come along on a turkey hunt to Jackson Bienville wildlife management area by Blue Parkman. I admit I was curious about what hunting spring gobblers was all about but not curious enough to put on camo, pick up my shotgun and leave the bluegill beds.

As I followed Parkman through the woods that morning, listening to him coax sweet
music from his old Lynch box call, I recall thinking that this might be a sport I’d get interested in somewhere down the line. Even though a gobbler answered the call and indicated he wanted to play before a real hen took him across the Jackson Parish hills, my interest soon returned to what I usually did on spring mornings, and that was set up on a hot bream bed. My turkey hunting trip to Alabama in 1992 and my first face-off with a strutting tom, however, changed all that.

Today, I chase turkeys anywhere I have the chance to go, and that included a trip to south Texas where one of our hunting party from Ruston included Blue Parkman’s son, Donnie. During that trip, I was able to take a Rio Grande gobbler while Parkman, following in his dad’s footsteps, took two. I sat down with Parkman to reflect on his dad’s legacy as one of north Louisiana’s pioneer turkey hunters.

“Dad was one of only a few turkey hunters in the area. L.W. Hamner, James Brooks, Levi McCullen, dad, and very few others were just about all there were back then,” Parkman told me.

“If you heard a gobbler, it was a successful day and if one did sound off, every hunter in the woods took off after him. They ran more off than they killed but they had a good time trying,” he added, chuckling.

“I was in high school when dad talked me into going turkey hunting with him. We hunted at a game preserve over near Bastrop; they had a few more turkeys there than we did here,” Parkman continued.

“Getting to the woods early and getting as close to the roost tree as possible without
spooking the bird were some early lessons I learned from my dad. One of the main things he taught me was the need to develop patience. Sometimes we’d sit for hours waiting for a gobbler to show up when I’d want to take off and find another one. I learned from dad just how important being patient is to being a successful turkey hunter.”

Donnie Parkman is continuing the turkey hunting tradition handed down to him by his dad.

“The times I enjoy most today are those times when I take my son, Jason, with me to the turkey woods. Dad passed his passion for turkey hunting down to me,” said Parkman, “and I owe it to my son to keep the legacy alive.”

---

FISHING REPORT

CANEY LAKE – Bass are on the beds with some really big females being caught as evidenced by a high school tournament where five bass averaged nearly 7 pounds each. Crappie are beginning to move to the shallows with some caught on shiners or jigs. Bream fishing is just now starting as they are moving in to spawn and hitting crickets and red wigglers. No report on catfish. For information contact Caney Lake Landing at 259-6649, Hooks Marina at 249-2347, Terzia Tackle at 278-4498 or the Honey Hole Tackle Shop at 323-8707.
BLACK BAYOU – Wildlife and Fisheries is reporting a toxic condition in the lake. Proceed with caution or contact the agency for more information. Contact Honey Hole Tackle Shop 323- 8707 for latest information.
BUSSEY BRAKE – Big bass are continuing to be caught on soft plastics as they have moved up to spawn. Crappie are on the spawning beds and hitting shiners or jigs. For latest information, contact the Honey Hole at 323-8707.
OUACHITA RIVER – Bass fishing has been best fishing the mouth of the cuts with shad imitation lures. Crappie have been fair in the river lakes. For latest information, contact the Honey Hole Tackle Shop at 323-8707.
LAKE D’ARBONNE – Bass fishing has been best in the back of the creeks on soft plastics, jigs and creature baits. Crappie are in and out of the shallows starting to spawn with some caught on jigs and shiners. There are reports that some bream are starting to bed in the shallows with crickets and night crawlers starting to produce. Catfish are being caught fishing cold worms and night crawlers off the banks. For latest information, call Anderson Sport Center at 368-9669 or Honey Hole Tackle Shop at 323-8707.
LAKE CLAIBORNE – Bass have been best fishing around the shallow docks with a Sinko or wacky worm as they have moved up to spawn. A good many crappie are being caught on yo-yos baited with shiners. No report on bream, stripers or catfish just yet. For latest information, call Kel’s Cove at 927-2264 or Terzia Tackle at 278-4498.
LAKE POVERTY POINT – Catfishing is good. Crappie are in the shallows getting ready to spawn with some to 2 ½ pounds reported. No report on bream or bass. For latest reports, call Poverty Point Marina at 318/878-0101.
LAKE YUCATAN – The water is falling but is still over the road for the next week or so. No fishermen this week. For information, call Surplus City Landing at 318/467-2259.

To report an issue or typo with this article – CLICK HERE