Wild Turkey Center Hosts 35th Annual Turkey Calling Contest
Edgefield, S.C.-- With the 2004 wild turkey hunting season only a couple of weeks away, turkey callers are gearing up to prepare for the upcoming spring season.
The Edgefield, S.C. Local #1 Chapter of the National Wild Turkey Federation is hosting the 35th annual S.C. State Turkey Calling Contest, Saturday, March 6, at the Wild Turkey Center in Edgefield, S.C.
The event will feature calling contests for various ages and skills. The highlight of the show will be the S.C. State Championship, which will determine the best turkey caller in the Palmetto State, and the S.C. Open Championship, which includes top callers from other states. The contest will also feature the Jimbo Long Memorial Competition for callers 16-20 years old, an owl hooting contest and competitions for children under 15. Registration begins at 10:00 a.m., and the contest begins at noon.
Local turkey hunters, such as Edgefield native Sam Crouch Sr., have been involved with the calling contest since it first began in the early `70s.
"I had been reading in The State newspaper about duck calling contests in Sumter, and I thought it would be a wonderful idea to have a turkey calling contest, so we hosted the first one in Edgefield" said Crouch. "The callers did a great job when it first began, but things have really changed throughout the years. Today, the calling techniques and styles have gotten so much more professional."
Crouch has had a long history with the Federation. In 1974, he became the first President of the S.C. State Chapter. He was instrumental in organizing the Edgefield Chapter, which was the first NWTF chapter in S.C., and he played a major role in the decision making process of relocating the NWTF from Fredericksburg, Va., to Edgefield.
In addition to great calling, vendors from local outdoor and supply stores will set up shop to help hunters and gardeners prepare for the spring.
The Wild Turkey Center, which features the NWTF Winchester Museum and Outdoor Education Center, is a great place to host the contest. The NWTF Winchester Museum is the only one in the country devoted to wild turkey hunting and conservation. The education center is complete with a pavilion and nature trails that lead through land management demonstration areas.
General admission is $3 and children 12 and under get in FREE.
For information about the calling contest, please contact Tammy Condrey with the NWTF at (803) 637-3106.
Schedule of events:
