EVERGLADES ADVENTURES has been in operation since 1989. The owner, Captain Mark Clemons has been professionally guiding since 1986, and is a native of South Florida. We operate on several privately owned properties in Hendry County. The properties in total consist of several thousand acres.

These properties are cattle, citrus, sugar cane and farming operations which consist of improved pastures, oak hammocks, swamps, water retention areas and cypress strands.

We have an excellent population of Osceola turkeys consisting of dozens of different family flocks on some of the most pristine turkey habitat as well as a relaxing environment for you to enjoy.

SPECIES OF TURKEY

We feature the beautiful WILD Florida subspecies Meleagris gallopavo osceola turkeys which are native only to SOUTHERN and South CENTRAL Florida.

SEASON

Spring hunts beginning on the first Saturday in March and ending the first week in April.

RATES

We offer several options:

LODGING

We have comfortable, modern air-conditioned lodging on site for our guests. Lodging is included in this hunt package.

MEALS

Hearty home cooked meals are included in this hunt package.

RESERVATIONS

Our season is very short, only six weeks; therefore it is important to book your hunt as early as possible to reserve the dates of your choice. As soon as the state of Florida sets the dates, we begin taking deposits and making reservations.

PAYMENT SCHEDULE

We require a 50% (fifty-percent) deposit to confirm your reservation. The remaining balance is to be paid by February 1, 2009. Payments can be made by cash, personal or business check, traveler's check, cashiers check or money order. Checks should be made payable to EVERGLADES ADVENTURES. The deposit and final payment are non-refundable, but are transferable within the current season as scheduling permits. Thirty (30) day advance notice of cancellation is required.

REFERENCES

We will gladly provide references on request.

PRESERVE TYPE HUNT

We do not hunt over bait, behind fences or release birds prior to the hunt. This is NOT a preserve hunt utilizing pen raised or stocked birds. We only offer PURE (WILD) Meleagris gallopavo Osceola's from the Southern most tip of Florida.

GUIDED VS NON-GUIDED

We only offer fully-guided hunts. Our guided hunts are one person-one guide (one on one) or two persons with one guide (two on one). We assist many hunters each year in their Grand, Royal or World Slams with our specialty in harvesting only customer selected trophy gobblers.

BIRDS

We limit the number of adult trophy gobblers harvested to one per-person, per-season. We allow the harvest of adult trophy gobblers only, but will make an exception for young first time hunters. We only harvest adult trophy gobblers with beards of eight inches or greater.

HUNTING LICENSES

Complete information concerning requirements of licensing, costs of licenses and purchasing licenses (on-line or by phone with credit card) please click on the following link: LICENSE AND PERMIT REQUIREMENTS

HUNTING HOURS

Florida has changed the legal shooting hours on private lands to allow for all day hunting from one-half hour before sunrise until sunset.

NUMBER OF HUNTERS

We like to be on a very personal level with our clients. For this reason our hunts are limited to no more than six persons.

PRE-TRIP PHYSICAL CONDITIONING

We suggest that all of our clients be in good physical condition. You should do some pre-season conditioning such as walking a few miles each day. The only physical requirement for this hunt is walking.

PRIVATE LAND OR PUBLIC

We will be hunting only on private lands. We have several thousand acres of managed, prime turkey hunting habitat leased for use in our turkey hunts.

EQUIPMENT

You will need a cooler for transporting your birds home if you are planning to use your taxidermist. A small pair of binoculars, small flashlight, as well as any calls, seat cushion, or any other personal hunting equipment that you may require. We also would suggest you bring a still or video camera with extra film for the very excellent scenery. The last several seasons clients have witnessed Florida panthers during their hunts.

FIREARMS

We suggest the use of only twelve gauge or larger shotguns and using a three-inch or longer, high brass magnum load of twos, fours or sixes or perhaps a duplex two and four. All shotguns pattern differently so please pattern your shotgun subsequent to your hunt with the loads that you will be using. Most of our shots are in the twenty to thirty yard ranges with a maximum shooting range of forty yards. You should use camouflage tape on your firearm and not a camouflage socks, as they tend to obstruct your sights. Also, you will need some form of soft case for your gun for transporting it on our vehicles.

APPAREL

For this hunt you will need full camouflage clothing in a dark green pattern. You might require waterproof hiking boots, preferably knee-high as it is very possible we could get into some water. Your clothing should consist of long sleeve shirts and pants, face mask, gloves, and a hat. Also you may require some form of camouflage rain gear. You should bring a couple of different camouflage jackets one light and one heavy as the temperature varies from the low thirties to the upper seventies. It seems much colder in South Florida with the high humidity.

NON-HUNTING GUESTS

We currently do not allow non-hunting guests along on the hunt, but there are great motels in Naples area or the Ft. Lauderdale area with excellent beaches, fine dining, and plenty of sights to be taken in by your guests while you are in search of your long beard.

SUCCESS RATES

We generally achieve a high success rate on our hunts. Our harvest rates are determined by the percentage of successful hunter's vs non-successful hunter's per-season. Please click on the following link for recent reports. Everglades Adventures - Current Osceola Turkey Hunting Conditions

TAXIDERMIST

We have several that we recommend and can handle the complete process including handling the mount and the paperwork. We can arrange to ship your turkey to your taxidermist if you prefer which a whole frozen turkey next-day air to most southern states runs around $150.00.

NEAREST AIRPORT

The Southwest Florida International Airport located in Fort Myers or the Ft Lauderdale Airport are the closest and the most convenient. These airports are located approximately one and a half-hours from where you will be hunting.

RENTAL CAR

If you are flying into this area for the hunt we recommend that you acquire a rental car, which are available at the airport.

BEST TIME OF SEASON

Most clients consider hunting pressure. Hunting pressure is not a great factor to consider with us as we have such a large area to operate. However, there are many variables other than hunting pressure to consider. Weather is the most important factor to consider when hunting turkeys. Rainfall, length and severity of our winter season, especially late season cold fronts have a determining factor in the time of season in which the turkeys decide to begin mating. If they have started, a severe cold front will shut them down for several days. Also there are two peaks in the gobbling activity, the first one which is the mating peak when the hens are most receptive and another after the hens have started setting on their nests. All of the dates in which this occurs change from year to year and remains a mystery to us until after the season has already started and we are completely booked.