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Five-Year Old Takes Top Prize in 2021 Big Gobbler Photo Contest

The Alabama Black Belt Adventures Association is pleased to announce Hudson Mathews of Deatsville as the 2021 winner of the Big Gobbler Photo Contest.

Five-year-old Hudson harvested the turkey in Pike County while hunting with his father. The gobbler, which was Hudson’s first turkey, had a 10-inch beard and 1-inch spurs. Over the course of the photo contest, Hudson’s photo received more than 1,300 votes and beat out nearly 20 other contestants to take home the top prize.

Hudson’s father Hunter recalled the special morning afield with his hunting buddy. “Though we didn’t hear any gobbling at first light, we knew they were close as we had roosted them the evening before. Eventually, we saw some hens and a gobbler headed our way in a big field but were disappointed when a group of jakes ran off the tom. We decided that we would try to harvest a jake but right as we were getting ready, we heard a close gobble to our right. The tom had circled back and was coming into our setup. He closed to 5 yards from our blind but was spooked when the wind nearly knocked over our blind. Luckily, he was still in range when he settled back down, and Hudson made a perfect shot!”

Hudson Mathews has been awarded a limited-edition commemorative “Memories of Spring” box call produced together by famed Alabama turkey hunter Ron Jolly and turkey hunting legend Preston Pittman as well as the recently released book by Jolly of the same name.

“We are grateful to the participants in this year’s contest and know that many memories of spring were created in Alabama’s Black Belt throughout the season,” said Pam Swanner, Executive Director of the Alabama Black Belt Adventures Association. “Our region continues to be a place where families and young folks can enjoy high-quality experiences, and we invite you to come to the Black Belt to create your own memories.”

The annual photo contest was open throughout turkey season as a way to further educate the public on the abundance of natural resources found in Alabama’s Black Belt region. To view all of the other contest entries, visit https://alabamablackbeltadventures.org/biggobblercontest/.

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