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Dang lock jawed turkeys...Please help

Started by gatortrax35, March 30, 2012, 03:32:42 PM

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gatortrax35

These turkeys on my lease have me all messed up. This week has been a horrible week for gobbling. No pressure on the birds at all. I have 1000 acres to myself, other 1000acres this guy hunts , but only on the weekends. I pretty much up on the lease almost every day. Day before season opens , hear 3 gobblers on the roost. MARK it on gps. Go back next day ,,nothing. Not even a peep. Been that way all week. Like the gobblers have moved on to somewhere else. 
Timeline of events: 
Friday day before season opens -hear 3 gobblers each in diff location in bottom.

Saturday opening day hear nothing-run into couple hens on my lease-only gobbler I hear is  on lease next to mine.
Sunday--Tom gobbled for 2hrs, got him withing 75-80 yrds with my daughter and youngest son. He strutted and drummed for 2 hrs on next ridge over. Could hear him spittin and drumming all morning. Hen walked up he stopped gobbling, but still strutted and drummed. Daughter had to "go" she couldn't hold it anymore when she stood up well , I saw my hopes and dreams run off across the ridge, :newmascot: BYE  :emoticon-cartoon-012:BYE MR TOM....sigh
Monday evening try to go roost a bird hear nothing.
Weds morning, hear nothing plenty turkey tracks!
Thursday RAIN rained into the night
Friday TODAY am clouds, light breeze every now and then. Water falls off leaves when wind blows. Again hear no gobbling. Setup call lightly, gently nothing sit sit sit. At 9:30am walking up logging rd on ridge hard wood bottoms on both sides, stop call , hear a hen answer to the left. Start to sit down BOOM she fly down out of a tree. At 9:30 am,,wt?? Call softly for few sec sit for 10min not calling. Start to stand up ater 45mins , call before I walk off hear a different hen in bottom to the right answer me. SAmething sit down , light calling nothing. Walk back toward truck, had a dang hen walk down the rd I'm on, see her tracks. She even stepped in my boot track from this morning.

I know there are turkeys in these bottoms. Today was cloudy and it did start to rain around 10:30am. I went home with my tail between my legs. I still cant get my first turkey. sigh. I'm walking slowly , not making a sound getting into the woods and down these logging roads etc. What can cause these birds to just go lock jaw and not gobble. Any help PLEASE. I'm bout to pull my hair out,LOL   :funnyturkey: I know all the gobblers are laughing at me.

Answer a few questions you might have.
1. no I'm not calling at them on the roost trying to get them to gobble. I'm walking down loggin roads before dark, waiting for them to start gobbling on there own.
2. Calling loud, no not at all. Soft short purrs and yelps. Before I get up , ill make some cuts louder, that's it.
3. Yes on the gobbler I called in Sunday, iIwas calling softly, he would answer me and I would stop. He came in closer but hung up, I stopped calling, would rake the leaves and he would gobble. I then stopped doing even that. Hope answers some of your questions. Thanks guys, sorry for the long story. Just don't know what to do.  :z-dizzy:

gophert

I just got back from south MS and they were NOT gobbling much at all.  We killed birds all 2 days doing one thing.

Get where you know they are going to be and DON'T CALL MUCH. 

We made just soft yelps and clucks in every area where we new they were and had success.  I would say build a blind of some sort and get comfy.  They all came in silent.  We killed one right off the roost.  He gobbled on the roost but once he hit the ground he never made a sound and neither did we.  He walked right to us.  The second bird was in mid afternoon and never made a sound.  I think we may have yelped 4 or 5 times and that's it. 

Video of that hunt is here:  http://oldgobbler.com/Forum/index.php/topic,22376.0.html

Stay with it. You can't kill them on the couch.  Good Luck.

xcallmaker

Just be patient and stay at it, you will get em!
Kelly Gadus
www.gadusgamecalls.com

Basin_hunter

The birds in our area wouldn't responding to calling a whole lot for opening weekend. Both the birds I killed came in with out making a peep besides crunching leaves as they walked in. Be patient and like mentioned before, go to where you know he is, strut zone, etc and wait him out.  I have learned not to worry about them gobbling on the limb a whole lot. Get comfortable and wait. I sat from 7:30am to 10:00am in one spot Tuesday b/c i knew they were coming at some point.

Good luck,    :anim_25:
In fall we rut, in spring we strut

gatortrax35

Thanks guys.  Again today here in north central Louisiana, warm and foggy.No gobbling. Has a hen come in 10 yrds was wondering where the "hen" was. She walked off never saw another bird.
Sunday , im going to sleep in and enjoy the day with my wife. Back at it Monday morning.

Heard other people having the same issues up here. So I not as worried. Noone hearing gobblers.

Thanks guys.

worth612000

Been quiet where I live in Ga. Been twice with no gobbling. I hunt at my house and see them from the family room come out in the back field at about 9:30am. I like to hunt when you can get one excited with a call. The season is young and I'm going to wait it out till I hear some gobbling going on.

bbcoach

I have been experiencing the same thing here in Eastern NC.  Our youth season opens this Saturday (4/7) and I've scouted, the last two weeks, for opportunities for a 11 and 14 year old and have heard 2 gobbles total.  Can't even get a response when they're on the roost.  The last several years they have been hammerin two weeks prior to our opening.  I'm seeing birds at the locations we have in the past but they are tight beaked for sure.  Looks as if this year will be PATIENCE, PATIENCE and more PATIENCE.

jakebird

Gobbling activity peaks and falls due to time of the breeding phases and weather can play a huge role too. Your best advice was already given. You'll never kill one on the couch. Find the area with the most promising sign and set up camp, all day if u have to. The birds dictate how much i call. If the woods are silent, i call very little. Call too much when the turkeys are clammed up and you stand out in a bad way. Sound unnatural, i guess if no one else is talking. Set up a blind and get comfy. Read a book. Take a nap. Either u will eventually kill one that way, or they will come out of their slump and start gobbling again, u just have to be persistent. Good luck!
That ol' tom's already dead. He just don't know it yet .... The hard part is convincing him.

Are you REALLY working that gobbler, or is HE working YOU?

cahaba

If possible try and hunt all day. 9:30 TO 10:30 on is some of the best time to hunt during the breeding phase which sounds like what phase your birds are in now. Mine are too.  Last week I couldnt get nothing going so I cut a couple of times real hard and loud. Two birds sounded off and they ran over a little rise and caught me off guard. Busted! by two longbeards If soft calling isnt working step up the intensity. What u got to lose.