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#1

Turkey Hunting Tips ,Strategies & Methods / Re: Never Fail Terrain Feature...

Last post by Davyalabama - Today at 08:13:43 AM

Never fail and turkeys ----- hahahahahahahahahahahahahaha, those things don't go together.

I'm glad I was able to give you some comical relief.

Still learning even after 5 years but comments like this show why people don't ask for help or insight and don't want to be one these forums.

Preface: I don't think the comment was in any way meant to be a dig at your question. I wouldn't read anything into it other than pointing out that it is often hard to figure out turkeys and what is going on in their little pea brains. 

Getting back to the point of your thread, regardless of where I have hunted, finding turkeys to hunt has always come down to doing one single thing. That is being out at the first hint of daylight in the morning, and the last hint of daylight in the evening...and listening for gobbling. You can do that passively by just being quiet and listening at places...or you can do it actively by using a "tool" to encourage that gobbling.

I have hunted quite a few places, and I have very rarely hunted anywhere that doing the above is not the best way to find gobblers to hunt. That includes doing it while scouting...or doing it when hunting and trying to find a gobbler.

In my opinion, the best thing you can do is spend as many mornings...from that first hint of daylight until sun-up...as you can in as many areas as you can prior to the season. If you have gobblers around, you are very likely going to find them by hearing them tell you where they are. 

Once you hear them, you can evaluate all of the other factors relating to habitat and terrain...and make a plan to go after them. In addition, you will often find that the habitat/terrain features that you find one gobbler in are also the features that you will find gobblers in other similar locations.

I'm so sorry, it wasn't meant to be light hearted, I never meant to insult you in any way, please accept my sincerest apologies.

Turkeys and never fail do not go together, I will stand by that statement.  I'll give you some context, turkeys have an innate ability to survive, they just can sometimes sense something isn't right.  Hunting these birds, wow, there are just so many variables, it takes books, on them, and you'll still find some that do something totally different.

Sit facing the bird; yeah, then the joker shows up behind you.  Try to get on the same ridge he is on; you spend 30-45 minutes circling around to get on same said ridge, cluck real low, whine, the blasted joker gobbles where you just left.    Terrain feature;  what works in even one part of Alabama, won't work up north, out west, etc.  The scouting you do in the early season, they may move to an entirely different area by the middle of the season or end.  They like ridges with big tress; nope next thing you know he's in tree in a bottom gobbling his fool head off, what's he do pitches out, goes with the hens in the bottom and........ 

I know this sounds confusing, but that's what makes turkey hunting so great.  Do your scouting, hear where they like to be, maybe, maybe at the start of the season, they won't be too pressured......find which way they want to go when they leave the roost ---- set up that way, even if it seems counterintuitive to you, the turkeys know where they want to go, be in that direction ----- if you are able to hunt in the afternoon, get in that area early, I mean early in the afternoon and just sit, wait --- as it get closer to later afternoon, periodically gobble, make soft hen sounds like they are just talking to each other (soft clucks, whines, purrs, whistles --- every now and then a quick fight sequence--hens squawking) --- wait on him to come back to that area ------  Then what happens, a whole drove starts coming, heart rate is up, he's coming, nope, that drove are hens, be careful, gobblers do not like roosting with hens.  He's going to flying up two hollows over from you..........and that's turkey hunting.    Wait, everyone says turkeys roost in the same tree or close to it, yeah......until the afternoon you sit down.....

It isn't funny, but it is ------ you've gotta laugh, you've gotta tip your hat to him and say, "I'll see you in the morning, tomorrow it's my day to win."      Turkey hunting isn't deer hunting over a greenfield, you just pick which one you want to shoot ---- it's what keeps me coming back ------- 

Now, here is where it hurts:      The wife, did you get one?  "No."  I'm sorry, maybe tomorrow --- some wives, is it fun just being out there all day and not seeing anything ---- some days not even hearing anything but tweety birds ----- Yep, loved it.  Wife, I wouldn't do it, you're just waisting time, I've got a lot for you to do here.    You haven't killed one in days, take tomorrow off, I have things for you to do.  I wouldn't waist my time doing that, that's boring, why do you do it?    I heard, so and so killed one, you haven't killed one yet.  So and so's kid has already killed two, you haven't even seen one to shoot.  You've spent all that money and nothing, we could have used that money for more investments, so and so is up 100% over the last three months -- all the gas, the new call, etc.    Some wives are supportive, they are S personalities, supportive, some are D personalities, demanding, I want to see results!!!!!!!! I'm married to a D, no not double D, a D personality, she's demanding, results driven, money and time, etc.  Boy you better kill your five turkeys every year for her, then, it still isn't good enough --- time, money spent, 5 birds, the math doesn't add up -----

Never fail........

#2

Turkey Hunting Tips ,Strategies & Methods / Re: What Does Killing A Turkey...

Last post by bbcoach - Today at 08:11:38 AM

Just a little icing on the cake!  As I age, 68 now, I enjoy the chase, the interaction and the woodsmanship, WAY more than carrying a bird home.  We are fortunate to have 2 tags in our State.  When and if I fill that first tag, I really find myself go into THROTTLE DOWN mode and TRULY enjoy the TRUE essence of this sport.  Matching wits, analyzing my calling, being stealthy, learning from what works and doesn't work and TRULY ENJOYING God's gift.  For me, the EXCITEMENT and ENJOYMENT of turkey hunting is in EVERYTHING leading up to punching that tag.  I have NOTHING to prove to myself but the SHEAR ENJOYMENT of this GREAT sport we all LOVE! 

#3

General Forum / Re: Word Association Game

Last post by TRaptor - Today at 08:09:02 AM

 Built

#4

Misc. Turkey Gun Related Classifieds / Re: Swampfox Kingslayer Red Ci...

Last post by twyatt - Today at 08:08:22 AM

I will take this


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PM Sent

#5

Turkey Hunting Tips ,Strategies & Methods / Re: Things Not To Eat Before S...

Last post by shaman - Today at 08:07:43 AM

My favorite honey hole has a feature that makes it easy to deal with these things.  I'm in an ancient fenceline next to an abandoned road and a pasture.  They deposited the rock from the field next to the fence.  As a result, I have a line of flat rock stretching up and down the road from my position.  It's all grown up with cedars, so I can transact business without turkeys spotting me.

Starting with my pre-season podcasts, when the need arises, I can just go over to a flat rock, tip it up and make a deposit.  I work my way down the line throughout season, and start over the next spring.

What food do I lay off?  I can't think of anything off-hand. 

#6

Turkey Pot Call & Strikers Classifieds / Re: FS: Hanks Highly Figured W...

Last post by DROCK - Today at 08:05:19 AM

Sold


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#7

Turkey Hunting Tips ,Strategies & Methods / Re: Personal Ethics-Tree Gobbl...

Last post by shaman - Today at 07:55:14 AM

KY, OH, PA -- Over 40 states ban shooting birds in the tree explicitly.  NY and IN are two states that don't mention it the rules, but it's generally considered taboo. The reason for this rule is that this was one of the historically best ways to hunt them.  Sneaking under a roost in the dark and knocking them off the branch was a surefire way to get meat for the camp.



I've long asserted that we tend to confuse legality with ethics.  For instance, growing up in Ohio, I used to hear that hunting deer in Ohio with anything but a shotgun was illegal, because it was unsafe.  It was illegal to hunt on Sundays, because farmers needed a day of rest.  Truth is these were excuses made up after the fact.  I'm always wary of that sort thing.  Turkey decoys are a similar issue;  folks in states where they're outlawed tend to think decoy usage is somehow universally unacceptable.  I don't hunt with decoys generally, but it's because I found them unnecessary.  However, I don't care where I am, limbing a bird is out.

I can attest to how easy it is. Before I learned to hold back from a roost a bit, I was forever walking under roosts in the dark.  Trust me, it's easy.  I can see why they made it illegal.

I've also encountered this bowhunting for deer.  I used to have a stand that the turkeys adopted as a roost.  I'd be almost all the way up the ladder before they'd bust.  Talk about a $HIT show! Yikes.

This past year, I nailed the gobbler of a lifetime by accidentally setting up too close to the roost.  I'd deliberately gone in early, and I'd just settled in when the roost woke up.  I was WAAAY too close.  I had to crawl off a ways.  Luckily, I wasn't spotted.

PODCAST: A Banded Bird At Dead Skunk Hollow

While not exactly on the topic, I also have a podcast from the morning where I went out to my favorite honey hole to make a pre-season podcast and found a gobbler roosted right over my favorite spot.  I backed off and set up my umbrella mic a few yards from where he'd pitch down.  The booger not only did that, but he ran up and attempted to seduce the mic.

PODCAST: The Mistaken Gobbler

#8

General Forum / Re: Word Association Game

Last post by captpete - Today at 07:54:41 AM

constructed

#9

2026 OLD GOBBLER TURKEY HUNTING TEAM CONTEST / Re: Herding up the GOATS

Last post by JeffC - Today at 07:53:02 AM

Saw a picture of Happless, real reason he's "slowing down.     

#10

2026 OLD GOBBLER TURKEY HUNTING TEAM CONTEST / Re: Herding up the GOATS

Last post by JeffC - Today at 07:50:48 AM

Rumor is Mini me is really Cranky!! Cranky is trying to lay low and sneak thru the season.... Then mini me (Cranky) will try to join another team and cause them to lose....