HEAVY morning fog??

[Texforce]

I am curious what you fellas will have to say on this topic. Does heavy fog tend to make them stay on the limb longer in the morning? After flydown, do they get to more open areas quicker? I've never hunted them in HEAVY morning fog, but if I had been hunting this morning in Archer County, TX---- I would have experienced it. What are yall's thoughts??

[The Cohutta Strutter]

Hey Tex, we can't have a topic to not get responded to,lol. Seriously, your topic reminded me of the last foggy morning gobbler I encountered a couple years back. Bad weather had moved in the day before and continued on through out the night and was what I was greeted with for the hunt. It was terribly windy, rainy and foggy weather and I just about talked myself out of it but thought what the heck. I knew of a gobbler and had a hunch of where he may pick to roost under these conditions. I had a particular spot in mind I needed to get to that would have me sitting pretty if my hunch was right. I got in early and waited for gobble time. Gobble time arrived and nothing. More time passed and still nothing. So now I'm entering the part of the hunt where I start to rationalize what's going on. He's just not feeling it after the night he's had. Be lucky if he gobbles once. Maybe he's gobbling but I just can't hear it. Maybe,with the weather like it is he doesn't feel secure enough yet to hit the ground, could very well be another hour or so. As I continue on with these crazy thoughts I was greeted with a VERY LOUD gobble so much that my whole body jerked at the gobble,lol. He was directly behind me at no more than 30 yds. Is he on the ground or still in the tree ? I waited on another gobble. He gobbled again and it sounded like he was on the ground. The terrain was straight up behind me. I had put a thick bank of laurel to my backside. So, over a period of time I laid back and made it on my belly with him gobbling ocassionally. So now I'm looking up through the laurel to see what I can see which wasn't much. The gobbles were coming from the same spot which tells me he's still in a tree but dang if it didn't sound like he was on the ground ! I finally see a flash as he pitches down, he gobbles when he hits the ground and is going out the other end of a small knob. That joker had roosted higher up in terrain than I expected but  low in the tree probably no more than 15 feet I suppose to dodge some of the wind. I had a good idea of where he was gonna come out on the other side so I high tail it off the ridge down to the creek bottom and work my way to where I think he's going about a 200 yard move on my part. The creek makes a sharp bend to the left which leads into open bottom and I needed to get in there. The only things it had going for it as far as cover was the creek and the moderate fog that had setteled in. I get low and make my way up the creek to a point where things really open up so I stop and let out some snappy yelps on a box caller,set the call down and get my gun up. There is a logging to my right that passes through this hollow so I focus my eyes in the center of the road. I'm attempting to stare a hole in the fog and all of a sudden BAM- he materializes through the fog at the very point I was looking. He's fully upright, walking slowly and looking. He's coming. I then notice a large tree that had fallen across the road that could stop his foward progress and think not good. But then think maybe all is not lost because if goes left of the tree puts him right to me. But if he goes right the woods are open enough for a shot but the range will be iffy. He goes right and presents a shot as he clears the tree making his way up the side of a ridge. At the moment I most certainly thought he was just bit to far for a shot and held off. After it was over I stood up and looked at the opening where I held the shot to gauge this a little better and realized that maybe he wasn't, lol. I dropped my head and couldn't help but to grin. Tex, just thought I'd share this to maybe help show that if your hesistant about hunting them in foggy conditions, don't be. Do any of us really know what kind of turkey hunt we're going to get until we give it a go no matter what the weather condions are ? Generally speaking, I think turkeys will continue on as business as usual but may be a little late for things to unfold in bad conditions. There instinct rule. Not sure if they ever intend to get anywhere quicker in bad conditions but have always thought they may feel more secure when their together. Lastly, Ive heard some people say they've experienced some phenomenal gobbling during heavy fog periods and I'm sure that's probably true. I can't say I've experienced that maybe slightly better but generally normal to below normal levels.

[silvestris]

I try not to hunt in heavy fog because it is so danged iffy.  I have hunted in heavy fog and heard nary a peep.  I have hunted in heavy fog and them gobble at everything  they heard, but only one morning was I successful.  That was when the fog was so heavy that my Dad's bookkeeper and I chose to sit in the truck and listen.  The turkeys began to tear it up on the edge of a clear cut and we all but ran to get there before the fog lifted.  We set up and a couple of hens sailed out right on top of us.  I stood up and shooed them away as the fog was still thick so gobbler hadn't seen me do the dastardly deed.  I immediately began to call and in less than five minutes Shelby had his first and only gobbler.

[falltoms]

I've had a few hunts in heavy fog. Some were bad days for gobbling, some were decent. I go no matter the weather. The turkeys don't move around much in heavy fog, at least that's my experience. But. Some of the best gobbling days I've experienced, is after a heavy fog lifts or right after a rain when the sun comes out. Their mood changes like ours. You gotta go though, to see what the weather will do

[g8rvet]

My son's first big gobbler was on a very foggy day.  The bird lit up at the normal time and I warned my son we would have a wait for him to fly down.   He gobbled about 20 times on the limb.  I never made a peep.   When I was sure he had hit the ground based on his gobble, I called about three times.  We were looking across a little field and he just appeared at about 60 yards.  One more call and he took his sweet time, but my son finished the deal at about 30 steps.  Very nice bird. The fan is still on my mantel and it dwarfs my first bird's fan. 

[guesswho]

My experience has been on average

1- They stay on the limb longer.

2- They tend to not gobble as much, especially once on the ground.

3- They generally move at a snails pace, if they move at all. 

4- They do prefer open areas, but don't seem to strut as much.

5- Once the fog lifts they change gears. 

In summary, foggy mornings are good for killing for those that like to slipass around trying to get in tight on a gobbler.   But not so good for calling one any distance to the barrel, until the fog burns off. 

[Kylongspur88]

My experience has been on average

1- They stay on the limb longer.

2- They tend to not gobble as much, especially once on the ground.

3- They generally move at a snails pace, if they move at all. 

4- They do prefer open areas, but don't seem to strut as much.

5- Once the fog lifts they change gears. 

In summary, foggy mornings are good for killing for those that like to slipass around trying to get in tight on a gobbler.   But not so good for calling one any distance to the barrel, until the fog burns off.

This has been my experience as well.

[shaman]

We get some serious pea soup on our ridge. We're between the Ohio and Licking rivers  in the Trans-Bluegrass region of Kentucky.  I've gotten lost in it just a few hundred yards from the house, and have learned to take 2 compasses with me at all times

(Why 2?  The first one might break. )

I do a lot of pre-season recording of turkeys for my podcasts.   Some of it has been is fog. Things I've noticed:

1)  The turkeys may be calling, but you can't hear them. Fog really muffles turkeys. Years ago, I made the mistake of walking under a fog-bound gobbler that was still in the roost.   
2)  Fog  is like glue.  It makes everything run slower in a turkey's life. They start calling later, fly down later, loiter longer, move slower while feeding.
3)  One trick that has worked for me in the fog was to get up and move towards the gobbler.  My movement was muffled by the fog, so I could move fast and reset. 
4)  I've seen absolutely dead morning socked in with fog that gave way to  wild afternoons with gobblers everywhere, looking for love.   
5) While I have taken turkeys in foggy conditions, and recorded turkeys in the fog, I will say that foggy conditions do not benefit the hunter.