Figured we could have some fun in the off season and play around with a discussion on some unconventional tactics you have/ do employ when hunting pressured public land. Defensive schemes, if you will. To give you a little upper hand on the competition. I'll drop a few here, but there's a few secrets I still keep, too.
1. Defensive parking. I'll park at one gate or parking area, and then walk a considerable distance in an opposite direction to where I intend to hunt. A lot of (lazy( hunters associate parked vehicles with gobbling turkeys. Someone is hunting there so they probably heard a bird in there recently. This helps protect my hunting spots a little bit.
2. Kick the leaves back in under the tree when you leave. If you had a good setup, cover it up so other guys don't find it later. Simple thing to do ,but it helps.
3. Carry a pine branch with you while walking and scouting. Use it to carefully erase tracks, droppings, feathers, strut marks, and even dusting bowls at times. Helps hide that fresh sign from others, and also serves as a useful tool for you to determine how frequently turkeys are using an area.
4. Another defensive parking tip. If you're hunting with a buddy, drive separately and park a little further part than usual. Discourages a late comer from coming in on you if there is less room to park and appears to be more people in there.
5. Control the information. Keep your best intel close, but don't be afraid to send a couple guys on a wild goose chase after the bird you "heard" hammering down the road yesterday or on the opposite ridge. I knew an old timer that told me he would stand on a ridge and run a shaker gobble call the day before the opener to draw hunting pressure away from his spots.
6. I hunt a spot where there is a long spur road off of the main access road. You can drive down in a good ways and park at a dead end. But in so doing, it typically spooks the birds and they clam up as they roost close to that dead end. Cutting trees is forbidden, but I have a few times drug an already fallen log across the road forcing people to either move it (most are too lazy) , keep going to another spot, or park and walk the whole way back in. Either outcome is positive. Last year, an actual large tree had fallen and forest service hadn't had a chance to saw it up yet. The hunting back there was best it's been in years.
SSSSSssshhhhhhhhhhh
Being in good physical shape and incredibly good-looking has served me well so far. I figure I will just run what I brung.
Sent from my SM-S901U using Tapatalk
Quote from: Happy on December 13, 2023, 06:02:26 PM
Being in good physical shape and incredibly good-looking has served me well so far. I figure I will just run what I brung.
:TooFunny: Well, as one who is on the other extreme of those two considerations, I can confidently state that I ain't runnin' with what I brung so much anymore.
On the other hand, I also don't have many defenses on how to deal with the masses that are increasingly infiltrating our public lands out here in the west. My public-land theories pretty much revolve around avoiding weekends and also attempting to get to spots that are difficult to get to and/or might be overlooked by most others. Out in this part of the world, the weekdays and the last part of the season are generally still competition-free to a large extent.
I still rely to a great degree on the courtesy of other hunters in terms of them moving on when I am parked somewhere, but admittedly, that is becoming less and less reliable as the years go by. Turkey hunting etiquette is more and more becoming a thing of the past.
I probably hunt 50/50 public and private. On public I NEVER tell anyone about what I've seen, heard, or where a bird is. You don't have to be rude, but at the same time others don't need to benefit from your hard work. I don't park in spots that will give away my location. I also tend to target areas that are harder to get to. That doesn't necessarily mean far away, but a good sized hill between the parking area and birds will weed out a lot of competition hence the reason I'm on the treadmill almost every day. Also look for areas that don't have trails or roads cut through them. So many guys will follow an access road and just go a few yards off to the side. Learn to read a map and carry a compass and get off the beaten path and you'll encounter far fewer people.
A fresh dump at a trail head has turn me around a few times, 3 or four and I will never go back!
For me, for the most part... avoiding pieces that have a lot of trucks parked there helps, I'm then left with the unpressured (or lower pressured) areas, normally with a gobbling turkey.
Opening day mid morning is a good way to scout pressure if your plan doesn't work out.
Sometimes... there's no real way to avoid and you just have to hope that the other guy is courteous (unfortunately not the case most of the time).
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
I try to put as much distance between me and the parking spot as possible. A good hill or swamp is my friend. My biggest issue is ATV's. There are a gazillion of riders around here and a ton of camps. They are cutting more trails and getting deeper into the woods every year. Dont they know I am hunting turkeys, not people. Z
Buy about 10 cheap flashlights and a roll of electric tape. Get to your trailhead early. Tape the flashlights just off the trail and turn them on as you go in. Hunters behind you will think the woods is loaded with hunters. Harvest a fine gobbler, collect your lights on the way out , go home and celebrate... :fud:
I kill the ones 100 yards from the parking area that everyone walks by on their 5 mile hike away from the crowds.
Quote from: guesswho on December 14, 2023, 07:31:02 AM
I kill the ones 100 yards from the parking area that everyone walks by on their 5 mile hike away from the crowds.
:TooFunny:
Best defense is a good offense! Never go to over pressured ground! Find better spots!
1) Do it all the time.
2)Never have but would if I was in an obvious location. Honestly if they are a good enough woodsman to know there was a dude sitting there, they likely know where the birds are located.
3)I all but got called an a-hole for saying we routinely do this in a NF. (brush out tracks). Too bad, so sad.
4) Also use for duck hunting.
5) I won't lie to someone, unless they ask me for information, but I don't volunteer one way or the other. Would not do the gobble tube either.
6)Would not drag a log onto a road, but am also not too lazy to remove one.
I have had acquaintances say they always see my truck parked at a certain gated road and ask how the hunting was back there. I tell them that I have seen, insert the game I am hunting at the time, occasionally, but I like the terrain so much that I am hoping to get lucky one day, when the truth is that lucky "day" happens a lot back there. It is situated on hush creek road on notellum ridge just past thatwon mountain.
Question to you- Where are you going to be?? Answer-- Where The Turkeys Are...
Simply answer.
I do not spend my time trying to thwart other hunters. I go early, but not real early and I respect other hunters if they have beaten me to a certain gate. I assume no one will honor my position and try not to get pissed off when they run over me. I will leave if I get pressure around me and move on. I often save my best spots for late morning after "Ronnie race everyone to the back" is worn out and leaves. I talk to other hunters at the gates and offer to split up the area. If asked I either say, I don't share my hard earned information or I tell them the truth. I ask them to honor my position and hard work on a certain bird and if they are insistent on being butt holes, I scare the living crap out of the bird and leave. I learned a long time ago, that I hunt for the joy of the outdoors and the interaction with the turkeys. When I start letting others rob me of that joy, my unhappiness is my fault. If the pressure is so bad I can't enjoy hunting, I go fishing. No turkey on earth is worth my joy or dying for....yeah I learned that the hard way too.
Remove all "turkey" stickers from your vehicle.
Quote from: eggshell on December 15, 2023, 06:34:15 AM
I often save my best spots for late morning after "Ronnie race everyone to the back" is worn out and leaves.
That's why I wear Crocs. I make pretty good time.
I put that in specifically for you Guesswho....thought you'd get a chuckle
;D
Quote from: guesswho on December 14, 2023, 07:31:02 AM
I kill the ones 100 yards from the parking area that everyone walks by on their 5 mile hike away from the crowds.
You mean E-Bike trek? It's 2023 man nobody walks anymore
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Pro as
You got that right.
I relate more to eggshell in this conversation. I got really ticked off when new to turkey hunting and others, just as green as I was, messed me up, but learned to get over it. I will get somewhere early if I have a specific bird, or area in mind, and in a few cases, really early. That said, if someone else is already there, I try not to let it ruin my day. More than once, I have had to resort to plan B, and ended up killing a bird.
I've also, more than once, put another hunter onto a bird that I didn't manage to outsmart. This usually happens on an out of state hunt after I have either tagged out, or more often, simply have to leave. It isn't like the bird is tied up, and I see nothing wrong with letting the other guy know that there's a gobbler in the area.
I do have a story though. A family I got acquainted with in Kansas 3 decades ago while hunting public land after sharing a campsite my first year out there had a son employed at Coleman. He was a foreman or something, and every new piece of equipment they produced, they would give him an example, so he had a boatload of camping equipment.
Back then, KDWP would allow you to camp pretty much anywhere on the management areas. This guy would go a quarter of a mile or so up the road from where we all camped and set up a complete fake camp, even leaving a Coleman lantern burning all night, so no one else would try to hunt the area.
Sent from my motorola edge 5G UW (2021) using Tapatalk
Quote from: Neill_Prater on December 15, 2023, 07:10:08 PM
Back then, KDWP would allow you to camp pretty much anywhere on the management areas. This guy would go a quarter of a mile or so up the road from where we all camped and set up a complete fake camp, even leaving a Coleman lantern burning all night, so no one else would try to hunt the area.
Although I have seen the fake-camp ploy pulled a time or two, I haven't done that, but have contemplated it on a few occasions. That does bring to mind another problem we are seeing more and more of on public lands, though. That is, a lot of folks just out camping during the turkey season that are not turkey hunters. It's hard to tell who is hunting and who is just camping out.
Every year nowadays, we pass up hunting gobblers in places because there are camps nearby only to find out later that they were doing something else besides turkey hunting. At 0-Dark-Thirty in the morning, waking someone up at a camp to ask them,..."Hey, are you guys turkey hunting?"...after hearing gobbling nearby, can be an "iffy" proposition. I haven't had the ballinskis to try it,...and I suspect the results of doing so could get somewhat exciting. ;D :o
Many of these replies have entered the "cute" stage. The only one I'm concerned about is the road blocking. If someone has a medical emergency I hate to think the responders have to dick around with logs blocking their access. Yes there are medical situations in the turkey woods. Re-read the Dave Harbour thread.
I used to carry a decoy with me on my travels, even though I don't actually hunt with them. A "dummy" decoy! I'll never forget hunting a Florida WMA in 2010. I had roosted a gobbler that could be gotten to from 2 different roads/trails that ran into each other. The bird was straight in front of the intersection. My dad dropped me off at one trail, then went and parked on the other. I placed a hen decoy in the middle of my trail I was on, about ~400-500 yards from the roosted turkey. Now most turkey hunters wouldn't be driving down these sketchy trails trying to turkey hunt and potentially busting roosted birds in the process. But in Florida, they'll drive down anything legal or not! And sure enough, 10 minutes after my bird starts gobbling, I hear someone laying down on their horn back at my hen decoy. :TooFunny: :TooFunny: Fortunately they didn't continue forth on their path and I was able to get the gobbler.
The most important "Defensive Scheme" on a serious note on any land, public or private is safety and a strong awareness of your surroundings. There was an incident posted on our forum last year where a members friend got peppered with TSS. It was pretty bad, the shooter shot at movement I believe. There are many other incidences where this happened, especially when decoys are involved. I hunt very little public land but when I do, I yield big time to parked cars that get there before me. I have no interest in entering the woods that has other hunters. My "scheme" here is move on to another spot where I am alone. I can't enjoy myself if I am competing with other hunters. If I had to hunt solely public, I would wear a blaze orange hat when moving on crowded WMA's. This could prevent that accidental "shooting at movement" episode. Control what you can control by being extremely aware of your surroundings, move away from crowds and over-all, just employ safety tactics whenever you encounter others in the woods.....
You offer some good advice Tom007. I absolutely do not like being around other hunters and will leave at a fast pace if hunters crowd me. Of course I deal with more paranoia than most ( for good reasons you all know). I also carry a hunter orange stocking cap and it goes on my head if I am moving around other hunters. I don't deal with many other hunters however, as I hunt almost exclusively private property and most of it is behind locked gates and I am the only one allowed inside the gate on days I hunt. I still have run into trespassers and we have a zero tolerance for them. If you enforce trespass laws and hunting without permission then word gets around and you get very few trespassers. I know that makes me very fortunate and in a blessed position, but my family and friends have worked 150 years to secure all this property and I am grateful for my ancestors. If I had to hunt solely public in my area, I might just quit turkey hunting. Public is very limited here. Now I do hunt public out of state where there are huge chunks of national forest. Usually I can find a less traveled block there. Give me one gobbler all to myself and I am happy. I have no desire to hunt 10 gobblers along with 15 hunters.
Quote from: eggshell on December 17, 2023, 07:26:59 AM
You offer some good advice Tom007. I absolutely do not like being around other hunters and will leave at a fast pace if hunters crowd me. Of course I deal with more paranoia than most ( for good reasons you all know). I also carry a hunter orange stocking cap and it goes on my head if I am moving around other hunters. I don't deal with many other hunters however, as I hunt almost exclusively private property and most of it is behind locked gates and I am the only one allowed inside the gate on days I hunt. I still have run into trespassers and we have a zero tolerance for them. If you enforce trespass laws and hunting without permission then word gets around and you get very few trespassers. I know that makes me very fortunate and in a blessed position, but my family and friends have worked 150 years to secure all this property and I am grateful for my ancestors. If I had to hunt solely public in my area, I might just quit turkey hunting. Public is very limited here. Now I do hunt public out of state where there are huge chunks of national forest. Usually I can find a less traveled block there. Give me one gobbler all to myself and I am happy. I have no desire to hunt 10 gobblers along with 15 hunters.
Amen my friend, the orange cap is a great idea that just might save your life.....be safe
Much of the country I hunt here in the west does not have the situation many folks apparently have back east where you have to park at certain places to hunt public land...or at least it seems that way from the numerous comments suggesting that is the case. Out here, hunters (and non-hunters) generally park wherever they want.
That creates another situation not mentioned. Many public lands out this way have pretty extensive road systems. Add to that the fact that gobblers can often be heard from a mile away or more in this open country. We have quite often heard a bird we thought we had all to ourselves in that nobody else was parked in the vicinity only to find someone else on that bird who had come in from another direction. This is continuing to get to be worse over time as our public lands get more and more hunting pressure.
Anymore, taking steps to try to avoid other hunters is becoming more and more of a crapshoot over time. I still have a spot or two that I figure I can go to where I won't have competition, but every time I go to one of them now, I am never certain I will be the only one hunting any gobbler I might hear. More often than not, a gobbler can be heard from multiple access points and I never know if another hunter may be coming in from the other side. You just have to keep your fingers crossed that there isn't.
Nowadays, we are not in a situation where if you hear a gobbler, you just head to him without considering the possibility that someone else may also be hunting him. With every gobbler heard, with it comes the consideration of whether there is a likelihood that someone else will show up. If the circumstances suggest the odds of having that bird to ourselves are low, we just move on. ...It wasn't all that long ago that we didn't have to have that debate.
Well gobblenut, we both are old and our hunting days are becoming more modified if not outright numbered so we don't have to worry about it for long term. :funnyturkey:
You know that might be a good strategy. When you meet other hunters, stumble and mumble around and holler at them about how bad your hearing is. Then tell them the funny story about the stump you shot because you thought is was a strutting gobbler. All while complaining you wish you could see and hear better. Then ask them which way the button should be on your shotgun's safety to be ready to shoot, you want it ready to shoot in case you hear a turkey calling.
Quote from: GobbleNut on December 17, 2023, 08:58:12 AM
Much of the country I hunt here in the west does not have the situation many folks apparently have back east where you have to park at certain places to hunt public land...or at least it seems that way from the numerous comments suggesting that is the case. Out here, hunters (and non-hunters) generally park wherever they want.
That creates another situation not mentioned. Many public lands out this way have pretty extensive road systems. Add to that the fact that gobblers can often be heard from a mile away or more in this open country. We have quite often heard a bird we thought we had all to ourselves in that nobody else was parked in the vicinity only to find someone else on that bird who had come in from another direction. This is continuing to get to be worse over time as our public lands get more and more hunting pressure.
Anymore, taking steps to try to avoid other hunters is becoming more and more of a crapshoot over time. I still have a spot or two that I figure I can go to where I won't have competition, but every time I go to one of them now, I am never certain I will be the only one hunting any gobbler I might hear. More often than not, a gobbler can be heard from multiple access points and I never know if another hunter may be coming in from the other side. You just have to keep your fingers crossed that there isn't.
Nowadays, we are not in a situation where if you hear a gobbler, you just head to him without considering the possibility that someone else may also be hunting him. With every gobbler heard, with it comes the consideration of whether there is a likelihood that someone else will show up. If the circumstances suggest the odds of having that bird to ourselves are low, we just move on. ...It wasn't all that long ago that we didn't have to have that debate.
Well put, all we can do now is "Just Hunt", and hope we interact with our quarry alone. Turkey hunting is my life, but I won't risk it competing for a gobbler. Walking away from a risky situation is very easy for me, there's always tomorrow..........
Quote from: GobbleNut on December 17, 2023, 08:58:12 AM
Much of the country I hunt here in the west does not have the situation many folks apparently have back east where you have to park at certain places to hunt public land...or at least it seems that way from the numerous comments suggesting that is the case. Out here, hunters (and non-hunters) generally park wherever they want.
That creates another situation not mentioned. Many public lands out this way have pretty extensive road systems. Add to that the fact that gobblers can often be heard from a mile away or more in this open country. We have quite often heard a bird we thought we had all to ourselves in that nobody else was parked in the vicinity only to find someone else on that bird who had come in from another direction. This is continuing to get to be worse over time as our public lands get more and more hunting pressure.
Anymore, taking steps to try to avoid other hunters is becoming more and more of a crapshoot over time. I still have a spot or two that I figure I can go to where I won't have competition, but every time I go to one of them now, I am never certain I will be the only one hunting any gobbler I might hear. More often than not, a gobbler can be heard from multiple access points and I never know if another hunter may be coming in from the other side. You just have to keep your fingers crossed that there isn't.
Nowadays, we are not in a situation where if you hear a gobbler, you just head to him without considering the possibility that someone else may also be hunting him. With every gobbler heard, with it comes the consideration of whether there is a likelihood that someone else will show up. If the circumstances suggest the odds of having that bird to ourselves are low, we just move on. ...It wasn't all that long ago that we didn't have to have that debate.
Where i hunt moose it's the same or worst... When I hear a call, i can never be sure if it's a real moose or another hunter and I've had both situations... I went to the encounter of another hunter and i missed an opportunity to at least see a moose that I thought was a hunter and ended up being a moose that my hunting partner saw from far away... It changes the game very much.
I used to try to cover my tracks and/or avoid mud holes, park in less than obvious locations, and even used to go as far as to be dropped off if I had a hunting partner...now I want to be as obvious as possible.
I park where I am hunting because I have been burned by people who heard the bird from a different location and they thought no one was around.
I leave tracks behind and make my presence known because that seems to push people out of an area faster than anything...boot tracks means pressure to some.
My biggest defense is just getting there early and staying in the parking lot until the last minute. If someone is parking on top of me, I want them to know what I am doing. I have had guys flat tell me they were coming right in there with me, but then never show up. Seems like I have had better luck with getting a bird by myself doing this than trying to sneak in.
Quote from: Spurs on January 02, 2024, 01:01:55 PM
I used to try to cover my tracks and/or avoid mud holes, park in less than obvious locations, and even used to go as far as to be dropped off if I had a hunting partner...now I want to be as obvious as possible.
I park where I am hunting because I have been burned by people who heard the bird from a different location and they thought no one was around.
I leave tracks behind and make my presence known because that seems to push people out of an area faster than anything...boot tracks means pressure to some.
My biggest defense is just getting there early and staying in the parking lot until the last minute. If someone is parking on top of me, I want them to know what I am doing. I have had guys flat tell me they were coming right in there with me, but then never show up. Seems like I have had better luck with getting a bird by myself doing this than trying to sneak in.
Agreed. There was a time when it was a good idea to be covert as much as possible, but anymore, there are just too many people out there competing for a limited and, unfortunately, vocal resource. There was a time when we could more or less assume that there was a reasonable possibility that we could have a gobbler to ourselves. Not so much anymore. Instead of that covert approach, anymore I want to as much as possible try to coordinate hunting plans with other folks that might show up in the area I am hunting. Of course, in some places, the amount of hunting pressure just makes that a waste of time.
Even the "get there first" approach is a crapshoot in today's competitive hunting climate. Certain organizations, the media, and even agencies have introduced way too many folks to the turkey-hunting world...folks that have no clue as to the historical etiquette that may have once existed among turkey hunters.
We have used the terminology "deer-hunting turkeys" here before. Where I hunt, it is completely apropos. Too many newer hunters hunt turkeys pretty much just like they hunt deer...go into the woods and either stake out a location or head for any gobbler they hear with the intention of trying to sneak up on it and try to kill it. The predominate mentality seems to be, "It doesn't matter if you were here first. I have as much right to try to kill that gobbler as you do". In addition, they exacerbate that approach by squawking on a turkey call they picked up at WallyWorld yesterday when they bought their turkey license.
Consider yourselves lucky if you hunt somewhere that that "deer-hunt" mentality does not exist. I can assure you that around here, it most certainly does...and it is getting worse with each passing spring.
Quote from: GobbleNut on January 03, 2024, 08:49:39 AM
Quote from: Spurs on January 02, 2024, 01:01:55 PM
I used to try to cover my tracks and/or avoid mud holes, park in less than obvious locations, and even used to go as far as to be dropped off if I had a hunting partner...now I want to be as obvious as possible.
I park where I am hunting because I have been burned by people who heard the bird from a different location and they thought no one was around.
I leave tracks behind and make my presence known because that seems to push people out of an area faster than anything...boot tracks means pressure to some.
My biggest defense is just getting there early and staying in the parking lot until the last minute. If someone is parking on top of me, I want them to know what I am doing. I have had guys flat tell me they were coming right in there with me, but then never show up. Seems like I have had better luck with getting a bird by myself doing this than trying to sneak in.
Agreed. There was a time when it was a good idea to be covert as much as possible, but anymore, there are just too many people out there competing for a limited and, unfortunately, vocal resource. There was a time when we could more or less assume that there was a reasonable possibility that we could have a gobbler to ourselves. Not so much anymore. Instead of that covert approach, anymore I want to as much as possible try to coordinate hunting plans with other folks that might show up in the area I am hunting. Of course, in some places, the amount of hunting pressure just makes that a waste of time.
Even the "get there first" approach is a crapshoot in today's competitive hunting climate. Certain organizations, the media, and even agencies have introduced way too many folks to the turkey-hunting world...folks that have no clue as to the historical etiquette that may have once existed among turkey hunters.
We have used the terminology "deer-hunting turkeys" here before. Where I hunt, it is completely apropos. Too many newer hunters hunt turkeys pretty much just like they hunt deer...go into the woods and either stake out a location or head for any gobbler they hear with the intention of trying to sneak up on it and try to kill it. The predominate mentality seems to be, "It doesn't matter if you were here first. I have as much right to try to kill that gobbler as you do". In addition, they exacerbate that approach by squawking on a turkey call they picked up at WallyWorld yesterday when they bought their turkey license.
Consider yourselves lucky if you hunt somewhere that that "deer-hunt" mentality does not exist. I can assure you that around here, it most certainly does...and it is getting worse with each passing spring.
My thought process is that if I get there first, I hold the 'high road'. If someone decides to come in on me, I at least made the effort and 'did it right'. That guy has to live with the fact that they saw my vehicle and made the decision to possibly negatively effected my hunt out of their decision...whether they care or not is not something I can't help. I, on the other hand, can only control what I do and how I react to situations.
I kinda look at it like the old deer hunting phrase, "Well my neighbor would just shoot it, so I might as well." You don't know what your neighbor would do, how they'd react, or what route that deer would make; BUT you can be 100% sure that the deer will die if you shoot it behind the shoulder.
If you show up early, do the right things, hunt ethically and put rubber to the road, you'll find yourself in empty woods more often than not. My experience is that MOST guys who have problems/run-ins with other hunters are the type who hunt the 'hot spots' and shows up to the parking lot 30 minutes till gobble time.
I honestly think there is a HUGE portion of the 'hunting' community that subconsciously enjoy the rat race more than they do actually hunting. You see it a lot in duck hunting in Arkansas....which is leaking into the turkey world.
I like fishing more all the time and The Saugeye (hybrid walleye) I catch sure are better eating than an old gobbler. I can only put a couple turkeys in my freezer, but I can put 100 fish in it.
Make sure to like and subscribe. Loose lips sink ships. You know it and I know it.
I know a guy that keeps a bag full of Turkey feathers and after youth day while scouting drops a hand full
of feathers at trail heads he plans to hunt. :o
Quote from: King Cobra on January 09, 2024, 12:43:37 PM
I know a guy that keeps a bag full of Turkey feathers and after youth day while scouting drops a hand full
of feathers at trail heads he plans to hunt. :o
I know a guy like that, too...
Sent from my SM-N986U using Tapatalk
Hunting defensively is different things to different people. As for me I am more interested in my safety than I am other people hunting my turkeys. I park where I plan to hunt so people know someone is in there. If they choose to go in anyway that's their problem. I know where people are likely to approach my spots and I listen and watch for them. I don't wait at the gate though, I get in my listening spot way early. Anytime I've had a discussion with others on "you go here and I'll go there", they always end up on my turkey anyway. I would rather leave them guessing and knowing that I'm in there only by the presence of my truck.
One thing I do though is erase all turkey tracks and sign possible, as well as leave my footprints in any dirt or muddy spots that I can. I want people to think there's not many turkeys and too many people in there.
Hope everyone has a safe and enjoyable 2024 season!
As I have followed this thread I have become more disappointed in where turkey hunting has come. I consider defensive turkey hunting as a safety issue not a "keep the other guy out of my way strategy". I was just wondering is defensive tactics as discussed here a form of greed. I am only posing the question as food for thought, I am in no way judging anyone. I have done many of the same things discussed here. Generally I have always talked to other hunters and shared information. I typically would yield to other people before I would insist on my way or no way. I am saddened to say I think we have become more aggressive as a society and it shows in our hunting as well. I have put guys on birds and been happy when they killed them, but I am also irritated when 10 of their buddies show up. When I say I am growing tired of the sport I am serious, it has become almost ruined for me. Say I am not a true turkey hunter if you want, but I know who I am. Like some of the old sages on here I have done my work and run my race. I came from the generation that restored this great bird and yes I carry some pride in that. I also have a deep concern for its continued well being, but killing it at all cost is not a part of me anymore. Go enjoy your quest and journey, but I will enjoy the memories around the fire as much as the wars of old. I will go and hunt until I'm tired and enjoy every step, but that enjoyment is no longer predicated on killing a bird.