ADVICE - what advice would you give for hunting on public land
Get there early. Stay there late
Try to be in the woods during the week and also during bad weather ie. rain. Less hunting pressure then.
Roost your bird the night before,get in tight the next morning,let him know your there and don't cause him to gobble to much or every hunter in earshot will be headed your direction.
Hunt weekdays if you can, weekends are not fun.
Quote from: CASH on February 14, 2012, 12:39:55 PM
Get there early. Stay there late
YES!! Get there way early get close to the roost, call soft and not a lot. If you don't kill him early, take a nap while everyone else is yelping their fool heads off from 7:30 to 9:00 then kill your bird between 10:00 and 12:00 when the gobblers are lonely because the hens have slipped off to nest.
Hunt weekdays, know the lay of the land better than the next guy and if theres water use a boat or canoe and you can get away from pressure. The way I see it most people are lazy. Going to those inconvenient spots will separate you from the others, that is until you run into a guy like me who goes to the inconvenient spots.... ::)
Hunt where other hunters don't go. This does not always mean a remote spot, sometimes it means right off of the main road within sight of everyone else's trucks flying past to get to those distant remote spots. Sometimes it means setting up within sight of where you parked your vehicle and having to be careful to not hit it when you shoot.
:anim_25:
FullChoke
If your successful on private land then hunt the public land the same way. I don't change tactics from one to the other. Slow and steady.
If I havent roosted one the evening before, I usually pick a larger block and walk as far into it as I can before daylight to a good spot to listen. Start deep and work your way back to the truck.
Use maps and aerial photos! Get a detailed map and aerial of the block of public land you are hunting, study it, know how to use it and you'll find spots most folks are missing. You'll find ways to get to birds most don't know of or figure out without a wealth of experience on that block of ground or the map you've got in your hands.
Every post is good advice..... :anim_25:
This is about what not to do. Don't use a gobble call!!
Bill
Turkeys don't know if they are on public or private. They don't change from being a turkey. Hunt them the same way. The only thing different is the amount of people on public land. Just try to stay away from the other hunters that might ruin your hunt. Good luck,
TRKYHTR
Do a lot of preseason scouting...listening mostly...and locate as many gobblers as you can. Then go back in close to season opener and set-up as far as you can and find out which way they go when they fly down. Don't call, just watch and listen, then sneak out undetected.
They will be times during the season you will not be the first one on a bird and have to pull off and go somewhere else. Knowing where more gobblers are comes in handy. Knowing which way they usually go after fly down will let you get in their path and make it much easier to call them in.
all is good advice if your in your own state or another one make friends with locals find were they hunt and stay out of those ares don't say it is public I'm going to hunt it anyway some local hunters can make a trip miserable :funnyturkey: :OGturkeyhead:
Quote from: FullChoke on February 14, 2012, 01:37:29 PM
Hunt where other hunters don't go. This does not always mean a remote spot, sometimes it means right off of the main road within sight of everyone else's trucks flying past to get to those distant remote spots. Sometimes it means setting up within sight of where you parked your vehicle and having to be careful to not hit it when you shoot.
:anim_25:
FullChoke
ha i can tell storys about this :camohat:
Quote from: FullChoke on February 14, 2012, 01:37:29 PM
Hunt where other hunters don't go. This does not always mean a remote spot, sometimes it means right off of the main road within sight of everyone else's trucks flying past to get to those distant remote spots. Sometimes it means setting up within sight of where you parked your vehicle and having to be careful to not hit it when you shoot.
:anim_25:
FullChoke
Some good advice here. I, over a period of a few years, killed three gobblers in a field in Kansas right along a well travelled road on public land. Don't ignore the obvious, I suppose, is the best way to put it.
remember this - less is more. Don't over-call. On public land the pressure is usually so bad that turkeys get hammered at every year. call softly. And call seldomly. When he gobbles, get close, call softly, and seldomly. If you call and he responds - shut up and get ready. Also, a bird on public land is more wary that a private land bird. He is not going to let you get away with mistakes that a bird on private land might. believe me, he will have been educated.
Also, most hunters are not going to walk very far from the truck. Don't be afraid to wear out some shoe leather.
Good luck.
Quote from: 2ounce6s on February 14, 2012, 09:22:54 PM
If you think you hear another hunter calling, go the other way.
Hunt Safely. I carry an orange hat with me, keep it handy but out of sight. Always setup against a large tree. Last year I was setup and calling when I heard something behind me, there was a nice deer trail there so I thought I would take a look. I slowly turned to look over my right shoulder and was shocked to see a guy standing about 20 yds. away with his shotgun up. I reached down with my left hand and grabbed my orange hat, pulled it out from between my legs quickly and yelled
HEY. He lowered his gun and walked off. I'll never understand why people stalk the sound of a hen calling. That large tree and orange hat probably saved me from getting a face full of pellets.
But then again in the fall I heard a guy answer my hen yelps, the idiot started comming up the ridge toward me, I could hear him walking in the dry leaves, stopping and calling once in awhile. The autum olive was thick and I couldn't see him, so when he got pretty close I pulled out my orange hat and put it on, only to be greeted by Putt, Putt, Putt. No turkey is worth the risk of being shot. Hunt Safely.
Hunt the same way you would on private land. Just try to stay as far as possible from other hunters. Last year I had a couple of bird watchers try to sneak in on my decoys. They had binoculars and were all but crawling. I heard them say look! I leaned out from behind the tree I was sitting by and hollered at them. The lady was wearing a white baseball cap and a red shirt! I went over and told them that it was turkey season and that white hat probably wasn't a good idea.
Quote from: zach20065 on February 14, 2012, 01:30:40 PM
put on the walking boots and take off, get back in there as far away from roads as you can and if you do get on one dont make him gobble too much to draw attention from other hunters. But like others said get there early and stay as late as you can.
I agree the more you walk the better off you are!
Quote from: FullChoke on February 14, 2012, 01:37:29 PM
Hunt where other hunters don't go. This does not always mean a remote spot, sometimes it means right off of the main road within sight of everyone else's trucks flying past to get to those distant remote spots. Sometimes it means setting up within sight of where you parked your vehicle and having to be careful to not hit it when you shoot.
:anim_25: that is what I do... I hunt a state forest. There two camps close by and I always see vehicals drive by even during week days. I perfer hunting weekdays Alot less traffic. I've killed several birds hunting in a 100 yard area but I also have a gasline that is about 300 yards away. I unable to hunt the gasline due to it being posted. I find birds like roosting near the place so that also is a big help. You will so alittle better killing birds if you are able to find an area they like to travel..ie roosting area to a field or strutting area....good luck and keep at it.
FullChoke
:thanks:
Great advice guys, keep it coming please.....the one about letting the roosted Tom know where you are so it won gobble on roost is an interesting thought I have never heard off before.
Look at the map of the public area ...... go to the spot that is farthest from any road or people -- this could be 5-6 miles of walking ....... works every time
Always come up with a back up plan. Plan A is good, but when something goes down, having a Plan B,C,D,E,and F in your back pocket, will keep you from bugging out, and giving up. Be flexible, and remember, "There are NO absolutes in turkey hunting"
Get there early, hunt till midday, just because you haven't seen a lot of trucks in a particular area doesn't mean there aren't turkeys there. Hunt there. Don't let your pride get the best of you, if someone wants to walk up on you and start something, be the bigger man and walk away, remember he has a gun too. BE SAFE!
Pack a lunch and stay all day if you can.
I shot my first gobbler on Public land 100 yards from the parking lot.
Bring a lot of different calls, a wing bone yelper might just make the difference.
A custom call might make the difference something the birds have not heard yet.
They are still Turkeys and their going to do Turkey things.
It's all the same private or public. The only difference is you dont have a clue who the other guy is around the corner.
There aren't any secrets to killing public land birds
Quote from: TrophyTracker on February 15, 2012, 11:35:01 PM
Always come up with a back up plan. Plan A is good, but when something goes down, having a Plan B,C,D,E,and F in your back pocket, will keep you from bugging out, and giving up. Be flexible, and remember, "There are NO absolutes in turkey hunting"
:icon_thumright: What he said....110%
Quote from: Old Gobbler on February 15, 2012, 11:23:37 PM
Look at the map of the public area ...... go to the spot that is farthest from any road or people -- this could be 5-6 miles of walking ....... works every time
:o
I cant walk 6n miles in - lol ill be in a different state lmao my state is tiny :TooFunny:
Scout as much as you can.. learn the terrain and easy access points. These are the places that most hunters will use. Hunt during the week as much as possible, talk to the Game Warden or area biologist about sightings. But above all hunt smart and hunt hard. :funnyturkey:
I just drove by the farmers field right next to the highway this morning going to an appointment - over 100 turkeys were on the field feeding...no strutting that I saw...of course no hunting there >:( >:( >:(
All of the above!!!!
Don't advertise a good public spot with turkeys. They can be hard to come by. Make your own Grandma pinky swear to silence before telling her where you hunt and be very selective in who you take with you.
Quote from: TalksToTurkeys on February 15, 2012, 12:55:25 PM
Quote from: 2ounce6s on February 14, 2012, 09:22:54 PM
If you think you hear another hunter calling, go the other way.
Hunt Safely. I carry an orange hat with me, keep it handy but out of sight. Always setup against a large tree. Last year I was setup and calling when I heard something behind me, there was a nice deer trail there so I thought I would take a look. I slowly turned to look over my right shoulder and was shocked to see a guy standing about 20 yds. away with his shotgun up. I reached down with my left hand and grabbed my orange hat, pulled it out from between my legs quickly and yelled HEY. He lowered his gun and walked off. I'll never understand why people stalk the sound of a hen calling. That large tree and orange hat probably saved me from getting a face full of pellets.
But then again in the fall I heard a guy answer my hen yelps, the idiot started comming up the ridge toward me, I could hear him walking in the dry leaves, stopping and calling once in awhile. The autum olive was thick and I couldn't see him, so when he got pretty close I pulled out my orange hat and put it on, only to be greeted by Putt, Putt, Putt. No turkey is worth the risk of being shot. Hunt Safely.
I do that as well, but I carry an orange vest instead, one of the thin cloth ones you use over other clothes in deer season. I keep it in my right pants pocket, so I can always get it out easily. If I see someone approaching from a distance, I'll just pull it out and hold it up until I'm sure they have spotted me. There have been several times I was glad I had it.
Try to roost the turkey the afternoon before if possible, that way you can get set up well before light and before the other hunters.
Of course if you can don't hunt on the weekends!
Also what I've learned over the many years of turkey hunting is after the fist week those hunters that watch a turkey hunting show on TV and thought that its easy and all you need to do is go and blow the day lights out of an owl call then call like crazy as hard as you can figure out there is more to it and start getting tired of getting up early and start dropping off big time. By the third week in my area you hardly see anyone and most of the time your just passing them in town after hunting that day.
in some states public land has some of the best turkey hunting. I think you just hunt it in the same manner you would private land,hunt hard and stay long,also remember we are all guest and everyone there is just trying to enjoy the sport that drives us all crazy,give others the same respect that you expect for yourself,if they get on a bird first just leave it and hunt another. you never know you just may run into someone who knows alot about the land and may be willing to partner up and hunt with you,or he may just be willing to share some info with a fellow hunter.Turkey hunters are some of the best people to encounter while in the field,with all that said call to a bird you find as silent as possible,not a lot of calling,i like clucking and leaf scratching ,and try to avoid yelping,cutting,and other aggressive calling,you may just be calling in other hunters