I have always worked a job that only allowed me to hunt early mornings and will this year, for the first time be getting to stay until later in the day. Most mornings I won't be getting to the woods until after 8... I have read a lot about mid morning and afternoon hunting and would love to know what strategies work for you guys. If I don't get to hear them on the roost then where and how do I get started on both mid morning and late afternoon hunts?
mid mornings can be some of the best and even quickest hunts you can have,this is (depending on what phase of the breeding season you are in) when the gobblers are getting left by the hens and start looking for more. You can be a little more aggressive with your calling when you find a lonesome bird. the key is to do plenty of foot work and know where prime feeding and very important strutting zones are. also a good time to get on those subordinate gobblers. Late evenings can be good too,that is when they start re gathering before they fly up for the night,so its good to get close to a known roost and do some soft calling, he may just come your way as he is trying to re gather before going to bed.i am not a pro at this but this is some of the things i like to try through out the season,and has worked for me many times,hope this helps, hunt hard be safe but most of all have fun
I lack patience to hunt a long time, but im getting better
My favorite method for mid-morning on is to "Run and Gun". Cover ALOT of ground and listen carefully for a gobbler to sound off. I use a "Boat Paddle" box as a locator call because it carries a long way and also try to stay high up on the ridges.
As mentioned, it depends on the breeding phase. Early to mid-season is more difficult than the second half of the season.
During the first half of the season, gobblers are less vocal because they usually have several hens with them and don't need to gobble as much. You can likely get them to shock gobble, but you almost have to "pull" one out of them. If this is the case, it's important to figure out which direction he is heading in. He will gobbler at you, but he is following the hens wherever they take him.
In this scenario, your best chance of killing him is to ambush him rather than sitting down and calling to him. Try to figure which direction he is heading in, and quickly try to get ahead of him. Remember- he likely has hens and they could very well be a good distance in front of him. I've blown a few opportunities by bumping the lead hen while trying to ambush the gobbler.
The second half of the season is completely different. When you strike a gobbler, you better find a good place to set up because he could be on you in no time. Once you start seeing hens by themselves, the action can heat up fast.
If I arrive late to a spot which I know has gobblers, sometimes I'll just sit down and listen for 30-45 minutes. If I hear a gobble, I'll figure out my next move and take off. If I don't hear anything, then I'll get up and start cuttin and runnin.
Mid morning can be great...maybe even the best time of day to kill them IMO.
Once you hear one sound off, it's not much different than hunting them any other time of the day, at least it isnt for me. The best way to hear one sound off is do your homework on the area and figure out what the birds generally like to do and when they like to do it. They wont 100% stick to a pattern from day to day just like deer or ducks wont but having a good idea of what they like to do at what time of the day will get you ahead of the game so you'll know where to start looking/listening when you get out there.
Any time in the turkey woods is a good time.
Mid morning If I haven't killed I'm usually on my feet with my eys and ears on high alert. I can usually find the birds either by a visual, or pick up on subtle sounds like scratching, purrs, drumming ect. I rarely try to find them with any type of call. I seem to have better luck this way.
9-1030 is my magic hour. Killed far more birds during that time period than off the roost.
Mid morning, esp later in the season is the time to stretch those legs. The perfect scenario is a flat ridgetop with a logging road or path that follows the top and runs a few miles above creek bottoms, fields, or dark hollows of timber. I like to pause every hundred yards or so and cutt it up on a glass, ceramic, or box call. U want something that really pierces the air. If one answers, i move off to the side of the path to a decent set up spot and i'll wait five minutes or so and call again softer. Many times you'll get just that single shock gobble and he's just not interested, but if he answers my secong sequence, or better yet gets fired up on his own and gobbling while i wait, you probably got a dead bird walking.
Quote from: turkey_slayer on March 06, 2012, 10:39:21 PM
9-1030 is my magic hour. Killed far more birds during that time period than off the roost.
It's the same for me. They just seem to work better then.
I've killed them from sun up to sun down but between 9:00-11:00 seems to be the best for me.
I try to strike one up by covering as much ground as possible
Quote from: WildTigerTrout on March 01, 2012, 10:40:21 AM
My favorite method for mid-morning on is to "Run and Gun". Cover ALOT of ground and listen carefully for a gobbler to sound off. I use a "Boat Paddle" box as a locator call because it carries a long way and also try to stay high up on the ridges.
Same here!
One was gobbling this morning at 10:00 on the public land I hunt. I was trying to get to a trail cam and pull the card, but he was about 200yds on top of the next ridge.
I've had a lot of good luck at mid morning.
Mid morning is perfect timing if you ask me, ive killed more birds mid morning than any other time
Go where you know you have a good concentration of birds. If you have them gobbling that's great. For the silent birds, here's a couple tactics that work. Decoying to a field that you know they use. Late morning to mid day are the best times for decoys. Walking service roads by/through the woods and hen calling. I like the box call for this because it carrys. You sound like a lost wondering hen. This can fire a gobble. It works on fencelines too! :anim_25:
Quote from: Bigmiah22 on March 22, 2012, 06:39:43 PM
Mid morning is perfect timing if you ask me, ive killed more birds mid morning than any other time
this!. i would rather hunt from the 10 am to 2 pm time range. then any of other time of the day. love running and gunning putting miles on the boots covering ground calling every 100 yards or so into the hollers seeing what i can stir up. sometimes can stir up a lonely hen, and if i can piss her off and get her all fired up might get a gobbler into a firing frenzy. have done this on several times and works 9.9 out of 10.