What is your favorite state to hunt Gobblers? What state do you think is the toughest to hunt? And why to both questions!
My favorite state that I have hunted so far is South Datoka. Loved hunting in the Black Hills. Really cool experience and beautiful country. Nothing like seeing the Meriams in full strut working their way to you through the spruce trees. You got to do it if you haven't ever hunted the Black Hills.
Toughest state that I have hunted so far is my home state of Pennsylvania. There are a lot of birds and a lot of hunters to go along with them. I hunt all public ground so the birds are well educated. Wouldn't have it any other way. Best of luck this season to everyone!
Favorite state: home state of Georgia....favorite due the fact of being very familiar with my hunting areas and having a great population of birds.
Toughest: Florida....Osceolas are extremely wary and their habitat is usually thick and snake ridden.
JMO
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Well I think I like the next new state would be the favorite ,all the anticipation of the new and unexpected .
The toughest Ohio's Public Grounds wow....
I would say Nebraska was the easiest. Two of,us shot 4 birds in less then24 hours.
Toughest I would have to say Alabama only because I have never shot a turkey in my home state (only hunted one year there and was close just could not seal the deal)
Favorite would be Alabama, because there are no turkeys in Al. Hardest? Can't tell any real difference between Eastern's from any state I've hunted. I would say I consider the Osceola's I've hunted easier on average than the Easterns, both public and leased.
I've only hunted in Washington, Oregon, and Idaho. Idaho is my favorite state to hunt, beautiful country and a lot of huntable ground.
I can't pick just one favorite, Oklahoma and Mississippi.
Hardest for me is my home state of Louisiana, Easterns here can difficult and few and far between.
Tuff call...
Nebraska for sure...
Kansas for sure....
Tejas for sure...
MoMo is near and dear to me...
Iowa is the land of giant toms...
Kentucky is a real treat....
OK is my next target....
I simply don't have a favorite state!!
mudhen
toughest....public land in Mississippi
favorite.....Mississippi
Middle TN, by a long shot.
Anytime I'm hunting and the turkeys are gobbling, I'm in a "happy place."
I love Kansas and Alabama. I've killed turkeys in 5 states. Alabama, Mississippi, Texas, Kansas and Kentucky. Alabama is the toughest.
Love Wyoming
Love Virginia
Love Nebraska
Love Maryland
Love Tennessee
Love Ohio
Love New York
If there are turkeys to be hunted and killing to be had... I'm your huckleberry
Bout the only place I don't like is Mississippi. Them birds are mean but the people are great.
First, I've only hunted in 9 states, so I have a limited experience to draw from.
My favorite? Nebraska. Absolutely gorgeous country out there, loaded with game animals, and those Merriams loved to hear themselves gobble, and are so beautiful. Very fun hunting!!
Toughest? Ohio Easterns. When I hunted up there, the birds would sit on the roost gobbling until hens walked under them. Then they would pitch down to the hens. Hard hunting.
Hardest: TN public land - those ridge gobblers will run you ragged.
Easiest: KY private land - it's never easy, but the birds are there for sure.
Favorite: OH - home sweet home. Tough, wary toms.
My favorite is Tennessee public land and also the hardest birds I've hunted. You have to work for them tennessee WMA birds.
My favorite place is Middle Tennessee. The land is beautiful and the woods full of turkeys. The same said for the Missouri Ozarks.
The toughest for me is right here at home in South Alabama and over in South Mississippi. It may be tough , but the challenge is fun.
Toughest is south east Oklahoma, my favorite is Missouri.
Gobblers beware in Tennessee!
Favorite: Pennsylvania- You just can't beat that cool, clean crisp morning. Some mornings so cold, the gobblers can see your breath. It's a beautiful state. Lived here all my life and I'll be buried right here.
Hardest: Pennsylvania- You better have some ground you can call your own or you're going to have a rough time killing old Tom. PA is the largest landowner in the state with over 1.8 million acres of public hunting...............and everyone knows it. Our birds are pressured more than any in the union. I've hunted many states, had success with ease. I've always said......"if you can kill one here, you can kill one anywhere."
If you've been here, you know. I won't change a thing. I've harvested birds in the fall and spring every year since 1986. Absolutely love it!!
I love hunting em anywhere but I'll take home as my favorite ,home beingNC! As far as for toughest it would have to be SC public lands,followed by a very PA public lands, they are both a major test for any gobbler chaser! Hopefully after this spring I can add some more to the lists big spring ahead!!!!
If I were to say my favorite--being the one that I would choose to hunt over others--I would say South Dakota would get the nod. Mainly for the novelty of it and change of scenery for me.
The most difficult is a pretty easy choice for me. In my experience, no doubt is my home state of Louisiana--I currently live in Missouri.
Alabama. Of course it's the only state I've hunted turkeys in.
I really love seeing folks come here to turkey hunt the first time, look at the woods we hunt and ask, "How do you hunt turkeys in that stuff?"
I never traveled to hunt turkeys so my states are few. Ga., S.C., Fl. and Il.
Out of those states the Osceola's were most difficult to hunt..just because of terrain, thick foliage making them hard to hear and see.
But, the most difficult to kill have been these public land Easterns in Il. These birds are just wilder and will take off flying if they catch movement from a 100yds off. It's very hard to get on the same ridge with a gobbler without being seen and they flat don't like to get off the one they're on.
Ive only hunted them in middle tn the birds on public land are very hard to kill they dont gobble much
and they move around with there head on a swivel they wont answer calling and run from dekes
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I've lived in Missouri my whole life, and turkey hunted here for over 10 years before venturing anywhere else. Since then, I've hunted in seven other states, killing birds in 5 of them. A few years ago, if you had asked me this question, I would have, with little hesitation, said Kansas, but the turkey population in the areas I hunted most plummeted several years ago after extensive flooding during the nesting season.
Alabama would probably get the nod now, and has been the destination for my annual spring getaway for the past dozen years. Neill
From my limited experience (fl,ga,NC,sc,va) I would have to say favorite is either va or sc. Liberal bird limits and plenty of them. Toughest is definitely fl. Mosquitoes bigger than your head and everything down here either wants to stick you or bite you. Birds don't gobble a ton and the swampy thick terrain makes it very difficult to move on birds.
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Have hunted public land in TN, MO, SD, KS, NE, and my home state of MS.
Hardest: MS public land, primarily due to the season opening a bit early for the north half of the state and the birds get a ton of pressure before they are ready to 'act right'. In every other state I have hunted we have had no problem finding birds to 'act right'. We have made three trips for public land Osceolas, and as far as time spent hunting per shot opportunities, the MS birds are harder.
Favorite: VERY hard to decide..But I guess I'd have to say the Missouri Ozarks....Have made 5 hunts there.. Love those big hardwood hills...And those gobblers seem to the be the loudest gobbling and drumming birds there are! Plus I love being able to hear a gobble a mile away in the right terrain...
My favorite is Ga. thats where I do most of my hunting. I've hunted Fla. but not enough to form an opinion.
Quote from: CT Spur Collector on February 26, 2013, 07:10:25 PM
Favorite: Pennsylvania- You just can't beat that cool, clean crisp morning. Some mornings so cold, the gobblers can see your breath. It's a beautiful state. Lived here all my life and I'll be buried right here.
Hardest: Pennsylvania- You better have some ground you can call your own or you're going to have a rough time killing old Tom. PA is the largest landowner in the state with over 1.8 million acres of public hunting...............and everyone knows it. Our birds are pressured more than any in the union. I've hunted many states, had success with ease. I've always said......"if you can kill one here, you can kill one anywhere."
If you've been here, you know. I won't change a thing. I've harvested birds in the fall and spring every year since 1986. Absolutely love it!!
WELL SAID.....this is hands down the toughest !!!!! :z-winnersmiley:
Favorite? I'd have to go with Kansas. I have a couple farms I hunt there, and if that was the last place on Earth to hunt them, I'd be fine with that. It's just a whole different way of hunting them compared to home, here in TN.
The Toughest? I have to say the Pine Ridge in NW Nebraska. Those Merriams hit the ground running with a certain place in their minds that they have to be, by a certain time, or something. And if you aren't set up on their way to wherever that place is, you are SOL. I can't tell you how many times I'd get one fired up, gobbling every 10 seconds or so, and every gobble he sounded 300 yards farther away. I got to witness it one morning last year. Bird fired up on the roost, he hit the ground in full strut with 12 hens, running...all of them. They ran across the valley, up and over the next mountain, gobbling every breath and in strut the whole time. Dangdest thing I've ever seen.
Best would be Nebraska, so many birds. Toughest, Merriam's at 8800ft in Colorado but the most beautiful country.
Favorite state so far is Wyoming.......toughest has been Florida public land
Quote from: strut2 on February 25, 2013, 08:21:35 PM
What is your favorite state to hunt Gobblers? What state do you think is the toughest to hunt? And why to both questions!
Difficult to pick a favorite as I feel blessed to hunt the ones that I have. With that being said I have had both difficult and easy to kill birds in every state that I have hunted. The diversity of terrain & landscape across the country makes each hunt it's own unique experience.
Of the 7 states I have hunted, my favorite would probably be home state of Arkansas, followed closely by the Missouri Ozarks....just so many great memories from both over the years!!! I enjoy the hunting in KS and NE too, but give me a hardwood ridge or hardwood bottom any day.
The hardest? I have figured out turkeys can be stubborn any where you hunt and timing makes all the difference, but Alabama and Mississippi usually offer a tough challenge. Ton of pressure on public land, and we usually hunt early in the season. I would like to hunt after April 1 at some point. Have killed turkeys in both, but always had to work for them. But, that makes it so much more fun and rewarding.
Favorite: My home state of Illinois - Toughest - Southern MO public ground and Mississippi public ground are tie!
Quote from: CASH on February 28, 2013, 03:26:41 AM
Alabama. Of course it's the only state I've hunted turkeys in.
I really love seeing folks come here to turkey hunt the first time, look at the woods we hunt and ask, "How do you hunt turkeys in that stuff?"
So true! A work client came into town last year opening week for a shutdown that got pushed, so I offered him a gun and to stay at my camp and hunt if he wanted. He is from Oklahoma and literally stood on the camp porch, looked at the pines and asked how can turkeys live in there? Much less me see one to shoot it!!!
He hunted 6 mornings and only killed 1 turkey - and there were turkeys there.
Florida
Arizona
Texas
New Mexico
in that order but I'll take a hunt any spring day in any state.
Favorite place Oklahoma Black Kettle Grasslands
Hardest public land in Kentucky
I've hunted a few and have yet to go to one I didn't like.
NE was great, KS was beautiful but the hailstorm and cold front ran us out.
OK ain't beautiful but it's full of turkeys. :funnyturkey:
TN is beautiful but I haven't been very lucky there. The people were very friendly and helpful.
The folks in FL were awesome and the public hunting was tough.
I'd go back to any of 'em.