Anybody have any experience or know of anybody who has hunted with Balam Mexico for Ocellated turkeys?
Is his operation safe? Is he trustworthy? Quality of hunting?
Appreciate anybody who might have some input... ???
I have hunted with Balam to complete the world slam.
They are very organized and trustworthy.
Hunting in the jungle is nothing like hunting for turkeys anywhere else in the world.
I mean howler monkeys waking you up every morning and jaguar sightings?..pretty cool stuff.
Be prepared for extremely hot and buggy conditions.even though we stayed in screened in huts we slept in full bugsuits and not much else..It is oppressivley hot all day and night.
You will experience things there you will remember forever.
You can also hunt other species while there which you must pay for extra tags
Alfredo will let you know everything.
Its a good idea to speak to your doctor about a malaria shot before you go.(we didnt ..my Dr. said we were crazy and gave us ours as soon as we got home)
also be prepared to have no contact with the outside world for around 5 days..not easy for everyone to accept.
although we all got turkeys in camp (me,my wife and 1 other hunter) its no slam dunk..it was all roost shooting at long ranges with any kind of ammo they can lay there hands on.They do everything they can to make it enjoyable but when you get home you will never take your AC and your bathroom for granted again!!
You will eat basically what everyone shoots and that was pretty cool..The cooks and guides were awesome but speak very little or no english..Its amazing what they can do with a bird breast and tortilla and some beans and vegetables on an open fire!! All washed down with Cerveza of course...Alfredo stayed in camp with us and did all the translating.
I just recently taped a 2 part episode of Destination Xtreme from the sportsmans channel.
They hunted turkeys and other game in the jungle.It looked to be almost the exact camp we stayed at and the way they hunted was how we did it.We got up in the early morning and went listening for turkeys singing on the roost and then snuck into position for a shot.Nobody shot a bird on the ground on my hunt but I know it can be done in fact on this show they do get a shot on a bird walking.Where we were the jungle was very thick and once they hit the ground its almost impossible to locate a bird.If you get to see this show you will get a sense of the hunt.I have heard of other places that are not as far into the jungle and you hunt around agriculture areas. With Balam you will go on a true jungle adventure with everything you eat and drink brought in coolers strapped onto jeeps.Its about an 8 hour ride from Campeche with stops along the way in the jungle to cut downed trees that blocked the roads...you actually hack your way in and out...incredible..
One other tip...try not to handle the birds too much after you've bagged one...Ours were full of ticks...litterally hundreds of teeny tiny ticks...that ended up in places where you DEFINITELY dont want ticks if you know what I mean..We were picking them off of each other for days..
What a fantastic looking bird ,,do thy have a beard and do thy gobble like are birds do ,,would be something I would love to try one day ..Dutch
No beard but can grow huge spurs. The do not gobble like a turkey.
very cool stuff..
Thanks LI...That's some great info. To be honest, I booked this hunt a couple of years ago and postponed once for health reasons and a second time 'cause I'm more than a little uneasy about traveling in Mexico, with all the stuff you hear about cartels, etc.
It certainly sounds like a life experience!
If you do alot of research you will find many different outfits there and they all seem to hunt a different way. I was recommended Balam by someone I knew who completed his slam there. From what I experienced they do it the "old" traditional way...Travelling waaay back into the wild jungle and hunting out of very spartan camps.Roosting birds in the trees early morning and late afternoon and shooting them off the limb.They rotate the camps every year to keep the pressure light on the game.There is alot of animals there not just turkeys,Guans,Curasows,brocket deer,peccaries ( the cooks killed one and that was first nights dinner!)Jaguars,forest pumas,monkeys,toucans,etc.Now I'm starting to see camps much closer to civilization that look more resort like and you hunt over Ag fields from blinds.Here the birds are waited out as they come to the fields and also some type of calling is used.This would be good if you want to kill one with the bow.Some have pools,full bars,gyms,cable TV and even air conditioning!!There was none of that deep in the jungle of Silvituc where we hunted.You crapped in a hole in the ground while sitting in a little thatched hut and threw a can of lime over it and the only electric was provided by generators which ran continuously the whole time to keep the camp lights on.All Bathing and cleaning was done in the cool river waters which ran through camp which was loaded with tropical fish and beautiful little birds,I asked my wife today if we ever went back would she like the newer more modern camps and she said no way thats not the right jungle experience.!Its more like going to a resort in Cancun and killing a chicken!
As far as safety i have to say we never really felt in danger as we always had someone with us and the town of Campeche (your starting point) is a charming town full of friendly people and great places to shop,eat and drink.We got lucky when we were there they had a festival going on and we walked around and drank and ate all night with the locals who were all colorfully dressed and partying and little kids running around having a great time...it was awesome..This is more of an adventure like you read in old novels than a conventional turkey hunt.If you have time I heard the tarpon fishing in Campeche is fantastic and you could make it a Mexican cast & blast.
Is there any time that's better than others?
Did you hunt other species of birds?
Quote from: sixbird on June 09, 2015, 09:37:48 PM
Is there any time that's better than others?
Did you hunt other species of birds?
1st two weeks of April.
Thanks slamman...Why do you say that? Is it weather or birds more active?
Quote from: sixbird on June 09, 2015, 10:45:41 PM
Thanks slamman...Why do you say that? Is it weather or birds more active?
the weather is usually hot and humid but that is when the birds are usually at their peak calling.
Thanks man...That's just before our season here in N.J. so that would work out just fine...
I did hunt for other species unfortunately I didnt do well shooting through the thick canopy. I really wanted a male Curasow and that is what i focused on but I didnt get one.Before you book just speak to your outfitter and he will provide you with tag prices.Theres alot of game you can take so it can get pretty pricey for a trip that is already setting you back some but you have have to ask yourself how many times will you be able to do this trip? for many people its a once in a lifetime excursion so youll want to make the most of it while your there.
Thanks LI...I did check about other species. I think my main focus will be on ocellated, then some of the other birds...I'll be happy if I get only one or two...
My main focus was completing the slam so of course I tried for my turkey first and that took a while.I killed mine on the 3rd morning so that left 2 days of hunting for other species.We generally didnt hunt past 10 am because of the heat...by then your pretty well cooked and dehydratred and we couldnt wait to get back to the river to cool down and drink a few cold ones.They served us lunch at the river..it took about 2 hours to get our body temps down to a comfortable level.
The other birds are hunted as the opportunity arrises as you work your way through the jungle.
The guides are experts at deciphering bird calls from all the other sounds in the morning and will lead you directly to your intended target.
Man, you got me all wound up about this stuff!
I hope it works out...
Somebody mentioned about those little creatures that crawl up where NOBODY wants them...Are they there?
How about poisonous critters? Would snake boots be something to have?
And the guns...What do they use? I'm used to fine tuning everything and shooting heads. Sounds like they just "wing it?"
We didnt encounter any snakes but I'm sure they got a bunch lurking around there.Theres way more bugs and giant moths and beetles with the glowing eyes to worry about and every tree has thorns or spikes so be careful.As far as snake boots you probably would throw them in the river after the first day.....Way too hot..you will wear less and less clothes as the trip progresses..
They have guns that are ok but ammo was lacking...But its Mexico..from what we were told everything pertaining to guns is basically smuggled in..
Like I said this is not your conventional style turkey hunt
The ocellated hunt can be done many different ways. I chose the agricultural fields next to the thick jungle as I was bowhunting and prefer that over a roost shoot. The deep jungle hunt would be an experience as well, especially for added species that can only be taken there but my focus was on the Ocellated turkey.
Plus the ability to see literally 100's of birds in a single flock in mid February is a sight I may never get the opportunity to witness ever again.
Yukkutz hunting now has the property in which I hunted and yes they have built a new lodge with much nicer accommodations than where I stayed but the hunting is incredible there especially in the early season when birds are still largely flocked up.
Here is a link to the video slide show I made from my trip back in February of 2010 from start to finish.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g4MfGuY6W-g
Towards the end of the video there are several pics of the amount of birds in a large field. Even with the #'s they have it is rare to see two flocks with over 200 birds in each come together into 1 field.
I am sure whichever hunt you choose it will be a most rewarding and memorable experience as that part of the world is a step back in time. There is a deep history to the area and I hope that every turkey hunter who is on the fence about going makes the trip as it is one you will both appreciate and never regret.
Wow awesome slide slide show..congrats on a great hunt.Brings back memories.. It must be something to see flocks like that.Deep in the jungle we only got glimpses of a single bird..Definitely a different hunt..when we were driving to the jungle and passing through all those farm areas i said to my wife i bet its good hunting in there! but we were going in deep as another hunter in our party had won his trip at a SCI event and had a bunch of tags for many species which I guess you can only get further in the jungle.Maybe one day if I'm fortunate enough to go back I would sure like to get one with my bow..its definitely looks to be a game rich environment!!
Its feels good to see so many birds as these hunts are becoming more popular and commercialized and that the populations seem healthy.
LI...Did you wear bug suit while hunting? What kind of foot wear?
We wore very light low hikers..you wont want anything heavy...We did not wear the bug suits while hunting.Everything you bring should be light and airy.."tropical weight" clothing.
Thanks man...I'm like a sponge about this stuff!
Got an email from Jim Shockey regarding this hunt and outfitter. He was all praises!
Yes in fact Jim Shockey hunted with them around the week before we got there. I think they got his turkey kill on film and he shot a few different animals.
He was really positive about the operation and said he planned on returning...That was encouraging along with the info. that you gave me, Rob...
I hope you go and have a great time...Take LOTS of pics!!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7E8dPGgPON4
found this
Thanks Rob...I've been looking everywhere for the entire episode but can't find it anywhere. Maybe they'll rerun it on Sportsman Channel.