Tired of fighting a crowd of out of state and out of town people on public land, tired of begging landowners to let me hunt just to get told no and tired of being ignored by the Twra and nwtf when you try to tell them that their is something wrong with the turkey population in this area and it needs to be checked out. I'm through after this year, selling all this high priced s**t and saying to h**l with it. All the Netflix cares about folks is you're money. Sorry but it's true and that's all the Twra cares about too. They've let the public land go to crap, never plant food plots or anything. All the money goes to is over paid game wardens that do nothing but ride in trucks all day long or stay in boats on some damn lake and try to bust drunks. I am fed up.
It's been tough where I am in TN for a few years now. I would be a fan of cutting out the fall season and dropping the spring limit back to 2 birds.
We have a poaching problem around here but nothing is ever done.
I'm not sure what's going on but our turkey hunting/turkey numbers have been in decline for several years now.
So no more whispering to turkeys?
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Attaboy. That's the never-give-up spirit that made this county great!
You ever see the movie Dodgeball?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PsUTG2DLc0w
Granted, Lance is a PED cheat (but so was pretty much everyone else in the sport), but there;'s a great line in there...
"If a person never quit when the going got tough, they'd never have anything to regret for the rest of their life..."
Atta boy... Give up... Whatcha selling?
I think parts of TN are definitely experiencing the declines other states have seen. It sure seems to have hit my little hunting spot locally this year. Not sure why.
A four bird season is attractive to out of state hunters. Maybe it's time for most, if not all, of TN to lower their bag limit.
But take a turkey nap or three and get back at 'em!
Don't give up. I feel your pain here in Miss. On the GW point. You can't find one here to stop poaching during deer season but let someone catch a fish 1/4 inch too long and here comes a ticket.
I hope your not a grown man because that post is ridiculous
And just what is ridiculous about it. You must can afford a 2000 dollar lease or club price. You don't know my story bud.
I doubt that reducing turkey tag limits would help greatly to improve bird numbers... I would guess that population numbers are far more dependent on habitat conditions and availability.
However, decreasing tag numbers could certainly make for improved hunting quality, as there will be less hunting pressure as guys tag out quicker.
Some of these people with the smarta** comments on here must have a lease or club they're in cause they must not understand what I'm frustrated about. That's part of what's ruining this sport too. Landowners expect their neighbors to pay half their yearly income now to hunt. I used to have family land I hunted but to make a long story short when my grandfather died I got screwed by my cousin. You could put a airport there now. The neighbors we used to let hunt now since I need help won't let me hunt. So you dont think that's messes up, think you'd be a little ticked too. And a lease or club has got so hard to find it's ridiculous. So if anyone can help me it would be greatly appreciated. I love this sport and it used to be what distressed me but waking up at 4:30 to go hear nothing every morning is nuts. I've saw one strutting bird in places where the fields used to be black with birds and I've sat down to one gobbling bird all season. Just sucks I'm sorry if nobody gets it.
YUP
ITS ONLY GOING TO GET ALOT WORST
Let me start off by saying I aint got a dog in this hunt cause Im from Illinois. Giving everyone 4 tags is excessive and keeps people in the woods longer. Here during our short gun deer season there was a day that guys would shoot their one or two deer and were out of the woods,now with a pocket full of tags you can hunt every day of the season. Here the turkey season is broke up into 5 five to seven day seasons granted you can get 3 tags for one season but you dont have EVERYONE in the state and all the OOS'ers in the woods at once. As far as OOS hunters go,I think they should be limited to one maybe 2 tag for a week.
Oh I get it. I WISH I could find a 2000.00 lease around here where it was not 20 people on 2000 acres. Talk about out of state hunters , we get covered up by Arkansas and louisiana hunters here in ms. I will tell you this though , it will be a cold day in hell before I give up something I love because im frustrated. I feel your pain but if you love to turkey hunt , you need to dig in and roll up your sleeves. Grit your teeth and do everything you can in your power to make the situation better. If it just does not mean that much to you , then I can understand. It really may be time for you just to quit.
What can I do to make it better. I have nowhere that has birds and that's. it already overrun with people and you can't force the Twra or nwtf to listen if there making money.
Like I said if anyone knows of a club or lease with an opening give me a shout I'm in west tn in Decatur county about 2 hours between Nashville and Memphis. I called some before season opened but they didn't have any openings.
:TooFunny: :TooFunny:
"over paid game wardens..."
Obviously you don't know many.
Turkey hunting during crappy years always separates the men from the boys. When you going to list the for sale items and where? :drool:
That makes me more determined to succeed... not pack my tent up & head home...everyone is hunting to same conditions
I hear what your saying about fighting with the large population of hunters. That's always frustrating. I hunt all public and sharing it with others sucks. However, its better that not hunting at all. DNR here in Iowa says our bird numbers are fine but I would say not so. I just don't see many birds like I did 10 years ago. Just go at with the attitude of relaxing and having fun. If you see or hear a bird its a bonus. If your really frustrated take a little time off don't give up. Good luck.
Florida is worse guys ,worse than your worst nightmare we kill ONLY about 700 .....seven hundred ...that's right , turkeys per year on public land , and half of those are eastern or hybrids -those of us who have been around know it's not gonna get better , it's gonna get worse as the state is predicted to grom from 19 to 45 million by the year 2045
Private land is scare , expensive and shrinking fast , the core population of Osceolas is smack dab in the Orlando disney area and development is BOOMING
No BS ...south central Florida turkey hunting has 25 years tops left and it will be distant memory ---a real impact will be felt in 10 to 15 years time , if anyone differs in opinion I say , you don't know what your talking about
There is no back up plan for the sub species of Osceola turkey , it would have been nice if they transplanted Osceola to hawaii , but somebody didn't think of that and instead they have rios and easterns
Quote from: SteelerFan on April 16, 2017, 03:57:04 PM
:TooFunny: :TooFunny:
"over paid game wardens..."
Obviously you don't know many.
If they're not earning what they're being paid then wouldn't that make them overpaid?
Y'all can chastise the man all y'all want but til you walk a mile in his shoes, you have no idea what you would or wouldn't do.
Take my portion of MS for example, we don't have many birds at all. We did as few as 3-4 years ago but the population dropped sharply the past few years. If I couldn't afford to be in a lease or hunt other public land within somewhat reasonable driving distance, I'd be in the same boat as him. And I totally get what he's saying about his state's game and fish doing nothing to help the problem. It's much the same here in MS. There are several portions of public land statewide that should be closed to turkey hunting until populations rebound and stabilize. It'll never happen though due to the almighty dollar. As long as the revenue pours in the seasons and bag limits are here to stay. Maybe I missed something but he came across as a guy who sees a valuable resource diminishing right before his eyes while game and fish turn a blind eye. It's a dang shame and I feel his pain. Thankfully, I can afford to go hunt turkeys elsewhere. However, that's not a guarantee for tomorrow let alone next year.
We have Easterns here in the Piney Woods of East Texas. The population is thinning and season is closed in my home county and about 15 others around me. I hunt in a neighboring county that is one of the few remaining open.
I hear you Shannon. We have a one bird limit and they set the season to open April 15 each year. Most breeding is done already and it's hot already. Birds aren't gobbling much, and it sure seems that there are a lot less of them this year on my lease.
I understand the OP being frustrated, but I bet he's back out there next spring after some time to think it over. :D
OG is right. Central Fla turkey hunting ,especially public land, will be near impossible in 10 years. Central fla is a complete zoo.
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Quote from: Jbird22 on April 16, 2017, 06:07:00 PM
If they're not earning what they're being paid then wouldn't that make them overpaid?
Y'all can chastise the man all y'all want but til you walk a mile in his shoes, you have no idea what you would or wouldn't do.
I know I'd have the mans shoes and a mile head start, and the GW's would all be in boats on the lake so the chances of him or the GW's getting his shoes back would slim!
Seriously, about all you can do is accept it for what it is and just deal with the frustration, or pay up and join a lease (which may not be much better if any), or purchase your own land which isn't an option for a lot of folks.
Please give the guy a break. And, if you can, show a little empathy. Ask yourself WHY do you turkey hunt? At your core--if you will be honest with yourself--you probably do so because you enjoy it. Nothing more. You can talk about the challenge; maybe connecting with nature, sharing the experience with friends and family, liking turkey meat, it's an addiction...
Those are reasons you enjoy it, not really the reasons you hunt. You can do most of those outside of turkey season.
Perhaps, as other posters have suggested, it's about your manhood, competition, or grit. I hope not, but no matter. You choose to turkey hunt because you enjoy it.
Its a recreational pursuit that we (mostly) all enjoy. Turkey hunting arguably adds nominal value to our lives, but it's really just a pleasurable--often passionate--aside, at least for those who do not earn a living in the hunting industry.
When I no longer enjoy it, for my own reasons whether it's not hearing birds, interference from other others, or add your own pet peeve, I too will hang it up. I just won't bother coming on here to let you know.
I understand frustration. I get it.
The OP said: "All the money goes to is over paid game wardens that do nothing but ride in trucks all day long or stay in boats on some damn lake and try to bust drunks."
Maybe that's how it is there. But I doubt it. Maybe turkeywhisperer935 could contact his local warden and ask to meet with them to show them specific areas of concern. Is it poaching? Exceeding bag limits? Hunting over bait?
Maybe those over paid wardens are actually leaving their house every morning for weeks on end to sit on baited areas to catch the illegal hunters? This after spending weeks walking miles to find illegally baited areas.
Maybe those wardens are busy running on trespassing complaints? Maybe some are working the wildlife areas while others are on boats because it is spring and people are on the water too?
Just sayin'...
I understand the OP's frustration. Never felt that way about turkey hunting but I put my bow down for a season a few years ago.
Maybe but maybe not...
I guess it can be said that in every profession there are those who don't earn their pay, not just GW's.
Keep ya head up turkeywhisperer935, hope your hunting opportunities improve!
That sucks man I feel for you. Thankfully turkey hunting here in Iowa is the only thing that isn't rightly well screwed. We went from being one of the perennial top 3 for pheasant harvest in the nation to a near single digit percentage of what we once had. Gone are the banners on every hotel bar and sport shop saying "Welcome Hunters." Deer hunting was real good a few years back but when people think Iowa is the holy land they are outdated or mistaken. Confirmed CWD in the northern counties here, and Lee and Tiffany and a bunch of other tv show jokers have locked up southern Iowa. There's a few places in between of decent private ground but a bunch of pot bellied accountants from Naperville and their ritzy buddies pay half a years salary to keep the ground totally locked up even though they are only physically here hunting maybe a week.
The only thing saving turkey hunting is here it isn't a "heritage" thing. Entire families don't go hunting for toms, heck dad and grand dad don't even know what a turkey looked like, didn't have them in their day. I know continued participation and youth involvement is the lifeblood of the sport but its a real catch 22...25-30 years from now when those of us on the pioneer edge of turkey hunting in Iowa raise our sons, grandsons, nephews, nieces to all buy tags (plus everyone figuring out every other kind of hunting is screwed) we are in for some trouble. Thankfully we only have a 2 bird limit and make things tough on out of staters. If we were real liberal with OOS guys and bag limits we'd likely be in the same boat.
I have found OP, that when the going gets tough, you savor the small victories even more. Back in the hey day I had private ground at my disposal and it became a big rack contest. I wasn't happy with anything that Bass Pro wouldn't put on their wall. Well, private got bought up, numbers went down, hunter numbers went up, crowds ensued...nowadays I hunt deer on public and the few times I have harvested even a big bodied 6 pt buck I beam from ear to ear. It all becomes relative in time but I agree, the realization things are doomed in your part sure does suck.
Myself and other biologists and concerned public land hunters have formed a group so that each public land hunters voice can make a difference.
Without a unified public voice it will be business as usual.
https://www.facebook.com/groups/150085468852259/?ref=aymt_homepage_panel
Quote from: warrent423 on April 16, 2017, 06:53:34 PM
Quote from: Old Gobbler on April 16, 2017, 06:01:20 PM
Florida is worse guys ,worse than your worst nightmare we kill ONLY about 700 .....seven hundred ...that's right , turkeys per year on public land , and half of those are eastern or hybrids -those of us who have been around know it's not gonna get better , it's gonna get worse as the state is predicted to grom from 19 to 45 million by the year 2045
Private land is scare , expensive and shrinking fast , the core population of Osceolas is smack dab in the Orlando disney area and development is BOOMING
No BS ...south central Florida turkey hunting has 25 years tops left and it will be distant memory ---a real impact will be felt in 10 to 15 years time , if anyone differs in opinion I say , you don't know what your talking about
There is no back up plan for the sub species of Osceola turkey , it would have been nice if they transplanted Osceola to hawaii , but somebody didn't think of that and instead they have rios and easterns
Sounds like the original poster needs to learn how to hunt heavily pressured, well educated gobblers. As for pure strain Osceola's, Big Cypress will always have a huntable population for those who know how to find, call to the gun, and kill them. If Mother nature, The Miccosukees and Seminoles, and myself and my kin have not been able to wipe them out, than nothing will ;)
Equating yourself and kinfolk, along with the Miccosukees and Seminoles, to Mother Nature is a big mighty big statement. I would ordinarily agree that Big Cypress would be an Osceola stronghold during even the Zombie apocalypse. Only in some our lifetimes, sea level rise is gonna be a big deal for the Big Cypress. Either roll up your britches or keep to the hills.
As OG said Osceola turkeys, and especially hunting of them, ain't gonna be what it use to be.
Quote from: Jbird22 on April 16, 2017, 06:07:00 PM
Quote from: SteelerFan on April 16, 2017, 03:57:04 PM
:TooFunny: :TooFunny:
"over paid game wardens..."
Obviously you don't know many.
If they're not earning what they're being paid then wouldn't that make them overpaid?
Y'all can chastise the man all y'all want but til you walk a mile in his shoes, you have no idea what you would or wouldn't do.
Take my portion of MS for example, we don't have many birds at all. We did as few as 3-4 years ago but the population dropped sharply the past few years. If I couldn't afford to be in a lease or hunt other public land within somewhat reasonable driving distance, I'd be in the same boat as him. And I totally get what he's saying about his state's game and fish doing nothing to help the problem. It's much the same here in MS. There are several portions of public land statewide that should be closed to turkey hunting until populations rebound and stabilize. It'll never happen though due to the almighty dollar. As long as the revenue pours in the seasons and bag limits are here to stay. Maybe I missed something but he came across as a guy who sees a valuable resource diminishing right before his eyes while game and fish turn a blind eye. It's a dang shame and I feel his pain. Thankfully, I can afford to go hunt turkeys elsewhere. However, that's not a guarantee for tomorrow let alone next year.
X2
All due respect that's the wrong attitude. If you need a break take it.
In NJ the 1990s into early 2000s had birds everywhere. Bad winters, bad hatches, poult survival rate, predators, etc all took their toll.
Now finally the birds are swinging up.,
Same thing happened w our deer, we have unlimited antlerless and the ability to kill 2 at one time before we check em in n cominue, remember it's unlimited so you can kill as many as you selfishly like in a day. Some guys kill 20+ a year. It's a shame cause half the guys don't even eat them.
Now the deer hunts have been getting worse. Finally too that is upswinging.
The benefit of things going bad is many folks quit. You can see you're feeling it too.
Once that happens the animals rebound n you have the woods to yourself a few years. Keep your head up n remember it's going to get better, don't sell everything off. If you do you'll regret it
Guys I've caught a lot of heat on this and I'm sorry I guess but truth is I like the gobble. That's the reason I hunt, if I wanted to just sit there and listen to the wind or a mocking bird that'd be great but that's what hooked me. I do care nothing about hunting high pressured so called educated turkeys that don't gobble. I ain't gonna lie just not fun to me never has been. Much respect goes to those who do cause they are probably the most difficult animal in the world to kill. My point is there is something wrong when you used to see birds everywhere and when you go to seeing a handful in a span of 3 to 4 years that's a problem. From some of the comments I've received on this post I've also been reinforced that we are our own enemies. I was explaining an issue I have with state wildlife and the nwtf in general but this has got misread or something. People can say they go for whatever reasons they want to but their is not a one on here that doesn't go to kill a turkey. If that's not what we're there for then why and when you're spending hard earned money on super expensive tools for lackluster results then why? There is no one who has read this that would not be frustrated if they went out everyday and not even heard a gobble. Sorry but wether anyone admits it or not I know that's true. We don't buy licenses, shells, calls, decoys etc. just to sit in the woods.
I can sum this up in one statement.. The reason i go turkey hunting is to hear him Gobble...if i kill him or not... I do understand this guy's pain...we all get frustrated............So far this Tenn season i have miss just 2 days... and no i don't hear one or see one every morning...BUT I GO TO HEAR HIM GOBBLE .... I have be fortunate to kill 2 gobblers this year....
Quote from: Greg Massey on April 16, 2017, 08:15:11 PM
I can sum this up in one statement.. The reason i go turkey hunting is to hear him Gobble...if i kill him or not... I do understand this guy's pain...we all get frustrated............So far this Tenn season i have miss just 2 days... and no i don't hear one or see one every morning...BUT I GO TO HEAR HIM GOBBLE .... I have be fortunate to kill 2 gobblers this year....
Yep. And we can yet again simplify this statement if you think about WHY you go to hear him gobble.
Congrats on killing 2 this season. I hope you hear many more in your future.
Quote from: turkeywhisperer935 on April 16, 2017, 08:05:54 PM
Guys I've caught a lot of heat on this and I'm sorry I guess but truth is I like the gobble. That's the reason I hunt, if I wanted to just sit there and listen to the wind or a mocking bird that'd be great but that's what hooked me. I do care nothing about hunting high pressured so called educated turkeys that don't gobble. I ain't gonna lie just not fun to me never has been. Much respect goes to those who do cause they are probably the most difficult animal in the world to kill. My point is there is something wrong when you used to see birds everywhere and when you go to seeing a handful in a span of 3 to 4 years that's a problem. From some of the comments I've received on this post I've also been reinforced that we are our own enemies. I was explaining an issue I have with state wildlife and the nwtf in general but this has got misread or something. People can say they go for whatever reasons they want to but their is not a one on here that doesn't go to kill a turkey. If that's not what we're there for then why and when you're spending hard earned money on super expensive tools for lackluster results then why? There is no one who has read this that would not be frustrated if they went out everyday and not even heard a gobble. Sorry but wether anyone admits it or not I know that's true. We don't buy licenses, shells, calls, decoys etc. just to sit in the woods.
No heat from me. I agree and think I understand too.
I just wanna kill 1 more, preferably the next time I go. And, I hope he gobbles.
We all like to hear them gobble and yes we are our own worst enemies. It's great to have a booming population and birds that work easy. Just isn't the case in a lot of places anymore and a lot of it is the hunters fault. Between using quicker, easier ways to kill them and the internet we are rapidly turning great areas into a thing of the past. The hunter is supposed to be a conservation first and foremost. Not the case with most hunters anymore. It's all how fast and easy can I kill one. If we value what we have then we should do our best to protect it. And if you have a honey hole please keep your mouth shut and enjoy it. And if birds are scarce then take note and throttle back a bit. Look at what is happening to Kansas and Tennessee. Great hunting that is getting mauled by hunters that don't give a second thought to what they leave behind. I really wish we took the aspect of conservation to heart. Our greed will be our downfall.
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X2, and no concideration for other sportsmen.
Even though our limit is 4 birds I've never killed more than 2 birds in a season. On the pieces of land I hunt I feel that taking 4 is just too much.
Most people think I'm crazy
Quote from: turkeywhisperer935 on April 16, 2017, 02:31:22 PM
Some of these people with the smarta** comments on here must have a lease or club they're in cause they must not understand what I'm frustrated about.
Probably more hunters here than you think, also deal with some of the same issues as you? I know I don't have access to any leases, and mainly hunt Public. Bird numbers here have seemed to dropped off over the years and pressure has gone up, yes it can get frustrating at times, but have no other choice than to deal with it.
I like it. Tell others so they stop too.
I think the OP hit the nail on the head! No I won't quit, but it's hard sometimes to watch something you love so much go down hill the way the way turkey hunting has. Hunting videos and the rush to make a buck off the popularity of turkey hunting has helped hastened the decline of our sport. I can see why the NWTF won't admit there's a problem, they want to sell memberships and any mention of turkey populations being on the decline would hurt them in the pocket book! Our DNR won't admit there is a problem for the same reason. Nest predators are a big problem in Indiana but what do we do? We reintroduce the bobcat and give it protected status, the logic behind our DNR is a mystery. Our season has opened for years in the middle of April, this year for some reason it doesn't open till the middle of the last week after the peak of breeding has passed and the temps are so high that most birds would rather play it cool than battle the heat.
Generally speaking with everything, what goes up must come down. In Mississippi, before my time my grandfather said he can remember when there were no turkeys you could go a whole season and if you heard 1 bird it was a success much less actually laying eyes on or killing one. From what I understand we hit a peak in the 90s and in some areas there has been a decrease. I think with everything there will again be a rebound. Things are generally cyclical. All I have heard here the last couple of years is TN and KY is the new MO. Stick with it there will be a rebound at some point.
Edit. You're in the western part
Yes I am, originally from a little town called Lexington but moved to Decatur county about 2 years ago. Still try to hunt my home town though.
Ive almost gotten to the point down here on Louisiana public land, if I hear 2 gobbles a season i consider that tagged out lol. Its been a tough run down here the last couple years. We have been having very mild Februarys the last 2 years and most everything is sprouted and it feels like summer time before the season opens. And most of the gobbling is over with. Im headed to the black hills next weekend. I sure hope those merriams sing the way everyone says they do lol.
Yea they try to say warm weather has nothing to do with it but from what I've experienced it sure seems to.
Quote from: turkeywhisperer935 on April 17, 2017, 05:34:49 PM
Yea they try to say warm weather has nothing to do with it but from what I've experienced it sure seems to.
You know i will have to agree with you on the weather, 2 weeks before our season opened in Tenn i was hearing twice as much gobbling as i have after season opened.. It was pretty warm those 2 weeks before season opened...
Climate change is a hoax, remember?
If it is warmer earlier and the birds are doing their thing earlier, you need to switch to late season tactics sooner and maybe even begin the season with late season tactics...
I'm sure it is frustrating to hear or see nothing - I've been there. You might have to travel further or even out of state.
It is a 90 minute drive for me to my spot and I have to draw special tag and get permission to hunt it. In years I don't draw I hit the road and have to drive 5 hours and to another state to hunt. It's always worth it, even if I don't punch my ticket.
Quote from: Tom Threetoes on April 17, 2017, 09:18:23 AM
reintroduce the bobcat and give it protected status, the logic behind our DNR is a mystery.
Not to get too far off topic, but seriously?? I would be ticked. Percentage-wise where I'm at I'd say bobcats kill more turkeys than coyotes do. Very efficient predators of turkeys. If my DNR 1) reintroduced them when we were lucky enough to not have any and 2) wouldn't let me trap or shoot them, I would be pretty hot over it.
Quote from: Happy on April 16, 2017, 08:58:24 PM
We all like to hear them gobble and yes we are our own worst enemies. It's all how fast and easy can I kill one. If we value what we have then we should do our best to protect it. Our greed will be our downfall.
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I ran into a couple of guys on my hunting lease opening morning. I was first to the spot they wanted. Both were nice about it, going to hunt elsewhere...after telling me where their feeders were set up so I could hunt them.
It's illegal to bait turkeys here. They've closed season on most counties around here, we'll be next after they slaughter our fragile population this way. :'(
I feel your pain. I get that way about duck hunting in North Florida, except it is the Army Corps of Engineers and Ducks Unlimited that disgust me. I actually had a 5 day trip to hunt MS I had to cancel due to rain (can't get in the fields to hunt the snows when it is so muddy), so we stayed home and hunted. After nearly getting swamped by a tournament fishing basshole and seeing NO ducks interested in working due to habitat degradation and overpressure, I said to heck with it and went to the coast and wore out the trout and reds.
I have heard exactly 5 gobbling birds, all in 2 days here where I hunt. There are birds though, it has been weather and bad luck for me. But I am going in the morning, the home stretch is near. I still like the walk in the woods, watching the hen peck my decoy until it falls over, hearing the woods wake up. The older I get, the more I enjoy the process and with only 6 days left, I am not stressed at all. If I eat tag soup, it serves me right for ending my season so quickly last year. It happens.
I don't hunt where you do, so I don't know your life. Good luck though and I hope you find some birds willing to play and also rekindle your passion for the sport. God Bless.
Thanks for the kind words, I quit duck hunting for about the same reasons you described. I used to hunt everything that moved around here till my rabbit dogs died and I got tired of duck hunting but I never thought it'd get like this with turkeys. By far my favorite game animal. I'd rather do it than eat or sleep but it's slowly gotten ruined in my area of the country.
I understand your frustration. While I don't have the out of state hunters, the land leasing is what's going on here. I have no problem with leasing land, but the sad fact is, if you don't lease land, there's not a lot left. I can't blame the landowners, farming is all but dead here, so they're trying to make a buck any way they can. The days of just getting permission to hunt is over. I have questions about the NWTF to. Where does the money go anyway? I know several of the NWTF people come here to hunt with some prominent locals every year. I guess I helped pay for that? They have an auction/banquet every year, that I know brings in big money. I'm sure they've helped the turkeys in other places, but zero here. Not on public lands anyway. The fields don't even get cut anymore (Army Corps of Engineers). As a matter of fact, they're technically not even fields now.
I know the game wardens have a tough job. But, I really wish they'd catch the guys who shoot a dozen turkeys every year out of the truck window, instead of checking my license every time I hunt the same tract of public land.
What part of Tennessee are you in? I live and hunt in West Tennessee and birds are plentiful. I do understand your frustration though. I have access to 2 small properties and the birds are sometimes on my land and sometimes they are on the huge hunting lease next door. But i usually get one bird every year and hear lots of gobbling either on my.spot or theirs
Turkey whisperer...
I hunt mostly Tennessee public land, and TWRA does a pretty good job managing the lands. Yes they do plant food plots, they lease fields to row croppers, they bush hog CRP fields, maintain access roads, have some really good hunting habitat for us to enjoy. I agree the out of state hunters can be a pain, but don't blame TWRA, those nonresident license sales help pay for the management of our public land.
As for the decline in turkeys, the main issue is the few southern Mid TN counties, and they just recently started a 5-year program GPS tracking flocks of birds in affected counties and surrounding counties as well. They are trying to figure out the problem in the few counties that had unexplainable disappearance of turkeys.
Sorry to be blunt, but all you have said is a bunch of uneducated bull crap and you just want to put the blame on others for your own lack of success.