i have a large chunk of national forest close to my house that i'm going to hunt on during the week this year but i've got to get my kids on the bus beforehand. this means showing up at the trail head around 7:15am. there is a narrow strip (maybe 100 yards wide) of access between two pieces of private that takes about 10 minutes to hike through and then it opens up to the side of a mountain. i'm pretty much coming in right at fly down time. just wondering what you would do here? am i better of hanging back at the car and letting them get on the ground or just working in slowly? i have consistently run into turkeys in this area while deer and squirrel hunting, sometimes it's a been a 3/4 mile in and sometimes it's been 50 yards from the trailhead. the area is exclusively mature hardwoods and the leaf litter on the trail is thick so being stealthy is a challenge. thanks.
One thing to remember is on National Forest good chance there will be other hunters. And no telling how far the birds will be from their roost spot when you arrive. You can either run and gun or set and call. If it was me, I would take my time do some lite calling and hunt with my eyes and ears.
I would locate call my way in from the truck and take your time...if they are not vocal then it's a tough call, I would set up and hunt for a short amount of time, maybe half hour near the first place you would expect birds. How much time will you have to hunt? Waiting for an hour or so to go in may not be a bad plan either?
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Quote from: Dtrkyman on March 29, 2018, 08:13:50 AM
I would locate call my way in from the truck and take your time...if they are not vocal then it's a tough call, I would set up and hunt for a short amount of time, maybe half hour near the first place you would expect birds. How much time will you have to hunt? Waiting for an hour or so to go in may not be a bad plan either?
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
i'll have until noon to hunt.
Can you go the evening before? Try to listen and see where they fly up at. Next morning they shouldn't be too far from there if your just a little past flydown. Otherwise, I'd do as others stated.
Quote from: Gobspur on March 29, 2018, 08:23:13 AM
Can you go the evening before? Try to listen and see where they fly up at. Next morning they shouldn't be too far from there if your just a little past flydown. Otherwise, I'd do as others stated.
yes i definitely have time to go in the evening before.
I would make the kids walk to the bus stop!
(Easy for the single guy without kids to say)
I would try to get to within earshot of where you think the birds are as quickly as you can,...the sooner the better. Generally, gobblers will gobble best on the roost,...then a little bit when they get on the ground,...and then taper off.
If you have no chance of getting there by fly-down or a little after, then just work slowly through the area calling and hope to strike a gobbler. If that doesn't happen, just find a location where you can hear for a long ways (if a spot like that exists) and listen and call (both softly and then loudly) every once in a while. Most places, gobblers will sound off once in a while during the morning. Be where you have the best chance of hearing one when he does.
Lastly, if you have a pretty good idea of where the turkeys like to hang out and feel confident they will show up there at some point, set up in that area and call a bit. Boring way to hunt turkeys, but sometimes you gotta do what you gotta do.
I would scout and see where the birds are and where they hang out.
+100 on all these comments IMO
Short of putting your kids up for adoption you just have to play the cards as dealt. Some of my most enjoyable hunts have occurred on late arrival mornings.
I have had way more success mid to late morning then right off the roost. It's been my experience that you are more likely to find a lonely gobbler looking for love up later in the morning after the hens have wondered off.
thanks for the replies guys. unfortunately my kids are a little young for me to be leaving them at the bus stop without child protective services paying me a visit.
The first thing I would do is Pray. What i mean is stop and ask God where to go. I used to fish an evening bass tournament that only last 2 hours. One day my partner got caught in traffic, leaving me to fish the first hour by my self. I went to a marina close to the ramp and as I started fishing I felt a tugging at me to fish a part of the marina that I had Never caught anything. I finally give in and said "God if that's where you want me to go then OK". Fired up the motor and went. 4 casts later I had 3 Nice keepers which won me the tournament and qualified my partner and I for the classic. We have never caught anything else in that spot. God is the Great Councilor and loves to lead us. Ask and then listen. Church over for now.
If you can as mentioned before try to pin one down in the evening. Also if the grade is not terrible get ya a mountain bike. You can cover a ton of ground and be in the middle of nowhere on public land in 15-30 minutes. Birds seem to push to the outskirts, adjacent properties and way away from the average hunter who only goes 500-1000 yards from the parking area.
If not, I would locate as I walk OR I have had very good luck setting up on fresh sign IE fresh shiny turds, fresh scratching that still smells like dirt or wet leaves or debris that has not dried out yet and calling very sparingly. Keep your eyes peeled and ears very open!
I also hunt wooded areas... A couple of areas in steep canyons.
I use the terrain to hide my presence... On one place I hunt, if the bird can see me, he is probably in shooting range.
I will use the roads when I can, but am not afraid to get of the road to avoid sky-lining myself or I will walk around a large meadow or pasture if I want to get to the other side... I have game-plans for the areas I know I might be spotted, and generally take those areas a bit more carefully...
Bottom line, use the terrain to hide yourself, and avoid walking through large open areas (if possible).
I have still probably "bumped" more birds than I know... But I have had some degree of success as well. I will also stop and call while walking to make sure I am not passing a bird to get to another. When I stop and call, I do so against a tree, and NOT in the open. I might stop and call every 100-200 yards depending on the terrain, and whether or not I am already walking to a vocal bird.... If I am walking to a vocal bird, I am less apt to call as much....