This is my first year hunting these WONDERFUL birds. It has been a learning curve for sure. I only have public land available to me, private for my son only, and wow its been tough not seeing any birds for the 8 days I have been out. The only place I have heard one was on some river bottom but sounded like he/she was across a DEEP creek. The reason why I say he/she was because I could not differentiate from a tom yelp and hen. What ever it was kept talking to me only if I used my crystal mistress. I don't believe it was another hunter as there is only one way in and out and I was the only one in, plus its pretty secluded. I hope I am going to have better luck during the season 16th-22th on different public land.
Hang in there and spend as many days in the woods as you can. Time afield is an excellent teacher.
My first year I spent 20-some days trying to shoot a bird and it all came together on the last day of season with about an hour of daylight left after an all day hunt. All of a sudden I heard a couple gobbles a loooong way off but they kept getting closer. 3 toms walking down an abandoned railbed with a handful of hens in tow, looked like a turkey train. I was able to move my setup to get in front of them.
Be patient and remember, sometimes less is more when it comes to calling.
Hang in there... Good Luck!
Time is your friend. Put time in to find roosting trees if you can. This will be a great starting point in the morning. Get in early, hear the tree gobbling and set up quietly. Know where they go off the roost, that will be how you get them. Good luck brother :funnyturkey:
Yep, like the others said, "Hang in there!". Prior to getting some property to hunt several years ago, I was limited to public land hunting (deer, small game and eventually turkey) for 30 years. For me success came when I started scouting and hunting waaaay off the beaten trail, many miles from the parking lots. I'd find the thickest, swampiest and otherwise most inhospitable areas to hunt. Doing so paid off more often than not. I'm guessing this was due to game moving away from the pressure the weekend warriors applied in the less remote spots. I also made sure to be the first one the hike in and was typically the last car in the lot at the end of the day. So much so that the conservation officers joked with me about it LOL.
Take care and stay patient and Good luck!
Stay with it. Persistence and effort kill a lot of turkeys.
Quote from: Happy on April 10, 2018, 11:09:28 AM
Stay with it. Persistence and effort kill a lot of turkeys.
Add patience and you dont need much more.
They cause many sleepless nights and weary days, but when it all comes together there is absolutely nothing like it in the world! :anim_25:
Three P's Patience Persistence Perseverance it takes some of each but you will get her done!
Keep at it and good luck.
Time in the woods is the absolute best way to learn. Just listen as the day unfolds and you will begin to understand the craziness of turkeys
if it was easy it wouldnt be any fun. keep after em and good luck!!
Having turkeys or finding them is a huge part of the battle. More time out of season looking for areas that have turkeys will massively give a boost to your hunting in season when you know where to go to just be in them. The you can start learning from them
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The more experience you can get the better. Welcome to the addiction!
Hang in there when you do connect on a public land gobbler you will be over the moon and you will learn more on publis land birds then anywhere else. I spent my first five years hunting just public land and would trade those lessons for anything. Can't wait to see a pic of you will a hard earned public land bird
You will only get better, keep at it. Good Luck
Thanks all for the motivation and kind words. Im really hooked after hearing my first gobbles. I just can't wait to get one to strut in front of me and thunder gobble my hat loose, lol....... again thank you all for the encouragement.