Windy?

[Archivist13]

We all know turkeys don't like wind. They go to open areas and aren't as vocal as on calm days. Based on experience, what is your threshold on windy? At what mph do you consider it windy and change your strategy for the days hunt? 5 mph, 10 mph, 15 mph, etc?

[WV Flopper]

 Before last spring I had a certain opinion.

I hunted the first three days in Western Oklahoma last year, wind was 20-40mph for those three days. Western OK has a lack of trees at least where I was hunting. I decided then that the wind doesn't make any noise, it's the trees in the wind that make the noise.

When I hunt my home state 20 mph is enough wind for me, much more than that and I may or may not hunt.

In the three days in Oklahoma I killed two toms and called up four different Jake's. In similar weather I killed a tom in the western Idaho mountains.

So, if your there to hunt, hunt. Don't let the wind stop you.

[owlhoot]

I think it is the gusts to 25 - 30.    15 is nothing to be concerned about.

[Dtrkyman]

Mostly the wind bothers us more than the birds. This spring has been particularly windy though, not sure I had a full day where the wind didn't effect how I had to hunt!

[Greg Massey]

I hate the wind regardless, it keeps the gobblers on a nervous pattern and takes away from them acting in more of a natural state.. IMO.. All your calls do so much better on a non-windy day... Or put it this way i do better with my calls on the days of less wind.... i like 5 mile per hour days .. which i think this past season was only 2 days... most of this season was wind, cold and storms all season ....

[mountainhunter1]

I hate the wind regardless, it keeps the gobblers on a nervous pattern and takes away from them acting in more of a natural state.. IMO.. All your calls do so much better on a non-windy day... Or put it this way i do better with my calls on the days of less wind.... i like 5 mile per hour days .. which i think this past season was only 2 days... most of this season was wind,


X2 - Well said, and also agree on how much wind we had this time around.

Wind is the enemy in the mountain timber for turkey hunting. Like Greg said, "I hate the  wind regardless..."

[Old Timer]

I had a very hard time hunting with the wind this past Tuesday. Wind was 25mph gust. Took my hearing enhancement out because of wind noise then I could not hear the birds at all. Discouraging day but that`s hunting. I have in the past used wind to my advantage to move around and set up on birds because it covered my movement sound. So sometimes it`s a plus.

[RutnNStrutn]

It depends on where you hunt. Out west high winds are routine. I've hunted Oklahoma, Nebraska, SD, Wyoming, Idaho and California. They were all windy but we called in birds anyway. Even in Mexico the wind was howling, but my group killed 4 Goulds turkeys in a day and a half. Birds that are used to windy conditions aren't bothered by them like Easterns and Osceolas are.
With Easterns and Osceolas, winds over 20 mph seems to shut them down completely.
But as one of the guys noted, if you're on a trip, you hunt, regardless.

Sent from my moto z4 using Tapatalk

[mountainhunter1]

You guys are correct, as I used to hunt private land and fields and the wind could be a big advantage because you were often using "sight" to know where the bird was and the wind could cover your movements to set up. But in the woods on the mountains, if the plan is to hunt gobbling birds that come in and show off as they (generally slowly) work their way into gun range, the wind is a devil as you don't usually see the bird until he is about in range and your ears are all you have. Guess I also live in a bubble and forget that everyone is not hunting that type terrain.

[Dtrkyman]

You can take advantage of the wind, I killed my Iowa bird on the lee side of a large bluff, winds were gusting 40 plus that day and it was literally the perfect place for anything to hide from the wind.

It just generally sucks for working birds.  One thing I will add is that if you get those heavy day winds and they calm down for a few hours in the afternoon you can get into some great action, seems gobblers lose track of hens and if it calms down they are pretty eager to come to calling.

[Archivist13]

Great insight. I hunt Easterns in the mid-Atlantic. 95% of the people where I hunt focus on the fields, but I spend all my time way back in the woods. It seems like every weekend since May started it has been windier than normal from daybreak on. Birds were gobbling consistently through April and as soon as May and the winds hit, they haven't made a peep. Seems like I have heard so many reports this season from all over that the birds are super quiet and it seems to be windy all over too. Just thinking it could be a factor.