Any tips for hunting national forest mountain turkeys?

[GobbleNut]

 Under the conditions you have stated, this is what I would advise.  Get into the general area where you expect birds to be roosted at first hint of daylight in the morning.  Pick a listening spot where you think you can hear the most area where you expect gobblers to roost and stand or sit quietly and listen until you hear one.  If you do not hear a gobbler by almost full daylight, take a loud crow call and call as loudly as you can on it for just a couple of blasts.  Listen quietly again.  If you don't hear a gobble, wait half a minute and try the crow call again.  If you don't hear a gobble, start covering country as fast as you can, listening and trying the crow call every couple of hundred yards.  If there are gobblers around, you should hear one.

Assuming you hear a gobbler at first light somewhere, move towards him as quickly as you can, trying to get within a couple of hundred yards, or closer if possible.  Do not take a chance on being seen, but get as close as you can to him while he is on the roost.  Choose a spot to call from that you think he might approach,...not too thick or too open, but with medium cover, if possible.  Set-up with some foliage behind you to break up your outline.  Low brush in front is good, too, but don't get in a spot where you can't shoot.

If you have done your homework on learning to call, you should know what to say and when to say it.  If you are uncertain about calling, now is the time to be learning  that information.

Now, assuming you have heard multiple gobblers at first light,...and it sounds like you might,...you should be evaluating which bird or birds to go to, and where to set-up to maximize your chances.  Setting up in a spot that is among several gobblers is almost always a good bet, as is getting between multiple birds.  Also, hearing multiple gobblers in a single roost is often a good situation in that these are often groups of two-year old gobblers that are the easiest to call in.  Conversely, having a bunch of hens around with a gobbler usually compounds the difficulty of calling him/them to you, although not always.

If you set up, call properly, and don't have gobblers approach, don't be afraid to move, but move carefully so as not to be spotted.  Each encounter you have with the gobblers you hunt should be used as a learning experience.  Turkeys are creatures of habit, and will often do the same thing day after day if not disturbed.  Always note what the birds you are hunting do each day you hunt them, and if you are not successful one day, adjust your strategy the next day based on what they did on day one. 

If you are hunting an area with a good number of birds and no competition, and you have adequate time for your hunt, you will eventually figure them out and kill one of them. 

[pseshooter300]

Hey ridge runner shoot me a pm I hunt Cherokee to not sure what area you hunt but we may be able to team up this spring

[Shotgun]

Just ignore that tracking device I put on your bumper...LOL...I'll keep it simple. set up a little above or at the same level as the roosted birds.  If you are not sure where they are rooosting stay back a little and wait for them to gobble and then slip in on them. 

[gobble157]

Be in shape is a starter

Google earth the area you are hunting and try and find areas that have water. From there hit a ridge and just listen at daylight. It just depends on the food as to where they will be. I've hunted many mountain turkeys and one year they will be on top and next year be on the first or second bench of the ridge. Scout now if you can and you will up your chances to killing a nice longbeard. Good luck and God bless

[timberjack86]

I would not set up on top of a ridge. Them birds are looking and seeing no hen. Try setting up just over the ridge so the gobbler will have to come over. Be ready cause it will be quick.

I agree or set up just under it where the gobbler has to peek over it to see the source of the calling.

[socalturkeyman]

I hunt mountain birds too, I love them more than flat lander birds. If its anything like california,or southern california I should say its thick oak/pine forest. What I do and works for me is,I get in early and pick a nice lower lying finger with no wind and listen. Soon as I get to hear one I make my move and I pick through all the question in my head and answer them on the move. And always remember "slow is smooth,and smooth is fast". That was the best advise I have ever heard from anyone.Good luck and happy hunting.

Also I use El Pavo's techinc,setting up and forcing the tom to look for a hen within range.

[Footballer]

Sounds like we hunt the same terrain (I'm in East TN). If you hunted the birds last year, you already know more than you think. Think back to your hunts and try to figure out some kind of pattern that the birds followed.

Did they roost in the same tree? Did they head in the same direction every morning? Did they pitch down and gobble in one spot?

Mountains are tough to hunt, but the terrain often dictates how turkeys travel. If there is a logging road near the turkey's roost, I can almost guarantee they will use it once they pitch down.

A week or so before season you should be at the locations you plan on hunting before fly down. Listen for them to gobble and figure out which direction they move in once they pitch down. After they have left the area, move in and try to locate their roost trees. Once you find the trees, follow their fresh scratchings and find a few ambush locations that you can sneak into without getting busted.

Mountain birds do vary their daily routines, but you should still be able to establish some type of pattern. Once I've hunted a group of birds a morning or two, I can usually slip in and bust one without ever calling by setting up along their travel routes.

[JELLYHEAD]

I plan on getting to know the area intimately over the next couple of months. Its several miles to get to the area, but last season I never saw another hunter.

Consider the lack of hunters as a blessing.  An area with turkeys, but little to no pressure from other hunters is like a gold mine.  With that in mind, I wouldn't even tell your own Grandma the coordinates to your hunting spot.  Believe me those public land spots are few and far between and telling the wrong person could lead to a crowd.  It would have to be someone in your inner circle and I might even make them pinky swear or something before any information was disclosed.

That inner circle would have to be a tight one. If you talk too much people will be looking for your truck. I know of people that get dropped off . Mountain birds are tough, one place I hunt birds fly most of the terrain because itis so tough. Killing a bird in that is very rewarding to me.Other hunters will give up.

[WildTigerTrout]

I hunt the Big Woods of NC Pa. Alot of mountains here. I try to get ABOVE the bird before I set up or at least get even with him. Turkeys will come down hill BUT they don't like too. I try to set up so when I see the bird he is already in range. Thus no need for a decoy. Before he figures out the hen is not there he is already dead!

[SonicBanshee]

choot em