Question for next time

[Dazzler]

Walking in I bumped one bird off the roost. Dark so no idea what it was. Walked about 75 yards on the path and heard a gobble close to my right. I sat down immediately. It was gray light still. Assumed it was a shock gobble of some sort. After a few minutes I gave a soft cluck just to let him know I was there. He gobbled. Very soon after that a hen started yelping beyond the gobbler.

I wasn't sure if he was still on the roost or what, but I began trying to match her. Gobbler in the middle, me on the hardwood side and the hen was on the field side of the ridge which is a no go for me. At some point the one flew down away from both of us (towards the way I came but leaning towards her side). Then I heard another fly down from the same area several minutes later. Pretty sure it was the hen because we were still chatting with no gobbles. No action after that other than humans.

So...what's the right play here or is it just a turkey gonna turkey situation. I usually don't call on the roost, but I couldn't tell. That close I'm usually pretty soft, but I figured I need to keep pace with the hen. I tend to think they both wanted to go to the open field instead of the woods. I stayed for a bit, but left after a good half hour of nothing.

Do I stay put in this situation or go chase another?  Is it my calling back to two roosted birds or just the way it goes?  I came back through around 10 and did. Some calling with no response.

All and any advice is appreciated.

[runngun]

That is just how it goes sometimes. At least it does in my world. Hard to compete with the real deal. Turkeys gonna be Turkeys!

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[Kylongspur88]

That is just how it goes sometimes. At least it does in my world. Hard to compete with the real deal. Turkeys gonna be Turkeys!

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Pretty much this. Turkeys are gonna do what they do. What works one day may not the next.

[Paulmyr]

I would say more often than not turkeys are going to the field off the roost. If there's room I'd try to get between them and the field if possible.

[GobbleNut]

Sounds like you took your best shot in the situation and it didn't work out.  Anybody that says they have never had that kind of thing happen to them either hasn't turkey hunted very much or is lying...one or the other...   

Like Paul stated, if you can get somewhere along the route they took this morning, and IF they roost in the same location, get in there in the dark-dark in the morning and see what happens.  Calling much to birds on the roost is an "iffy" proposition (sounds also like you are already aware of that fact), so I think I would recommend just staying quiet and let things play out naturally...at least until they have hit the ground...although imitating a fly-down yourself (and other "ground sounds") to maybe get the gobbler to fly down close by might be worth a go.

Now, assuming you cannot set up on the side they flew down to (you more or less indicate that is the case), I would get as close to that location as you can to start with.  Regardless of what happens, try to be as inconspicuous as you can and not let them associate your calling and/or movements with a human.  That association generally makes things a lot tougher (again, I suspect you are well aware of that, as well)..   

[cwhitfield96]

I would think sometimes that's the right move and you drag the hen in with the gobbler or you play hard to get and maybe get him in range, just never know

[YoungGobbler]

It's hard to say what to do without being there... Others have given good insights on things to possibly do... I would say to have bumped one in the morning was already a firsh strike for you, and it's totally not your fault, no blame to take. But knowing this, i think it's not a surprise that they went away. The good thing is, you know where there is turkey!! You'll get them one time or another this season 

[Uncle Tom]

Get in there real early next day. I would mark a route where you exactly want to walk.....be there early and sit down and wait. If he gobbles on the roost and you close by, give him a soft cluck....see what happens. Have told this before on here, but many years ago I did exactly this for 3 mornings in a row and he would fly down going away....I would follow him and he would not play. The morning I killed him, I was set up on the trail I had marked in the dark, he gobbled on the roost and I gave him a cluck and he would answer back.....I then got up and walked away making noise in the leaves.....went just a few yards and pulled out an old Lynch box call and made one gobble....hurried back to my seat, sat down, got my mask down and he flew down like 20 yards front of me. Dropped him soon as he hit ground. He thought a gobbler was under him taking his hen. If you give this a try it will work sometimes, but you got to let him know all under darkness and be ready if he gobbles on the limb as you make your move....good luck.

[KYTurkey07]

Alot of very good advice here.

[falconiii]

I think you played it right. A close second option for me though would've been to wait out for about 30 minutes and see if he returns. I've had hunts That sometimes go as if the gobbler got tired real fast of the hep he was with—ormaybe he was just coming back to collect me back into the flock.

If that didn't work, I I would get Quick up parallel to where I think they are and get loud. Hunt the hen.