getting started...

[Squall_409]

OK everyone, so I am just barely starting out with turkey hunting. Me and my buddy found where we would like to go hunt this year. It's on some private property, which I already have gotten permission to be on and hunt the turkeys. And I had a few questions that I would like to ask and get everyone opinion on.

What is the best time to go out and try and listen for them and find them? What are some of the things I want to be looking for when I am out scouting the area? Is morning or night better to be out scouting? Should I try calling at all to see if I can get a few to answer me?

I'm sorry for all the questions. I just want to be well prepared for when the season starts up (April 30 - May 31).

Thank you everyone who have helped me out thus far.

[Turkey Beard]

Our season (Missouri) starts April 16 and I'm going to start listening a time or two each week (more as the season gets closer) this Monday.  I'd have already started if I wasn't so familiar with the land and the turkeys' habits year in and year out.  I will not even bring a call to the woods with me because I know that I can't resist calling if I have one and I think you're making a big mistake in calling the birds before the season.  I don't even crow or owl at them.  I don't go out and roost them this early but you might want to consider that... get to a high, clear point and (in the words of Tom Kelly) "turn yourself into one big ear."  In scouting the land, look for feathers and droppings that indicate roost sites (roosting over water, like a creek or river is very common) and look around field edges for places that they dust themselves, this will show up as "bowls" with feathers strewn around.  Good luck!

[Squall_409]

Thank you very much. I am going out this morning to look around a little bit and see what I can find.

[jakebird]

If you and your buddy are both new at it, the absolute best thing you can do is to find a mentor. The ideal one is a seasoned, grisly old gent, perhaps a bit of a curmudgeon. Grayhair should be requisite. He should have atleast a hundred kills and if he makes his own calls, the better. Pick his brain and annoy the hay out of him. Drop by his house, call him late at night. Sit beside him in church. Dont take "no" for an answer. Make yourself annoying enough and he will get the point and hand over a little of his wisdom, if only to shut you up. If u are very fortunate, he may even take you hunting. It worked for me...  :p Seriously, joining a great message board was a good move, and I highly reccomend a subscription to turkey and turkey hunting magazine. Be patient, learn from every day in the woods, and be persistent. Success will come, and it will be sweet when it does, whenever it does. Keep a low profile and scout from a distance if possible. The turkeys will "teach" you how to hunt them. Good luck!

[redleg06]

What is the best time to go out and try and listen for them and find them? What are some of the things I want to be looking for when I am out scouting the area? Is morning or night better to be out scouting? Should I try calling at all to see if I can get a few to answer me?

Go listen for turkey in the mornings but I'd take the chance to go scout any time you can. In other words, being in the woods and learning their patterns at different times of the day will only help when the season rolls around and the more you learn right now, the easier time you will have when the season gets here.

I hunt turkey all times of the day and if it's legal in your state, I'd scout the same way and try to learn as much as you can about them. Your best time to hear them gobble is going to be right off the roost at first light and that can be a very useful piece of information but knowing where they like to go is also very useful.

NO, I would NOT call to them before the season just to get them to answer you. Try to avoid disturbing them before or during the season. The less they are aware of your presence, the better off you'll be. 

[Turkey Beard]

Seriously, joining a great message board was a good move, and I highly reccomend a subscription to turkey and turkey hunting magazine. Be patient, learn from every day in the woods, and be persistent. Success will come, and it will be sweet when it does, whenever it does.

I certainly agree with this!  When I started, Missouri had a 2 week season that closed at 1:00 p.m.  I killed my first turkey the very last day of the 3rd year after hunting almost every single one of those 42 days.

[jfair]

Everything above.  If you have a certain property picked out, go there before daylight and listen for them on the roost.  They may have a few different trees but should prefer a few spots.  You have plenty of time to figure out which way they normally go off the roost.  When season does come, set up there, far enough away that you don't spook them.  Be prepared for them to frustrate you.  Anyone who tells you they have turkeys figured out has not hunted them long enough.  If they were easy, it wouldn't be fun.  Good luck!