No luck this morning, but I thought of a lot of questions.

[wmn2]

So, I made it out this morning and did not see any. I set up in the same field again and right at daybreak there were 3 birds just hammering away for about 20 minutes. Closest I'd say was around 250-300 yards. After fly down I never heard another gobble, Yelp, or anything.
So my first question. Do you guys wait until daybreak and try to get them to shock gobble and move in before they fly down? Or do you set up and kind of hope you can call one in? This is if you can't roost one the night before of course.

I was calling about every 15-20 minutes throughout the morning and got nothing. Yelps and purrs mainly. Is there another sound I should throw in there?

Around 10, I started scouting and trying to walk and call. I found a nice hardwood ridge with a creek at the bottom. The top of the ridge has an open lane running along it. I found a lot of bare spots on the ground that I am assuming is turkeys scratching, but I don't know exactly what it looks like. I couldn't see any lines in the dirt that looked like toenails dragging through the dirt. Do you think this ridge would be a good spot to set up on? If I do, would daybreak be the best time or later in the day?

Sorry some of these may be basic questions, but I'm just trying to better my odds as best I can.


Semper Fidelis

[WNCTracker]

I don't shock gobble, I let nature run its course.  Roosting the night before, unless you're single or retired, is hard for me to do. I setup where I "think" they ought to be roosted when they gobble on their own I wait for the 2nd or 3rd one, to make sure there aren't any closer I might bump by moving,  to be sure where I need to head to in a hurry.  Pop a decoy out and setup.
Yelp cluck cackle and purr are mostly what I do. Turkey scratching looks like potholes in the leaves. As for the ridge, your guess is as good as mine. Didn't you post game can pics?  Maybe put one there and see what time they're passing along that ridge top.

[Planner]

Here's a few tips from my experience. Gobblers that don't gobble much after fly down are likely strutting and covered up with hens. They gobble to let the hens know where they are to make them come to them. If they aren't gobbling, the hens are with them. Getting in tight to the roost increases your odds of getting a bird off the the roost, but it's far from a slam dunk. As the morning goes on, your opportunity to call in a gobbler increases. Hens get bred and move off to nest, leaving the gobbler lonely. Keep hunting through lunchtime or whatever time your state allows. I'm a big fan of using your calls to locate birds. I really don't think you can call too much to strike one. I'm not one to sit and deer hunt for turkeys, but that's my personal style. I'm on the move, using my calls and learning the patterns of the birds. You might not always get one to work, but if you can get one to gobble you've learned where he likes to be, when, and that he's comfortable in that area.... He'll be easier to call into that area at that time some other day. Keep at it, get that library in your head full of information from past experiences and before long you'll know the birds in your area.


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[wmn2]

Thanks for the tips! Next time I'm going to try to move in as close as I can while they are gobbling on the roost. I found the turkeys, now I just need to fine tune my hunt. Thanks a lot guys!


Semper Fidelis

[Planner]

I would suggest moving in and getting set up before they start gobbling. Since you have an idea where they roost, go in early and get set up. They will typically roost in the same trees, if undisturbed. If you wait until after they start sounding off, they may see you walking in.


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