In need of a turkey tendencies specialist

[Ethanb214]

I've yet to have a season like this. I've found tracks, fresh sign, gone to all kinds of different areas in the place I've been hunting, talked to countless people hunting the area back at camp, nobody has heard birds, and for 40 people+ a day, people are coming up with 1 or none for the day each day. I've yet to even get a gobble with a hoot or crow call, I've tried every trick in the book, I know they can hear me, the mornings have been ultra quiet and I can hear my call echo through the woods.

I've seen one bird so far this season, a lone hen walking through my setup at 11:30AM absolutely silent. Anyone having the same experience anywhere across Florida or anywhere for that matter?

Additionally, I know I can't make a turkey gobble if they don't want to but does anyone have any idea of why this happens with birds? I thought it was the weather until we've now had a cold weekend of hunting, a hot weekend, now going back to a moderate temperature for this coming weekend.

[roberthyman14]

Our Florida season has been the exact same.  0 roost gobbles.  Only birds we had gobble was opening weekend, we got 4 birds fired up at 9:30. Called in 1 from over 500 yards.  Silence ever since.  And we have covered some ground trying.

Prostaff member for Old Crow Custom Calls

[Ethanb214]

Our Florida season has been the exact same.  0 roost gobbles.  Only birds we had gobble was opening weekend, we got 4 birds fired up at 9:30. Called in 1 from over 500 yards.  Silence ever since.  And we have covered some ground trying.

Prostaff member for Old Crow Custom Calls

I can't even find a gobbler... other than the ones I see driving home down 95. I've been putting in 10 miles a day trying to find something worth hunting. I'm trying to figure out if I need to just go to a different area, this is my first time hunting the place. It's Herky Huffman/Bull Creek WMA. Normally I hunt corbett and it's rough with the pressure but I almost always hear and find birds it's just hard to get them to come in.

[roberthyman14]

Find the oaks.  Just go to the tried and true,  cluck. Purr and scratch leaves.   

Prostaff member for Old Crow Custom Calls

[Dtrkyman]

40 people a day harassing them would be a problem as well as an early start to the season depending on where you are.

They can still be killed when quiet, just not as fun!

[Muzzy61]

We have club with maybe 7 members that turkey hunt and we have killed 8 birds since the beginning of the season 3/20 here in North Florida. Only one bird has gobbled as they have come in, all the rest have been silent. May hear an occasional gobble on the roost, but not often. it's been a weird season so far.

[bbcoach]

Thanks for the info.  If they are doing this in Florida, we will see the same thing in NC when we open on the 10th.  We have been seeing birds but only a few gobbles right off the roost.  Looks like, bring a turkey chair, don't call much and plan on putting many hours in the woods.  My philosophy is, The Worst day in the Woods is Still Better than the Best Day at Work!

[2eagles]

40 wow! Are you hearing any gunshots?

[randy6471]

 I've been hunting with a buddy at his place in Florida and we've hunted every day so far this season, so 11 days total. It's private ground, so no other hunting pressure and it has a pretty good number of turkeys. I've hunted with him for many years and usually we hear tons of gobbling. They usually gobble good on the roost and then often crank back up later in the morning as the hens go off to nest. This year it's just a little gobbling on the roost and nothing after 9am.

We took a bird on opening day and another bird this morning. In between that, we've called in 3 other gobblers that we either didn't or couldn't shoot.

I think that in our situation it's a combination of 2 factors.

1. We have had 4 different set ups where we have seen coyotes either coming to our calls or heading toward the gobblers.

2. We have a couple of different spots where we can watch the turkeys feeding from a distance and several times we have been able to watch 1 or 2 gobblers with up to 10 hens. Each time neither the gobblers or the hens showed any real interest in our calling.

So for us there are plenty of turkeys, but between an abundance of hens and predators the turkeys are staying pretty quiet.

[Ethanb214]

 

40 people a day harassing them would be a problem as well as an early start to the season depending on where you are.

They can still be killed when quiet, just not as fun!

Well it's Florida public land 40 people isn't bad for a total amount of guys in there at once. Opening weekend had 200-250 maybe even more in there on the opening Saturday. I wish 40 people was a lot lol. Not nearly as bad as JW Corbett where I normally hunt.

[Ethanb214]

40 wow! Are you hearing any gunshots?

I haven't heard any gunshots and the check station has only been having one bird at most come through each day (could've changed by now I haven't been in the woods since Sunday) but hopefully things change for the better. I've heard some random guys dual wielding pistols blasting into the woods for fun putting everyone else at risk though. And there was over 200 people hunting opening weekend.

[Ethanb214]

 

I've been hunting with a buddy at his place in Florida and we've hunted every day so far this season, so 11 days total. It's private ground, so no other hunting pressure and it has a pretty good number of turkeys. I've hunted with him for many years and usually we hear tons of gobbling. They usually gobble good on the roost and then often crank back up later in the morning as the hens go off to nest. This year it's just a little gobbling on the roost and nothing after 9am.

We took a bird on opening day and another bird this morning. In between that, we've called in 3 other gobblers that we either didn't or couldn't shoot.

I think that in our situation it's a combination of 2 factors.

1. We have had 4 different set ups where we have seen coyotes either coming to our calls or heading toward the gobblers.

2. We have a couple of different spots where we can watch the turkeys feeding from a distance and several times we have been able to watch 1 or 2 gobblers with up to 10 hens. Each time neither the gobblers or the hens showed any real interest in our calling.

So for us there are plenty of turkeys, but between an abundance of hens and predators the turkeys are staying pretty quiet.

I do think the number of hens has played a big role so far. I've heard 2 guys say they've seen groups of hens in the morning not even paired up with toms. It's gonna be a tough season for me on the public land grind but it could be worse I guess.

[Paulmyr]

Been hunting N Ga. Since opener only 2 days of decent gobbling. Picked up 2 the 1st week. One gobble early and started back up around 9. Only bird I heard all mourning. It was pretty windy though not sure I could have heard anything past a couple hundred yds.

Second came around noon. They gobbled pretty good on and right off the roost til about 830 when messed up on a longbeard with 3 jakes. Quiet after that. Jumped over the ridge about 10. Fired one up with some extremely aggressive calling. Gobbled once and came right in

.
Weather has been a roller coaster. Big rains every third day or so. Cooler temps this week seemed to have put them down just as they were getting started.
Last Sat was pretty good. Hooked up with a young guy from here on old gobbler. Seen one of my post about being here and seen the Mn tags on my truck. After a PM we hooked up the next weekend. He actually shot one while waiting by my truck for me to get out of the woods. Hunted together the next day and had a couple come in but no luck. Pretty quiet since then and heavy rains all mourning again today.

[g8rvet]

Been pretty quiet near me.  If they have opened their mouths, they have a truck or two parked there.  Stopped and talked to a couple young guys and we made a plan where we would hunt (I would not cross to their side and they would not cross to mine).  We had both found the bird the day before.  He gobbled one time on the limb that morning! 

Got some nice video of strutting jakes though.  Taking my daughter this weekend and if Mr Jake comes in strutting, he will be taking a truck ride.  She is new and has never killed a bird. She has passed twice on jakes just out of comfort range for her.  Having a baby has kept her out of the woods the last 2 years though. 

[WV Flopper]

 I hunted there the 20th through the 27th. I did not hear a turkey gobble on the roost Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday. All other days I heard roosted turkeys and they did their part.

I am from WV, to me, it was extremely humid the days I didn't hear a turkey on the roost. Like 110% humidity.

I struck a turkey on Monday at 1100, but I spooked him when I moved. Tuesday and Wednesday, I did nothing. From Saturday to Saturday total, I had 12 gobblers 50 yards and under. This is counting 4 jakes.... so 8 Toms. Seen some nice strutters on the way back to the motel a day or so. All were standing in the shade of a tree.

This was on private land, so it was decent hunting, but there was pressure, minimal, but pressure. Maybe the pressure is your answer. Funny how Florida brags about having the most public land east of the Mississippi, but you can't hunt it at will.

Seen hen tracks in the roads everywhere. Going to their nesting sites? The hunting will get better, Stay after it.