Summer thoughts: social media, money, Slams, and other gripes

[TurkeyReaper69]

As the days go by I am forever more and more missing our sacred spring ritual that is turkey season, I reminisce with photographs and think about what an all out cluster this whole deal has become.

when and where did everything go so wrong?

Before I get started just a fair warning this is just one mans rant who is bored of his summer routine of eating, sleeping, working, and repeating waiting on deer season to patch me over to the the spring 2022 season. Feel free to comment your thoughts, call me an idiot, I don't really care.

Where do I start?

Slams-Grand Slam, Canadian Slam, Mexican Slam, US Super Slam, Royal Slam, World Slam, now I've seen posts on the "pop gun slam", the "cullinary slam", the "Single Season Southern Slam", The "Florida Slam", the 'Sooner Slam", "Mississippi River Slam", I mean... c'mon where the heck do we draw the line? Why does everything need a title these days... every single one of these are man-made manufactured acheivments or goals are in essence just killing a turkey across a man made state/provincial line, or killing different subspecies within the boundaries of the same man made state lines. Why can't we all just be turkey hunters again? Why does it matter what state a turkey is from, is it truly a challenge for everyone doing these slams to step out of their comfort zone? Or is it just another desperate plea for attention and gratification from random strangers with similar interests on a Facebook turkey group.
         
       US Super Slams- without a doubt the most popular slam now a days, it seems like every hunter on the internet or that I've met in my pursuit of the turkey at XYZ WMA folks almost immediately mention their quest for the super slam and are usually 6 states into the damn thing. Makes me wonder, what are your intentions or reasoning behind you chasing 49? Is it for you and your love for traveling and turkey hunting? or are you just hopping on the bandwagon of the latest and greatest trend in turkey hunting? Oh yeah, so Chasing 49... a clever name created by I'm assuming Keith Ott which has now been hijacked by several other groups. So far I have seen "Chasing the 49", "Finding 49", "98 Spur chaser", and several other names folks have come up with without much thought. I mean really? "Chasing THE 49"? How original lol. I know where those folks intentions and reasonings behind their slam lie, social media fame and attention grabbing are my guess.
To add onto it, this new 49 state craze has really put a lot of pressure on states that have never seen anything like it before, Rhode Island?? I can't even count on 2 hands the amount of folks I know who hunted there this year... why? Is RI that different from Connecticut? I wish for the days to return when a trip to a Texas ranch, or Florida outfitter was the cool thing to do in the turkey hunting world. Some may find this hypocritical of me to point out as I am inching up on the half way point on this thing, but I can assure you my intentions are pure, I'm not in it for social media fame, or monetary gain.  The faint of heart, and those in it for the wrong reasons will give up, only the ones with determination will finish it. But I'd be lying if I didn't mention that the slam has lost a lot of appeal to me and this social media craze of it has dampened my passion and drive to complete this thing.

Money-There are a million things I could talk about in this section from high dollar chokes, to the expensive motion decoys, fancy camo,  sponsorships and paid partnerships. But I'll stick to the Youtube/ social media game.

There are a few Youtube turkey hunters who I knows intentions are pure, and truly enjoy the hunt and the filming aspect of it. Example:The Bayside Legion in my opinion those guys are a class act, and great dudes.

One thing that absolutely irks me is the already established Youtube Hunting groups who saw the potential profit in the turkey hunting game, and decided to hop on the bandwagon and make that turkey money.

Examples:

Hushin-a group of western elk hunters who are based out of Utah who turned turkey profiteers after noticing the money to be made in turkey game.

Born & Raised Outdoors-Similar story to Hushin, a group of western big game hunters based out of Southern Oregon who also have recently seen the potential profit of our beloved turkey and are now cashing in.

Seek One-A group of hunters from Suburban Atlanta, whose primary efforts were on hunting trophy whitetails in the Atlanta Metro area, this past spring they decided to start doing "turkey tours" which in my opinion was solely to line their pockets with a little cash during their off season. Because, I mean why not? Everyone else is doing it, they might as well hop on and make that money while the gettin is good.

In short, its all about the money now a days. What a shame...

Killing a turkey is easy now?- If it seems like everyone is doing it, and killing turkeys now a days... well thats because it they are. With so many crutches out there now a days, from gobbler decoys, reaping, long range TSS shells, to OnX Hunt. It seems pretty easy. I wonder how many folks would be out on that public dirt if they'd had to go through a more traditional method of using a USGS Topo map coupled with a WMA boundary map rather than their handy dandy Onx Hunt app. How many dominant gobblers would be saved if it weren't for the use of decoys or reaping in the early season? Five years ago it was crazy to shoot a gobbler at 55 yards, today that is a lethal range with TSS. It is sad to think how many birds have been killed at 75+ yards, in my opinion and I believe I speak for every true turkey hunter out there killing a bird at that distance shallows the experience of the interaction with the bird, and defeats the point of turkey hunting. To fool that turkey into getting in close range, so many birds shot over bait now at excessive ranges with tungsten. Sure, you get your social media post... which is a lot of these folks goal. But did you really accomplish something? Also, how bout the former THP intern now running around with a "strutter helmet" on. Yes, you heard that right. This guy is running around Wisconsin with a gobbler decoy taped on his head. Fair chase? I think not. Good way to get shot? I'd say so. Crazy times we are living in...

Social media:In General- I might be starting to repeat myself at this point, but for those of you still reading bear with me. I could go on and on about this. But I'll try to keep it short. Let's start off by mentioning the facebook groups and the subreddit r/turkeyhunting these groups are filled with revealing information posted by locals and travelers alike about turkeys and turkey hunting at XYZ state or WMA. What the heck happened to turkey hunters being liars and keeping secrets? Why is everyone sharing information to random strangers online some even going as far to name the wma, county, or region they hunted in. Stupid if ya ask me. Loose lips sink ships. According to the internet looked as if every turkey hunter was in Maine, Tennessee, or Montana this past spring. And special thanks to the NWTF for hotspotting a specific Nevada WMA in their little turkey call video.
Also, the amount of ridiculous posts I have seen on the internet of people disrespecting dead animals is appaling, no wonder there are so many Anti's! One last thing, for christ's sake people please stop "spot swapping" with strangers on the internet. How shameful, Its one thing to send a buddy to a honey hole or spot you've killed in but c'mon people posting in a Facebook group with 50k people in it, "will trade New Mexico coordinates for Oklahoma coordinates", is just shallow and embarassing. This has got to stop, no wonder everyone just expects to show up in a new state and kill the first day.

Public Land- since when did it become cool to kill a turkey on public land rather than private land. A turkey on public is the exact same as a private land turkey, sure one may be more pressured and a bit more of a challenge but why is it now regarded as some mythical creature or more respected than a private bird? There are guys with well managed private lands getting in the truck heading over to their local national forest as its the trendy cool thing to do. Personally, I hunt about 90% public lands not by choice. If I had the access and financial means to be able to be hunting great private property, you'd never see me at a public gate again. I can only lay blame for this phenomenon to social media and groups such as The Hunting Public and Pinhoti Projject. Hope y'all enjoy all the new public land restrictions in a few southern states this coming season!

More Hunters, More Turkeys- where did this fallacy originate? I'm guessing with the NWTF in a push for more memberships sold. I do understand the logic that if there are more hunters state game agencies and conservation groups will receive more money. But, the resource already has enough strain as is. Not everyone can or should be a turkey hunter. I have never heard a Quail or Woodcock hunter state we need more hunters to increase the population. Perhaps we should take a step back and get involved, donate to NWTF or TFT, many states have an outdoor fund or habitat/turkey stamp you may optionally purchase, burning, stop baiting for deer in summer, habitat improvements. And may I dare suggest don't kill your limit of gobblers out the same block of woods- move on to another. In my opinion all these examples are more beneficial than bringing in new hunters. Just my opinion as an arm chair biologist.

And for the love of God, please quit saying "Thunder Chicken"

If you've made it this far, thanks for reading. Rant Over.

[Chad]

I belive you are preaching to the choir, lol. Youtube stinks. The biggest problem is between our legs. Too dang many peoples.

[Zobo]

You make some good points. I especially like your take on public land , taking long shots on gobblers and the tech savvy coordinate swapers. Nauseating indeed.

[Fdept56]

OnX is by far the biggest "crutch" that I use, but I would love to see states start banning the use of technology like this to aid in hunting. Can it be enforced? Nope, but if it could be then I think you would start seeing a drop in harvest numbers. I'll also keep being hypocritical every time I step in the woods because I'm sure not giving it up until I have to.

[Gooserbat]

What's wrong with "Thunder Chicken"?

[El Pavo Grande]

I don't know about a few of the you tubers you named, but I pretty much agree with everything in your post.  Honestly, our opinion is probably in the minority on such subjects.   The common use of "if it's legal" is the popular argument.  For me personally, that holds very little value when debating this subject.  Remote control, mobile decoys that roll around in a field are legal in some states.....find a better argument than "if it's legal".  Social media posts, YouTube videos, etc. that name specifics are a drain on the resource.  It's irresponsible and damaging.   I've been called arrogant, selfish, elitist, etc. for voicing such an opinion.  So be it.  Too much instant gratification, pressure, and the need for praise that comes along with much of social media.  Technology is great, but it can be a dangerous tool as well.  Just the simple fact of replacing the boots on the ground approach has changed the game drastically and I'd argue very little of it, if any, benefits wildlife.  As you said, many will call you can idiot or other names, but at some point there has to be voices of concern and opposition or no limits will be set to where this goes.  There are a good number that hold these same opinions, but I promise you, we are in the minority. 

[deerhunt1988]

Very well said!

I've found it hilarious all the people making up "slams" so they can be the "first" at their self-designated slam.

You want to know how someone is chasing a US Super Slam? They will tell you!

The good ol' days of heading west to turkey hunt and rarely seeing local hunters....Those days are over. The elk YouTubers you named have made turkey hunting the cool thing to do out west now. The funny thing is some of those same YouTubers used to get offended when folks compared turkey to elk hunting...Now they have hopped on the turkey bandwagon to get those views and expand their brand ($$). Pretty much sell outs if you ask me, stick to what you know, ELK.

Easier to kill than its ever been. Has made turkey hunting lose its mystique and allure.

Social media is the devil. Can't believe what its helped turn turkey hunting into in just 2-3 years. The scary thing? Imagine what we could be faced with just 5 years from now!

Speaking of what we could be faced with in the future, those new public land restrictions! Already saw Alabama and Georgia seriously cut back on public land opportunity for spring 2022. That just sends displaced hunters elsewhere and sets off a chain reaction. Now other states have to combat the increases in public land pressure and face decreasing public land opportunity as well.

More Hunters, Less Public Land Hunting Opportunity is more like it. I couldn't live with myself if I knew I'd caused thousands of turkey hunters to lose so much opportunity by sending the masses to flood specific public lands. All for a little fame and dimes on the dollar. Like you said, even one of the key turkey organizations is now resorting to hot spotting specific public lands. Lovely!



I've never been less proud to be an avid turkey hunter. It is embarrassing what its turned into. I can't even travel now without being compared to YouTubers by the new travelers they've influenced.




Oh who am I kidding...We are going to save the wild turkey through social media and recruitment of more public land hunters!

[eggshell]

I liked your rant. I lay all this crap at the alter of commercialism or more commonly known as the NWTF! They started this commercial crap in the late 80s -90s. If they'd had social media it would have happened faster. The NWTF officers aren't living in shacks in the woods boys!

[GobbleNut]

I agree with most all of the comments made so far.  The popularity of turkey hunting has increased significantly over the last couple of decades.  Folks more and more are just discovering that turkey hunting is "a blast" once they try it.  Fact is, it is addictive because of the turkey's breeding behavior and the resultant interactions a hunter can have with them.  I know when I first experienced a gobbler coming to the call way back in the 1960's, a light bulb came on in my head that said,..."Wow, this is the coolest hunting experience I have ever had"....and I have never looked back.  This from a guy that has had the opportunity to hunt most of the other western big game species and has experienced the attractions of hunting all of them.  I suspect that realization of the unique thrill of hunting spring gobblers hits a lot of people once they try it.  I think there are just tons more folks "discovering" spring gobbler hunting. 

Yes, I could make additional comments on the things we all see are happening as the result of social media and the advent of YouTube and dollar signs getting in people's eyes.  Like it or not, it is a reality that we all will have to adjust to.  That particular horse has left the barn and is not getting put back in. 

Here are a couple of additional observations for consideration:
While hunting opportunities for most other species of game (big game, in particular) are declining, turkey hunting opportunity has remained a constant pretty much across the country.  Here in the west, if you want to hunt most of the big game species, you better be extremely lucky in drawing a tag,...or you better have a lot of money in the bank so you can buy yourself access to an animal.  Conversely, to go turkey hunting, it is just a matter of buying an over-the-counter tag in most states.  That situation, in itself, steers a lot of folks toward turkey hunting when it is the only "sure bet" to get to go hunting in the spring.

In addition, most turkey managers, up until very recently, have viewed wild turkeys as an abundant resource that could be hunted without much concern.  Turkeys have a much greater reproductive potential than our typical mammalian game species, and for the most part have been managed based on that perspective. Three, four, or five-gobbler limits in the spring?  You betcha!  Shoot all the hen turkeys you want in the fall?  Why worry?  They will just replenish themselves anyway so let's just let hunters kill the sh*t out of them!

Bottom line is times have changed and we should all expect significant changes in wild turkey management strategies relating to hunting.  If the issue of reproductive failure is not resolved soon, we can all expect more decisions like the one made in Oklahoma to spread to those areas of the country that are viewed to need it.  The resultant wildfire that creates will send turkey hunters scurrying across the country to those areas not yet affected,...which over time will result in the same thing happening in those places. 

Expect more reductions in season lengths and bag limits.  As for nonresident hunting opportunity, expect limits to be set on nonresident hunter numbers and for those permits to be issued through drawings.  Expect more and more public-land hunting to also be limited and permits to be allotted through draws, whether for residents or nonresidents. 

Those kinds of changes, in themselves, will resolve some of the issues created by the social media exploitation of turkey hunting.  It won't matter if the local YouTuber tells the world where the best public-land hunting spot is in Timbuktu.  Permits are going to be limited,...and you will have to be one of the lucky fellows that draws a permit to go there and kill a single gobbler in a five-day period. 

...At least from the perspective of this commenter, THAT is where we are headed...   

[jhoward11]

My rant would be, it's all about money!!! Everything that was mentioned. From the slams, social media, youtube, cameras, decoys, blinds and everything else. The root of it all, is it is about money...including the Thunder chicken, lol.  Money can't buy you happiness....Oh wait...but it can buy you a boat, and it can buy you a truck to pull it. Sorry...I went country on you all. I'm not against someone trying to make money, but sometimes the way they do it. Not going to put down anyone for making a better mouse trap. Some people would like to be millionaires, and some are fine with where there at. I'm fine where I'm at.

[Greg Massey]

Everyone uses social media, to get recognition. I tend to worry less about these people and pretty much worry more about myself.. How i hunt is no ones business but my own. If you don't care for the way i hunt that fine, that all up to you and your opinion. I do agree with less numbers of turkey's bag limit's will change. But hey if you have access to land go out and make improvements to attract more wildlife including turkeys, you will be surprised what a small clover plot can do..I don't think blaming the NWTF is the all the problem. The NWTF goal was to attract members and i do think they have somewhat lost their ways among most of us, but being one of the few organizations we have i still will support them IMO..

[El Pavo Grande]

Gobblenut,
I agree with the opinion that the "cat's already out of the bag" and it's not going back in anytime soon.  Damage has been done unfortunately. 

I was involved in a similar ongoing discussion in another forum.  The two sides couldn't have been any further apart.  My biggest argument concerning social media and forum posts is to just be responsible.  A good steward of the resource would not be irresponsible in sharing too much information.  One is called selfish for not divulging information or calling out someone posting pictures at WMA signs.  Yet, I'd argue the selfishness is in broadcasting such information.  But, what I noticed in that sample size was the attitude on the opposite side to just accept "the times".  Argued the need for hunter recruitment while also calling for more draw permits as a alternative to our argument to simply squelch the information free flow.   First, let's not justify social media posts as hunter recruitment, yet calling for increased hunter restrictions by increased draw hunts.   That makes no sense.  Just be responsible.... It's that simple.  Either you are a good steward for the turkey populations and the future of turkey hunting or your not.  In that forum I noticed the following.  1.  Only the die hard turkey hunters with a vested interest in populations and the future of turkey hunting drew a hard line against social media posts.  2.  Several that I feel confident would hold the same opinions, stayed away from the conversation for fear of negative rebuttal from the majority.   3.  The majority had no issues with specifics being shared on social media or the promoting of public lands....almost all of these could take it or leave it.  Turkeys and turkey hunting aren't necessarily a priority.  A few of which threatened to even increase the flow of information just for spite.  Makes sense.

[redjones]

Quick question for the OP is "Reaping" your perferred method of shooting Turkeys,not judging just wondering.

       Greg

[Shiloh]

And in the meantime while all of this banter does no good.......go trap a Coon or a possum (or 20) and knock him in the head!!!

[TurkeyReaper69]

Quick question for the OP is "Reaping" your perferred method of shooting Turkeys,not judging just wondering.

       Greg

No sir, never reaped a turkey in my life. when I made this account I had no idea what "reaping turkeys" was. Honestly I'm a little embarrassed of my username, and have thought about making a new account over it.