Turkey Hunting Tips

[SonicBanshee]

Just wandering if some of you all could share some of your best advice

[WildTigerTrout]

Go to bed early, you have to get up REAL early. As far as calls are concerned you MUST practice and then practice some more. If you make a mistake calling to a real bird keep going as though nothing happened. Even real birds make mistakes. Good luck.

[jakesdad]

P            A             T            I              E            N             C                E!!!!!!!!I believe lack of patience saves more gobblers necks than anything else.

[DMP]

Learn the land.  Figure out how the birds use the land.

[guesswho]

Set-up in the shade, choose your set-up based more on what an approaching turkey will see instead of what you will see.   Don't make turkey hunting complicated by overthinking.   Don't try to out think a bird that can't think, you'll lose more times than not.  Give a turkey's ears as much or more credit than his eye's.  And last, don't pay any attention to aything I say on these forums.   

[chatterbox]

Set-up in the shade, choose your set-up based more on what an approaching turkey will see instead of what you will see.   Don't make turkey hunting complicated by overthinking.   Don't try to out think a bird that can't think, you'll lose more times than not.  Give a turkey's ears as much or more credit than his eye's.  And last, don't pay any attention to aything I say on these forums.   

Pay close attention to what this man says!

[spurman]

P            A             T            I              E            N             C                E!!!!!!!!I believe lack of patience saves more gobblers necks than anything else.

You have to have this P            A             T            I              E            N             C                E!!!!!!!!

[Curtdawg88]

Some have mentioned similar and related advice but I'm going to give some good advice that was given me when I first started. There are 3 P's to turkey hunting and if you follow them you will have a greater success rate.
P- patience. Just because he's not gobbling doesn't mean he's not coming in. Sit tight.
P- persistence. Stay after them. If they get the best of you one day (which will happen more often than not), LEARN something from it and go after them the next day. The oldest most experienced turkey hunter learns something new everything he goes out.
P- position. As stated above, set up based on what the turkey will see not what you can see. Stay in the shade. If you aren't hunting with a decoy, don't set up where the gobbler can see where the hen should be from a long way off. Make him get close before he can see where the sound is coming from. I like to try and make him top a ridge within gun range before he can see where the hen should be.

I am by no means an expert on turkey hunting and still pretty green myself but this info has helped me and held true.


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[SonicBanshee]

I appreaciate all the good advice and will use it all here in my 2nd year of turkey hunting now to ride away to finish work....

[Basin_hunter]

If you hunt public land NEVER tell ANYONE where you hunt. I don't even tell anyone what WMA's i hunt. This is one of the golden rules of turkey hunting. Lots of horror stories now a days with unethical hunters slipping in between a hunter and the bird he is working. Patience is the most important part of turkey hunting. It took me years to learn patience. Good luck !

[Curtdawg88]

If you hunt public land NEVER tell ANYONE where you hunt. I don't even tell anyone what WMA's i hunt. This is one of the golden rules of turkey hunting. Lots of horror stories now a days with unethical hunters slipping in between a hunter and the bird he is working. Patience is the most important part of turkey hunting. It took me years to learn patience. Good luck !

No truer words have ever been spoken!  I took a "friend" to a public land spot of that I had found and I am new to the sport so I took him to help me learn a little.  I ended up killing my first turkey on this particular hunt.  I didn't expect him to forget where I had taken him, but then he started bringing other people to that spot!! It's ok though, I found an even better spot where I called up 8 gobblers in one morning!  He can have that other spot!

[timberjack86]

If you hunt public land NEVER tell ANYONE where you hunt. I don't even tell anyone what WMA's i hunt. This is one of the golden rules of turkey hunting. Lots of horror stories now a days with unethical hunters slipping in between a hunter and the bird he is working. Patience is the most important part of turkey hunting. It took me years to learn patience. Good luck !

No truer words have ever been spoken!  I took a "friend" to a public land spot of that I had found and I am new to the sport so I took him to help me learn a little.  I ended up killing my first turkey on this particular hunt.  I didn't expect him to forget where I had taken him, but then he started bringing other people to that spot!! It's ok though, I found an even better spot where I called up 8 gobblers in one morning!  He can have that other spot!

[El Pavo Grande]

Curtdawg88 made a great post with the 3 Ps and I agree that keeping your hunting spots secret is a key.  I don't share specific information with anyone except for a close few.  I've been down that road a couple of times now.  Simply understanding turkey behaivor gives you an idea of why they do what they do and understanding that will make you more successful.

[El Pavo Grande]

I also think recognizing what phase of the breeding cycle you are hunting and adjust your hunting approach accordingly can be beneficial.

[Rio]

When you wake up from a shady midday siesta (it happens), do not make any sudden moves. Don't ask how I know this....