Public land trip....Where would you go?

[atoler]

looking for ideas, not specifics. If you would like to share specifics, please do so by pm.

A friend and I are looking to go somewhere oos to hunt this year. We will be taking off April 15-21. We are driving from alabama/georgia and would like to keep it within a 14-15hr drive. On our minds are ks, ky, indiana,ohio,tx, and open to other suggestions. We want to go to states that you can kill more than one bird and have good opportunities. I'm curious to know what states tend to be better from yalls experiences. I've always been under the impression that if you can kill limits on al/ga public land, then you're good to go anywhere else. Is this true or false?

thanks for the imput fellas, we are trying to put this together on a budget.

[CntrlPA]

Come to Pa and try out your theory. Lots of public land to choose from, everything from farm land  to large mountains. The only thing is our season doesn't come in until a couple weeks later. Good luck.

[whiskey]

Check out Land Between the Lakes. KY or TN side.

[WildSpur]

Come to Pa and try out your theory. Lots of public land to choose from, everything from farm land  to large mountains. The only thing is our season doesn't come in until a couple weeks later. Good luck.

We are blessed in pa.  Our season is a little later than everyone else like mentioned.  You can also throw in trout fishing too.  There are soke really good streams in pa too.

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[AUDoubleBeard]

Well you can always come out to KS and do some hunting out here.......

[J Hook Max]

 You don't have to go very far. There is some excellent public hunting in Tennessee , just North of the Alabama line. Also Land Between the Lakes is good. Ft. Campbell Army base allow hunting and is also very good.
Also , there is good hunting in Missouri on National Forest land but quite a bit of pressure.

[atoler]

Well you can always come out to KS and do some hunting out here.......

we might, just kinda thinkin that if you're not gonna be there, then we might as well hunt places closer to us, if the hunting is equivelant. locked up some pasture land down here today. should be money. 1200 acres of hay fields and pasture.

[atoler]

You don't have to go very far. There is some excellent public hunting in Tennessee , just North of the Alabama line. Also Land Between the Lakes is good. Ft. Campbell Army base allow hunting and is also very good.
Also , there is good hunting in Missouri on National Forest land but quite a bit of pressure.

preciate the info. I've been looking at LbL and it looks awesome. the only catch is, you can only shoot 1 bird in each state on it. And if we are out there for 6 days, 2 birds is gonna be very limiting. I thought about shooting the 1 in tennessee then moving to the kentucky side and killin another. but thats a lot of money in licenses.

I'm kinda running into the same problem with missouri. It would appear that we would only be able to kill 1 bird up there as well, during the first split. I've got access to tons of private land in missouri that my dad deer hunts on. not worth driving 30hrs round trip for a half day of huntin.

[jakebird]

Come to Pa and try out your theory. Lots of public land to choose from, everything from farm land  to large mountains. The only thing is our season doesn't come in until a couple weeks later. Good luck.

Ditto. Plus we have the added benefit of a later opener which means u can hit a fwd other close states like wva  and hit us last. I can steer you into some nice pockets of public land bird that will test  your skills and patience  lol . Just say the word , brother....

[whiskey]

If you score at LBL on the TN side, you can hunt Cross Creeks or a few of the nearby WMA's at little added cost.

Fort Campbell is close too, but can be tough to conquer on a short trip. Lots of rules, lots of hunters.

I didn't know LBL was one bird per state.

I have hunted Missouri around Mark Twain Lake and South Fork Resort. Lots of public Corp land and lots of turkeys. Only one turkey the opening week though. Maybe you could time it right to hunt both weeks 

[bushwhacker]

Check out Nebraska, I hunted there a few years ago and it was dynamite. Turkeys out the yang and it's cheap. First bird is going to run you about $125 then you pay considerable less for each after that. I'm thinking its a three bird limit but can't remember for sure. Thinking o goin back this year myself. Plus there's the opportunity to kill an eastern, merriams, rio plus hybrids.

[bushwhacker]

I'm from southeast Missouri and it would be worth your time to come this year. We have had two excellent hatches the past two years and should have a good batch of gobbling two year olds. I only hunt public land, mark twain national forest, and it's just typical public land hunting. They have heard every call that's out and know every trick. My strategy is to walk farther and call less than the average Joe. These hills have been good to me as I have filled at least one tag since 2002 but it's no walk in the park, You are going to earn them but I wouldn't have it any other way.

[El Pavo Grande]

While consistently killing AL/GA public land gobblers suggests you can get it done, I have learned over the years that other factors can affect the outcome of short out of state hunts.  Timing can make all the difference....couple of days too early or a couple of days too late.  I have seen it be a struggle to kill turkeys even in some high quality areas.  Tag soup doesn't taste so great, but if you hunt and travel enough it's bound to happen sooner or later.

[strut2]

Glad to hear your a fello public ground hunter. I am sure if there is a lot of pressure where you hunt you will do fine in any other state. but with only a few days to hunt hopefully you get on the birds right away. I haven't had the chance to hunt Georgia or Alabama yet but planning on heading there next year. I live in Pennsylvania and our season doesn't come in until April 27th so it doesn't fall in the dates you are considering going. But I do recommend Nebraska (april 13) and Kansas (april 10th).I am heading to Nebraska Kansas and Oklahoma this spring plus Pennsylvania of course. But I will say my favorite states that I have hunted are South Dakota and Wyoming . Which is alittle farther than you wanted to travel.  Where ever you decide to head I wish you the best of luck!

[gobbler336]

hmmm, curious as to why you pick the 15-21, ya'lls season is still in then, i assume you think you should have tagged out by then, 8 birds by april 15 is doing it.  if a challenge is what you want then just head east over to sc and hunt the sumter national forest, that is absolutely hands down the toughest place to kill birds i have run across and the limit is 5.  i hunt about 3 or 4 different states each year and that place will humble ya, i have yet to kill 5 in a week there.  if ya head west the birds are gonna be easier, i have heard that LBL gets hammered, though i haven't tried my hand there.  if you wait a couple weeks you will have alot more options up north.  OH would be a good option, find a place you like and call the local warden, they can be a wealth of info.