Tactics for gobblers going the other way

[jdlong123]

I've been turkey hunting for about 7 or 8 years now, and since my father was never really into turkey hunting, I've had to learn mostly on my own. I'm starting to get better each season, but every year, I'm sure a lot of hunter experience the situation where a gobbler is burning it up to your calls(Henned up) and goes the opposite direction and keeps on going. I always get stumped during the situations, because most times, they will stop gobbling and it seems like they're in the next county. What do you guys do in these situations?

[land cruiser]

My first tactic is to try getting him later in the day, day around 10-11

Also, if you can piss off the hen she will come to you with gobbler in tow. I try it as the last resort.

[chatterbox]

My first tactic is to try getting him later in the day, day around 10-11

Also, if you can piss off the hen she will come to you with gobbler in tow. I try it as the last resort.

Good advice. Once his hens leave him, he will be lonely and looking. This is the perfect time to kill him IMO.
Now, if this doesn't work, and you sense a pattern with this bird, beat him to where he is going the next morning. Chances are, he is heading to his strut zone, where he feels safe, and can display for his girls.
These are the things I would try if it were me.

[J Hook Max]

Let him go on his way and the next morning be waiting in the place he went to.

[guesswho]

Fall in behind them and try to figure out where they are headed, but pay attention, their not the only turkeys around.  Put what you learned in your memory bank.  Kill him on the next hunt.  Chances are good their going to naturally head to that same general location, be it a field or open area in timber.  They may not roost in the same spot but they will probably be heading to the same area they did the first day.  He will be a lot easier to entice if your already close to where their heading.

If you want to kill him that day you have to hang with him.  Try him every hour or so.  If you can manage to get close and not behind him or them, you stand a chance.  I wouldn't bother calling from where he was, usually not a productive tactic.

[El Pavo Grande]

I agree with all the above.  You can shadow them, but never had great luck with that unless it is late morning.  In that scenario it depends on what breeding phase they are in.  If hens aren't leaving him all day then your chances are much less, but if they are leaving him to nest at some point the late morning / mid day times may be very good.  If you have scouted or are familiar with where they are going, you might be able to get around and in front of them if time and land allows.  But, I wouldn't risk spooking them if not comfortable with that.  It's often best to be patient and keep tabs on him over the next few days if you can.  It's like flipping a switch sometimes and one morning he may be willing and ready. 

[drum817]

You could also make a BIG circle on the bird and try to get in front of him.  I have had some success with this tactic as well.  You need to have a good idea or guess where he might be headed.  If he has hens do not call, because the hens will more than likely just go in yet another direction.  Also, if you circle him...go WIDE...if you cut the circle to tight you will get busted.

[jims]

One of the posts mentions to "piss off the lead hen" to come in your direction.  I've seen this in other posts before but how exactly do you piss off the lead hen?  Do you interupt her if she is calling, give excited cackles or what?

[paboxcall]

One of the posts mentions to "piss off the lead hen" to come in your direction.  I've seen this in other posts before but how exactly do you piss off the lead hen?  Do you interupt her if she is calling, give excited cackles or what?

Very aggressive and agitated yelping and cutting over top the hen's yelping and cutting with the goal of upsetting the hen to the point she comes to you looking to establish the proper pecking order.  I've been able to do this a few times, and each time the gobbler came in following the dominant hen.  More often than not, aggressively calling over top the dominant hen and interrupting her did not change her mind, and she continued to move away from my set up.  It's worth the try, but in a big woods setting seems like the hens prefer going somewhere else to be left alone rather than come looking for a fight.

[El Pavo Grande]

Doesn't work all the time, or even a majority, but worth the effort at times.....If you are at least getting a little interest (ocassional gobble), walk away and cutt aggressively every 30 yards or so.  If his gobbling increases or he seems to finally be closing the distance, slip back towards him and sit down.   Sometimes the temptation of the hen leaving will entice him to leave the hens or lead the hens into your lap.  This works best with two people if you can leave the shooter ready as one walks away.

The best example, and still one of my most memorable hunts, was an old, long-spurred swamp gobbler a friend and I had hunted for a couple of days.  I had scouted him for a couple of weeks before season and we were very close to killing him the first two days, but just couldn't seal the deal.  It was storming the third morning and my friend was set to return to his house (3 hours away) later that day, so we waited for a small break in the rain and slipped into the bottom.  We got on the gobbler a short time later, but as usual he had 4 or 5 hens with him.  And today he had flown across a slough heading the other way.  We would get an occasional gobble, but nothing more.  As the rain started to intensify again, I told him I was headed out to work.  He decided to stay for a bit longer, so I told him to ease closer to the slough.  I started walking away and would turn and cutt aggressively every little ways.  I noticed a quick increase in gobbling.  I had probably went about 125 yards and I heard my friend shoot.  When I got back to him he said the gobbler appeared with the hens in tow.  The gobbler pitched into the nearside creek bank and the hens followed in flight landing within 15 steps of him.  The gobbler emerged from the creek and met his demise. 
Side note:  For 2+ weeks he was the only turkey I heard gobble in that vicinity and he roosted in a fairly small area.  By the next morning another gobbler was playing role of the big boy tending his hens.  I killed him that next morning.  The only reason I went back in there was I saw a gobbler cross the logging road in the rain as my friend and I walked out the day before.  I really think the first gobbler had the others too spooked to gobble much. if any, in his area.

[Pressured Gobbler]

One of the posts mentions to "piss off the lead hen" to come in your direction.  I've seen this in other posts before but how exactly do you piss off the lead hen?  Do you interupt her if she is calling, give excited cackles or what?

Lol that works like never for me....

[fenderhunt4]

If it's early in the day, I try to swing around in front of him. I sometimes switch calls on him in a new setup. If no, reponse, I try the first type of call again, just to see if it will fire him up again.

If he's gobbling all the time but headed fast in one other direction, I figure he has a hen leading him away or anxious to get to a strut zone. Either way, I make a mental note of where I last heard him and slip in much later during the day and set up. I'll call sparingly and just spend a few hours waiting and watching for him to slip in.

The third thing I do if I don't have any success the first day as get on that side of his roost tree the next morning and wait for him to come my direction. Calling may or may not happen depending on if there are any hens.

[eddie234]

Last year i sat and called all morning. I moved to a different location and about mid day i ended up back to my origional calling spot and ran into the biggest turkey i had ever seen. He spooked but i learned something that day.

Sent from my ZTE-Z990G using Tapatalk 2

[CASH]

Shootem in the back of the head instead of the face

[THattaway]

Guesswho gave some good advice.
Depends on the situation and timing of the season. If it's early and toms are with hens all day I'll try circling to get ahead if nothing else works. If it's midway through the season I'll just linger and loaf in the area till he comes back, they most often do. If it's a spot I may not hunt again during the season I will be more aggresive than somewhere I can devote more time. If Tom does something once I will be there to intercept the second time. If he does something twice he is usually dead.