Luke warm bird across creek

[Getdrove101]

Made my first turkey hunt of the year on my place. Got 4 gobbles at daylight. Bird was across a creek roosted next to a cow pasture. He wasn't really hot but would gobble every 10-15 minutes. Had 2 hens pitch across the creek going to him. This is the second time I've been on a bird that seems to want to stay in the field across the creek (creek is property line). What's the best way to entice him to my side? Also in another spot I watched 2 different hens feeding in a field, I have seen them there multiple times. If I hunt there in the mornings, wouldn't they eventually bring a gobbler with them? Sorry for rookie questions, still working on my first bird and I'm only in my 3rd turkey season. Figuring it out as I go! Thanks for any help



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[Marc]

I have had some luck getting birds to cross property lines later in the morning...  Wait till the hens are gone, go to the edge of the property and call till the bird answers, or better yet gets worked up...

As soon as that happens, walk away while (further on to your own property) while calling.  This is one of the times I tend to call more aggressively, with lots of cutting and lonely desperate yelping.

I get as close to where the bird is as possible, and will often walk towards a good area for crossing (in your case, an area where the creek is higher on his side than yours).  So I might go parallel and slightly away to get him to a local he might want to cross.

It does not work very often to draw them over, but (if it does) as soon as he is on your side, stop calling and wait...

Otherwise, knock on the neighbor's door...

[zelmo1]

Marc is spot on. Great advice. They can be fooled, better to try it later on, when the hens leave the toms.

[Honolua]

Marc's right. Often, if I know where a gobbler is I will back way out to call and then move forward quietly and catch him looking for me as opposed to hanging up. I will also call a lot further out on the way to a spot for the same reason.

I have seen them hang up on creeks, thickets, fence lines (that they could easily go under). When I set up in the morning I try to do so in a spot where there are no such barriers or obstacles for that reason.

I actually had one hang up on the other side of a thick privet thicket last week. He was literally 20 feet from me and completely obscured by the privet and he wouldn't go through it.

[daveco]

I agree with others; you will have to wait it out until the hens leave him.  Once, I was hunting along a small river (small, not the Mississippi, maybe 40 yds wide), and had a vocal gobbler come in along the opposite bank.  He wouldn't cross, and legal hunting hrs. ran out.  I called the land owner that night and he gave me permission to hunt on his side of the river.  That gobbler was gobbling on the roost at 4:30 AM.  I set up by the river, and when the bird finally flew down and headed my way, I realized he was on the other side, again.  This time, he flew to my side, which surprised the heck out of me.  I'm sure he had crossed the afternoon before, looking for me, but probably preferred the other side, which made it easier for him to fly back over to me.  He must not have had hens around, and he was really, at that time, on the fringe of where any turkeys were living.  That was back in 1986; now the whole area is loaded with turkeys.

[WyoHunter]

I have had some luck getting birds to cross property lines later in the morning...  Wait till the hens are gone, go to the edge of the property and call till the bird answers, or better yet gets worked up...

As soon as that happens, walk away while (further on to your own property) while calling.  This is one of the times I tend to call more aggressively, with lots of cutting and lonely desperate yelping.

I get as close to where the bird is as possible, and will often walk towards a good area for crossing (in your case, an area where the creek is higher on his side than yours).  So I might go parallel and slightly away to get him to a local he might want to cross.

It does not work very often to draw them over, but (if it does) as soon as he is on your side, stop calling and wait...

Otherwise, knock on the neighbor's door...

Good advice!

[sixbird]

Sometimes you can get a recalcitrant bird to come if you set up a scenario by using hen yelps for a short time, then open up with a gobble like an interloper is closing on some hens. They're sometimes taken by jealousy and can't help themselves. You can also try adding a little tussle. Some fighting purrs and beating wings and some cackles like somebody is opening a can of whoop a$$ on somebody else. Jealous hens fighting over a closing tom. Works sometimes...