Calling tips needed

[lunghit]

I only have a few birds to my name and I am learning a lot every season but can use some calling tips. One issue I have is I live 250 miles from my hunting camp so scouting is not really an option. I usually get to my property the day before opening day and go out "blind" the next morning. I start with my box call, soft calling and get louder a few minutes later on the next calling sequence. Now the birds I have killed came straight in to the box call and once in sight no other calling was necessary. My question is what other hen noises do you use and when to use them. Clucks, purs, cutts, yelps etc.  Maybe someone can link a youtube video or point me in the right direction. Thanks in advance.

[southern_leo]

Is it possible to go down two days before opening day to scout for a day? Maybe roost one the night prior.

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[lunghit]

Is it possible to go down two days before opening day to scout for a day? Maybe roost one the night prior.

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Yes I can do that. I have been deer hunting this property for 20 years and do have very good knowledge of the property I hunt. During the deer season I hear many roosting in the evening and see lots of birds in certain areas almost every time I hunt. We also run lots of trail cameras and see many of birds on these cams. But yes for the most part I can get up there a day or two earlier and try to roost one.

[Spitten and drummen]

as you grow into a turkey hunter , you want to expand to different type calls and learn all the sounds you can that turkeys make. the truth is the basic yelping and clucking is the call that has killed a ton of turkeys. there are plenty of videos of live hens along with audio recordings that you can find by searching the internet. you can go to amazon or search for cds that can help you.  stick with it and listen to as many live birds as possible and you will increase the vocabulary. if you really get the bug ,  before you know it you will have most of the turkey sounds burned into your memory and gradually incorporate them into your calling. rythem and realism is what you need to work on more than pitch in my opinion. instead of 5 monotone yelps , start a couple soft , rise in pitch with a couple and drop off with a couple followed by a cluck or 2. then next change up . when you start adding a little realism in your calling , you will see a difference. hope this helps some. stick with it and good luck.

[WillowRidgeCalls]

As you stated, you know your hunting area very well, and you see birds in certain areas quite often. That's a huge help, birds frequent certain areas for a reason, both spring and fall. If you know where the roosting areas are, again that's a big help. If the birds are not roosting on your hunting land in the spring, you can go to their roosting area that they use in the fall and bait them! I'm not talking about bait as a food bait, you sound bait them. You can go into a roost area an hour or so before fly up time and use your box call, call loud and raunchy, make all sorts of racket with you call, yelps--fightin purrs, cackles, cuts, and call for about 10 min solid calling, then ease out of that area and leave it alone till next morning. Get back in to that same area that you where in last night well before daylight and sit quiet, at daylight do a few soft tree yelps and wait for an answer. Birds will and do move during the night, if there was a bird that heard you making that racket, more times than not he'll be within 80yds of where you were calling last night, the next morning. If you don't have a lot of scouting time that works very well for ya. As S&D said learn to control your calling, even if you only know how to run a couple different calls, learn how to tone them down or perk them up if needed. Tone, volume, and cadence are the most important things to learn on a call, the sound of it really makes no difference, the sound is only for a hunters ears, or a judges ear. Never, and I repeat Never be afraid to try something different, even if it's something completely off the wall, on a bird that not playing the game right, you have nothing to loose by trying it, that bird isn't coming in, so you've already lost him. You'll find some of the strangest thing that work on stubborn birds. You said you've seen and heard a lot of birds in the fall deer stands, so you have a good idea of the calls they make, use those same calls in the spring, birds are birds they make the same calls year round, some work better in the spring or in the fall, but they make the same calls year round.

[lunghit]

I appreciate the tips so far. I never thought about the "bait" trick but I might have to give it a try. Going to spend some time on youtube and listen to them. Cant wait for May 1st.

[lunghit]

Another question. I have 2 Hooks diaphragm calls and one is much more raspy than the other. Is one better than the other?

[Jbird22]

Another question. I have 2 Hooks diaphragm calls and one is much more raspy than the other. Is one better than the other?

There's no such thing as the "best" mouth call. You have to find the one that fits your calling style the best. The best for you might not be the best for me. There are some that I just can't run like other folks can and vice versa I'm sure.

[WillowRidgeCalls]

Early in the season your raspier call will work better for you, mid to late season the smoother sounding call will get more responses through out the day. Your raspy call will still work good early and late in the day. Your older hens in the flock are the first birds to breed and the younger birds breed later in the season, so match your calls and calling to that, and that can change from one year to the next do to the weather conditions. That's why one year a certain sounding call does fantastic, people buy a boat load of that call, the next year people can't get a bird to work using that call, so they blame the call or the people that suggested it. If you didn't pay attention to the seasons temps and breeding cycles of the birds, the only one to blame is yourself.

[Spitten and drummen]

Early in the season your raspier call will work better for you, mid to late season the smoother sounding call will get more responses through out the day. Your raspy call will still work good early and late in the day. Your older hens in the flock are the first birds to breed and the younger birds breed later in the season, so match your calls and calling to that, and that can change from one year to the next do to the weather conditions. That's why one year a certain sounding call does fantastic, people buy a boat load of that call, the next year people can't get a bird to work using that call, so they blame the call or the people that suggested it. If you didn't pay attention to the seasons temps and breeding cycles of the birds, the only one to blame is yourself.

great advice right here.

[WillowRidgeCalls]

lunghit, in the spring is there usually more than one gobbler, gobbling on your hunting land?

[grayfox]

You can go into a roost area an hour or so before fly up time and use your box call, call loud and raunchy, make all sorts of racket with you call, yelps--fightin purrs, cackles, cuts, and call for about 10 min solid calling, then ease out of that area and leave it alone till next morning. Get back in to that same area that you where in last night well before daylight and sit quiet, at daylight do a few soft tree yelps and wait for an answer. Birds will and do move during the night, if there was a bird that heard you making that racket, more times than not he'll be within 80yds of where you were calling last night, the next morning.

I'd also like to thank you for that advise. Never heard that one before & I'm always seeking more tips. Having had to learn the hard way on high pressure public land hadn't been easy.

[WillowRidgeCalls]

You can go into a roost area an hour or so before fly up time and use your box call, call loud and raunchy, make all sorts of racket with you call, yelps--fightin purrs, cackles, cuts, and call for about 10 min solid calling, then ease out of that area and leave it alone till next morning. Get back in to that same area that you where in last night well before daylight and sit quiet, at daylight do a few soft tree yelps and wait for an answer. Birds will and do move during the night, if there was a bird that heard you making that racket, more times than not he'll be within 80yds of where you were calling last night, the next morning.

I'd also like to thank you for that advise. Never heard that one before & I'm always seeking more tips. Having had to learn the hard way on high pressure public land hadn't been easy.

I prefer high pressured birds, for me they are easier to work and fit my style of calling. I usually choose the 3rd week of the season to start, letting the birds get hunted the first 2 weeks. High pressured bird require a different style of calling to be successful.  Public land is all I hunt.

[KentuckyHeadhunter]

Scott I'm impressed!  You really sound like you need to write a book.  Them tongue teasers must be the secret!  Great info and advice, thanks for sharing.

[Fan Club]

My question is what other hen noises do you use and when to use them. Clucks, purrs, cutts, yelps, etc.  Maybe someone can link a you tube video or point me in the right direction. Thanks in advance.

You've received some great advice so far but no one has specifically answered your question. The yelp is the main form of communication from the hen and it basically means "Here I am and I wouldn't mind some company." The cutt indicates that the hen is excited and ready to breed. Use it sparingly though, because if the gobbler thinks you are that excited he will just wait for the hen to come to him. It can be used to agitate other hens though and possibly pull a group to you bringing a tom with them. Clucks and purrs are what old time turkey men term "Confidence calls." They are used if a gobbler has hung up at a distance or has gone silent but still may be coming in. They are intended to give the gobbler confidence that all is well and that other content turkeys are nearby. The single cluck means "I am over here" and a purr is a signal of contentment and indicates the turkey is relaxed, just like a cat purr.  Use these calls judiciously too. If a gobbler can see all the way to your location and you call, he will pinpoint the source of the calling and if other turkeys or decoys are not present he will go on alert. As a final note, a single cluck can be used to get a gobbler to raise his head for the shot if you are ready and he is in range.

This is of course a nutshell calling primer and location and strategy factors can come into play. There are scores of YouTube videos showing how make each call but most don't tell you when or why to use each call, if they did they would be an hour long. Ray Eye's DVD "Calling Is Everything" does both, giving calling instruction and practical use application and discusses strategy. Highly recommended if you could have only one instructional video. Let us know how you do this Spring!

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