Roosted is roasted, sort of...

[catman529]

Tennessee opening day started out with good gobbling on the roost and then quiet all day long.

Finally as the sun got lower, a couple of birds started to gobble some.

Toward sunset, I was on a ridge, and a bird lit up down in the creek bottom. He was gobbling at an owl hooting which turned into a bunch of owls hooting. I hooted and then gave him some yelps. Long story short, he came in close enough I could hear his footsteps, but not see him due to trees.

13 minutes after sunset and legal shooting hours, he flew up to a tree about 40 yards from me. Another bird had roosted farther down the ridge, and he was lit the heck up, gobbled for over 30 minutes past sunset.

So I got out there first thing this morning, extra early to make sure nobody else parked there first. I snuck into place, and as it started to get light out, I could see him, and he started to gobble. At the same time, I heard twigs popping to my right...soon I could see another hunter creeping in to set up on this bird.

I tried shining my light once, but he didn't see it, and I didn't want to spook the bird. I made a few yelps but that didn't tip him off either.

I watched him creep closer and closer to the bird until I couldn't see him, and got that bad feeling...a few minutes later, the bird started putting, and BOOM he fell dead out of the tree.

Another guy popped out of nowhere and they both ran down the ridge to the bird, and I followed.

It was two guys from Arkansas and apparently they were the first "owl" I heard across the creek yesterday. They had roosted him from a distance and then came in on my side this morning. I asked if they saw me, or heard my calls, and they had not, they were surprised they had walked right past me in the cedars. I asked if they saw my truck, they said yes they thought I was hunting one of the fields. I said no I never hunt those fields, if you ever see my truck I'm here in the woods.

So I went on to chase the other gobbler down the ridge, he was hot. I got to a thicket where I couldn't get any closer because he was roosted right there, maybe 40 yards from me. I saw him come down and then never saw him again as he gobbled and drummed through the undergrowth. After about 15 mins of this, I saw two hens fly the creek below over to my side, and off they all went onto private property, followed by a group of jakes.

It's been quiet since then, but I'm trying a few different spots to try and strike one today.

The good thing is I have all week off work to chase turkeys.




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[pabossie255]

Yeah right they didn't know you were there. Had the same thing happen to me and my buddy last spring we set up started calling had 4 birds gobbling back could tell the one was on a string to us after it got light. Had a guy to the right of us call i yealped bas what's he do shuts up and circles us we could see the bird in the woods coming then bang the guy jumped up grabbed the bird and ran.

[Spitten and drummen]

Im suprized that you didnt mention the simple act of the roost shooting to this idiots. It would have been no way i could have held my tongue. Couldnt really say anything about the rest of it because it sounds like public land , but shooting one off the limb is about as low down as you can get.

[catman529]

Im suprized that you didnt mention the simple act of the roost shooting to this idiots. It would have been no way i could have held my tongue. Couldnt really say anything about the rest of it because it sounds like public land , but shooting one off the limb is about as low down as you can get.

I did say they should have let him fly down and he would have come right to one of us. To which the guy replied "we drove 5 hours to hunt here". I shot one off the limb a few years ago when I was pretty new to turkey hunting. I accidentally found myself 10 yards from his tree and he was only my 2nd longbeard. I wouldn't do it again, but have no regrets. There were no trucks parked when I did it and was by myself. Me personally if I drive 5 hours to hunt I want the enjoyment of calling one in. But on public land you have to be ready for anything to happen.


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[Rzrbac]

That's public for sure.  Hate to hear about roost shooting, I rank that the same as spotlighting deer.

[surehuntsalot]

roost shooting ranks right up there with poaching in my book

[C.Kimzey95]

Man that sucks.. good luck the rest of the week!

[rockymtngobblers]

I was set up before  light on a roost only to have an idiot shoot a hen out of it, same guy that walked right in an ruin my hunt with a responding gobbler

I'm 100 percent against roost shooting in my opinion that ain't  hunting although legal here I don't think it's ETHICAL at all !

[Cutt]

I did say they should have let him fly down and he would have come right to one of us. To which the guy replied "we drove 5 hours to hunt here". I shot one off the limb a few years ago when I was pretty new to turkey hunting. I accidentally found myself 10 yards from his tree and he was only my 2nd longbeard. I wouldn't do it again, but have no regrets.

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Not sure I understand your reactions? First roost shooting is wrong, and illegal everywhere as far as I know. Secondly was it even legal shooting hours? He did it twice, but will not do it again?, I have no doubt this idiot would do it again, maybe not if he see's your truck there, other than that I'm sure he'd do it again.

[1iagobblergetter]

Imo I'm not sure how a person could get any satisfaction doing  that. Ya he got a turkey and i have no problem with different methods of killing one,but if i needed one that bad I think I'd probably save the effort and just go to the store. I enjoy the calling aspect of it way to much for that...

[MK M GOBL]

Imo I'm not sure how a person could get any satisfaction doing  that. Ya he got a turkey and i have no problem with different methods of killing one,but if i needed one that bad I think I'd probably save the effort and just go to the store. I enjoy the calling aspect of it way to much for that...

X2

Although legal to do in WI, I have no interest in this "Method"... I know of a guy who has done this many times, I "hunted" with him once and I had been owl hooting and got a bird to gobble, he asked me to hold back and hoot a bit and he would move in. (My thought was he was going to get close and I would call (turkey call) from a location behind him) Anyway I hoot and the bird is gobbling, I keep this up a bit and before I know it I hear BOOM, and the bird hit the ground. Then I hear him say "aw chit" and I start walking his way, I see him and ask what happened? He said I got him but he rolled down the hill, I said go get him... Well he made his way down a steep hill and that bird was almost to the bottom of the 400ft drop. It took him a bit and he came back up with the bird. So I asked again what happened? He said he got close enough for a shot, I asked so you tried to get that close? He said ya he killed a few birds off the limb, I said I thought you were just trying to get in front of me to get setup to work him in... I told him I don't "hunt" this way.

MK M GOBL

[SteelerFan]

Imo I'm not sure how a person could get any satisfaction doing  that. Ya he got a turkey and i have no problem with different methods of killing one,but if i needed one that bad I think I'd probably save the effort and just go to the store. I enjoy the calling aspect of it way to much for that...

X3... and that would have been my comment to the shooter! Grocery store is probably closer than 5 hrs.

I don't consider roost shooting a "method". It's just shooting.

Good luck this week catman!

[GobbleNut]

First thing first.  If roost shooting is legal in your state, you should be working to get that changed.  Here in New Mexico, it was legal until turkey hunters joined together (local NWTF chapters through the state chapter) and put enough pressure on our Game and Fish Department to get it outlawed.

Secondly, if someone comes in on me when set up on a bird, I am going to make sure they know I am there somehow.  Shine a flashlight first, and if they don't honor that, I will get up and walk over to them, talking to them as I go, to make sure they knew I was there first.  If they don't honor that, my next step is to scare the bird off. 

Nobody is going to shoot a bird off the roost in my presence without me doing everything I can to keep it from happening.

[TauntoHawk]

I was always a bit surprised at how many states allow roost shooting as legal.

Only turkey I ever shot that didn't have his feet on the ground I missed and he flew toward me up on a low limb to see what was going on, not a roost shoot. I have been in gun range of birds on the limb many many times and Ive killed a few of them once they were on the ground but also have had a few fly down out of range and never work in. Its part of the game even if i'm under them they still have a fighting chance.

I do have a story about a bird that stayed on the roost all morning gobbling his head off, 7am came and went then it was 7:30 soon 8 still at 9 in the morning that bird was on the limb gobbling 300+ times, we started to joke that his feet got stuck in sap from the large pine he was in and he was actually gobbling for help and it would be a mercy killing to slip up there and shoot the dang thing. Eventually it was after 9 and that's what my buddy did while i kept him gobbling, at the shot we jumped up to our feet and here a momma Bear and her cubs come barrelling up the hill out of a little pocket clearing. Those bears must have spent their morning hanging out in this little orchard clearing below the turkey where the gobbler could see them but we couldn't and he would just not fly down while they were around but felt comfortable enough to sit high in his tree and gobble.

[GobbleNut]

Speaking of roost shooting stories, here's one for you.

A friend of mine was hunting with his son.  They had walked in and set-up above a roosted gobbler up on a ridge in the dark, getting there very early before daylight.  They had gotten in pretty close, about seventy five yards from the bird and sat down where they were about level with him in the tree.

They had been sitting there for a while and the gobbler had started gobbling some very early.  Pretty soon they saw a guy coming in from their left, right at them.  My friend shined his flashlight at they guy and he knows he saw him, but the guy moves between my friend and the gobbler and sits down (hard to freakin' believe!). 

My friend doesn't want to cause a scene with his son along with him, so he just sits there waiting to see what happens.  Soon it gets light enough for them to see the gobbler in the tree, and the guys starts scooting down the hill on his butt towards the bird.  Roost shooting is illegal here, but the guy just scoots down the hill until he is within range of the bird, and right there in front of my friend, he shoots the gobbler out of the tree.

The guy runs down the hill, grabs the gobbler, and takes off back towards his truck.  Well, my friend follows the guy out, gets his license plate number, and turns him in.  The guy got a big fine and lost his hunting privileges for a few years,...and my buddy got a $500 reward for turning him in. 

Sometimes there is justice after all!