Getting to come those last 10-15 yards

[Gentry]

What are some of y'alls tactics to get one to commit those last few yards, turn that corner, or come over that rise?
This seems to be one of my main troubles!

[LaLongbeard]

Patience
If he's come that far he will continue to look for the hen unless he sees something out of place.

[JHoyle]

Cluck and purr. Scratch the leaves


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[Marc]

Patience
If he's come that far he will continue to look for the hen unless he sees something out of place.

I have had multiple times when I can see the birds tailfan, just over a rise that is in good shooting range, and he never pops up over the top.

Hunting Rio's in hilly country, I have often had them come up just below a knoll or ridge that they just need to pop their head over, and it never happens...

Happened to me several times last year...  Next time it happens, I am standing up and shooting him.

[LaLongbeard]

Patience
If he's come that far he will continue to look for the hen unless he sees something out of place.

I have had multiple times when I can see the birds tailfan, just over a rise that is in good shooting range, and he never pops up over the top.

Hunting Rio's in hilly country, I have often had them come up just below a knoll or ridge that they just need to pop their head over, and it never happens...

Happened to me several times last year...  Next time it happens, I am standing up and shooting him.

You might not have seen the gobbler peek over the hill and see you. If a gobbler has come that close and nothing spooks him I don't think he would just walk off something about the set up or something else has made him suspicious. Good luck with the standing and shooting.

[g8rvet]

I would have killed a lot more birds if I could answer this question 100% correctly. 

I know that early in my career, I liked to hear them gobble too much and I just could not SHUT THE HECK UP.  That was all on me figuring things out.

I have a lot of experiences where I am solidly in the game, being cagey and the bird just won't finish.  I always assume that I have messed up and figure what to do different next time, but sometimes I think it is just turkeys being turkeys.  How fired up is he, how many hens are there around, etc.  I had one coming to me on a string after knowing where he was roosted and exactly which way he would want to go.  I walked about a 1/2 mile to get around him and get to where I needed to be to call to him.  I waited until he flew down and talked to him so sweetly, just enough to get him coming to me and he was.  Closed from 150 to about 75 and shut up.  Dead bird, right?  Then I heard the unmistakable sound of a turkey behind me.  I just sat still thinking he had circled me and would come around.  Too late I realized it was a pair of hens walking right to him.  About the time they would have reached him, he shut up and I never saw him.  He did die about 2 weeks later, and although I got to watch it, it was my brother that squeezed the trigger.   

[SteelerFan]

Agree with g8rvet - sometimes it's just turkeys being turkeys. Mother Nature planned it for the hen to go to the gobbler. We are trying to reverse that. Sometimes, it does not work.

Most frustrating hunt: Trying to get my son a bird... typical Pennsylvania hardwoods mountain ground. Set up, had the birds come in, 2 long beards strutted and gobbled for an hour + at 80 yds (within sight). 3 hens walked by us at 20 yds and hung around feeding. Eventually the toms just walked away. Stupid turkeys! 

[Dtrkyman]

Patience
If he's come that far he will continue to look for the hen unless he sees something out of place.

I have had multiple times when I can see the birds tailfan, just over a rise that is in good shooting range, and he never pops up over the top.

Hunting Rio's in hilly country, I have often had them come up just below a knoll or ridge that they just need to pop their head over, and it never happens...

Happened to me several times last year...  Next time it happens, I am standing up and shooting him.

You might not have seen the gobbler peek over the hill and see you. If a gobbler has come that close and nothing spooks him I don't think he would just walk off something about the set up or something else has made him suspicious. Good luck with the standing and shooting.

I have hunted many areas where birds do just this, it is not a setup issue it is just how they are, I have solved the issue on many birds by simply standing behind a tree, you can kill them easily that way and may have never seen them sitting on the ground at all, I call them peek a boo birds, well I started surprising them.  Need a vocal bird and the right situation but it works awesome.

[guesswho]

Scratch, or even toss a small rock or stick off to your side.   But you do run a risk of being seen if the timing on his part is just right.

[Bowguy]

Cluck and purr. Scratch the leaves


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There ya go

[greencop01]

Cluck and purr. Scratch the leaves


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There ya go

X3   

[Cottonmouth]

Cluck and purr. Scratch the leaves


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And a few doses of the silent treatment in between.  Has worked for me countless times on some tough birds.

[Marc]

Patience
If he's come that far he will continue to look for the hen unless he sees something out of place.

I have had multiple times when I can see the birds tailfan, just over a rise that is in good shooting range, and he never pops up over the top.

Hunting Rio's in hilly country, I have often had them come up just below a knoll or ridge that they just need to pop their head over, and it never happens...

Happened to me several times last year...  Next time it happens, I am standing up and shooting him.

You might not have seen the gobbler peek over the hill and see you. If a gobbler has come that close and nothing spooks him I don't think he would just walk off something about the set up or something else has made him suspicious. Good luck with the standing and shooting.

I know for a fact on at least two occasions last year, that bird never took a peek over the top...  I could see his fan the whole time.  He would walk into the depression, strut like heck, and walk back to the next ridge to look for the hen, and come back, but he would not breach that high point.  I even tried gobbling at him one time, which got him fired up, but he still would not breach that little ridge.

Looking back, I should have either knee crawled to the depression when he was faced away, or just stood up and shot him (when he was faced away).

Younger birds will peek over almost every time...  that is actually the toughest shot a turkey hunter faces though...  You have to put the bead in the dirt to kill him.

I have had as many or more birds in good range that I never got a shot at, as I have had birds I have killed.  Last year was the turning point for me...  A bird hanging up in a depression, I am going to make some sort of move on him (after a reasonable amount of time of course).

I think that those old toms that make it, learn to use the terrain, and become hesitant about poking their heads over a rise in which there could be any number of surprises on the other side.

[fallhnt]

Went quiet and had one cross a pond today for a KS bow kill

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[Spitten and drummen]

I worked one over an hour this morning. I thought I had the perfect set up. He crested a small ridge 55 yards away. I was setup in semi thick timber. I thought he would come on closer looking for the hen. Well he did not. He stayed there about minute at the most , clucked a few times and eased back the way he came. Tough spot because I knew if I made any sound he would pin point me. Never heard him again today. Round 3 tomorrow.  He was henned up on round 2.