what are your "keys" to turkey hunting???

[Cut N Run]

I don't have any percentages to go by, but here's a few random thoughts.

I think the most important part of turkey hunting is to have access to places where turkeys like to live.  You could be the best caller on the planet, but if there aren't any gobblers around to hear & react to it, you're just wasting time making noise.  It gets discouraging fast when there's no turkeys where you hunt. 

You had better know what patterns best out of your gun and how to shoot straight.  I've seen too many turkeys get wasted because somebody "missed".  If that gobbler's within a good killing range, there's no excuse for missing.  Either you screwed up or you screwed yourself by not being familiar with your gun/choke/ammo. Practice with the ammo you intend to hunt with.  If your ammo it is too expensive to practice with, find some other hobby and leave the turkeys to the rest of us. You are the supreme predator, act like it by being the most efficient, lethal shot possible. 

Be the tree.  Almost everything out there loves to eat turkeys and those turkeys act like they know they're delicious. If they don't know you're there, they will act normally.  You have to know how to keep your cool and don't spook the turkeys.  Getting anxious or trying to move too fast will get you busted. Learn to sit still.  You can fidget & make phone calls all you want in the truck on the way home.

You can't know a piece of land too well.  Turkeys live there full time and the better you know where they like to spend time, the better your chances of crossing paths with them.

You don't need to be a world champion caller to be a successful turkey hunter, you just need to sound good enough to convince a curious gobbler to come investigate where you are.

Keep an ace up your sleeve. It is fine to take others hunting on land you have rights to hunt, just don't be surprised if they return without you.  The more people you tell about where you hunt, the fewer turkeys you'll see there, especially if it is public land.  I have no problem teaching somebody else how to turkey hunt, but we'll be hunting on their land, not mine.

Jim

[M Sharpe]

Ronnie, you want to show them?

[guesswho]

Ronnie, you want to show them?

My real keys, or key.  Three things I always have with me.  My Sharpe Wingbone or Cane Call, The String which they come in on, and The Key to success, which is attached to The String.   No stinking DSD to tote around

[High plains drifter]

Be persistent , know the land you hunt well, stay out of sight, where good camo, don't call to much, use a slate call, know when to use a decoy, and when not to.

[M Sharpe]

Ronnie, you want to show them?

My real keys, or key.  Three things I always have with me.  My Sharpe Wingbone or Cane Call, The String which they come in on, and The Key to success, which is attached to The String.   No stinking DSD to tote around

Now that's what I'm talking about there!! What more could a guy want?

[VaTuRkStOmPeR]

1.Knowledge:  Whether you're hunting your home turf or a new piece of public ground you've only Internet scouted, understanding and knowing turkeys is critical.  You'll see this necessity increase in criticality when you show up and the birds are henned up with minimal gobbling or the weather becomes inclement.

2.  Stealth:  Getting close to turkeys in the areas they feel comfortable in will yield very high dividends.  I see guys on here talking about being 100 and 150 yards from turkeys when they are working them.  Sometimes, that's all you're going to be able to get due to terrain or habitat but most of the time you can get closer.  Whether it involves getting up earlier or crawling in the mid 30 extra yards with your face in the dirt, the fewer steps I have to ask a turkey to take to get into gun range translates into a bird that is far more likely to come in for a look.

3.  Calling:  All things being equal, a great caller will kill far more turkeys than an average or poor caller will. Great callers have turkey rhythm, cadence and they understand that they aren't just making noise: they're communicating and speaking another language.  When you begin to understand that vocalizations can be used by hunters to create scenarios that turkeys identify with you'll see higher kill/hunt ratios.  When you become extremely proficient and lifelike in your ability to create those sounds, you'll see a striking difference.  Most guys I know who say calling skills arent an integral part of turkey hunting don't have them and don't hunt with guys who do.

Adaptability: You cannot hunt turkeys one way or with one method and consistently produce success throughout all phases of the breeding cycle.  You also can't hunt turkeys in different parts of the country the way you always do at home.  Think outside of the box and use different tactics. A good illustration of what I'm talking about is guys who don't roost turkeys or guys who only hunt fields from tents with decoys.  If you want to be a killer, you have to master and recognize scenarios where alternative tactics should be applied.

[eggshell]

1.Knowledge:  Whether you're hunting your home turf or a new piece of public ground you've only Internet scouted, understanding and knowing turkeys is critical.  You'll see this necessity increase in criticality when you show up and the birds are henned up with minimal gobbling or the weather becomes inclement.

2.  Stealth:  Getting close to turkeys in the areas they feel comfortable in will yield very high dividends.  I see guys on here talking about being 100 and 150 yards from turkeys when they are working them.  Sometimes, that's all you're going to be able to get due to terrain or habitat but most of the time you can get closer.  Whether it involves getting up earlier or crawling in the mid 30 extra yards with your face in the dirt, the fewer steps I have to ask a turkey to take to get into gun range translates into a bird that is far more likely to come in for a look.

3.  Calling:  All things being equal, a great caller will kill far more turkeys than an average or poor caller will. Great callers have turkey rhythm, cadence and they understand that they aren't just making noise: they're communicating and speaking another language.  When you begin to understand that vocalizations can be used by hunters to create scenarios that turkeys identify with you'll see higher kill/hunt ratios.  When you become extremely proficient and lifelike in your ability to create those sounds, you'll see a striking difference.  Most guys I know who say calling skills arent an integral part of turkey hunting don't have them and don't hunt with guys who do.

Adaptability: You cannot hunt turkeys one way or with one method and consistently produce success throughout all phases of the breeding cycle.  You also can't hunt turkeys in different parts of the country the way you always do at home.  Think outside of the box and use different tactics. A good illustration of what I'm talking about is guys who don't roost turkeys or guys who only hunt fields from tents with decoys.  If you want to be a killer, you have to master and recognize scenarios where alternative tactics should be applied.

I like this post and Gobblenuts the best. Fall hunting took my calling to a new level when I learned how the birds talk to each other...Family. I hear a lot of people say calling is a low percentage of the package and for 85% of hunters that is true, because they are calling to the turkeys and not talking with them. Most people would say I am an obsessive caller and call too much, but I'm not calling to my birds I'm talking with them. A good conversation is deadly. Now as season goes conversations get shorter, quieter and more subtle as too many loud mouths have made the birds wary. I like getting close, also and doing it quietly!!! I will tell you the number one key to killing turkeys.....hunt green birds, the less human interaction they have the more gullible they are....the good outfitters know this, because the bread on their table depends on success rate, so they keep a lock on their land. This is a luxury most people don't have, so we have to learn better skills. 

[KentuckyHeadhunter]

1.Knowledge:  Whether you're hunting your home turf or a new piece of public ground you've only Internet scouted, understanding and knowing turkeys is critical.  You'll see this necessity increase in criticality when you show up and the birds are henned up with minimal gobbling or the weather becomes inclement.

2.  Stealth:  Getting close to turkeys in the areas they feel comfortable in will yield very high dividends.  I see guys on here talking about being 100 and 150 yards from turkeys when they are working them.  Sometimes, that's all you're going to be able to get due to terrain or habitat but most of the time you can get closer.  Whether it involves getting up earlier or crawling in the mid 30 extra yards with your face in the dirt, the fewer steps I have to ask a turkey to take to get into gun range translates into a bird that is far more likely to come in for a look.

3.  Calling:  All things being equal, a great caller will kill far more turkeys than an average or poor caller will. Great callers have turkey rhythm, cadence and they understand that they aren't just making noise: they're communicating and speaking another language.  When you begin to understand that vocalizations can be used by hunters to create scenarios that turkeys identify with you'll see higher kill/hunt ratios.  When you become extremely proficient and lifelike in your ability to create those sounds, you'll see a striking difference.  Most guys I know who say calling skills arent an integral part of turkey hunting don't have them and don't hunt with guys who do.

Adaptability: You cannot hunt turkeys one way or with one method and consistently produce success throughout all phases of the breeding cycle.  You also can't hunt turkeys in different parts of the country the way you always do at home.  Think outside of the box and use different tactics. A good illustration of what I'm talking about is guys who don't roost turkeys or guys who only hunt fields from tents with decoys.  If you want to be a killer, you have to master and recognize scenarios where alternative tactics should be applied.

Well stated. 

[High plains drifter]

Never walk out in the open, when it's light.Stay in the trees, and if one is gobbling, don't try to move to close. Find a thick bush, and hide real well. You can usually tell which way he will come, don't move, and have your gun up.

[30_06]

Knowing where the turkeys are and where they want to be is about 95% of it for me.

Esse quam videri

[g8rvet]

1.Knowledge:  Whether you're hunting your home turf or a new piece of public ground you've only Internet scouted, understanding and knowing turkeys is critical.  You'll see this necessity increase in criticality when you show up and the birds are henned up with minimal gobbling or the weather becomes inclement.

2.  Stealth:  Getting close to turkeys in the areas they feel comfortable in will yield very high dividends.  I see guys on here talking about being 100 and 150 yards from turkeys when they are working them.  Sometimes, that's all you're going to be able to get due to terrain or habitat but most of the time you can get closer.  Whether it involves getting up earlier or crawling in the mid 30 extra yards with your face in the dirt, the fewer steps I have to ask a turkey to take to get into gun range translates into a bird that is far more likely to come in for a look.

3.  Calling:  All things being equal, a great caller will kill far more turkeys than an average or poor caller will. Great callers have turkey rhythm, cadence and they understand that they aren't just making noise: they're communicating and speaking another language.  When you begin to understand that vocalizations can be used by hunters to create scenarios that turkeys identify with you'll see higher kill/hunt ratios.  When you become extremely proficient and lifelike in your ability to create those sounds, you'll see a striking difference.  Most guys I know who say calling skills arent an integral part of turkey hunting don't have them and don't hunt with guys who do.

Adaptability: You cannot hunt turkeys one way or with one method and consistently produce success throughout all phases of the breeding cycle.  You also can't hunt turkeys in different parts of the country the way you always do at home.  Think outside of the box and use different tactics. A good illustration of what I'm talking about is guys who don't roost turkeys or guys who only hunt fields from tents with decoys.  If you want to be a killer, you have to master and recognize scenarios where alternative tactics should be applied.

Stated like a turkey killer.

To the newer hunters, you can kill turkeys with just decent calling.  But the real killers with the massive number of kills are on another level.  I can go to my local impoundment and catch bass.  I would not ever place in a high dollar tournament there though. My point is you can learn on the job and I think the really good hunters I know seem to learn all the time. 

[Gunslinger1]

AWESOME and very well said

1.Knowledge:  Whether you're hunting your home turf or a new piece of public ground you've only Internet scouted, understanding and knowing turkeys is critical.  You'll see this necessity increase in criticality when you show up and the birds are henned up with minimal gobbling or the weather becomes inclement.

2.  Stealth:  Getting close to turkeys in the areas they feel comfortable in will yield very high dividends.  I see guys on here talking about being 100 and 150 yards from turkeys when they are working them.  Sometimes, that's all you're going to be able to get due to terrain or habitat but most of the time you can get closer.  Whether it involves getting up earlier or crawling in the mid 30 extra yards with your face in the dirt, the fewer steps I have to ask a turkey to take to get into gun range translates into a bird that is far more likely to come in for a look.

3.  Calling:  All things being equal, a great caller will kill far more turkeys than an average or poor caller will. Great callers have turkey rhythm, cadence and they understand that they aren't just making noise: they're communicating and speaking another language.  When you begin to understand that vocalizations can be used by hunters to create scenarios that turkeys identify with you'll see higher kill/hunt ratios.  When you become extremely proficient and lifelike in your ability to create those sounds, you'll see a striking difference.  Most guys I know who say calling skills arent an integral part of turkey hunting don't have them and don't hunt with guys who do.

Adaptability: You cannot hunt turkeys one way or with one method and consistently produce success throughout all phases of the breeding cycle.  You also can't hunt turkeys in different parts of the country the way you always do at home.  Think outside of the box and use different tactics. A good illustration of what I'm talking about is guys who don't roost turkeys or guys who only hunt fields from tents with decoys.  If you want to be a killer, you have to master and recognize scenarios where alternative tactics should be applied.

[High plains drifter]

Never under estimate the vision of a bird.They can see you from 600 yards, or more.Always wear a face mask, put all black around your eyes.Always wear gloves.Use different camo on a farm, as opposed to a ranch.Use heavy magnum loads.Get down in a ditch if possible.

[bghunter777]

I have not read all the Posts so this is completely objective based on about 20 years of turkey hunting several states.

1. Persistence- Don't go home at 8:30 because you haven't heard a gobble for an hour I kill more birds between 9-12 than off the roost.

2. Woodsman ship- Learn where the turkeys want to go if you are in a bad location you will rarely call one in / kill that bird

3.Set up- Put some thought into your set up think things through where the turkey is likely to come in how well am I hidden where am I likely to shoot turkeys often do unexpected things but early in my turkey career I blew many more opportunities because of being lazy when setting up.

4.Learn about turkeys- This probably seems like common sense but turkeys do different things and react differently to decoys calls etc from north to south and from March to June. Don't always use the same strutting gobbler decoy and the same loud yelping calling sequence.

5.Callling- See number 4 but the best teacher for me have been live hens and being around real turkeys don't over use the loud yelps there is a time and a place to let that box call sing but soft cluck puts and yelps will call more birds in over a lifetime.

6. Know your weapon and its limitations- Shoot your gun get comfortable with where it patterns and how far you can shoot find the best set up for you. I prefer a scope or red dot it took me missing a few more than I should have before I took sighting my shotgun in serious.

7. Don't put to much pressure on yourself- Early on I would get so focused on killing a bird that I wouldn't truly enjoy the experience to its fullest extent until typically I would kill one or two on that season. At the end of the day its just a turkey we are all out there for the experience.

[GobbleNut]

At the end of the day its just a turkey....

Blasphemy!