Good season?

[Sir-diealot]

Due to our van dying I have only been able to get out about 5 or 6 times, maybe 7 There were two times I could have gone but was in to much pain and had to give the body a rest. Of all the days I have been out yesterday was the only one where I did not definitely hear a gobble. (May have but I am not quite sure, it was distant)

I did not hunt last year due to shoulder surgery, but it was on par to two years ago or maybe a little less. At least I did not bump any off the roost this year. Everybody is complaining about this season on the forums on hand out on for the region of NY and it seems to be through the states as well. Long winter this year may have been part of the problem.

Habitat loss caused by the way some of the farming is done around here was certainly no help. Also more homes being built and hydrofracking going on as also wiped out habitat. Of course the norms like predators do not help, have only heard of one case of poaching and that was deer.

"My question is how many on here would consider it a good year just because you tagged out. Or would you factor in the lack of gobbling and turkey population and call it a poor year like me? "

I will tell you I was unable to really hunt for 17 years due to a car accident and I am grateful for any time I get out there now. Most of my hunting career I hunting some pretty poor property and I have not gotten much, but it has always been about being out there with friends and loved ones, seeing the world God created coming to life, hearing the birds, frogs, squirrels and so on start talking as the gray of early morning light turns to the light of day. If I get something then it is an added bonus.

[JonD.]

but it has always been about being out there with friends and loved ones, seeing the world God created coming to live, hearing the birds, frogs, squirrels and so on start talking as the gray of early morning light turned to the light of day. If I get something then it is an added bonus.

I say Amen to this. Its always a good season or a good hunt and I'm very thankful to the Lord to get to enjoy it even if all the turkeys are gone when I get there.

[deerpoo22]

First year since 2013 here in PA I couldn't get it done. Saw plenty of jakes and hens but there wasn't much gobbling, and usually those that did ended up being jakes. I cannot say this happened to everyone around me as a close friend ended up being tagged out on day 2. But without a day this year was the lowest mature Tom population I've seen in years.

[EKavanagh]

Had a good year in Maryland. Gained access to a couple of new properties and was able to kill two long beards. Saw a good number of jakes running around so I'm hopeful next year will be even better.

[Cut N Run]

I heard plenty of gobblers, trouble is that most were a ways off the small properties I primarily hunted.  I also heard more shots than usual on neighboring farms.  I had gobblers coming to me that got hijacked by hens a few times. That's turkey hunting though.  One morning, I had a gobbler answer my calls, head my way, then hang up in a strut zone less than 125 yards away for more than an hour. He left and I found where he was strutting, hoping to get a crack at him the next morning.  Of course it was a ghost town the following day. I had one play the game right and come to my calls, but I let him get too close, then rushed the shot and missed. First turkey I ever missed with the red dot. A couple days later I got within 125 yards of one roosted on a creek bottom.  I know he never saw nor heard me and he continued to gobble plenty from the limb.  When he flew down, he just shut up and vanished. That's turkey hunting. The last day I hunted, I saw a gang of 8 jakes in a field beside the farm I hunt, which gave me some hope for the future.  I hunted hard and had a fun season, even if it was aggravating. The results were definitely not was I was hoping for.  Tag soup always sucks no matter how you make it.

I plan to expand my hunting territories so I won't be as limited next year.  Maybe I'll finally get drawn for some of the public land I've put in for over the past 6 years.

Jim

[tomstopper]

I can't complain, tagged out in the two states I hunted. Just wish I would have been able to get to hunt in my old stomping grounds in NY.

Sent from my XT1710-02 using Tapatalk

[Sir-diealot]

but it has always been about being out there with friends and loved ones, seeing the world God created coming to live, hearing the birds, frogs, squirrels and so on start talking as the gray of early morning light turned to the light of day. If I get something then it is an added bonus.

I say Amen to this. Its always a good season or a good hunt and I'm very thankful to the Lord to get to enjoy it even if all the turkeys are gone when I get there.

Thanks. After reading it in quotes I realized I misspelled some things so I went back and fixed them. I fixed one instance of Grammatical error as well. I hate it when I make mistakes like this.

[land cruiser]

7 birds down (called one in for friend's daughter)/tagged out in two states. I don't know whether a season like that can be beat by me. Pretty stoked.

[catman529]

My season sucked until about 3 weeks in, then it started to get good. I know some parts of TN are definitely in a decline, but not where I was hunting, the bird just wouldn't talk much except on the roost, and would not work a call much. It all turned around the 2nd half of season and I ended up missing 4, killing 4, and watching 3 others die.

[Turkeytider]

It certainly was on the property where I hunt. Blessed to have a good friend and old teammate and hunting and fishing buddy from high school who owns and leases close to 400 acres here in Georgia. He`s a retired forester who runs and manages his property for game, primarily deer, turkey and doves. Turkeys ALL OVER his property, and I`m convinced it`s due in large measure to the habitat he`s created. Three of us took a bird this year, he limits the number taken on his property to one/hunter, and there were only 4 of us hunting it all season. The woods were beautiful!

[falltoms]

I had a great season. I managed to kill 8 gobblers in 5 states I hunted. I hunted around 24 days to do it. All but 2 came from public land. But I will say it was a tough year.  Not much gobbling. Scewed up weather.  I hunted very hard and gave it my all. I know where there are gobblers still henned up. It was a very late spring. The areas I hunt didn't seem to have the 2 year old population this year. Called in lots of hens. I pray we have an excellent hatch this spring

[Marc]

"My question is how many on here would consider it a good year just because you tagged out. Or would you factor in the lack of gobbling and turkey population and call it a poor year like me? "

Turkey hunting is perhaps my most selfish guilty pleasure...  I prefer to hunt alone...  I thoroughly enjoy my time alone in the woods, in the marsh, on the river, or on the lake...

Admittedly, I have enjoyed taking my children out (2 girls ages 5 & 7), and it was exciting (for all of us) when I was able to harvest a bird with them.  They get to spend some time with "Daddy," and learn some of life's lessons that cannot be taught in a classroom...  And, I hope I am passing on some of my own passion for the outdoors that they will one day enjoy as adults...

I do plenty of outdoor activities, and am an avid waterfowler...  I take some degree of pleasure in a successful hunt, and filling the game back is a large part of the enjoyment for me.  I get plenty of opportunity to see sunrises, and perhaps I should appreciate them more, but when I am hunting, part of the enjoyment of the sunrise is the anticipation of a (hopefully) successful hunt.

As it stands, I have put my efforts on turkey hunting during the spring, with limited time off...  Even in the drought years, there were birds to hunt, and killing one or two birds on a tough year is just as, if not more gratifying that tagging out on a good year with lots of birds.

Were the bird population to be so low, or the property so small that I did not feel I had a reasonable opportunity to harvest a bird, I would hang up the gun and pull out the fly rod...  Granted, I might fish in some areas where I might find some turkeys, but I would not continue to hunt if I did not feel I had a "sporting chance."

[Happy]

Every turkey season is good. It's what many of us think about every day of the year. I can honestly say I have never had a bad year. Some years are more successful than others but it's will only truly be a bad year when I can't get to the woods at all. The goal is always to be successful but if that is the only goal then a lot of great moments are going to pass by totally unnoticed. The sad fact of the matter is that the kill at all costs mindset is slowly and surely destroying hunting. It's a shame really. My fondest memory from this year was sitting and eating lunch with my boy who is a man/child now. He blew a gimme opportunity and he knew it. Watching him progress from furious with himself to laughing at himself a few hours later was priceless. When I was his age it would have taken me a week to get over something like that. I am proud of him and wouldn't have been any prouder of him if he had killed the bird. To paraphrase a movie line "hunting doesn't build character, it reveals it".

[Spurs Up]

but it has always been about being out there with friends and loved ones, seeing the world God created coming to live, hearing the birds, frogs, squirrels and so on start talking as the gray of early morning light turned to the light of day. If I get something then it is an added bonus.

I say Amen to this. Its always a good season or a good hunt and I'm very thankful to the Lord to get to enjoy it even if all the turkeys are gone when I get there.

By any enduring and meaningful measure, that's all that really matters. If I have fun, it was a successful season. When i no longer enjoy it, I've got other—more important—things to do. Been doing it for >40 years and still find it enriching and rewarding. Good Lord willing, I'll enjoy next year...

[Yoder409]

I/we had an EPIC season !!!

Hunted 3 states with my brother and PA with my daughter.  With the exception of Wyoming, where the gobblers needed some serious convincing, it seemed the gobblers ALL had a suicide wish this year.  We were happy to oblige.

Every turkey season is good. It's what many of us think about every day of the year. I can honestly say I have never had a bad year. Some years are more successful than others but it's will only truly be a bad year when I can't get to the woods at all. The goal is always to be successful but if that is the only goal then a lot of great moments are going to pass by totally unnoticed. The sad fact of the matter is that the kill at all costs mindset is slowly and surely destroying hunting. It's a shame really.

This should be carved in a stone somewhere.   Yep.