FALL TURKEY HUNTING...

[55dougie]

Love to Fall hunt here in WNY... As to turkey populations being down.... Predators are way up because no one hunts them anymore and therefore turkeys are down.... add in the loss of nesting habitat from production type farming... and there you have it.

[daddyduke]

I fall hunt here in Indiana and we are blessed with an obedience of hens. So I tend to thin the flock by one in the fall.

[Uncle Nicky]

I will be hunting a few states this fall with my dog.

I'm skeptical that shooting a fall bird or two has a serious impact on populations. I believe it has more to do with increased predators, changing habitat, and population explosions that finally reach carrying capacities.

[eggshell]

I agree 100% Uncle Nicky

[TauntoHawk]

I went fall hunting once and walked right up on a flock of about 30 bearded birds together they just kind of looked at me as they eased around me but stayed In shotgun range some roped up birds were mixed in with the younger one but it just wasn't much of a hunt so I left em all walk.

Maybe I gave up to soon on it deeming it "too easy" and just hunt in a less target rich environment I have a farm that I know attracts and holds upwards of 150 birds each fall and winter I'm sure it would be a lot more challenging if I just stayed off that property or went to some of my spring public spots.

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[eggshell]

Taunto Hawk, I have seen similar situations. Farm with lots of food and farm activity and  the birds get used to seeing you around and there is plenty of free food, so they feel safe. You bust that flock up a time or two and you'll see a big change. There's a place not far from me where a winter flock comes out behind a restaurant. The birds are totally conditioned to people and they just stand and look if someone walks towards them. The most they'll do is move off a ways. No one hunts them as all the local turkeys hunters like them having a safe place and enjoy seeing them. We have a pretty good group of guys around and I appreciate their good behavior. I bet you get those same birds in the woods away from those fields and they are totally different. I have birds that feed in my fields in the fall and I have never attempting shooting one in the fall. Now I do hunt spring gobblers on my farm and they are totally spooky. 

[TauntoHawk]

Taunto Hawk, I have seen similar situations. Farm with lots of food and farm activity and  the birds get used to seeing you around and there is plenty of free food, so they feel safe. You bust that flock up a time or two and you'll see a big change. There's a place not far from me where a winter flock comes out behind a restaurant. The birds are totally conditioned to people and they just stand and look if someone walks towards them. The most they'll do is move off a ways. No one hunts them as all the local turkeys hunters like them having a safe place and enjoy seeing them. We have a pretty good group of guys around and I appreciate their good behavior. I bet you get those same birds in the woods away from those fields and they are totally different. I have birds that feed in my fields in the fall and I have never attempting shooting one in the fall. Now I do hunt spring gobblers on my farm and they are totally spooky.

Oh yeah come spring break up some of those Tom's are the most Willey old mountain toms but when they descend on that farm in the fall out of the mountains they could careless about people.

I usually just stick to deer that provide a bit more table fair in the fall and assume the birds will be around 6months older in the spring.

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[Yoder409]

Problem with fall turkey season here in PA is that it coincides with the whitetail rut and I just REALLY like to bowhunt mature whitetail bucks.   Not as much as I love spring gobbler hunting, though, and there's the rub........   The GOBBLE !!!   

Breaking a flock of.hens and juveniles then calling one back for a shot, to me, is like shooting fish in a barrel.   And I have done.it and probably will again.   But the hardest part of that is locating the birds and getting a decent break.  After that.........well......it's kinda sad.   As far as fall toms go.........I won't shoot one.  It's just my personal preference to leave them for the spring when they'll come in strutting and gobbling and putting on a show.

So, generally, I end up 25 feet up a tree during fall season with my bow in hand just watching the turkeys go by doing what turkeys do.

[eggshell]

no offense to you deer hunters, but one of my favorite things about fall turkey hunting is that a whole lot of guys who are in the spring woods are in deer stands in the fall. A large part of those left just don't fall hunt, the most common reason I hear is exactly as yoder said, they like the gobble and spring scenario. That opens a ton of ground for me to fall hunt. I have had a lot of shows in the fall too. It has been several years since I busted a flock and called a poult in to shoot. I still think it is exciting to hear all the responses of those birds getting back together. I can think of two or three times it was almost like shooting fish in a barrel, but it rarely works that way for me. I find it extremely hard to get a good bust, most of the time the birds all go the same way and you sit and listen as they gather out of range. So I just hunt gobblers or call to flocks. I pass everything but gobblers until the last week to ten days of season. In Ohio our fall season last 6 weeks. I probably average seeing and calling in 50+ birds before I shoot one.....I have a lot of fun.

[Happy]

I am offended eggshell! Ok maybe not.
Honestly spring turkey is hands down my favorite hunting of all time. If I fall hunted it would be gobbler only. However I really like deer meat and fall is the time to get my deer meat. I don't get out often so when I do its in pursuit of deer meat. It's fun but not as fun as spring turkey and honestly I get a hoot watching pedro shoot them. He matched me deer for deer last year till the end and he wimped out on going out in a blizzard for the last day of doe season.

[tomstopper]

Used to hunt in the fall in NY and PA and loved it. No season here in NC so I won't be hunting in the fall too much anymore

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[JonD.]

Definitely gonna try it this fall. Also going to try something else I've never done and that is to take one with a bow.

[Kylongspur88]

Yes! It's a ton of fun.

[oakraidia]

I've never tried fall turkey season, but this year I'm going to give it a try.

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[donjuan]

I'm glad to hear that so many are interested in the fall season!