Phases of a turkey hunter

[Strut&Rut]

I see many new posters on here, with little or no experience. I was taught many years ago that there is a natural progression of a turkey hunter, and thought it would be a good time to share those insights.

I'm also going nuts, because the season doesn't start for another week (May 3rd) and I've been seeing strutters every day...[&:]

Phase 1: The newbie. Even with good woodmanship, you have absolutely no idea what you're doing. This typically lasts the entire first season.

Phase 2: The rookie. Usually your 2nd & 3rd seasons. You've learned as much as you can prior to the season, but still make those mistakes that seasoned veterans never (yeah I wish ) never make.

Phase 3: The killer.By now, you may have taken a bird or two. More importantly, you've learned what NOT to do, and you feel confident that any and every day in the field you can harvest a bird. When you fail, you actually feel defeated. Your sole purpose during the season is to kill a turkey. This phase, IMO, lasts 5-10 years after graduating from rookie status...

Phase 4. The hunter. Now we're getting somewhere. From scouting to cooking, you've created your own little system for creating success, and the system works. You feel comfortable teaching others, and are always trying new things. You are confident you are a master, and are one step ahead of the turkeys...

Phase 5. The veteran. After about 15 years, you realize that the only difference between yourself and a newbie is that you should know better when you make mistakes, wherease newbies have no clue. You wake up every morning at 3am not to kill a turkey, but to hear the barred owls hoot and the wood thrushes sing. To smell the moist forest floor, and to watch the evolution of Spring as it revitalizes our own little part of the world. And yeah, that first gobble on opening morning just makes it that much sweeter...

S&R

[mauser06]

good post....even though its only been...8 years for me this season...i consider myself a vetern...ive only taken 2 longbeards...but passed many many shots the previous years because i didnt think i could make them...turkey hunting means so much more to me then killing.....those first 4 yrs without birds taught me ALOT...and taught me it aint always about bringing something home...5th and 6th yrs i killed longbeards...ALONE...normally i hunt with dad...but when i turned 16 and got a job our schedules didnt meet up so much....but i learned enough to scout alone...and call em in and kill them on my own.....this year is the same...last year i made a foolish mistake.....i hunted THE SAME BIRD day in day out almost all season.....he whooped my butt...but i learned more last year then i ever expect to....never did kill him....he whooped me......but im ready this year....i also make my own calls for the most part...and love it....cant wait till i am out of school and have a real job so i can start my own mini wood shop....i know alot of people that will be NEWBIES for a while lol...2 of my buddys got LUCKY as all heck...dont scout....dont know what end of the call makes a noise.....or how to make the noise properly lol......but they both killed a bird each...my one buddy is trying to get better.....but he doest like waking up...we hunted the same farm last year..diffrent areas...id pull in and he would still be in bed.....he would get there after the birds were on the ground daily....he knows he got LUCKY..he keeps sayin "i hope im that lucky this year!"

[fshafly2]

Pretty good strutnrut. I didn't even carry a weapon on two of my last three trips out - letting the partners know beyond a doubt that it's up to them and that they can have the "glory". And if I find a patch of 'shrooms while out there in the woods, well the turks will always be around, the 'shrooms have a fleeting existance. I alsolike to take a newbie or rookie out every season, just to share intheir unbridled enthusiasm...
-fsh

[MikeVT]

Nice bird Strut&Rut. I see you are from Storrs, CT. I graduated from UCONN in 1992. I'm still hurting from this years tournament.

[dog1]

SR,

Let me add to what you said. When you can leave your calls, gun, etc in the truck and walk into the woods, setup and just watch and listen, to me is another sign of your progress as a turkey hunter. Sometimes it's better to just shutup and pay attention to what's happening.

Mistakes, I've made more this year than ever, but I consider myself, Still learning. When you quit learning, there's not much to look forward to. I guarantee everybody, a Gobbler will teach you a lesson, every day.

dog1

[portable ladder]

i'm a rookie. good post. pretty well hit the nail on the head.

[huntnma]

awesome post.....I can totally relate ...i 'm not a veteran by any means though i feel everytime i step into the turkey woods , it's a learning experience, i feel i'm at the hunter/veteran stage, i can go into the woods and be quite content just talking to the hoot owls...most mornings i'm up at 1:30-2:30, lol....i appreciate all that God has blessed me(us) with, the smells, the sights, the sounds of the woods, God forbid i hear a gobble, lol...it dont get any better than that....i even get so excited when i scout/hunt that i get sick....lol...it's in me, lol...i dont care what kind of turkey hunting phase i'm in, as long as i'm in one, lol......

[old longbeards]

awright Strut&Rut....now ya gone and made me feel like a newbie.....sheeeesh...[&:]