All my hotspots have cleared out. Perhaps they have gone deeper, got plenty of hens, or flat out bredding is out of the question. I have heard there is a round two to spring gobblers, but does anyone know or can predict the next phase of getting 3 or 4 talking to you at sunrise? Is the aftenoon hunts as simple...or harder. I have noticed birds roosting at about 7:30 pm, should I be there the next morning or will they change locations overnight?
once a bird is roosted, its most likely staying there till morning.
i dont believe there is a gobbleing lull...theres a turkey, somewhere, thats gunna talk. just gotta find that turkey. i cannot remember in 10yds when i didnt hear a turkey that i should have heard atleast gobbling on the roost...knowing that they are there and the weather was half decint...
heck, ive watched a longbeard be towed around by a hen in a foot of snow in december gobbling and strutting like it was spring...
could be alot of things effecting the birds...weather...hens...pressure....moved....your being busted and dont even know it...(had that happen more than once...got too close and they never said a peep...stayed on the limb till i walked farther and busted them off the roost...) even if they are done breeding they are still in the mood and looking for hens...it is true that they will fire up and calm down in somewhat of a cycle...but you still aughta here birds atleast on the roost gobbling naturally if nothing else...
ive never seen them ALL completely shut down if weather and everything else was decint. but, i havent seen it all in 10 years...lots to learn still....
good luck...id say keep hunting...you'll find one that talks sooner or later...
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>>----Give 'em the shaft!--->
I have been experiencing the same thing, and my only theory is that all the dominant gobblers are with hens right off the roost, and the subordinant gobblers are afraid to gobble out of fear of the dominant birds. but i've heard that once the breeding season ends, its much easier to call one in, because nearly all the available hens have been bred and are on their nests, and the gobblers are trolling the woods looking for a hen. as for your question about the roosting gobblers, get up about a half hour earlier and be in the woods well before first light. they won't switch trees in the middle of the night unless something spooks them bad enough to bump them off. don't try to get too close to the tree, as you will be seen. as a general rule, you don't normally want to get closer than 75 go 100 yards to the tree the bird is roosted in. wait for daylight and don't call until you hear him gobble. when you do, use a flydown cackle, and you can use your hat to simulate a hen flying down from the tree. i normally don't do this, as its a lot of movement when you're set up that close to the bird. if he answers you, a few soft yelps and a little patience should bring him right in. good luck!
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The gobbles are getting louder.....in my mind, anyway.
Pretty quite in northeast P.A. the last few days.We walked at least 3 miles today through prime turkey woods and never heard a gobble.It cant get any worse.
Well today was a repeat of yesterday. Lots of gobbeling on roost, they start around 5:20am and they shut up between 5:50am and 6:00am, then nothing at all, all day.....Maybe next week they will be easier...LOL!!!!!!
Anyone experiencing the "lull"
