RIStrutStopper

Looks good. Let me check if this works. Thanks KY.

KYDeerHunter03

no problem, glad it worked out

ryncam16

Love the aviator thanks. Who taken car of the stickers because id really like to get one. Had a real nice strutter out this morning. He looks real big and fat had a real nice beard.

mossbergman11/OH

can anyone here give me the basic 'guidelines' for turkey hunting?
the season is a month away and i feel like i have no clue on how to hunt these things. any advice for huntnig these turkeys would be greatly appreciated

zubba

Alright Mossy...it is going to be hard to do by typing over the web....but I will help you out the best I can.

#1 Rule: Turkeys eyesight is second to none. They can see any small movement from a mile away. Remember this when scouting & hunting these birds. Their eyesight is amazing.

Scout: Reread my previous post on preseason scouting. This is the most important part of all turkey hunting. Like I said, if you don't know where birds are 1) roosting, 2) flying down, and 3) strutting & feeding....then you are mearly guessing...which is no good. So get out and find these three thing out before the season starts. Glass fields for strutters, wake up early to hear gobbles in the roost, do what it takes to make sure you know where the birds are before the season opens. Remeber though, don't educate the birds...meaning don't call, and try not to spook birds. You will $hit yourself when you discover how good their eyesight is.

Get you gun ready: Most people use 12 gauges to hunt turkeys, but the can be killed with other gauges. Buy a couple boxes of turkey load shells and a pack of turkey targets and get some shots in before season. This will give you an idea of your guns pattern and also tell you what distance you need the bird to be at to make an ethical kill.

Get your equiptment ready: Camo from head to toe. Like I said earlier, their eyesight is simply amazing. This means every bit of you needs to be camo's....gloves, hat, face mask, coat, pants, and boots. You need all the help possible when hunting against a turkeys eyesight. Also get yourself a vest or fanny pack (camo of course) to hold your calls and decoys. As far as calls, there are a ton on the market, find one you like and practice, practice, practice. I use both friction calls and diaphrams. Literally, a month before season, I put a diaphram in my truck and practice on my way to work and back. Get down 3 basic calls.... yelp, cluck, and purr. (I will explain when to use these later). You will also probably wanta locator call. My two favorite are an owl hooter and a crow call (again, more on these later). You will also want some decoys. For starters, I would recommend 2 hens and 1 jake. (I will get more into these later as well) Last but not least, get your self a pair of binoculars. There is all kinds of ther equiptment, but I mentioned the most basic and the equiptment I use.

Opening morning: Wake up, round up your gear and get to your spot early. A lot depends on when the birds start gobbling in your area. If I know where the birds are roosted (preseason scout), I prefer to be set up before I hear the first gobble.If a bird is gobbling, then he is awake. If he is awake, then there is a chance he can spot you. Besides, the morning harmony of gobbles is half of the enjoyment. If you are unsure where birds are roosted, get to a location where you can hear a long way (still before light) and use your owl hooter. Say this through your owl hooter....Who Cooks For You, Who Cooks For You All. This will mimmick an owl....which alot of times forces a bird to gobble. Listen for gobbles. Hopefully this forces a bird to gobble, then you will know where to try setting up. Remember though, if he gobbled, then he is awake....so be careful. I usually like to try to set up with in 100 yards of where the bird is gobbling.

When setting up, my favorite set up is simply two hens...and I sit 15-20 yards from the decoys either in a blind, bush, or behind a tree. So now you are set up, it is still dark...maybe just starting to get light....the birds are gobbling...time to sit back for a bit and enjoy all the gobbing. As it is getting lighter, and closer to flydown, start calling to the gobbler. Start out with some soft yelps. Hopefully the gobbler hears your and gobbles to your call. It is extremely good if he does, but don't worry if he don't. The #1 error my beginners is over-calling. Don't over call. Just become one with the birds...listen to what they do and when the do it. It is continueing to get lighter, so you can continue to get more aggressive with your calls. Yelp a little louder and faster....throw in a few clucks with the yelps. This will hopefully get the bird worked up. Again, you want to get the birds interest...but you don't want to over call.

Flydown: Now the birds have flown down. Chances are, there are other hens and hopefully a few gobblers. If the gobbler flies down and is coming in straight to your decoy, get your gun ready as soon as possible. Again, with their eyesight, you don't want to risk moving your gun when they are within shooting range. If the bird is coming straight in, let him come, and don't over call. If I have a bird coming in, I usually purr softly until I'm readly to pull the trigger. A purr is a sign of contentment....so if the gobbler is hearing purrs, then he isn't worried. Don't over call or else he will expect you to come to him.

Early in the season, a gobble can be 'henned up'. This means there are plenty of hens around and the gobbler doesn't have to 'try hard' or 'leave the group'. When a gobbler is henned up, it can be extremely hard to call him away from the live hens. So you can call to the hens. Hens can be b*tches, so I try to p*ss them off. I do this by copying them. If a hen clucks twice then yelps five times.....then I will cluck twice and yelp five time. Just keep copying her. A lot of times this will make her mad and she will come in to your decoys....bringing the gobbler with her. When there is more competition, then I usually call more agressively.

After flydown: If you don't have any luck at flydown, don't worry. Remeber, you did your scouting and you know where they go to feed. Wait until the birds are out of eyesight, then make your move. Belly around the birds and get in front of them in the direction they are moving. Get your decoys set up and in posistion again. Next, just start calling. Again...don't over call. I usually do a series of calles every 10-15 minutes. The series will consist of the clucks and yelps. At this point, you hope to hear a bird gobble to your call just over the knoll or just in the timber. That is a good sign you have his attention. If a bird is coming, just repeat the steps at flydown and purr him in. If he is with hens, call more aggressively. Here, calling to the hens can work really well...because they will be coming your way to feed anyways.

If you are unsuccessfull at flydown and don't know where the birds are going....or if they fly down out of sight, you can break out the crow call. Hammer this call loudly and again, this can force a bird to gobble. Listen where the gobble came from and then set up.

If you can't get a bird to gobble after flydown, and you don't know where they are at, you will have to spot and stalk. Glass fields from a distant, and walk field edges. When you walk a field, if there is a knoll....very very slowly walk over that knoll. A lot of times there will be a tom stutting on the other side...and with some luck, you will see the top of his tail feathers before he sees you...or hopefully he is strutting with he back to you. Then you can back up a bit and set up. However, 9 times out of 10, he will see you first. A turkey can see 270 degrees. So if there is more than one bird, it is almost impossible not to get seen. Don't challenge a turkeys eyesight...if you do, you will loose.

In the later season, a lot of hens will be nesting after flydown. This might be a good time to break out the jake decoy or even a tom decoy. Because there are fewer hens, there is more competition for the gobblers. Therefore, if they see a jake with two hens, they will likely come over to sort things out.

Get your hands on as many turkey dvds as you can. Take note of what they do and when they do it. You won't regret it.

When you have birds around you...if you hear 'putt, putt, putt'...this is the worst thing you can hear. This means you have been busted. If the gobbler is within range...you better shoot because in 2 minutes, all the birds will be long gone. The best way to prevent this is don't get spotted moving. Putt putt putt is the worst thing you can hear. Goooobbbbllle is the best thing you can hear.

Oh yeah, remeber, a turkeys eyesight is second to none...don't even try to challenge it. Do everything you can to move as little as possible....because if more than one bird is in the area, your chance is less.

So this is a nut shell turkey hunting. Of course, it doesn't always work out like this, so you have to be creative. Now I also have myself totally pumped up by writing this. I hope this helps and if you have any other questions after reading this....please ask. Don't be afraid to print this out and reread it many many times before the season starts.

RIStrutStopper

Nice tutorial Zubba. Mossy, purring on a mouth call isn't easy, so if you don't get it down, don't try to do it with a bird coming in. Try just scratching in the leaves, that works too. It is hard to do, but do not call every time you hear him gobble or every time he answers your calls. If you do, chances are he'll get hung up and wait for you (the hen) to come to him. Unless there are other hens calling, I play hard to get. Make him think I'm not interested in him. I just cluck softly, purr a little on my slate, and scratch leaves. Sometimes I just shut up. If he thinks he's being ignored, there's a good chance he'll come in looking for you. If the hens are calling, like Zubba said, do just what they are doing and hope for the best. It can get pretty frustrating and you will make mistakes, but you will learn from them. If you have any questions during the season about what might have happened or anything, ask! And like Zubba said, DON'T MOVE! Their eye sight is incredible. Don't get your gun up unless he is behind a tree or behind a hill, or maybe if he is strutting with his fan facing you. You WILL get busted by moving. Good Luck!

npaden

Nice summary Zubba.

Just thought I would check in to let everyone know I was still alive.

I've been VERY busy at work and haven't even had a chance to think about Turkey hunting yet. As I mentioned in my first post, the birds are pretty hit or miss on my place, but hopefully I'll be able to get down there in the next few weeks and smack one down.

Nathan

DawnPatrol

nice post zubba......thank for the refreshment course & tips!

here's a video of the gobbler i shot last year..........when it comes to calling i believe LESS IS MORE!

Like they said purr when they are in close! If he is committing........ let the decoys do the work!

Go get em'

http://s5.photobucket.com/albums/y15...8_Chapter1.flv

ryncam16

I couldnt get the video to work. Wow the birds here are getting real into it only problem is they are way to early i dont get it. It seems like the way they have been acting and strutting and stuff they will be done come season. They are strutting and fightin hens have been doing alot of calling.

DawnPatrol

the video should work now

DP