Although I wont get caught up in all this toughest,hardest,smartest,crap,there have been some good points made here!I still wholeheartedly agree with S&R's statement about "its not all about the area we hunt but about pressured birds"!Most all the replys we make here on the forum come from our experiences afield brought about by hunting in OUR own stretch of woods!Many of the statements we make here are area specific as is this topic!I hunt Tehama county mainly here in N.Calif and 95% of our turkey population inhabit private land held by residential individuals as well as commercial timber holders controlling vast amounts of property cut-off to the public!Consequently most all of our turkey hunters hunt on private grounds simply because thats where the birds are at via lease,club,permission,and oh yes we have our fare share of tresspassers too!Just because it is private land doesn't neccassairly mean you have it to yourself around these parts!I hunt one small piece of private ground with a road that goesto the property cuttingthrough a # of other pieces of property privately owned!For the past few years it looks like a dang freeway before daylight as the hunters take to the field with headlights everywhere!I see more traffic there than on some of the public ground I hunt!
One of the biggest mistakes I ever made was joining a club that I first didn't look over the members and how it was run!I may have 400 acres of private ground to hunt but so do the guys on the ranch's next to me!Its a real joy working a bird with guys on the property lines sqeakin and chirpin trying to get them to come there way!And better yet get caught moving around busting your bird ending the hunt!I could go on but ettiquette is slowly developing into a thing of the past simply because of the attitude and amount of hunters taking to the spring woods!
We all deal with what were dealt and either make adjustments or go home!Overcoming pressured birds no matter where were at is,and is going to be part of this sport as we move forward!I choose to move forward and stop complaining,for me persistance pays sooner or later I'll find some blind lovesick gobbler to come my way
...for what its worth ..Bob