I've been rethinking my past scouting techniques where I'm realizing I may have made a lot of mistakes. Last year, was going into the woods late morning or mid-afternoon. I found lots of J-hooks and feathers which indicated birds had been in the area. But that was it. Also, it turned out that I was scouting in areas many others were planning on hunting.

Next Spring I want to try a different approach. Tell me what you think:

I want to get out around 4am with a small flashlight. Just enough light for me to get around the woods without tripping and killing myself. Don't want to spook the roosting toms either. I want to get in there early enough so that I can allow them to gobble and give themselves away without me giving myself away. If they fail to gobble on their own, I thought I would occassionally get up on a high ridge and bust out with a peacock screamer or coyote howler (crow calls don't seem to work in Washington State as they are too common). I thought being up on a ridge would permit me to hear from greater distances. Finally, I want to mark the spot with my GPS so I can get back to the exact same spot.

Has this been your approach? What have the results been? Thanks in advance!