I have never really scouted before this season, which is why i have posted so many posts regarding scouting for turkeys (and have received great help from you guys). This post is just asking for conformation that my process of scouting and locating birds is correct. A simple "yes" or "sounds good" will be sufficient, or of course any suggestions for better success. I hope this sounds good to you guys....


First, i find land that i know turkeys roam. this is alreadydone because i am hunting on public land (GreenRidge State Forest, MD) where turkeys are known to live.

Second, a few weeks before the season,I wake up predawn and blow some owl locatersfrom the road and, if i hear a gobble, i mark on my map about where it came from. Then i move on to about 200 yards downroad and continue to do the same.After light comes, i blow some crow calls and once again listen for gobbles and, when i hear some, mark their direction and distance on my map.

Third, after i have done this until about 9:00am -10:00 am (about three hours of scouting), i go back to those areas i marked and begin to get deeper in the woods in search of sign or actual turkeys (being very cautious not to bump a bird). I am now looking for scratches, feathers, crap, anything to find a roosting site or strutting zone. Rivers, creek bottoms, largehorizontal branchedtrees, etc, are all good places to start.

Once i have found some signs of turkeys and/or roosting sites, i try to observe some gobblers from a distance (which, to me, seems challenging)

Finally, on the actual night before the hunt, i attempt to either put the birds to bed (which also seems hard to do) or blow some locater calls at night to see where they are roosting - which will tell me where they will be in the morning.

On the morning of the hunt, i blow some locater calls again to confirm they are still there and then i move in on them and set up. Theni start calling as you normally would do.

QUESTION: will locater calls work at any time of the day/ night, or just specific times (dawn, dusk) and how often do you guys hear a gobble in response to locater call. Do you hear one about half the time, everytime (doubtful), 1 out of 10...? I just want to know if im going in the right direction.

I appreciate your guys help. It just seems challenging to me to hear a bird, let alone see one. But, i guess it comes easier with years of experience. There are so many acres and different paths in this state park, it is hard to know where to start - but im learning, or trying lol. It seems it is best to scout from large areas to smaller, more specific peices of land where the turkeys actually are. Thanks alot fellas, really.

Geterdun