Erno86

Go out in the late afternoon before the opener, and listen for a flock or bachelor group scratching the dry autumn leaves for food --- It'll sound really loud for a turkey flock. Indicate their speed and direction, and that may give you a line to there roost.

At sunset...listen for a turkey's soft tree cackles and wing beats, as they fly up to the tree roost one at a time.

Sometimes a tom will gobble only one or two times before fly-down in the fall --- then he'll shut up; unless he needs to quell any unwarranted riff-raff calling by a young flock, with him sounding-off with a single stern gobble. I doubt that an owl hoot will bring a shock gobble response from a gobbler in the fall --- but you never know.

Depend on kee kee run calling in the fall. I use a single or double reed mouth call. If you hear or see the flock...really go to town with the kee kee run of a lost turkey --- And you might bring-in the boss hen with the flock, or bring in a young hen or jake that wants to help-out a lost turkey. If you can't bust the flock...try to get ahead of them and intercept them later on. Don't use the kee kee run before fly down.

I'm not sure when the toms or jakes join bachelor groups in the fall or winter.

Look for food sources for the turkeys in the fall. If they can't find a food source they'll fly-off and go to where their is one.

A tom harvest in the fall is a real achievement.

Good luck...