Where to set up for turkeys..
 

I watched them all winter, most of the spring and now I lost track of them.. My hunting property has a big river, a small creek, railroad tracks and a decent sized bush (it runs along the river). The property is huge, mostly plowed fields divided up by thick treelines.
I am thinking of setting up in the corner of the property where the creek is, and the bush meets the railroad tracks, setting my decoys in the Field and doing my thing..
Would I be better off in the bush? I am taking the day off so I will have the whole day to mess around, but I would like to be somewhere where I at least have a chance of seeing something..

RE: Where to set up for turkeys..
 

David, you need to do some scouting and find to what location they have moved to. Scout for tracks, droppings and feathers. Check around trees for feathers and droppings from their roost.

Unless you have feeders out, you're going to have to do the scouting and find them. Don't go scouting for good spots to set-up, do some scouting for turkeys!:D

RE: Where to set up for turkeys..
 

Find roosting areas, feeding areas and travel routes. Same areas for extended periods that change with the food source. Wet areas green up first in spring and they usually feed along creeks or swamp bottoms. Here they roost over the water in the huge areas of swamps we have. As spring progresses and fields and other areas green up they shift to them. This may also bring a change in roosting areas too and travel routes as well. Be prepared for them to go through changes just as you figure out their present pattern. But watch the seasons and next year you'll be ahead of the game and know where they'll be early and later on. Once you get their pattern down it's like shooting fish in a barrel, well a small fish in a really big barrel, but if you're seeing them then the biggest half of the battle is over. And if you can plant a food plot they will destroy sprouts as fast as you can plant them. I plant sunflower seeds and plain old wild bird seed. They dig it up and spend hours in a food plot feeding. The hens head there and the gobblers will follow them. Baiting here is illegal but food plots are legal so I plant and hunt over it. Here's several killing my food plot from last year. Just planted it this weekend. Should be hot in a few days. Those light and dark patches are scratched over dirt from turkeys.

RE: Where to set up for turkeys..
 

The best form of legal baiting is fresh manure!:D I've seen then in cattle yards and barn yards pickin' away. You can bet that if they find a field that was freshly fertilized they will be back over and over until someone boots them out.

RE: Where to set up for turkeys..
 

Thanks guys.
None of the areas I can hunt have manure, and the spot I have been scouting has been turned over in the past day or two, covering any signs I had been watching. Hopefully that doesn't hinder the turkeys schedule or pattern too much.
I think I am getting anxious:D.

RE: Where to set up for turkeys..
 

Very true! Even dried cow patties. Theypick out all undigested grain. Hey, hogs do it to!

RE: Where to set up for turkeys..
 

But not the Rebel Hogs right? Hehehehe

RE: Where to set up for turkeys..
 

Even frozen butt Canadian hogs do it!:D:D:D

RE: Where to set up for turkeys..
 

So I spent the morning looking around, I found some turkey droppings.. So now another question:
How long would turkey droppings stay identifiable? They looked fairly fresh but are in a terribly awkward area to hunt.. I am going to get close tomorrow morning and wait them out, see whats happening.

After I put my kid on the bus I went over and talked to my neighbour, the one who owns the land I hunt on, told him I would be huntingthe seasonon his land and he and his wife are invited to come for turkey dinner should I succeed. He said on Sunday morning there were 6 turkeys in my garden beside my camper.. Go figure.. When I first approached him about his land (when I bought my bow at Christmas) he told me he wont let people hunt there but made an exception for my son and I, only if we used bows. This morning he gave me permission to hunt with whatever means I chose with whomever I chose.. That made for a pretty cool start to the day. I still think I want my first bird to fall to a bow though.
What an elusive bird.
Do they frequent sharp inclines? The bush I found the droppings in has a very steep drop off down to a large river, it looks ideal, but I can't seem to get a response from the turkeys, they just have to be there..

RE: Where to set up for turkeys..
 

Set up where my kids get the school bus.. When they start having to swing their book bags at birds with ten inch beards you whack em.. I'm gonna pretend to go to school with them in the morning and take a brush axe. >>>>>>>>>>>Whack! !

RE: Where to set up for turkeys..
 

Just before Dusk step into the woods with the Hooter Owl call..........and you want it tosound like this...."Who cooks for yooooooou.....Who cooks for you allllllllll".


Sounds of the Wild Turkeys
From gathering poults to finding a mate, wild turkeys make a vast array of sounds. Below are common calls you can hear in the turkey woods.
CLUCK
The cluck consists of one or more short, staccato notes. The plain cluck, many times, includes two or three single note clucks. It's generally used by one bird to get the attention of another. It's a good call to reasure an approaching gobbler that a hen is waiting for him.

PUTT
The putt is a single note, generally associated as an alarm, could be several notes sharp or rapid fashion, usually means they have seen or heard something, means danger.

TREE CALL
The tree call is usually a series of soft muffled yelps given by a roosted bird. Sometimes it picks up in volume as fly down time nears. Maybe accompanied by soft clucking. Generally acknowledged as a call to communicate with others in a flock.

PLAIN YELP OF HEN
The yelp is a basic turkey sound. It is often delivered in a series of single note vocalizations and can have different meanings depending on how the hen uses it.

CUTTING OF EXCITED HEN
A series of fast, loud, erratic single notes is referred to as cutting. It's a modified cluck and is a distinct abrupt call with a somewhat questioning nature. It can be heard at a great distance and is often used by a single turkey looking for companionship.

ADULT HEN ASSEMBLY CALL
The adult hen assembly call is a series of loud yelps in order to assemble her flock or young poults.

FLY DOWN CACKLE
The cackle is generally associated with movement. It can be heard when a bird is flying up or down from a roost, flying off a ridge, or flying across a creek. A cackle usually consist of three to 10 irregularly spaced notes. It's a movement call, so use it sparingly.

KEE KEE RUN
The kee kee is the lost call of young turkeys and variations made by adult birds. It's often associated with fall hunting, but can be used successfully in the spring. This is what it sounds like. A variation of the call, the kee kee run is merely a kee kee with a yelp.

PURR
Purring is a soft, rolling call turkeys make when content. It can usually be heard by feeding birds. This is not a loud call, but is good for reassuring turkeys as they get in close to your position.

CLUCK AND PURR
The cluck and purr is single note or notes often associated with flock talk or the feeling of contentment. Sometimes amplified. It is a cluck followed by a rolling, almost staccato call.

OWL HOOTING
The eight-note hoot of the barred owl is often used as a call to locate gobblers in the early morning or late evening hours.

GOBBLING
The gobble is one of the principal vocalizations of the male wild turkey and is used primarily in the spring to let hens know he is in the area.

RE: Where to set up for turkeys..
 

Wow Reb.. nice..:D

RE: Where to set up for turkeys..
 

Reb thats awesome man,thanks!:)