JW

.........Troll for turkeys?

Care to share your technique?

JW

SwampCollie

I learned a few weeks ago when we had a semi-debate about this that everyone's definition of run and gun varies a bit. What most people consider run and gun hunting... I call trolling or prospecting. To me, you aren't really running and gunning until you already have a gobbler gobbling and are going to him, rather than him coming to you. Think of it as the difference between a recon team, a strike force, and an ambush. The recon team are the trollers/prospectors. They are out looking, gathering intel, and if they meet the enemy they will engage him. The strike force to me are the run and gun hunters. They know where the enemy is, and are going to get him. The sitters are the ambush hunters. They are letting the enemy come to them. Thats how I view it anyway... minus the paramilitary thing... just makes it easier to understand my point of view I guess.

How I run and gun, and when I run and gun, which is only as needed, depends entirely on the circumstances. I will most typically only move on a bird if I think there is something between he and I that is going to hang him up... a creek... a fence... a road... whatever. Or, if I know he is out of his strutting area, and has started heading back that way... sometimes I'll try and beat him there. Its a foot race.. thats why its called RUN and gun. It all boils down to knowing your property and your turkeys VERY well. It can turn a hung up bird, or a bird that may find a hen before he gets to you... into a tagged turkey. Its just another tool. Knowing when to stay and when to go is one of the hardest decisions turkey hunters have to make... and sometimes no matter how good you think you are... you are going to be wrong.

ultimag

I consider it the same. Moving around trying to strike a turkey whether getting him to gobble or spying a flock in the distance.Then planning the best plan to get a shot.I may have to setup multiple times, change up my calling trying to figure out what that particular bird wants to hear.In unfamiliar areas you could call it speed scouting moving getting into areas with fresh sign, and starting there. I hunt Merriams and sometimes you have to cover lots of ground.

Bobgobble2

JW,If I'm hunting a new area,or in an area that I had heard birds at a distance often times I will move to points that I can hear farely well,and try to strike a bird to pin-point him.On many occasion at dawn I might of worked a bird immediately off the roost hearing other birds in other areas and have went back to those areas later in the AM: or even early afternoon to try and raise a response.Turkey huntin is all about opportunities and trolling/striking/prospecting,is exactly what we're trying to do in coaxing a bird to gobble whether it be from a locator or some type of turkey call.Frankly from experience I try to use a locator other than a turkey call to raise a response(yes a turkey call works well,and I've killed birds using it that way also)but I have also been burned not being set-up like I should have or just didn't know the bird was that close.Often times that turkey call will bringem to ya when your not ready and can get you busted or caught in a horrible set-up not presenting a shot.A locator such as a crow call,pilleated woodpecker,or my personal favorite a honker flute,work very well in raising a response and consequently give you an opportunity to get into a quality set-up.......

JW

Well I do run and gun and to me that is hearing a bird and cutting down the distance. but at times you may move and find the bird came to where you were just at!

In lull days - days of total lock jaw (no gobbling) I troll. I scout for sign and every 75 to 150 steps I stop and call softly.

Now learn from my mistakes -
Each time you call make sure you can sit down comfortable against something very quickly! AND I MEAN QUICKLY!! Learned that lesson the hard way.
Do not sit in a bush - trust your camo! Learned that the hard way!

AsI saidI call softly - very softly - birds close will tell you quickly. I wait for a response - IF I hear nothing - thenI may get a bit louder and wait and then I get real lound and cutt a bit......if a tom will gobble well it is back to Run and Gun.

While I troll I look for portential roost trees - checking for broken branches underneath, feathers, droppings, scratchings, etc. And I check every sandy location or muddy spot for tracks.

If while trolling I find a high traffic area due toa good amount ofturkey sign - I will sit down and spend a bit of time there. I also mark that on my GPS.

Every timeI approach a wide open areaI will stop short to listen - then call softly - then glass any open areaI come too. I try to stay on edges and on the shady side if I come to a wide open area.

Now in high grass to look for detail - most times you will only see the turkeys head - that is hard to train the eye to pick up but it can be done.

So that is some of what I have learned - and guys thanks for sharing.

JW

MOhunter46

Good info JW. Definitely going to try this.

Bobgobble2

Excellent stuff JW!!Alot more to finding birds than just hearing one for sure.....very good post....

SwampCollie

I'm going to affirm this post, because I'm sure a lot of guys who are fairly new to turkey hunting will read this and think oh yeah thats good and all.... but if this were the bible.... this here is the Gospel of John (or the book of Romans... which is my favorite). At any rate, until you live this and screw up enough birds, you might not appreciate how valuable these experiences are. Y'all take heed here.... if you don't now, you will by May!

I had just turned 16 and was hunting the farm in Sussex Co., VA. It was about 8:30 in the morning and I walked down a firebreak that started at the edge of a field, went to a creek then cut back to the farm road. I went about 30 yards in and opened up on the slate and had a bird gobble not 100 yards in front of me. I won't repeat what I said, but I was standing in the middle of the path. I took 10 quick steps to left and got up againest a big pine in the middle of the 30 year old cut and as I went to sit down I heard a putt. I saw old snowcone head running away. Two lessons here in addition to what JW said:

1) If a bird gobbles to you at 8:30 (and this has held 100% true for me) he is coming to you. Most Toms are with hens at this time. The time between 8:30 and 9:30 is usually turkey nap time, because a lot of gobblers are henned up, and don't fire back up again until closer to 10am.

2) As spring gets later, and vegetation emerges, turkeys sound farther away than they really are. I thought that bird was out in the field edge about 125-150 yards away. He wasn't 70 yards from where I was standing when I called to him, and he was RUNNING AT ME when I saw him, which was the same time he saw me. If I had been ready, I wouldn't of had to do a thing except click the safety off, pull the trigger, and tag the bird. So as a result, I NEVER make a turkey noise until I'm seated and ready to go. This has paid off in pounds and inches several times in several different states for me.

Espeically if you cannot tell poison ivy from VA creeper. But really the more noise you make, and the more you try and cut branches, the less likey you are to succeed. Quite often its more important to be fast than hidden when running and gunning.


Right on. If a bird doesn't hear the call, then you really have just broken even. But especially later on in the day, or if you have a sub-dominent bird, a Tom may not gobble at your call, but just come a running at you. It pays to sit a few minutes and wait if you have called, but not struck a bird, because you may have struck him without knowing it. And if you shoot a lot of ducks like I do, and can't hear worth a hoot, then you should sit at least 10 minutes. Again.... I've killed birds this way, and I've bumped birds by not being patient.

You can easily tell the difference between a Tom's track and a hen track by looking at the length of the left and right toes, and the overall size. When a tom strutts for a hen, you'll see the area where his wingtips drag in the sand. If you look at at Tom you have killed, or at a stuffed one at a sportsmen's shop, you'll see how the tips of the longer wing feathers are broken off and cut off from dragging in the sand.

I'm low tech. I carry a note pad. Its amazing how much you can see in a morning and forget by lunch. Having a way to organize your thoughts can keep you from making mistakes twice, and help you capatalize in different situations. Anyone remember JWs post about someome else being the spot you were going to hunt? What to do then? JW breaks out his GPS and I take out the note book.

If I had a dime for every time I've stolled out into a field whistling not paying any mind to the fact that a bird might be out in the field then I'd probably be able to buy a couple boxes of HD shells. I remember a field on that same Sussex farm that there was ALWAYS a turkey in, that is if you walked up fast on it. Seldom were they there when you crawled up to the edge and glassed it. Murphy's law. But the fewer turkeys you spook.... the better.

Oh yes. High grass, and late winter wheat can be very hard to hunt.

JW the post of yours was one of the best I've read lately on the net. Great advice for everyone! Seriously.... all you new/young turkey hunters on this site..... read it....

kingvjack

I use a jointed Rapala....





Turkeys are so thick here they don't fit in the woods anymore

botechboy

Thats something I have never seen and if heard might not of beleived thanks for that pic