stay put or run n gun??
 

ok...heres a scenerio...you work birds off the roost...they gobble and respond a little...they pick up hens or whatever...they keep responding off and on....or say they eventually quit responding or leave earshot...

your setup on a point that is scratched up pretty good...

you have a good 2+ miles of nice grassy trails that go through perfect turkey territory...if they are responding, you can usually get one to locate...can even extend the runnin n gunnin trail all day if you really want to put miles on your boots...

do you sit and wait hoping they come back??

or do you run n gun and hope to find a hot one??

if you wait on the point calling off an on, how long do you sit and wait? all day?(only allowed to hunt till noon)

ive been hunting this area since i was 12..im now 21..thats 10 years...i know most of the land fairly well..and know some of it all too well...

dad and i have had success both ways...i killed one last year by sitting and waiting..but he responded off and on all morning and made a big semi circle around me before i killed him at like 9...dad killed one running and gunning...and ive fired up and worked a couple the last couple years myself running n gunning..but never killed one running n gunning and trying to locate one...sometimes i end up back at the truck at 10 or 11 and really never located one to work..also, its not uncommon for birds to come back to the area at 8, 9, 10am...

but its almost torture for me to sit there if im not hearing birds...

just looking for expert turkey hunter advice....i know i know..i bet "get some patience and sit there!"...

if sitting there is the advice...what kinda calling should i do off and on?? usually do a mix of yelps, clucks, purrs, and scratching in leaves every 15minutes or half hour...usually closer to every half hour..last year was easy to sit there because i had him respond pretty much every 15 mins-half hour i called and knew he was making a big circle...worked that bird off the roost...

birds are pretty pressured and its not uncommon for them to come in pretty tight lipped...even the "blabber mouth" 2yos...mine last year shut down completely after he got within 100-150yds...i was ready to call it quits and take a nap..looked around and spotted him standing there..he just got above the knoll of the ridge...right after i spotted him he looked around for the hen and let out a gobble...the rest is history..but weve had them come in 100% silent...

RE: stay put or run n gun??
 

My thing this time of year is.... its just plain tough...
If its public land.. sit your ass down, if that bird gobbles 10 dudes are gonna come running...
wait em out and if ya shoot one cool.... if not, get him in a weekn when the hens start nesting.
Take that nap your talkin about.

RE: stay put or run n gun??
 

Good advise king. If you know those birds will come back, why not work them off the roost, then run and gun if nothing is going on for a while, then come back for and hour or two for a late morning sit. This tactic can prove deadly!

RE: stay put or run n gun??
 

I do about the same...If the gobblers are moving, looking for hens, I run and gun...If they are henned up, I sit...

Now, if they are henned up, I might also wait and go about 11-1 and catch a gobbler looking, then I might also run and gun...I've killed them as late as 6:30pm, and he was gobbling his head off...

RE: stay put or run n gun??
 

Charge!!!!!!!

RE: stay put or run n gun??
 

I have taken birds both ways if you know they will be back in a few hours an want to wait them out i would back off calling i am not saying to stop but it justs gives them a chance to slip up on ya or head the other way.Hunting mid morning the birds are often not as vocal as that first 30 min. off the roost your ears an eyes are your best tool.Run an Gun can pay off to you just run a higher risk of getting busted or run off birds that you never seen

But you know the land your hunting an how the birds are acting you just got to make up your mind how you want to hunt them
Good Luck

RE: stay put or run n gun??
 

I am changing my ways from run and gun to set up near all of the scratching. It has paid off in seeing birds but have not gotten in closs enough. Both times hens have come in to the area first and the gobblers stayed out of range except for one for my buddy and a jake for my son.

RE: stay put or run n gun??
 

If I am confident I’ll have birds move thru on their own at some point, I’ll wait em out. If I am in an unfamiliar area, or one that has no certainty of birds passing thru, I’ll roam. I like roaming, but generally, it’s not been the most productive for me.

RE: stay put or run n gun??
 

thanx guys....

guess ya'll would pretty much play it by ear how i do when im hunting there...

i almost sealed the deal today...715 i had a bird come in...long story short he saw something he didnt like or was just down right nervous...i saw his body before he saw me...gun up..saftey off..solid as a rock...that red head popped up a couple seconds later and immedatley was head bobbin...he got REAL nervous looking and ducked back behind a big oak..i figured a few soft yelps on the mouth call would settle him down...he bolted...i know he didnt catch movement...when he was head bobbing i was FROZE...ive never had one not calm down if i remained frozen...or atleast give me a good shot...

i could have probably killed him...but was concerned with the brush and wanted to see the full beard...could see he had a good paintbrush but wanted to see the whole thing..for the sake of having a cleaner shot...all i could see was the head and neck and base of the beard...

about 9 i went over to where he was and i feel alot better about not firing. it was thicker than it looked...looked OPEN when i was focused on him...but i had a hair left and right and that was it...

he never alarm putted..but got outta dodge in a hurry...i actually had to check my gun to make sure i didnt fire and miss and didnt realize it lol...

only 2 things i can think of...i was slightly silhoeted from his angle...though, under a hemlock tree and had alot of brush behind the hemlock i probably still stuck out slightly...happened so quick i couldnt get a better angle for myself...and i think he knew exactly where the hen SHOULD been and knew right away there wasnt a hen there...when i made the hen calls he knew something was REAL fishy...i think it was a mix of both....i know he didnt catch noise or movement from me...i know that.

dad always taught me to setup so they have to be within range to look for the hen...and call just enough to make them come in looking for the hen....mainly because we dont hunt with decoys...it works...we rarely ever have one hang up...they either come or they dont...but this bird didnt like something he seen or didnt see....

hopefully get after him and his buddies a day or 2 next week unless i kill on saturday at home...had to come back early for lunch and a meeting for training next year...

RE: stay put or run n gun??
 

Good callmauser06 better to let him walk then to push a bad shot

RE: stay put or run n gun??
 

ducksmoker...i thought it was the best option as well...

heres pics i forgot to post...

non-zoomed shot...he was in the middle of the 2 big oaks dead center of the pic..



heres a zoomed pic...




if you look close you can see all the saplings in the way...they blend very well...when theres a red head inbetween them, i didnt notice them except the largest 2....glad i didnt fire...he knew something was wrong and was spooked...but he doesnt know WHAT was wrong...and i got a whole pile of calls he aint heard yet....i still have a chance to tangle with him again...or his buddies...

RE: stay put or run n gun??
 

I usually sit on fields for the first couple hours and try to catch them coming back in, if that fails then I run and gun full speed ahead.. When I find one either in a field or hear them I will start to move very very slow similar to still hunting till I think they are either close enough or are coming my way.. Then sit and sweet talk em in...

RE: stay put or run n gun??
 

demo, i avoid fields like the plauge for the most part lol. i dont hunt with decoys...dont really like ambushing turkeys (spotting them in the field and watching their direction and cutting them off) and just dont like field hunting...just not my cup of tea...not knockin it...i miss out on many birds because of it...i could carry me a flock of decoys and setup in farm land at home and knock em dead...

really dont like turkey hunting at home on the farmland. woodlots are small...if you dont get them off the roost, they are in the fields strutting and feeding all day...i just rather hunt them in the woods...and big woods are my favorite. do alot of hunting at home on the woodlots...but i wont lie..90% of the time my hunts are over by 8am because they are in the fields...i just love hunting them in the woods...

not knocking field hunting...just isnt my style of turkey hunting...maybe i aughta learn...though, it wouldnt do me much good in this scenero being there really isnt fields...


did try runnin n gunnin for an hour today from about 9-10...couldnt get one to respond to the crow call...i blame the weather...kinda breezy, cold and raining off and on...real weird..a cold front moved in this morning then it warmed up...only birds i heard was all the birds i had on the roost...

RE: stay put or run n gun??
 

ill give those gobblers an hour or two, then if i get no more responses from them, or they never commit i will chase different ones

RE: stay put or run n gun??
 

Amen mauser06 its not about how many birds you take or miss its all about the hunt. That time at pre dawn when the birds are talking on the roost andTomsare gobbling at the oddest sounds they hear. Working that old long beard into gun range only to get busted by some sneak'y hen. watching your son takehis first bird. Talking turkey an telling stories with friends or just the simple time spent in the turkey woods enjoying all the things that God has given us. Its the emotion the pressure the highest ofhighsan the lowest of lows this is what makes us turkey hunters.

IF these things do not get your heart pumping your just not a turkey hunter !