HEY KITSAP SHOOT ME A E-MAIL I AM LOOKING FOR PEOPLE THAT LIVE CLOSE AND FAR THAT SHARE THE ADDICTION I AM UP IN BELFAIR AND I WORK ON BANGOR SO ZIP ME A LINE

Depending on the terrain, and, how much land that you are able to hunt, would to me, be the deciding factor in what strategy to take. If you are hunting thousands of acres of public land, I would strongly suggest stalking, with a little scouting along the way. BE EXTRA CAREFUL WHILE DOING THIS! It is never a good idea to do this while calling, good recipe for disaster. But, stalking, if done correctly, can be rewarding to. Try going from ridge top to ridge top, slowly, or from open field to open field, using a pair of binoculars to do most of the looking. Take your time as if you were "still hunting". Chances are, you will be busted by turkeys before you see them. Don't get upset over it, in fact, sometimes, this is what you may need. If it is a lone hen, I wouldn't suggest you pay much attention to her. Let her settle down and get back to where she was originally intending to go or do, probably to a nest. But, if it is a tom or multiple birds with a tom, you may have gotten luckier than you think. Pay close attention to where the birds took off to. Then try to circle around to where you might think they are going, by paying attention to terrain. It has been my experience that turkeys will start to recall one another after they have been busted up. I would then find my spot and start calling again like a lone hen, sticking to one call only at this point. You want to sound like one of the lost birds of the flock, not multiple birds of the flock. This may entice a gobbler to start gobbling. If you by chance call in a hen or hens, be still. The tom is probably sitting back within seeing distance before he makes the decision to come on in, or, will start gobbling to draw the hens to him. Either way, this will clue you in on the next move. But be careful and still while you are calling in a busted group of birds. The boss may come in silent, look for small movements. The problem with smaller places to hunt, is running out of room to operate. About the only thing else that I can suggset, is to pick a high spot, sit down, do some calling, and enjoy the show of the day, whatever it may be. Good Luck!

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Im glad this came up. I just learned something new about this. My wife is keeping tabs on couple of turkeys she see's every few days. She had to work late the other night and saw them on her way home! whats wierd well it was 8:00 pm!!!! Im home a lot right now because i broke my leg in a skydiving accident a few weeks ago. So Ive been reading a lot of books on turkey hunting. This is what i found on this subject. On full moon nights turkeys will fly down and feed! And it was a full moon the night my wife seen these birds.With turkeys feeding and breeding at night they will naturally clam up. Another possibility is that the population has reached its peek and the breeding in that area has dropped.So birds are not that vocal, but soft calls in there back yards will still work. I got this info from "IN THE TURKEY WOODS", by Jerome B. Robinson. Even though ill have a cast on during turkey season ill still be out there. good luck.

I wouldn't know its never happended to me before.

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Well, I have a different perspective on on what causes the gobbling to become almost non existent. The hunting pressure does cause this problem but not because the turkeys are call shy or scared. The main reason the gobbling slows is because in the first week of the season over 50% of the birds will be harvested so most of the vocal toms are gone. The remaining toms are hened-up and a gobbler does'nt usually gobble when he has a hen in is sight, they just strut and drum. This is also what is happening when you hear roost gobbling and then silence when they hit ground. The subdominant gobblers that are left are the silent toms that come in to your calling. These birds want to breed but are afraid to gobble or even drum because of the boss gobbler. These birds hang on the edge hoping to find a hen, so hunt where the hens feed, dust, and water. Use soft feeding sounds, clucks and purr, short yelps and scratching in the leaves to try and lure these toms. Sometimes you may get a boss hen to answer you, if you do call hard and loud. Try to pick a fight with the hen, make her mad, hopefully she will come and drag the gobbler with her.