An old Turkey hunter told me about an unusual tactic he swore worked on hung up Gobblers.....you drop your drawers...get on your hands and knees and back towards the GObbler....looks just like a Struttin GObbler w/ Waddles and everything.....he sad you can close the difference pretty good...but you have to peek back between your knees to keep an eye on him so as not to get spurred..... I tried it once and it didn't work out so good....The sheriff,farmers wife and my wife didn't buy that I was crawlin around in the neighbors field in that manner for any legal reason. SB
GMMAT, I didn't write clearly...I meant if I was not in a blind and had someone else call....not, "in a blind and have someone call...." I've only killed one turkey someonelse called in....I've killed a right good many....but I think they are the biggest challenge in the SC woods....the bust my chops way way wayyyyy more than I bust theirs.... SB
Good call Rob, I like the thread. For me, there are a few constants every single year when I'm hunting from a blind: 1. Absolutely no brush, nor will I ever until I get busted and am 100% sure that it had to do with me not being brushed in. I've had hundreds of turkeys (literally) withing 15 yards of an open blind with no mesh in the windows. Besides that, it's hard to brush in a blind in the middle of a wheat field.:d This setup I had a tree behind me and that was it. Oklahoma Jake 2. I use decoys when it's convenient, but if I'm on the run and gun mission... one foam decoy may accompany me. I'm definitely not packing around a "spread" with me. I prefer to use decoys in the early season, but for late season when the toms are out searching, I prefer to be mobile. 3. I very rarely plan to set up my blind ahead of time, if I do it's out of laziness for the next morning's hunt or because I didn't feel like packing it to the truck that evening. I personally hunt out of a Double Bull Matrix, but for turks... it seriously doesn't matter, which is odd to me since they are such a visually enhanced bird. The one tactic that I use and proves to be effective year after year is to "Make the Tom look for you." This is extremely important in late season when the hens have moved off to nest. If a bird comes in or is coming in and stops gobbling, chances are that he didn't leave. Wait him out, play "hard to get." When he gets tired of looking for you, he'll gobble. Things important to me when bowhunting turkeys: 1. Be able to hold your bow at full draw. There are zillion people over bowed... specifically in turkey hunting. 2. Hunt where the birds want to be or get somewhere in their path to that location, don't try to pull them out of their way. 3. Don't stop calling if you make an un-turkey like sound. For once in your life, "how you say it is less important that what you say." 4. HAVE FUN! Turkeys will kick your arse at some point... deal with it.
Love it! So true. Although, in only one season, I haven't had my butt kicked...yet (luck). I did manage to kick my own arse though on the first bird
Just wait Matt, these damn thunder chickens (my buddy calls them devil birds) will eventually kick your butt and have you questioning everything that you have done. I had one bird pegged several years ago, watched him for two months and new what he was doing and when he was doing it. When season rolled around everything changed, I spent the whole season after that bird and he kicked my butt every day out.
Oh, I'm certainly expecting it. I feel my first season last year certainly had some skill involved, but there was certainly a crap ton of luck as well (ok, probably mostly luck:d ). I already envision this season being a frustrating one...but it will be fun nonetheless.
Yea, I couldn't count how many times I have said "to hell with this, I am giving up turkey hunting" but every year I come crawling back :d I feel confident to say that (beside bears), turkey are the most difficult animal to hunt in PA. The hunting pressure is pretty bad, but I think it has more to do with people calling to the birds before season. I have been out scouting so many times on some of the public land I hunt just to hear guys calling to a gobbler on roost. I am not sure if they realize that they are educating the birds or not, but it definetly makes it more difficult to call the birds in. That is the major reason I started using fighting purrs more, most guys around here stick to cutting and yelping so the birds get use to that, they don't hear fighting purrs too often so they seem more willing to investigate them than yelps.
Are you going for the breeding pair look? That seems to really work good in my area. Not so much the full strut breeders like the B mobile...etc. with a hen.. But a hen with the stake pushed all the way in, and a jake right behind her sitting higher on a stake. Seems to be the best bet around here, really pisses the toms off.
And facing a jake toward the blind as a gobbler will "usually" take another jake/gobbler head on putting them closer to the blind and looking away.
One thing that I figured that I would add that probablly most people do, maybe some don't, but I face my blind so that most of my shots will be towards the west when hunting. We can only hunt till noon so I try to keep the sun at the back of the blind, this helps to keep the inside of the blind dark and there is less chance of any turkeys noticing movement.
Buck M, that's not a bad little tip there bud. If the opportunity presents that, I'll use that. Nice.
Plus you don't have to squint all morning...I hate finding myself facing east in the mornings. Good tip.
