A short story from this morning's turkey pursuit...

[TNBillyEarl]

If you have success hunting turkey around here after the first weekend of the season, you need to think more like deer hunting, being in the right place at the right time. There are not a lot of birds, but after opening day they are so much more the wise. I have never been able to bring myself to change tactics and hunt like this - until this morning. In a moment of weakness I decided walking in I would show some growth and try something new.

Bordering part of the north side of our lease is a gorgeous pasture/farm that is not cut for hay but for aesthetics as it contains an old farmhouse. Our lease occasionally roosts birds that frequent the soft, lush, green terra firma of our neighbor. And for the past 3-4 years, this field has one bird that rules all birds, animals, and any living creature found in the field. And he is huge. And he is old. And he is mean. And neither my buddy or I have ever gotten a chance on him. We only see him through glass and laugh at the show he puts on. Today was my moment of weakness, I capitulated and went to ambush him.

After a quiet morning with only a few distant gobbles, I gave up.

As I was walking up a steep hill to the truck I bumped him off the hill and into the air. He flew right over my head, gained 30 feet of altitude, glided a few hundred yards, and crash landed in the exact spot I set up on all morning. I thought for a second I was goose hunting b/c he flew so much better than any other turkey I have seen.

I still have yet to take a Tom after the first week of the season. Next weekend are the last 2 days of TN's season. If you guys have any suggestions I'm all ears.

-B

 

[wvbuckbuster]

Might not work on this gobbler since he was spoked but get in a different part of his zone or someplace where you know other gobblers will search thru and set up a decoy or two, make a couple of calls after good daylight then be silent. Don't call but once or twice about every 40 minutes. Think deer hunting on a stand waiting for a buck to cruise thru the neighborhood. They have tendency to become call shy but will come in silent. Jakes do it all the time looking to steal a mature gobblers' women. So will nondominate gobblers. use a different call then what you have been using in that area.

 

[8mm Enthusiast]

Correct on treating it like deer season this time of year. They just don't respond to calls at all beyond in the morning. I would think maybe calling in the morning would work just to let a gobbler know about your presence and when he gets lonely after his hens go to nest maybe he will silently slip into your area hoping to find the hen from the morning. It's tough because they position themselves so well that even the morning hens once they are done feeding will still be available for them. I am honestly getting into the mindset of not even taking the calls with me in my hunting vest and just sitting it out patiently. The key would be to find a good choke point or funnel area where the gobblers would be traveling. I have read that an eastern gobbler can cover on average 1 to 2 miles in a single day! On the extreme end it can be 9 miles in a single day! That is a huge indicator that we are giving up too early during the day and calling way too much during the late season. If you have good access to the land you are hunting on, a great way would be to just carefully setup near his roost tree although that is a delicate process as I have learned unfortunately that they will fly off if you get too close even in pitch dark conditions and all the ones in the vicinity of that tree will shut up after that happens.