Turkey hunters.... sound off.

Mongo

Mongo

Joined
Nov 5, 2001
Messages
8,929
Howdy all,
I'm going again this spring, for the first time in a few years. I have a 2.5 yrs repaired shoulder, the shooting shoulder. A tad apprehensive with the recoil of the 3" magnums I will be shooting... but, the addiction is stronger.
I have been spring turkey hunting about 6-7 times, only lucky twice.
It is the worst addiction that I think man can be afflicted with.

Who here hunts turkey? Where are you doing it? What calls do you favor (or... what calls do those infernal birds favor?)

Let's see some pics if you have them...
 
Right on, it's a kick to call those sharp-eyed sons-a-guns. I remember one time I had this beautiful set-up. There was a lone gobbler coming in and he was going to have to cross this nice open meadow. Plenty of time to shoot him, right? Right :rolleyes: That sucker skirted around and worked the cover until he was right in my lap. Shotgun shouldered, camo'd out with face mask and gloves, and he was still able to pick me out, at least as 'wrong.' The same time I saw him, he saw me and faded back into the brush. Can't win 'em all ha.

But we get two spring tags out here for bearded birds and there's usually the opportunity to fill them both. I've been using a Primo's box call to mimic the hen calls. Sometimes the toms come in vocal, but other times, totally silent. Those ones usually bust me. I think we have Merriams here, what do you have in your area?

Here's some pictures from past hunts

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I'm hunting in NW Illinois, not sure which variant we have here. All I know... is that they are damn fickle about what they will come to. I usually pack at least two box calls, 1-2 slate calls, and have two handmade wing-bone calls. Last time I went, the damn birds would ONLY respond to one of the wing-bone calls. And even then... Tom hung up on me. I have mouth calls, but really suck at them.
 
I know what you mean about them being finicky. If I can get them to answer back, if they won't come to what I'm using, I keep trying to switch up the cadence to find something they like. I think I need to learn those slate calls. I'm pretty ignorant of them, and haven't figured out the mouth calls either. I've got a buddy that's a genius on those mouth calls, but for the life of me, it doesn't seem like I can make them work before I screw up and blow the hunt. Fortunately we've got enough birds that they start getting competitive and lose caution most of the time. I'd rather try to call half a dozen gobblers than a single.
 
One of my favorite times ... spring turkey hunting and picking up morel mushrooms on my way out ...

seems the weather has slot to do with how the birds respond to calling each year is different ... but definately looking forward to getting out there soon ...

the eastern wild turkey sub-species are what we have mainly here in south central Iowa ... with a bit of the Merriam's mixed in over towards western Iowa.
 
My season is in May this year. I live on the MN, Wis, Border. I used to hunt in both states if I could, but that'll damn near kill a person.:D
I hunt Wis now days (better DNR and resource management IMO)
The more i hunted, the less I call. I go by the mood of the birds. Some days it's over quick, others takes the entire season.
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Getting excited.... time to inventory the gear and make sure the cammo still fits. Won't have time to test fire the shotgun, hope I remember what it likes best. Gotta dig out the calls and get some practice in. My dogs go crazy if I practice in the house.
 
I'm thinking this thread could extend in to pics of what one carries. On day one I have every doggone thing I own with, but by the end
I have my mouth calls, a box call, wing bone call, boat cushion and my gun. Water , my bypass pruner and lunch. A couple extra shells rounds it out.
How many of you use a shootin stick? I cut a forked stick to prop the gun with. Saves the arms on those long waits.;)
 
There's nothing that compares to the excitement of spring turkey hunting. I decided several years ago to carry less when I go out. I gave away my vest and converted a camo Kifaru pouch to a haversack. I'll carry no more than 3 turkey calls along with an owl call and crow call. My favorite type of call is a box call. Most of the time I use a Cody Old School and a custom. I hunt national forest which means I'm not only trying to outsmart the birds but also other hunters. As a whole turkey hunters are respectful but I can't say how many times I've encountered ones who were the complete opposite. The weather was crazy here last year. I had vacation the first week of the season and had to dig my winter hunting clothes out because of the snow, sleet, and cold temps. Season opens in two weeks and I've been scouting a few mornings. The gobbler to tick ratio has not been very favorable so far. I treated my clothes and things were better last trip out. Hope everyone stays safe and has a good season.
 
fishiker said:
That's beautiful area to be hunting Hard Knocks Hard Knocks . No fields for me but I can share a pic of one of my favorite areas. That's about as close to open woods as I can find. Not sure how many birds I've worked within a mile of that spot over the years.
Click to expand...

Man that's a beautiful stand you've got there. We go from extremely open country on the tops to thicker than dogs hair in the creek bottoms, so I try to work the edges of those open meadows.
 
Picture from a few years ago. We didn't have turkeys for most of my hunting life, but I set out on my own back in 2006. The minute that first tom showed up 12 yards away and I dropped the hammer, I was hooked! Unfortunately, I have next to none again where I hunt. Used to have flocks of 25-30 all winter long driving me crazy coming through the woods like a herd of buffalo while deer hunting. Now I am lucky to see a couple of hens. But I will give it a go. I have a box call from Paul's Calls and a glass from David Halloran that are my favorites, though I have a number of others including the first glass I ever bought and still think it has the best sound. I have a 20 gauge Encore with an EOTech nowadays.

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A trick that my brother and I used on hard hunted birds was to have one of us set up and call only, about 75' behind the shooter. The caller can be very well hidden and use both hands and mouth to call while the shooter doesn't have to move at all. Works well on those bird that want to hang up just out of range.--KV
 
kvaughn said:
A trick that my brother and I used on hard hunted birds was to have one of us set up and call only, about 75' behind the shooter. The caller can be very well hidden and use both hands and mouth to call while the shooter doesn't have to move at all. Works well on those bird that want to hang up just out of range.--KV
Click to expand...
This would have come in handy the last two times I went....
 
Well, didn't get to go this weekend due to the impending death of my father....
Tentatively hoping to go last weekend in May.
 
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