I've been out 5 times for turkeys so far this spring including today, I have had lots of action, seeing toms every day but not able to seal the deal. Hunting pressure in the area has smartened them up a bunch. Being that it is late for the spring season I felt I needed to change my tactics
So last night I do some web surfing on Turkey calling and hunting tactics and this morning I woke up at 2:00 am, had my coffee and a shower. Did some more research and headed out to my turkey spot to wait for legal light to come and try out some of my new found knowledge.
Sat there for about 15 minutes waiting for the area to calm down just incase I put some animals on alert when settling into my spot. Started with a couple soft "Tree yelps", I resist the urge to overcall. Shortly after I called I hear a distinct "clacking" sound that I have never heard recreated on any website but have learned to associate with Roosted Toms. This was followed by more "clacking" in various locations. For 30 or 40 minutes this "clacking" went on in response to my calling and in response to each other.
I then hear a turkey fly down from its roost just inside the trees to my left, I didn't hear any clacking from this location so in the back of my mind I'm thinking "Hen". Not long after the sound of the turkey flying down from its roost I hear the "clacking" in the trees has been replaced with gobbling on the ground. In total I have 4 Toms gobbling at me, 3 in front of me and 1 in the distance behind me. The closest one in front of me sounds like between 150-200 yards away.
I continue working my magic, now instead of "tree yelps" I have switched to some soft cutts and yelps and then some clucks. I can tell the Tom is closing the distance but I'm worried that he might take an aggresive run at the other 2 Toms below me instead of coming in. In retrospect I think those other Toms helped me as it created a foot race to see who can get to me first.
Now that I know where the bird I want is coming from I decide to risk a reposition. I close the gap by about 50 yards and set up again. He is now gobbling like crazy, I have never heard a turkey go on like that, anywhere from 5-8 gobbles in a row without stopping. He does hold up on the other side of a brush patch about 80 yards ahead of me, We can't see eachother, actually haven't seen him yet but my heart is thumping with anticipation. I feel he's going to make use of a game trail that I had seen earlier in the week so I make the gamble to do another repostiton while there was still ample brush in between us.
He's going absolutly ballistic now, On a few occasions I thought "he's going to pop out any second, gun up and safety off. He then gives a series of gobbles and sounds like he's retreated a bit. I grab my call and lay out a few soft clucks behind my back to reassure him that everything is OK and its safe to move throught the bush. For a minute or two I thought he busted me, he hadn't gobbled in a couple minutes. My heart is pumping pretty good, then he lets go with another string of gobbles and gives his route away. I know EXACTLY where he is, he's CLOSE and he is going to show himself any second, sure enough a few seconds later he walks out from behind the last piece of bush and I take the shot at 35 yards.
I know its only a turkey but it was surprisingly exciting and will be one of my most memorable hunts for quite some time, incredible action. This is the third turkey I've shot and by far the best hunt of the three.
So last night I do some web surfing on Turkey calling and hunting tactics and this morning I woke up at 2:00 am, had my coffee and a shower. Did some more research and headed out to my turkey spot to wait for legal light to come and try out some of my new found knowledge.
Sat there for about 15 minutes waiting for the area to calm down just incase I put some animals on alert when settling into my spot. Started with a couple soft "Tree yelps", I resist the urge to overcall. Shortly after I called I hear a distinct "clacking" sound that I have never heard recreated on any website but have learned to associate with Roosted Toms. This was followed by more "clacking" in various locations. For 30 or 40 minutes this "clacking" went on in response to my calling and in response to each other.
I then hear a turkey fly down from its roost just inside the trees to my left, I didn't hear any clacking from this location so in the back of my mind I'm thinking "Hen". Not long after the sound of the turkey flying down from its roost I hear the "clacking" in the trees has been replaced with gobbling on the ground. In total I have 4 Toms gobbling at me, 3 in front of me and 1 in the distance behind me. The closest one in front of me sounds like between 150-200 yards away.
I continue working my magic, now instead of "tree yelps" I have switched to some soft cutts and yelps and then some clucks. I can tell the Tom is closing the distance but I'm worried that he might take an aggresive run at the other 2 Toms below me instead of coming in. In retrospect I think those other Toms helped me as it created a foot race to see who can get to me first.
Now that I know where the bird I want is coming from I decide to risk a reposition. I close the gap by about 50 yards and set up again. He is now gobbling like crazy, I have never heard a turkey go on like that, anywhere from 5-8 gobbles in a row without stopping. He does hold up on the other side of a brush patch about 80 yards ahead of me, We can't see eachother, actually haven't seen him yet but my heart is thumping with anticipation. I feel he's going to make use of a game trail that I had seen earlier in the week so I make the gamble to do another repostiton while there was still ample brush in between us.
He's going absolutly ballistic now, On a few occasions I thought "he's going to pop out any second, gun up and safety off. He then gives a series of gobbles and sounds like he's retreated a bit. I grab my call and lay out a few soft clucks behind my back to reassure him that everything is OK and its safe to move throught the bush. For a minute or two I thought he busted me, he hadn't gobbled in a couple minutes. My heart is pumping pretty good, then he lets go with another string of gobbles and gives his route away. I know EXACTLY where he is, he's CLOSE and he is going to show himself any second, sure enough a few seconds later he walks out from behind the last piece of bush and I take the shot at 35 yards.
I know its only a turkey but it was surprisingly exciting and will be one of my most memorable hunts for quite some time, incredible action. This is the third turkey I've shot and by far the best hunt of the three.
. Most times now I sit still and keep calling, with 3-4 toms around, 1 will come in, it just might take a little longer. I find when a tom is continuously gobbling like that, I give a few purrs on the pot call and it drives them nuts
and there is an open season
