Scouting approach.....

[Four Season Whitetail's]

I've spent a lot of hours on oldgobbler.com and never once have I ever heard someone say calling is a last ditch effort. 3/4 of the fun with turkey is calling. I wish whitetails would answer to calls!

I never said it was not fun at times but the challenge s far from the same. I believe it all has to do with the lay of the land and numbers of birds and how many birds you have killed in your life.. When you can see 3-4-5 toms at about any time it makes a big difference, You dont have to call because from your scouting you know what the birds do most days. Now anybody on this site could come here,pick out a bird.watch him fly down with his hens and feed till about 10am and then go in and call to him and most times he will come on a string.

 

Now to see those birds feeding down in the corner of say a soybean field with say 8 hens and a tom and you go in and kill that bird without a sound only using the lay of the land and what little early spring cover you have..Then you have really won the game and turkey hunted.

[turkeyfeathers]

Have only hunted the same woods for quite some time now. So haven't needed to scout. Apparently I found the perfect set up years back. Two fields connected by a pinch path. Here's my tree from which I killed my last 13 birds.

[Chris B]

Have only hunted the same woods for quite some time now. So haven't needed to scout. Apparently I found the perfect set up years back. Two fields connected by a pinch path. Here's my tree from which I killed my last 13 birds.

 

 

I love the ol' killin' trees! I have 2 spots like that where I know where the birds are roosted every may and I set up at the same tree every year. One spot is tricky because the birds roost off the property we have permission to hunt and we are on the low side of the hill so they naturally like to fly down and head up the hill to the field but between my uncle and I, we get 1-2 birds a year from that same tree. The other spot I have only hunted for 2 years and it is our 100% honey hole! It's a 1/2 mile hike to the top of the hill and is bordered on three sides by the neighboring property of a couple hundred acres and I have permission to hunt a little part of that land too. Its a nice grassy ridge in open hardwoods and we have killed birds on every single trip so far from the same spot!

[G-Man]

Too much emphasis is put on calling by the media..of.course they want to sell their sponsors stuff. Set up ,lay of land, and roosting are glossed over.

You may think your the best caller ever but if your set up wrong with a barrier between you and the bird you won't get him sitting in your blind waiting for him to come.

It's a real shame woodmanship skills aren't stressed, as the most successful hunters use them with out ever knowing they are doing it as they learned from many trials and errors..

Edited February 19, 2016 by G-Man

[turkeyfeathers]

Some of the worst calling I've heard is by real hens. At best I'd consider myself a 4 to 5 out of 10 on a calling scale (for realism  compared to others I've heard call. Cadence, when to call, what to call, volume and  location trump being a great caller IMO

Edited February 19, 2016 by turkeyfeathers

[DirtTime]

Some of the worst calling I've heard is by real hens. At best I'd consider myself a 4 to 5 out of 10 on a calling scale (for realism  compared to others I've heard call. Cadence, when to call, what to call, volume and  location trump being a great caller IMO

That's why I mentioned make how you approach the birds in reference to the area. The area I hunt is woods, with some big yards, but no fields. So, I have to figure out the food source and get between the roosting area and those. 

[Lawdwaz]

Predictable spring gobblers?  Next thing you'll tell me is that they have trails in the woods! 

 

 

 

[growalot]

No..they use my trails in the woods...go figure...lol

[turkeyfeathers]

Predictable spring gobblers?  Next thing you'll tell me is that they have trails in the woods! 

There's no predicting what any tom will do any given day, that's for sure. Heck, they have no idea.  

 

I'd seriously like to know how many we could kill if they could smell as good as a deer or coyote.

[growalot]

Exactly why they often feed together..why I use folding deer decoys during turkey and Turkey decoys during deer...

[growalot]

BTW...my trails are planted..

[Tacti_Steve]

Isn't the obvious answer I look for Turkey's? 

[Lawdwaz]

BTW...my trails are planted..

 

Cheater..............................

 

 

 

Planted trails aren't possible for most spring gobbler hunters.  Like setting up on field edges, it just isn't available to everybody and if it was, just setting there waiting might not trip the trigger on the excitement meter.

 

I'd guess (and I've mentioned this before) that the majority of spring gobblers are killed in the WOODS and most people carry a call or two..........voice or mechanical.

[Four Season Whitetail's]

Predictable spring gobblers?  Next thing you'll tell me is that they have trails in the woods! 

You trying to say turkeys do not have a pattern that can be watched day in and day out? They dont roost in the same trees/area every night? They dont fly down and feed in a field and then work there way down that field to a spot on a creek bank? They dont have their special fields they like to bug in?  Turkeys are pretty simple to figure out in some places. He will be where the ladies are and when they leave him he will start looking for the next one...He is the simplest bird on the farm to kill..couple notes and he trips on his beard running to you.

[growalot]

OK You know you hit a nerve with many on that. They won't see the in some places ..just your last sentence..Lol I will agree with you on this on some places. You can't take the difficulty out of any hunting and expect men won't take offense to it,man I learned that year's ago. I can only imagine the difficulties in public land hunting.most do not have the luxuries land owners do.

[Four Season Whitetail's]

OK You know you hit a nerve with many on that. They won't see the in some places ..just your last sentence..Lol I will agree with you on this on some places. You can't take the difficulty out of any hunting and expect men won't take offense to it,man I learned that year's ago. I can only imagine the difficulties in public land hunting.most do not have the luxuries land owners do.

I made that statement in my previous post. A huge difference in how birds work on different properties. I have guys from Pa drive 8 hours and spend 3-4 days here and they are hardcore turkey freaks, They say the same thing, Man.I cant believe how you can just pattern the turkeys up here. They are in the Pa mountains. Woods and hills compared to wide open flat land with piles of birds and only so many roosting spots. Birds are very visual and a tom can very well have a pattern but at the end of the day he is the same as any male and is at the mercy of his little head. Watch the ladies and find the man.

 

I take that call to a lonely tom at 10am in the morning that is all by himself that hears that last couple sweet calls like the guys in your local watering hole at 2am when that last hot..or not!...broad of the night is ready to rock.  You can see what he is going to do before he does.  Most Times!

[Five Seasons]

I never said it was not fun at times but the challenge s far from the same. I believe it all has to do with the lay of the land and numbers of birds and how many birds you have killed in your life.. When you can see 3-4-5 toms at about any time it makes a big difference, You dont have to call because from your scouting you know what the birds do most days. Now anybody on this site could come here,pick out a bird.watch him fly down with his hens and feed till about 10am and then go in and call to him and most times he will come on a string.

Now to see those birds feeding down in the corner of say a soybean field with say 8 hens and a tom and you go in and kill that bird without a sound only using the lay of the land and what little early spring cover you have..Then you have really won the game and turkey hunted.

You're delusional. Your turkey paradise sounds great. I'm not even calling you a liar, but that type of hunting doesn't exist for even 90% of NY turkey hunters.

Shooting a bird off the roost from good scouting is much easier to me then calling in a hen'd up Tom.

[Four Season Whitetail's]

You're delusional. Your turkey paradise sounds great. I'm not even calling you a liar, but that type of hunting doesn't exist for even 90% of NY turkey hunters.

Shooting a bird off the roost from good scouting is much easier to me then calling in a hen'd up Tom.

No sorry...Just a fact.  Crazy number of birds most years. Your 100% on your second statement which is why i now would rather take a tom without calling and just hunt him more or less..one on one. A lot of hunters around here do not even get out of bed and go hunt until 8am. No need, The birds are there so we just let them come down from roost and do their thing. We just sneak on them or just setup where we are 99% sure where they will head after they come out of the middle of the fields.

[growalot]

STOP..TO THE DELUSIONAL

I'm going to say this and rarely if ever do because,yes it sounds arrogant. The possibility that FSW has managed to set up a piece of property as described obviously exists,some can't or ever will.I believe a few here have ,at least, access but would NEVER admit the ease in their killing game, troophy game at that.My gosh the backlash that would ensue.Yet unlike FSW they clearly show pics and pretty much give time lines in their pursuits that anyone can see.The difference they never openly state the fact.

No I don't speak of me..though more than a few times I have said..If I can do it,any one can.There is a reason for this. The way the property I hunt is set up and the knowledge I have on movement and animals. Then the time, few have the time some have,period.

Edited February 20, 2016 by growalot

[Four Season Whitetail's]

STOP..TO THE DELUSIONAL

I'm going to say this and rarely if ever do because,yes it sounds arrogant. The possibility that FSW has managed to set up a piece of property as described obviously exists,some can't or ever will.I believe a few here have ,at least, access but would NEVER admit the ease in their killing game, troophy game at that.My gosh the backlash that would ensue.Yet unlike FSW they clearly show pics and pretty much give time lines in their pursuits that anyone can see.The difference they never openly state the fact.

No I don't speak of me..though more than a few times I have said..If I can do it,any one can.There is a reason for this. The way the property I hunt is set up and the knowledge I have on movement and animals. Then the time, few have the time some have,period.

I think its a joke myself. When i got on this site i put up pics 3 years in a row of trophy Ny state record 120in plus bucks i shot with bow and gun and all that was put up was a bunch of childish replies from the few that could never do the same feat so they have not seen the last 2 years record bucks nor will they ever seen another trophy taken from this poster regardless if it has wings or hooves Sad Really..

 

I

[growalot]

 So this is what we hope to stop and not dwell on the past and move fore ward on the site. To that, I would not mind seeing some of your set ups...and well I  See several, have now started not posting the number of pics they use to...what ever the reasons.

I think having a variety of option to look at as far as hunting is good...some may use, them others not with just as good or satisfactory for them results....Never hurts to have view able options whether one thinks they can work for them or not. I'l stick with my food scouting which is used with the normal scat and leaf litter turning.

[turkeyfeathers]

Four  Season Whitetails--- I had NO IDEA that there was such a site as ---oldgobbler.com!! After this- I am going to venture over to that site. Thanks for writing about it.

Great site. Lots of great info there. It's neat to see all species of turkeys getting post up, gun/combos with what's working, neat place to get a handmade call from (got a great slate made by forum member)

[Four Season Whitetail's]

Four  Season Whitetails--- I had NO IDEA that there was such a site as ---oldgobbler.com!! After this- I am going to venture over to that site. Thanks for writing about it.

Glad you found it but that site came from one of our other posters..Have not been there yet myself. lol

[Five Seasons]

Four Season Whitetails--- I had NO IDEA that there was such a site as ---oldgobbler.com!! After this- I am going to venture over to that site. Thanks for writing about it.

Damn Bill, give a brother some credit haha. You'll find there's no bs politics there either.