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Post by larryhagmansliver on Mar 14, 2008 9:52:21 GMT -5
Ok here's the deal. You go into the woods before daylight and hear a gobble. You are able to get close to him and set up while he is still in the tree. He is up there gobbling his head off every minute or less. Do you respond to him while he is in the tree or wait till he flys down? The reason I ask is I almost always have them go the other direction when they hit the ground. I have tried yelping while they are in the tree for twenty minutes or so, and I have tried just giving out a soft cluck every five minutes or so. They always respond back to my calls, but like I said, they leave when they hit the ground.
Larry
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Post by hankyorke on Mar 14, 2008 9:57:22 GMT -5
How close are you setting up?
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timdog
Junior Member
Posts: 42
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Post by timdog on Mar 14, 2008 10:05:02 GMT -5
Here's two scenarios that have worked well for me:
I prefer to get as close to the roost without being seen as possible. In Indiana this can be as close as 50 yards with the dense foliage when season starts. I like to let them gobble for a while....say 10-20 minutes depending on how "light" it is that morning. This let's them get comfortable on the roost, and might fire up some hens that could possibly be with him. If I don't hear or see any hens with the bird, I'll hit him with a long extended tree yelp about 15 minutes into gobbling. Now, that bird might turn your way, start gobbling, and fly down within minutes. But, (now this is imperative) if that doesnt happen, it's important to be patient and wait 10-15 minutes before hitting the call again. I have killed a number of birds a few minutes after hitting that second yelp in the morning. The second yelp should be a little faster and excited than your first tree yelp.
If hens are with the bird (birds still in roost), I typically try and agitate the hens with a few fast yelps and cuts, and get them wondering. This will typically excite the tom and get him to see what all the fuss is about. There are days where that tom is going the other way no matter what, but these are just my experiences....hope this helps!
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Post by hunter7x on Mar 14, 2008 10:05:41 GMT -5
If he's already making a lot of noise I'd call soft and one series let him know your there then shut up. No reason to get him even more fired up and risk the chance of him calling live hens to him.
If he hits the gound and goes the other way maybe try to get in front of him or wait him out. He may come back later in the day after the other "hens" are on the nest.
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Post by Woody Williams on Mar 14, 2008 11:24:49 GMT -5
No reason to get him even more fired up and risk the chance of him calling live hens to him. . call more hunters to him... |
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Post by gobblerstopper on Mar 14, 2008 12:45:18 GMT -5
I can probably count on one hand the number of gobblers that I have had come directly to me after fly off the roost.  I always sit up as close as I can without being seen and let out a couple of soft clucks. Soft enough that if a person is more than about 75 yards away, they are not going to hear them. If the bird responds, I just get confortable and let him decide what he wants to do. Very seldom are you going to convince a gobbler to do something that he doesn't want. I'll let them fly down, get in their zone, meet up with the hens, do his thing and I will still be sitting there confortably a couple of hours later. After they have all left him and he comes looking for me.  While sitting there letting out a couple of clucks, purrs and no more than three yelps at a time, you would be surprised at the number of gobblers that sneak in and try to get a piece of his action while he is off over the ridge gobbling his head off with his hens. |
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Post by turkeyscout on Mar 14, 2008 15:06:02 GMT -5
i rather know where that gobbler going to be at 8:00 a.m. til noon than be at the roosting site, they seems to know that i snuck in on them and they go the other way too! so i spend more time pre- scouting to pattern what they been doing and where they are heading..SCOUTING-SCOUTING- SCOUTING bring confidence...LOCATION- LOCATION -LOCATION..more confidence THEN PATIENCE- PATIENCE-and MORE PATIENCE, BUT HE WILL COME!!!!!!.....turkey scout....to answer the question: i wait til i can see good! ..i'm in no hurry!!
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Post by freedomhunter on Mar 14, 2008 20:07:51 GMT -5
It is tough to call one in early in the season. The first few days scouting and waiting them out is they way to go. Try to stay out until noon and wait for the hens to leave. Usually only need maybe one hen decoy or none at all. Later on they come to calls a little better. It all depends on what the hens are doing early in the season.
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Post by quackingtim on Mar 17, 2008 2:06:04 GMT -5
I never call until they fly down. If the hens hear you call they will rush in and take him the other way.
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timdog
Junior Member
Posts: 42
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Post by timdog on Mar 17, 2008 10:27:56 GMT -5
I never call until they fly down. If the hens hear you call they will rush in and take him the other way. I've seen this happen a couple times, that's why I use the aggressive hen when they hit the ground, trying to upset the hens. |
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Post by freedomhunter on Mar 17, 2008 12:27:29 GMT -5
It usually takes a "boss" hen to come to agressive hen yelps and cuts. Otherwise, they will just go the other way.
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Post by Noblebowhunter on Mar 17, 2008 16:31:04 GMT -5
ha ha..... i have often wondered the same thing Larry... same thing happens to me a lot... but to be honest.... this thread has not exactly made up my mind on what to do  ..... its great to hear all the advice though |
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Post by oggie on Mar 17, 2008 22:27:48 GMT -5
I have found out that most of the boss tom's will fly down and go straight to a strut zone everyday in the same place if they are not pressured to much. The 4 biggest Toms my son and I have killed were all in there strut zone, but you have to pinpoint this spot and beat them to it. Then just give a couple soft tree calls if he doesn't answer then do a fly cackle with a wing or your hat to make the flying sound. If he still doesn't respond wait a few minutes and scratch in the leaves a little. Then it becomes a waiting game and you are already setting where he wants to be so patiences is a virtue
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Post by quackingtim on Mar 18, 2008 2:47:11 GMT -5
It usually takes a "boss" hen to come to agressive hen yelps and cuts. Otherwise, they will just go the other way. That's what I have noticed. I had a tom come in w/a hen and she physically forced him down a hill away from me. If I would have shot I would have got her too. I have tried this before only to have the tom fly down and go to where I was the day before. These are the ones that can wreck my season because I get so fixed on killing one tom instead of letting him go and find another one. |
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Post by larryhagmansliver on Mar 21, 2008 11:35:54 GMT -5
It seems from reading the responses that there is no one method that works a better percentage of time from another. I wish I could learn from watching turkey hunting on TV but that seems to be useless. Sometimes I think the best thing to do is get as close as possible to the gobbler and not do anything at all and just hope he comes in.
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Post by freedomhunter on Mar 21, 2008 11:46:33 GMT -5
Patience is the absolute key to turkey hunting. If you do a little calling and the tom knows where you are at (he gobbles), stay put and keep your ears and eyes open. Often times, he will come slipping in looking for you a half hour to an hour later. If you have a hen deke out he may come cruising in or hang up out of range. Use elevation so he has to get into range to see where the sound is coming from.
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Post by mullis56 on Mar 21, 2008 15:54:27 GMT -5
Patience is the absolute key to turkey hunting. If you do a little calling and the tom knows where you are at (he gobbles), stay put and keep your ears and eyes open. Often times, he will come slipping in looking for you a half hour to an hour later. If you have a hen deke out he may come cruising in or hang up out of range. Use elevation so he has to get into range to see where the sound is coming from. DITTO - don't be so proud of your calls....be proud to be patient and you'll be more successful....period! |
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