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Post by HighCotton on May 14, 2018 20:37:22 GMT -5
As the season progressed, I took some notes along the way. And frankly, my list keeps growing.
A few thoughts I've pondered:
If coyotes are about to interfere with your hunt, make the early decision to shoot! Or at least scare it or them away. Don’t just sit there like a dork and watch them!
Know that coyote pups are killers. They will absolutely put the lights out on an inflatable decoy!
If you get no response from your calling, get aggressive and mix up the strategy!
Buy a ThermaCell!
Heed the advice of other turkey hunters. Especially the ones that know how to drop the limbhangers (like shcall53 and hopper…and, well, the rest of y’all know who you are)!
Just because no gobbler answers any of 18 locator calls in the dark of the morning…that doesn’t mean that someone came in with the dreaded turkey vacu-vator and sucked them out of the woods! They might just be the strong, silent type!
Don’t listen to your wife (or spouse) when they complain about all of the hours and gas money spent on a few meager pounds of the other, other white meat!
Keep a sense of humor and just snicker when you walk into your man cave and look at past fan mounts and wonder how in the world those ever made it up on the wall!
When your buddy calls and asks how the hunt went…just hang up on ‘em!
Still haven’t heard a gobbler toward the end of the season, Get aggressive and mix up the strategy some more!
And realize that many a gobbler has been shot that never gobbled one single time!
Oh yeah, Buy a ThermaCell!
So as I continue to reflect on this season, I welcome any other comments from any of you seasoned or non-seasoned turkey hunters (and yep, that includes you featherduster)!
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Post by firstwd on May 14, 2018 21:16:53 GMT -5
After you buy the thermocell, buy 1 or 2 spares and order the pads/fuel in bulk.
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Post by Woody Williams on May 14, 2018 21:21:56 GMT -5
After you buy the thermocell, buy 1 or 2 spares and order the pads/fuel in bulk. This is a bit bulky but a LOT cheaper to operate because you use a Coleman butane/propane tank. Buy your pads on eBay. www.thermacell.com/products/backpacker-repeller |
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Post by Woody Williams on May 15, 2018 5:23:51 GMT -5
Yep... it was tough for us..
Opening day Woodmaster and I hunted our little 40 acre patch. He was set up on the food plot and I was on the SE corner of our property on the edge of a neighboring field that we have permission to turkey hunt.
I was in my blind from 5 am till noon CST and Woodmaster stayed ALL day. We did not hear one gobble and I saw one hen and he saw two hens.
Second day we were back in the same places. I heard one bird gobble one time about 150 yards from me about sunrise. I called once.. no answer. About 5 minutes later he strutted right in to the 1/4 strut Avian X Jake and feeding hen decoys. He went down for the count. Woodmaster stayed until 1pm and never heard or saw a bird. Woodmaster had to go back to work.
Friday I took my grandson from NY turkey hunting. We sat in the blind I killed out of. We hunted until 2 pm and never heard or saw a single bird.
Saturday we hunted Woodmaster's blind on the food plot. Never heard a bird but did have a hen stroll by us at 15 yards.
Sunday we hunted from 1pm until almost dark. Never heard or saw a single bird. I hated that for him since he took the time and money to come home and hunt with me.
We had a bunch of birds on camera BEFORE season.
Yes, it was a tough season..
Woodmaster did score at another location closer to his home.
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Post by bullseye69 on May 15, 2018 6:33:32 GMT -5
As the season progressed, I took some notes along the way. And frankly, my list keeps growing. A few thoughts I've pondered: If coyotes are about to interfere with your hunt, make the early decision to shoot! Or at least scare it or them away. Don’t just sit there like a dork and watch them! Know that coyote pups are killers. They will absolutely put the lights out on an inflatable decoy! If you get no response from your calling, get aggressive and mix up the strategy! Buy a ThermaCell! Heed the advice of other turkey hunters. Especially the ones that know how to drop the limbhangers (like shcall53 and hopper…and, well, the rest of y’all know who you are)! Just because no gobbler answers any of 18 locator calls in the dark of the morning…that doesn’t mean that someone came in with the dreaded turkey vacu-vator and sucked them out of the woods! They might just be the strong, silent type! Don’t listen to your wife (or spouse) when they complain about all of the hours and gas money spent on a few meager pounds of the other, other white meat! Keep a sense of humor and just snicker when you walk into your man cave and look at past fan mounts and wonder how in the world those ever made it up on the wall! When your buddy calls and asks how the hunt went…just hang up on ‘em! Still haven’t heard a gobbler toward the end of the season, Get aggressive and mix up the strategy some more! And realize that many a gobbler has been shot that never gobbled one single time! Oh yeah, Buy a ThermaCell! So as I continue to reflect on this season, I welcome any other comments from any of you seasoned or non-seasoned turkey hunters (and yep, that includes you featherduster)! Very good list and I have one more. Make sure you are ready with the correct choke in your gun, you may have only one chance the whole season so don't blow it!!! |
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Post by genesis273 on May 15, 2018 6:50:26 GMT -5
 on the thermacell. I own 2 and have to boxes of refills. Get to know your birds. Turkeys aren't all alike. They have individual personalities. The couple I was after this year didn't like decoys and did not like being called to. I understand and accept that I'm not a champion caller but, I'm not bad either. Instead of trying to intercept them in the morning off the roost, try and set up where you think (based on most recent information) they want to be. |
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Post by freedomhunter on May 15, 2018 6:59:22 GMT -5
Been a rough last 3 seasons for me. The previous 15 seasons, not so much. Probably get a couple new spots here with more birds next year, maybe go to Kansas also. I had gobblers in one area and worked them hard second Saturday but the woods were still bare and they wouldn't cut me a break in the fields. Last day I had a good set up and the woman got to hear a few gobbling and see a young buck up close after my avian x hen got drunk and looked at that sky (it is fine half-inflated). I need to but an avian jake next year also and throw away that old one. I'll post a pic.
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Post by freedomhunter on May 15, 2018 7:01:17 GMT -5
Pic  |
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Post by Woody Williams on May 15, 2018 7:05:08 GMT -5
My Avian X hen developed a major leak. I contacted Avian and they replaced it.
Woodmaster’s Avian X did the same thing when the stake tube came loose inside the decoy. I managed to get it back into place and epoxied it in place. That solved his leak problem.
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Post by freedomhunter on May 15, 2018 7:08:55 GMT -5
There were a ton of hens from what I could tell just makes hunting tough but good for populations. Sunrise pic  |
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Post by HighCotton on May 15, 2018 8:03:24 GMT -5
Another note that came to mind:
Though the Funky Chicken game Jake decoy is one of the most immuno-compromised, morphoditic excuses for anything resembling a turkey; it worked perfectly this year!
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Post by whitetaildave24 on May 15, 2018 8:25:44 GMT -5
I know others that have killed over the funky chicken as well. It’s odd looking, but must work. The big toms just did not like the decoys this year. Three separate occasions they saw the jake decoy and went the other way. I quit using decoys after that, but still had no luck. Even though I didn’t kill, it was still a great season. Was able to get my son pretty close to killing his first bird. Just couldn’t get turned, because of the open woods. Was with my buddy when he stalked and killed a big public land bird. I seen birds every day I hunted, but just couldn’t deal the deal. Now it’s time to think deer.
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Post by Woody Williams on May 15, 2018 8:56:21 GMT -5
I "think" that a lot of the decoy shy toms are in an area where Jakes are sometimes ganged up and are bullies. I've seen 3 jakes run a big Tom off a field. I'd say unrealistic decoys too but the Funky Chicken proves that one wrong..  I like my Avian X 1/4 strut Jake as it is non-dominant.. IOW - he doesn't know if he wants to strut or not. |
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Post by dbd870 on May 15, 2018 10:05:00 GMT -5
My Avian X hen developed a major leak. I contacted Avian and they replaced it. Woodmaster’s Avian X did the same thing when the stake tube came loose inside the decoy. I managed to get it back into place and epoxied it in place. That solved his leak problem. Mine did too; the last weekend. Going to have to call them. I could get birds at 100 yds but not in range. JDUB and I have killed them at that spot in the past; tough year. |
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Post by jman46151 on May 15, 2018 13:45:47 GMT -5
Seemed like i was chasing one tom the whole season. I took two Fridays off so I could get after him two days in a row but he would not roost in the same area two nights in a row.
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Post by bullseye69 on May 16, 2018 3:14:47 GMT -5
Seemed like i was chasing one tom the whole season. I took two Fridays off so I could get after him two days in a row but he would not roost in the same area two nights in a row. I'm 95% sure I have been after the same tom for about 5 years now. I have not seen any other toms but him. I would have smoked his buns if it weren't for having the wrong choke in the gun. |
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Post by antiwheeze on May 16, 2018 13:21:42 GMT -5
I don't recall ever having an easy turkey season. Lessons relearned this year are be persistent, opportunistic and be lucky!
Missed the first bird I shot at. Bumped turkeys off the roost twice including the hunt I shot one on. Sometimes they don't all fly off together. Try to make the same amout of noise as an opossum when in under 75 yards.
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Post by jman46151 on May 16, 2018 14:50:15 GMT -5
I don't recall ever having an easy turkey season. Lessons relearned this year are be persistent, opportunistic and be lucky! Missed the first bird I shot at. Bumped turkeys off the roost twice including the hunt I shot one on. Sometimes they don't all fly off together. Try to make the same amout of noise as an opossum when in under 75 yards. I've had two easy seasons. One year I sat down within 50 yards of the roost. A couple of light calls and he was on his way. Most difficult part of that hunt was that he came around 180 degrees from where he was roosted. But he let me know by gobbling before he came into sight. Same setup on another bird but he took about an hour to get to me. I looked up as he jumped my jake decoy. He broke the stake before I could get on him. |
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Post by featherduster on May 16, 2018 16:22:50 GMT -5
While on the way to Lake Erie with schall53 listening to all the stories how he killed BIG Toms in 3 different states I finally saw numerous turkeys along the tollroad,they were all giving me the finger as I passed by.
We had breakfast one morning in Port Clinton and I met another fisherman that was from central Indiana and he said it was the most difficult turkey season he or his friends have ever had they never saw or killed a bird.
We're starting a support group for unsuccessful turkey hunters.
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