Turkey Hunting Basics
The one thing that makes for a great turkey hunt is preparation. Know the state Turkey hunting regulations before you even apply for a hunting permit. many a Turkey hunt has gone bad from lack a preparation. Get good information like hunting maps, local contacts, and all the state laws, rules, and hunting regulations for your Turkey hunt. then decide on your weapon weather your a bow hunter or a traditional Turkey hunter know the regulations pertaining to your hunt. Taking a Turkey as a bowhunter can be quite a challenge.
Turkey Hunting Tips - In order to be a successful turkey hunter, there are some things you should avoid doing. Every hunter is bound to make some mistakes while in the woods, but here are some of the few things that you should generally steer clear of in order to be a successful turkey hunter.
Avoid Standing Up to Verify the Turkey’s Location
It can be hard on the body to be bent over or kneeling, but this is the only way to remain camouflaged from the birds during hunting. Many beginners make the mistake of stretching or standing up to check the turkey’s exact whereabouts. But no matter how carefully you think you are operating, always resist the urge to stand up when a bird is moving in your direction.
The Early Bird Gets the Turkey
One of the biggest mistakes that any hunter, novice or otherwise, will make is to sleep in late. Although turkeys are up and about during all waking hours, any experienced turkey hunter will tell you that the crack of dawn is the only time that you can expect to make a big score. The most exciting hunting is always in the early morning hours. Rising early can make all the difference between a successful or a disappointing hunt.
Don’t Give Up Just Yet
Another common mistake that many hunters make during a turkey hunt is to leave too soon. The early risers who abandon the hunt after 9 a.m. may experience a bad hunt, just as the latecomers make experience a bad hunt. Although it can be frustrating to experience many near-hits during a very early morning hunt, it can pay off to stick around long enough to encounter more birds.
Getting Too Close to Birds on the Roost
This is a common mistake because it can be very tempting to get too close to the roost, especially if you spot many birds on the limbs. As a general rule, however, you will get a better shot if you are able to get near a tree full of roosted birds without being detected. You are more likely to get a clear shot when the birds fly down. However, you don’t want to get too close to the birds on the roost, especially if you are hunting very early in the morning. As you tiptoe through the darkened woods, the roosting birds may merely become a dark blur of shapes flying from the trees. When you flush a flock of birds from the trees, you may not only miss a clear shot from the chaos of fleeing birds, you may also inadvertently cause a commotion that alerts other nearby flocks. This can cause a flush of turkeys from the area, making it very difficult to get a good shot in the area.
Calling the Turkeys Too Long
This can happen when the hunter gets carried away with his own calls. Many turkey hunters enjoy honing and practicing their own turkey calls. Calling too long may actually be counterproductive in that it can cause the turkeys to spot you. A call should be just long enough to get birds in the area. But when you sense a bird approaching your setup, stop calling. Otherwise, the turkey may notice the caller and flee.
Not Dressing in Layers
Not wearing the suitable clothes for a turkey hunt can certainly cause a problem. Many turkey hunters tend to under-dress for the hunt. This is a mistake. Prepare yourself for the elements and you will be more apt to experience a successful hunt. The general guideline here is to dress in layers, and don’t forget the rain gear.
If you’ve ever been on a spring turkey hunt or you’ve ever wanted to, you should consider turkey hunting in the fall, too. Most people think of spring but it’s a fall activity as well. There are some differences between a spring and the fall turkey hunt that the hunter should be aware of to be able to enjoy himself as much as possible.
First of all, the turkeys are different in the fall than in the spring. Spring time is mating season for the turkeys and they’re going to have a very different behavior. There going to be more restless and more animated because they’re trying to attract and find a mate. In the fall, turkeys have passed the mating season and are more interested in feeding and socializing.
So while in the spring you look for turkeys where they mate, in the fall you want to look for them where they eat. Where they nest is also a place to look in the fall not because they’re mating but because they’re going to be sleeping more with the change of the season.
In the fall, there’s a turkey hunting technique known as flock busting. A hunter finds a flock of turkeys and rushes toward them to break them up or sends a hunting dog toward them. This scatters the flock so that a turkey call like a young turkeys “kee kee” call can be used to attract them back. As the turkeys come back you’ve got a prime hunting situation.
Finding where the turkeys eat in the fall is really the key to a good autumn turkey hunt. To find this space simply look for turkey droppings and tracks. Very often these areas are close to water sources.
The time of day you plan your fall turkey hunt makes a difference, too. Before the sun goes down in the late afternoon turkeys will typically be apart but working toward gathering together. By the time the sun comes up, they should be flocked together. It’s a good time for flock busting if you choose to turkey hunt in the morning. Hunting in the evening means the flocks going to be broken up a bit and you’re going to be finding smaller flocks or individual turkeys.
One way to make your fall turkey hunt successful is to learn a few different turkey calls. The “kee kee” of the young turkey is a good option after flock busting because that’s the call that would be answered by a turkey’s mother. But other calls could also work like the gobbler call or hen call, depending on the turkeys you see when you rush the flock.
A fall turkey hunt might not be quite as easy as a spring hunt because they are not mating and not quite as reckless as when they are looking for a mate and driven by instinct to mate. But if you scout out their food and water sources and find where they rest, you’ll have a good turkey hunt.
Before you set up your blind stop by huntnfishregs.com for hunting maps, hunter eduction information, and all 50 state turkey hunting regulation guidebooks in one easy to find location. download the hunting regulations or print them out and print a hunting map while your there enjoy have a great turkey hunt.