Call in my first Tom

[huntall50]

Using a box yelper, took about a hour to get him to commit but got him to come over a rise I made a slight shift and he left puck puck puck...

 

[gregr]

Using a box yelper, took about a hour to get him to commit but got him to come over a rise I made a slight shift and he left puck puck puck...

Awwwww, so close! It`s got to feel great that you got him in, and nearly closed the deal. Bad news is, when they`re Put, Put, Putting as they leave, they`ve made you. But you`ll get another opportunity, just learn from this minor setback. As you amass these experiences, you`ll grow as a turkey hunter, and you'll close the deal more often.

 

[huntall50]

Thanks for the info, he started gobbling again but continued heading away. Went out later he was still there until I hit the box yelper again... he gone!

 

[gregr]

Thanks for the info, he started gobbling again but continued heading away. Went out later he was still there until I hit the box yelper again... he gone!

Your best chance to kill that bird now is to try to bushwhack him: set up where he`s likely to pass by and not call at all. Or, call with a different call, and very, very sparingly.

 

[huntall50]

Do you think he will come back and roost in the same area, if so it’s him that I want!

 

[gregr]

Do you think he will come back and roost in the same area, if so it’s him that I want!

It`s a toss up whether he might roost in exactly the same area on any given day even without having been spooked. I cannot answer that, but, he will stay in that same general area, and he still is killable, but it will take a much more subtle approach now. Much less, if any calling, and you have to just be where he wants to be anyway.

Most guys make a mistake of calling too loud, and too often. Don`t fall in love with your calling skills, just the opposite. Wild hens call sparingly, and softly for the most part, except in very uncommon circumstances. Just like with deer hunting, you greatly increase your chances of killing any turkey if you are able to determine where they tend to like to feed, dust, strut, loaf, and roost. Never any guarantees, but you`re more likely to encounter them, and have the opportunity to engage that bird.

 

[huntall50]

I know where he wants to be, took me an hour to pull him, not far but I was adjusting my setup. I will give him a shot in the morning. Thanks

 

[AtTheMurph]

I almost never call and always use a hen decoy out in the open.

Might call three or four times total all morning. Once every 45min -1 hr. They hear it. They know the general area. And if they catch a glimpse of the hen sitting out lovingly, they want to come check it out.

 

[gregr]

I almost never call and always use a hen decoy out in the open.

Might call three or four times total all morning. Once every 45min -1 hr. They hear it. They know the general area. And if they catch a glimpse of the hen sitting out lovingly, they want to come check it out.

That all depends...

I think you`re exactly correct on how little you call, and hopefully, you call quietly too. I have indeed heard wild hens calling like they were screaming at the world, but that`s a very rare event, they`re normally much more subtle, as all prey animals are.

But decoys are far from a silver bullet. At times they can work, and at other times, they can cause older toms to shy away. It all depends on the area you`re hunting, how much they`ve seen decoys, what experiences they may have had with decoys and therefore assigned bad associations with, how late in the season, and oftentimes, just the mood and temperament of an individual tom.

 

[AtTheMurph]

That all depends...

I think you`re exactly correct on how little you call, and hopefully, you call quietly too. I have indeed heard wild hens calling like they were screaming at the world, but that`s a very rare event, they`re normally much more subtle, as all prey animals are.

But decoys are far from a silver bullet. At times they can work, and at other times, they can cause older toms to shy away. It all depends on the area you`re hunting, how much they`ve seen decoys, what experiences they may have had with decoys and therefore assigned bad associations with, how late in the season, and oftentimes, just the mood and temperament of an individual tom.

In my area I would suspect that the turkeys have seen decoys once or twice - all from me. I know the neighbors don't hunt turkey.

For me, a single hen decoy has worked almost every time. To be fair, I could probably bag one almost every year without a decoy where I hunt.

I will say that for me, turkey hunting is almost turkey shooting. I have a spot that I know the turkeys will be. Has never failed once. I've put friends/relatives there and I would guess that the success rate each year has been over 90%. Only my older cousin who can hardly walk, smokes like a chimney and cannot sit still has failed to bag a bird. And that was probably 10 years ago.

 

[gregr]

In my area I would suspect that the turkeys have seen decoys once or twice - all from me. I know the neighbors don't hunt turkey.

For me, a single hen decoy has worked almost every time. To be fair, I could probably bag one almost every year without a decoy where I hunt.

I will say that for me, turkey hunting is almost turkey shooting. I have a spot that I know the turkeys will be. Has never failed once. I've put friends/relatives there and I would guess that the success rate each year has been over 90%. Only my older cousin who can hardly walk, smokes like a chimney and cannot sit still has failed to bag a bird. And that was probably 10 years ago.

That`s awesome! You know your area and the way the birds behave there, that`s for sure!

My buddy, hos brother and I were just talking about decoy`s this morning after our morning hunt. I had a hunt last year with my buddy calling for me, in which TWO long beards came out, followed by six jakes. When they saw the 2 hen decoy`s, the long beards flared out behind them, well out of shooting range, and the jakes went the other way. My buddy and his brother both said that they`ve had negative reactions to decoys each time they`ve seen birds this season already, so they`ve decided to hunt without them for the remainder of this season. I used no decoy this morning, but I saw no birds so it was a moot point for me.

These birds are unique and tough to hunt.