Turkey hunting has been in my blood since the early 70’s when I first hit the woods in pursuit of the long beards.

Over the years, I’ve managed to take over eighty birds bagging every species in the U.S.  except for the Osceola of Florida.

As spring approaches, my excitement builds and as the season begins to draw down, I feel as if something will soon be missing from my life.

This year it was different, as I had tagged all three of my Nebraska birds early in the season, two in northeast Nebraska and one in the southeastern part of the state.

I’d also called had the opportunity to call in a couple of birds for Team member Larry Myhre while we hunted together.

Since I’d tagged all of my birds and there was plenty of time left. I decided to give my cameraman Kyle Nickolite, Yankton, the opportunity to shoot his first bird.

Kyle had been on several turkey hunts with me, but he was always on the other end, running the camera.

His first filming in he field had been a spring turkey hunt where a Tom came in behind him without making a sound, startling both he and I.

This is one of those things that will either scare the heck out of you or hook you on turkey hunting for life.

As most turkey hunters do, on our first trip, we headed out long before the sun rose and set up where we thought the birds would be traveling from the roost.

Sometimes, turkeys and other wild creatures don’t do what “We” think they should do and this was the case on our first hunt.

We’d set up in the dark up against a downed tree with the sun at our back.  We were well camouflaged and knew the birds were roosting in adjourning property to the west.

I began my calling as I always do soft and subtle, as a hen in the roost would as she awakens.

No response, only silence, so I called again and after a short pause again, no response.

As the sun rose farther in the eastern sky, I increased the volume of my calls, switching from my Roost’em box call to my slate and my diaphragm call.

Nothing, not a peep and at that point, I was beginning to wonder if the birds had moved their roost.

Just then, Kyle whispered on the ridge. There they were, one Tom, a small Jake and eight hens, not good as no Tom in his right mind would leave eight hens to come to one or two others, no matter how sweet they sounded.

It just wasn’t going to be our day to tag Kyle’s first bird.

We tried it another early morning, calling in one hen and a Jake that was so close that we could have reached out and grabbed him.

Permission had been given by the landowner across the road, so we headed that way, walking into a hen that was being followed by a Tom, unfortunately the hens sharp eyes pegged us before we could get set up.

After two early morning excursion and the close of the season rapidly approaching, I think Kyle was beginning to wonder about turkey hunting.

We decided to give it one more go, an after work hunt in an area we’d seen birds earlier in the year.

As we always had we glassed the area from a hillside prior to heading in to set up.

We spotted one Tom right where we had planned to set up, so a new plan or Plan B had to be quickly thrown together.

The plan would be to drive to the far end of the trees, put a sneak through the trees growing along the south side.

As we headed into the trees, a Tom gobbled off to the west.  With Kyle in the lead, we quietly approached the area we’d hoped to set up in.

Once we reached the tree line, I noticed that there was a slight rise about thirty yards in front of us, which didn’t give us much time to get on the bird as he popped over the rise.

Since we had no choice, I set the decoy in a low mating position just this side of the rise while Kyle set up our turkey fan off to his right.

Our fan came from one of last year’s birds and cut off where it attaches to the body. After dusting the tail section with Borax to help preserve it, it’s spread out and nailed to a board until it dries in a natural position.

We’d used fans years ago while hunting in central Missouri and since no one else was allowed to hunt this property, I felt it was safe enough to use the fan.

Note: The use of a fan can be dangerous if others may be hunting the same area, as a mature Tom’s fan can draw gunfire from some individuals.

Once again, I started with my Roost’em box call and then went to my slate call, giving the impression that there were two different birds calling.

And then, no response, which late in the season isn’t unusual as the breeding season is coming to the end and there is less talking going on between the Toms and hens.

We’d been on site about five minutes when a red head, no two red heads appeared on the rise as a Tom and Jake walked into full view.

I whispered to Kyle that the mature Tom was in the lead as he brought his shotgun into position.

The big Tom, noticing the hen decoy, turned in that direction and noticing the turkey fan quickly turned to face it and started moving slowly in it’s direction.

As I was giving the warning putt to get the Tom to raise its head, Kyle fired, dropping the big bird in its tracks.

Kyle’s first bird, weighing 20 plus pounds with a 10” beard and ¾” spurs a good bird, especially for the first one.

As I set here, knowing the season has ended, longing for next spring season, I have many memories from this spring, one stands out and that was where I introduced another to his first turkey hunt during our final hunt of the season.

Link

We all look forward to opening day with excitement and anticipation. A brand new season brings renewed hope and a slew of naive birds that haven’t been called to or hunted in months. But the novelty soon ends. Birds that don’t get culled out early soon wise up. Then, as the days grow longer still, the randy toms’ breeding instincts start to wane, making them even harder still to hunt. Yet hope springs eternal in the turkey woods.

Some of the same tactics you used early on may work, but in order to boost your odds of being successful in the late season, you may need to modify, adapt and overcome.

Be Quiet

That aggressive cutting and loud yelping that worked magic on those early-season two year olds just won’t cut it now. Gobblers have heard more clucks, yelps, putts and purrs from hunters in the last two or three weeks than they’ll likely hear from real turkeys over the next 11 months. It’s also likely they’ve had at least one negative encounter with something, or someone, making those sounds and may be a tad call shy.

Tone it down, big time. If you call at all, make it soft and sparing. Do a little tree talk before fly down, then maybe utter an occasional soft cluck and purr. Or, just go old school. Yelp three times then wait an hour.

Be One of the Boys

The turkey’s breeding instinct is triggered by day length. Days get longer in the spring triggering an increase in testosterone. As days get even longer though, that subsides, and toms slowly start to lose interest. They also gradually become more tolerant of one another, and gobbler groups start to re-form. Try doing some jake yelps, or even an occasional gobble. Here again, call sparingly.

Be Patient

This sort of jibes with going old school. Forget the running and gunning, which usually requires fairly vocal gobblers. Late-season birds seem to develop a case of lock jaw. Think more like a bowhunter. Pick a spot, set out some decoys, call sparingly and plan on spending time, a long time, in one spot. And stay alert. Odds are good if a bird comes in, he’ll come in silently.

In some ways, late, late spring season can be like fall gobbler hunting. Food is more important than mating, and birds tend to get back into something of a routine – moving from roost to feed and back – so long as they’re not bothered too much. And that’s one of the positives of hunting really late. Most other hunters have tagged out or given up and switched to golf or bass fishing. You’ll have far less competition, which is just as well with the odds now clearly in favor of the birds.

We ‘d just come outside to relax and enjoy a cup of coffee when the gobbling of a turkey disturbed the morning silence.

Nothing unusual, since we’d been at the lodge for a couple of days and whenever we’d been on the deck we not only heard turkeys, but also coyotes, prairie chickens and Canada geese announcing their presence.

It was both Larry and my second hunt of the spring turkey season; Larry had tagged one bird in Northeast Iowa while I had put down two birds in Northeastern Nebraska.

We were in S.E. Nebraska as we’d been invited down to film and hunt the 2,000 acres owned by Scott and Billie Kay Bodie.

I’d met them last fall while hunting in the Nebraska Governor’s Pheasant Hunt, which was headquartered out of Beatrice, NE.

Southeastern Nebraska is a beautiful place as not only is there an abundance of game in the area; there are numerous ponds and small lakes dotting the countryside.

The property we were hunting had several lakes, one, located just below the lodge was 25 acres and was stocked with bass, crappie, bluegill and pike.

When we arrived shortly after lunch, we met with Scott who directed us into the lodge and gave us a brief description of the land we’d be hunting and the birds that called the area home met us.

According to a wildlife biologist Scott had talked to, the birds in the area were 5-way hybrids with Eastern, Rio Grande, Merriam, Hybrids as well as some of the Bonze tame birds.

Larry and I quickly unloaded our gear, changed into our hunting camo and followed Scott to the area he thought we should begin our hunt.

The area we’d be hunting consists of rolling hills, open pastures with draws lined with oaks and cedar trees.

As we always do, we approached the area quietly, cautiously moving through the area, while carefully glassing each open area before proceeding.

Once we were assured that a Tom wasn’t in the open area, we called softly from areas just inside the tree line.

After using this approach several times to no avail, we headed up hill towards a cluster of trees that we thought would give us a vantage point over the next open pasture.

Since Larry was shooting, I manned the camera, following slightly behind and off to his right side.

We were about to reach the shelter of the trees when I spotted the tell tale blue, white and red coloration of two Tom turkeys as they worked their way towards the sound of our last call.

Instantly, we dropped to the ground, hoping the birds hadn’t seen us as we quickly crawled towards the shelter of the trees.

Larry was hugging one side of the tree while filmed from the other side as the two Toms
Slowly came to Larry’s Roost’em, call.

Both birds peaked from behind the Buck Brush out in front of us with only their brightly colored heads showing above the foliage.

Larry took aim at the right one and fired, flipping the bird backwards and tumbling it over.

We’d been in the field less that forty minutes and had one bird in the bag.

At this rate, what were we going to do the next couple of days?

Once the bird was tagged and put on ice, we headed towards for an area where a trail made it’s way through the trees.

Not knowing what was below us, we decided to set up on the knob just above the trail and call.

We alternated the calling until I heard a faint gobble from the other side of the tree line, at which time I took over the calling while Larry manned the camera.

Within 15 minutes, I swore I heard a Tom drumming, but since my hearing isn’t the best, I didn’t alert Larry until the bird’s fan appeared on the edge of the trees directly in front of us.

Like many other spring Toms that we’ve hunted, the bird took his time coming in silently.

As the Tom strutted and turned, I slowly brought my shotgun up, resting it on my knees facing the bird.

When the bird first appeared, I’d switched from my slate call and was softly purring on my mouth diaphragm call, as it required no movement.

The Tom ignored our two hen decoys, coming around their left side towards the tree that I was backed up against.

As the bird came closer, I hoped that Larry had gotten the bird on film and as it came around a small bush, I gave a warning putt, causing the Tom to extend it’s neck and head.

My twelve gauge barked, putting the bird down for the count and the three and one half inch Winchester Extended Range 5 shot loads accounted for yet another Nebraska Tom this season.

As I tagged my third bird of the season, I admired the bird’s 9-inch beard and seven eighth-inch spurs and gladly lugged the heavy mature Tom back to the pickup.

What an excellent hunt, as we’d only been at Big Blue Ranch & Lodge www.bigblueranch.com for about two hours and taken our two birds.

With the two remaining days on this trip, we took advantage of the excellent habitat on the ranch, filming wildlife and catching dozens of bass, crappie and bluegill from the pond below the lodge.

Turkey numbers in Nebraska and many other upper Midwestern states have exploded with numerous permits available to the hunter that want to get out and experience one of the truly great outdoor experiences, spring turkey hunting.

These two jakes came running into our hen calls at the Big Blue Ranch and Lodge near

Burchard, Neb. (Journal photo by Larry Myhre)

BURCHARD, Neb. — Like so many times before, it was a gobble that first alerted us that a tom turkey was coming in.

Gary Howey motioned that the bird was downhill in front of us just in case I hadn’t heard.

I had the video camera running and began looking for the bird.

The first indication was the tip of his tail, spread in full strut, and slowly rocking back and forth as the bird stepped forward.

Then he was there, all puffed up and drumming. It was a glorious sight and one that sets a turkey hunter’s heart to pounding.

He was 15 yards out when Gary “putted” sharply on his diaphragm call to make the bird come out of strut and stick up his head.

Just like that it was over.

Less than two hours into our hunt on the Big Blue Ranch and Lodge south of Burchard, we had both filled turkey tags.

Gary, from Hartington, Neb., and I were guests of Scott Bodie and his wife Billie Kay. Their 2,000-acre working cattle ranch is the backdrop for a retreat for hunters, fishermen, horse enthusiasts, bird watchers or anyone just seeking relaxation.

Their cedar log lodge sits above a 25-acre, spring-fed pond stocked with largemouth bass, crappies, bluegills and northerns.

Gary and I had met Scott at the lodge where we unpacked, and then followed him to an area on the ranch where he felt confident we would see turkeys.

He left us, and we began our hunt as we often do when hunting land unfamiliar to us. We walked and called.

With Gary on the video camera, I ventured ahead calling whenever we came to a place where I couldn’t see if there were turkeys such as just before cresting a hill.

Upon hearing a call, the turkey should gobble alerting us to his location before we spook him.

But this day, the turkeys were not responding.

Gary saw them first.

Two toms heading our way.

We dropped down and crawled to a nearby burr oak tree where we sat down and waited.

I yelped a few more times and the pair of toms crested the hill and drew nearer as I made a few quiet yelps on the diaphragm.

They stopped about 30 yards out and didn’t appear to want to come any closer so I took the larger of the two.

After Gary bagged his tom we went back to the lodge and got out the fishing gear. I used the fly rod to catch and release an unbelievable number of blue-gills and crappies.

We’ll report in detail on that next week.

The next morning we decided to hunt the turkeys with our cameras. Gary carried the video and I carried my Nikon digital single lens reflex with a 70 to 3o0mm zoom lens.

We set up near where Gary had bagged his bird and called, but nothing came in.

So, we began walking and calling. We crossed a bluegrass pasture to a wooded ridge and valley on the other side.

I called there and suddenly Gary dropped down. I followed suit.

“Two toms heading our way,” he said.

We lay on our stomachs right in the open with cameras in front of our faces.

I cranked up the calling on the diaphragm call and soon saw two heads poke above the skyline.

They came in fast and close. I could hear them clucking and purring and I returned the calls hoping to lure them in closer.

At about 15 yards out they decided they had come far enough and then began to move away.

We had gotten some good footage and stills.

We continued to follow the timber’s edge and walked another hundred yards when Gary thought he saw something down in the corner of the pasture about 300 yards away. It was a tom. Soon we noticed three hens in front of him moving down a fence line. Then two more toms stepped out.

We couldn’t interest them in our calls and the hens seemed to be following the fence line so we dropped out of sight and tried to circle around and get in front of them.

This seldom works, and it didn’t this time. The birds spotted us and ran back down the fenceline and into the trees.

The turkeys here are really colorful, probably the result of a five-way cross. Biologists say the birds are a merriam, Eastern, Rio Grand, tame turkey and hybrid cross. All of the above have been stocked in the area at one time or another.

Deer grow big on this ranch as a pair of sheds lying on the table in our lodge proved.

And they are plentiful. Each day we saw several deer move away from us as we stalked through the woodlands.

The ranch is truly a hunter’s paradise.

It was opening day of Iowa’s first turkey hunting season.

My two hen decoys were sitting 20 yards out in a picked cornfield and I sat, back against a tree along the timber’s edge.

I was a couple miles northeast of Linn Grove, Iowa, widely known for the good fishing below the low head dam over which the Little Sioux River flows.

A thunderstorm was forming over the valley and I counted after the lightning strikes to the sound of thunder to determine how far away the storm was.

One mile. That was close.

I could tell rain was pouring out of that little cell, but so far it was only a light sprinkle here.

I hen-yelped on my slate call but drew no answering gobble.

Then the sky opened up.

I was dressed in camo rain gear but this was too much. I jumped up and ran 50 yards back into the timber and took shelter in a deer house.

When the rain let up I went back out and set up again.

Thirty minutes later another storm cell opened up and this one spewed out hail stones the size of marbles. And lots of them.

Again I ran for the deer house.

I spent an hour in there, napping in the folding canvass chair from time to time.

When I awoke, the sky had lightened a lot and it looked as though the sun might come out.

Back to the tree I went.

I was hunting on land owned by Paul and Sheila Thomsen who operate the Inn Spiration Bed and Breakfast, where Jim McDonnell, Royal, Iowa, and I were guests for three days of turkey hunting.

Paul has 370 acres of great deer and turkey habitat. He has 220 acres of timber, 75 acres of CRP/WRP and 75 acres of corn, beans and food plots. He also leases other nearby land for hunting guests.

McDonnell, a longtime friend and fishing guide on the Iowa Great Lakes, hunts turkeys with a bow. His blind was set up on the other side of a couple of big draws away from me.

In the shelter of his Double Bull blind he should be dry.

I sent out a series of loud hen yelps on my Roost’em Calls slate and was answered with a gobble, deep in the wooded valley below me.

Over the next half hour, the turkeys gobbled three more times. Each time in a different place, but they were staying on the valley floor.

I decided to wait them out and just sat still.

A booming gobble erupted 30 yards to my right and a big tom stepped from the timber into view. His neck was stretched up and the big white head seemed to be peering more in my direction than at the decoys.

It never ceases to amaze me how well turkeys can pinpoint sound.

The tom began walking out into the field. Soon, he would disappear behind a tree between him and me and that’s when I would raise my gun.

Up came the gun and then I noticed a second tom ease out from the woods. And then a third.

The first tom was the biggest and as he stepped from behind the tree, I took a fine sight on the base of his neck and then squeezed the trigger.

He was down, and down for good. The other two toms didn’t move off until they saw me get up.

I tagged him and called in the report to the DNR by cell phone and then carried him out.

His beard measured 11 1/2 inches. His spurs were 7/8 of an inch. He was a big bird but weighed only 21 pounds, a reflection of a very tough winter.

Later that day another storm dumped 4 1/2 inches of rain and windrows of marble-sized hail.

Jim had seen one tom and four hens before the storm sent him back to the inn.

That evening we went back out to Jim’s blind but nothing came in. For the next two days, Jim hunted hard but no turkeys came into bow range.

As for me, I slept in the next two mornings. Drove on down to the dam to cast the muddy waters for walleyes, snagging only a few carp. And then sitting in the Dam Bait Shop talking fishing. Afternoons I lounged around the Inn.

For the first time in two and a half years, I actually felt retired.

The wild turkey is a big bird, often weighing 20 pounds or more.

For that reason, you might think that killing one would be a fairly simple operation.

Wrong.

The kill zone on a turkey is about the same diameter and length as a wooden pencil. That would be his spinal column.

Perch on top of that pencil a large marble. That would be the brain cavity.

Unless you can place three or more shotgun pellets into that pencil or marble, you will not have killed your bird.

That’s why you should coax that tom turkey in as close as you can.

Shotgun pellet patterns are most dense at close ranges. The farther you go out, the less dense the pattern is and the more likely you are to miss the kill zone.

It’s important to have as many pellets as possible in your shotgun shell. Yet those pellets need to retain

make a killing shot.

I have always used number 6, copper-clad, buffered 12 gauge premium shotgun shells for my hunting. Sure, 7 1/2 shot would give you more pellets, but the smaller shot will not retain enough energy for shots at longer ranges. Number 5 shot would, but fewer pellets mean more holes in the pattern.

Most turkey hunters do not bother to pattern their guns. If they keep their shots within 30 yards, chances are that 12 gauge choked modified or full will do the job with premium shotshells.

But for distances beyond that, you need to do your homework. That means patterning your gun.

Most shotguns place the shot column high. That’s why you should aim at the base of the turkey’s neck. By patterning your gun you will learn just where it is shooting. That can help a lot in the turkey woods.

Special, screw-in turkey chokes are very popular today. These extra full chokes will tighten the pattern even more and may give you an extra 10 yards.

You will find, however, that at close-in shots, the pattern will be so tight that you could miss if you don’t aim carefully and know where your gun is shooting.

You hear a lot about turkey loads and chokes extending the killing range out to 6o yards or beyond nowadays.

Well, it is possible with heavy shot and specially choked shotguns and a lot of practice before the season opens.

Most of us should, however, limit our shots to that 30 to 35-yard range.

That will insure a humane kill. If you are going to shoot at longer distances, spend a lot of time patterning your gun and finding a load that it likes. If you don’t you will wound a lot of birds.

By: Steve Hickoff

Link: http://www.yamaha-motor.com/outdoor/events/dynamicevent/2/1190/yamaha_outdoors_tip_of_the_week.aspx

One shot should be all it takes in spring turkey hunting.

How far is too far? How close is too close? Most turkey camps I’ve visited around the country inevitably involve a supper table debate about the best shotgun range for dropping a spring gobbler.

My generic answer: 20-35 yards.

The payload stays tennis-ball tight with shots taken at under 20 steps, and misses are more likely, especially with that serpentine turkey head juking around. True enough I killed four in-your-face birds in as many states last spring at distances between four and 15 yards, but more breathing room would have been preferred. This season I could whiff four times at those putting distances.

Then again further out, especially beyond 40 yards, the swarm of pellets begins to open up. That’s no good either. In the end, you need to know your shotgun and how that firearm handles a particular load. Load capabilities vary-some are dead on and tighter at longer ranges, choke tube and firearm depending.

True enough, some of the extended-range loads available these days provide a mix of turkey shotshell options. The choice is up to each hunter. I use them all. Each shotgun dictates the final selection based on familiarity from shooting the combination of options.

By Bob Humphrey

According to the formula for turkey hunting success, there is an inverse correlation between preparation and implementation. In other words, the more time and energy you put into scouting, the less will be required once the season opens. The first of this two-part series will address what you can do before the soles of your shoes hit the turf.

Several of our recent Web tips have covered reading and using topo maps. Those were primarily directed at the deer hunter; but topo maps can also be invaluable to the turkey hunter, if you know what to look for, and what it looks like on a map.

What you should look for depends, to some extent on where you live; or more correctly, what type of habitat you hunt in. If it’s predominantly open country like agricultural fields, plains, chaparral or mesquite flats, you want to look for the green patches or bands that indicate trees. Trees mean roosts and where options are limited they’re easier to locate.

If, on the other hand, the area you hunt is predominantly forested, you may be better off looking for those white patches that represent openings like fields. Turkeys evolved as forest birds. They have not only adapted, but now seem to show a preference for open ground where they can literally strut their stuff. Even in the most heavily forested states, radio collar studies find most hens nest within a few hundred yards of a field. Find the hens and you’ll find the toms.

Whether you use topo maps to narrow down your search or not, the next step is called windshield scouting. Grab a good set of binos, jump in the truck or on the ATV and hit the road (or trail). The best time to scout is during the same hours you plan to hunt. Not only are the birds most active, but you’ll know more precisely where they’ll be. If you scout on your lunch break you may see birds; but chances are good they won’t be in the same place at dusk or dawn as they are at high noon.

This technique is more limited in forested areas. Fortunately, there’s another method that involves both your vehicle and your topo map, and works just as well in open country. It’s called triangulation. You have to get out early in the morning, preferably when birds are still gobbling from the roost. Ride the roads and trails, stopping about every quarter mile to listen. If you hear a gobbler, draw a pencil line on your map from where you are to where you think the bird is. Then move on, trying to maneuver around the bird. Repeat the above procedure several times, preferably from different cardinal directions: north, south, east, west. The intersection of your lines should make an “X” marking the bird’s location. In Part II, we’ll look at some turkey sign, and what it means.