How close do you setup?

[DeanoZ]

Once you've roosted or located a bird how close do you setup?  If he's more than a hundred yards away and you have time and good cover/concealment do you try to close the gap and if so how far?  Or is it best to play it safe and just find the nearest /best place to plop down and have him close the distance?  I know there are a lot of variables to thisbut generally speaking what is everyone's thoughts on this?

[mcvitullo]

That is a great question! I think it depends on the terrian and the situation. I've set up on birds from around 100 yards away to right underneth them. Alot of times something goes wrong and I rarely kill them right after fly down. It is really hard to seek up right underneth them and you normally have to go in in the pitch black and be as quiet as you can be. One time I did this when I saw some gobblers fly up to roost and they would not shock gobble back to me. They where roosting right on a gas line and it was very easy to get underneth them in the morning. It turned out it was two jakes and I passed on them. But my general rule is 100 yards, so you don't spook them. Also if you've been watching birds pitch down in a certin area, you can set up there and ambush them. More times than not, the hens take them away in the wrong direction and I get to take a nap and wake up at 10:00 a.m. [;)]

[eggshell]

Well just let me put it this way. Since the object is to call the bird to you I would set up just far enough that he'd have to take three steps towards me before I shot, if cover allowed me to get that close.

Ok, that is exaggeration, but I like to get as tight as possible and not spook the bird or risk safety. My typical idea of a perfect set up is 80 to 100 yards, but I'd guess the average is closer to 150 yards. If you have terrain like a bench or ridge or around a bend that allows you to get closer i say do it. I have found the closer you are the more likely he'll come take a look. However, use good judgment and do not push where it's debatable that you can safely or discretely move close. I truly think many hunters set up way to far out. You can get a lot closer than you think, especially after some leaf cover comes out.

[Fan Club]

If you have already roosted the bird, let the terrain help you choose your spot. You don't want to pre select a fixed yardage only to have a rise directly in front of your position once it gets daylight. A gobbler topping a rise that close will be right on top of you and you probably won't have time to adjust without getting busted.

The closest I'll get is about 75 yards away, cover allowing. Turkeys like to roost together so don't forget that there may be hens and jakes nearby that could bust you if you are just focused on a gobbling bird. Another reason I don't like to get any closer than 75 yards is that turkeys don't always just drop straight down out of the tree. If they are the least bit suspicious or hens have flown down some distance away, they will often glide over your head landing behind you and putting you out of position to get a shot.

One more thing...I'm not big on tree calling either, especially if you are going to try to get within 100 yards. That just helps the gobbler pinpoint your location and he'll expect to see hens on the ground. I like to let things unfold naturally and then call after the birds have flown down.

Have a great spring, Deano!

[Fargohunt]

Rather than risk getting busted by getting close, or putting the birds on too high alert after flydown, I would rather carefully choose my location based on where the birds want to go after flydown--where is their food source? and what are the paths they typically take to get there?--that is where I want to be and that only comes from scouting and knowing your terrain as othes have mentioned.  Most times as long as I have done my homework I set up around 150-200 yards away and really that isn't that far, especially if the birds are likely to head in my direction anyway.  I know I can hear them fine from that distance and that tells me that can REALLY hear me too so I like a little buffer.

[DeanoZ]

Thanks for the feedback fellas, I think I have the gist of it, and all good points.  Unfortunately, I'll be hunting two new areas and won't have time to do a thorough scouting so my plan was to head out a few mornings with locator call and see if I can locate them...if I do was just curious how close I should get to them before setting up.  In past seasons at other locations I've had time to scout, find sign and I would setup and wait.  Unfortunately this tactic has not panned out for me as well, so I'm going to try a run and gun style or more like a call, locate and move style I guess.

[icdedturkes]

Wingbeats, Thud, cluck, boom, flop

[DeanoZ]

ORIGINAL: icdedturkes

Wingbeats, Thud, cluck, boom, flop

Ahhhh...if only it were that easy, lol!  Of course that would quickly diminish the thrill of the hunt, and the participation here.  No chance of that happening anytime soon fellas...at least not for this neophyte!