new player

[trkyklr]

hello all,im new to this game (hee..hee..)& was wondering if some of you old veterans of the sport could help me out & give me your best tips & pointers be it spring or fall i dont care i just need some help figuring out how to hunt a turkey so lets here how ya'll do it
 
 
thanks for the help

[mark hay]

welcome MR NEW PLAYER
I don't call myself a veteran but will gladly TRY to pass on some pointers.
let me say that i am going to list these things with the presumptionthat you are going to become an addict IMMEDIATELY!!
FIRST OF ALL , search and find audio recordings of real turkeys talking.listen a lot ,and listen a lot!!!
rent or buy some videos and wear them out watching SOME of the techniques of the well known  boys.
Get out to the local news stand , puchase ''TURKEY & TURKEY HUNTING''magazine and read it over and over until your new subscription comes in the mail.(save all issues for later reference).
not just the magazine , but lay hold of any publication and STUDY!
i could say a lot about woods and field experience ,guns and camo and more , but the one greatest thing that i've learned from 10 steady years of chasing tom is TOO MUCH TIME WAS ALREADY LOST BEFORE I STARTED AND THEN ONCE I STARTED I HAD VERY LITTLE ''LEARNING'' EXPERIENCE THAT WAS TAUGHT BY A REAL VETERAN.
LIFE IS TOO SHORT. GET A JUMP ON THE GAME BY DOING SOME OF THE THINGS I LISTED ,,AND OTHERS YOU WILL THINK OF .  you can pick up on , and learn a lot between now and spring season.
you''ll still learn more as you spend time in the woods .
most new comers hit the woods with the mindset that ''I MUST KILL A TURKEY'', did it myself. but not until i realized that it wasn't about killing the bird,,,,,BUT HONESTLY FOOLIN' TOM, to get him close enough to see his snood hairs in the mornin' sun,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,THAT'S TURKEY HUNTING

[Treerooster]

Welcome to turkey hunting trkyklr.
 
I find it fascinating that you haven't turkey hunted yet, but are making turkey calls. Some nice looking calls too I should add. And all those pics of you with a dead turkey...must be one you ran over with the truck and had mounted in the hero shot position...eh? [:D]
 
 
But as for some tips I will echo some of what mark hay has said.
 
1) Get to know the bird and its habits. Learn to view the world from his/her perspective. A turkey has 3 basic needs. Sustenance (food & water), Safety (he doesn't want to get ate), and Social (breeding & flock hierarchy/dynamics).
 
2) Learn how to call to a turkey. Yes you need to learn how to replicate the various calls of a wild turkey for sure. However you also need to know what to say, when to say it, and how loud/quiet to say it. And you also need to know when to just shut up. No small task indeed!
 
   You can't learn it all in 1 year, it will take a lifetime to just get a feel for it. But you can start to learn your 1st year. Whenever you interact with a turkey(s), Think & Reflect. Think about what the bird is doing and what you should be doing. After its over (success or failure) try to figure out what happened. Sometimes you can go back and see where the bird was as you called to him/her. Get the bird's perspective of what went on. Sometimes you will find some answers, sometimes you'll just be left scratching your head. But you will learn if you try.
 
3) Practice your calling. Here is what you do. Get COLD. So cold you shiver uncontrolably. Then try to operate your call. Thats probably what you'll be like when you call up your first bird. [:D] 
 
    Seriously though, you should practice your calls and also practice in the position you will be in when hunting. Learn to operate that call between your legs while sitting down, or to one side of you. Try to pick up the call and operate it without looking at it. If there are turkeys near by its better not to move your head at all.
 
4) Know that the the addiction to this sport, the very essence of it and why so many guys are crazy about it, is calling that bird up. Getting him in close and being in his/her space. You call a gobbler in close (20 or 25 yds) and if he graces you with a gobble or some drummning you will know what I am talking about. Oh you'll hear him alright, but you will also FEEL that bird. Your marrow will vibrate!
 
Good luck.
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

[mark hay]

well said treerooster
allpoints,,,well said
#4 WELL SAID !!!

[trkyklr]

thanx guys,
 
tree rooster, im just tryin to get some of these ol' farts around here to open up a little,i have hunted a few times in the past & hopefully alot more in the future
 
psssst...im tryin to learn all marks tricks without going to ohio

[silvestris]

Old farts tend to keep their mouths closed.  The best I can do for you is direct you to Google Books to search for Mcilhenny's "The Wild Turkey and Its Hunting", the best book I have read on the taking of the Wild Turkey.

[trkyklr]

good tip silvestris,& it looks like my plan is working!

[mark hay]

evenin' gents
been told that the mind can form sentences 4 times faster than one can speak. now if that is so, my mind is on the 5th paragraph when my fingers are just peckin' out,,,evenin' gents. and then i forget what it was i wanted to write.
by the way i ain't a bit bashful nor selfish when it comes to turkey tactics.
i also am not afraid to try something new in the woods, as far as calling. i don't care who hears my blunders ,nor what they may think. but sometimes on this forum i tend to get fairly lengthy and i don't want to offend anyone by doing so. but if you want to, we can discuss tactics,woodsmanship,guns , calls, and so on. sounds like fun to me.

[trkyklr]

talk it up hay,im listening

[Treerooster]

ORIGINAL: trkyklr



tree rooster, im just tryin to get some of these ol' farts around here to open up a little,i have hunted a few times in the past & hopefully alot more in the future

psssst...im tryin to learn all marks tricks without going to ohio

 
Hey Ken, I knew you were experienced and was just playing along with you.
 
Good post though, nothing wrong with talkin turkey with a bunch of turkey nuts.
 
And...umm BTW. I guess I got you confused with L K Leslie. I looked at you bio and seen the web site. My bad, but no harm...eh?