New Yorks Season

[retranger]

Wayne don't mean to jump in ahead of your post but I had some time so I figured I would post my thoughts on the season.
This has been a strange season for sure. [:(] It seems to have been the same over the whole eastern US. Although I don't believe I have ever had two seasons the same. [8|] Our spring was real late this year and I did some scouting about a week before with no sign of birds at all, even my honey hole didn't have anything. Folks had posted before the season of gobbling all over but it sure wasn't the case in my area. Opening day did produce a nice bird for my hunting buddy but he only gobbled once. Honey hole is a power line in the woods. We are unsure if he was traveling the line or was coming to the calling. A couple days later when I took my bird he was gobbling but was with some hens, but as it was late in the morning I believe his hens left him and he finally came in. The rest of the times out only heard song birds, crows and wood peckers. Three weeks into the season we did jump a hen off a nest with 11 eggs, so even with the late spring the nesting seem to be on schedule. Because of my wife's surgery and bad weather I only hunted 7 days. I guess I should be thankful for the two birds we did get. Will certainly be interesting to hear what the rest of the state was like. Hopefully the weather will dry up so the new chicks won't get water logged.

[Everyday Hunter]

It's odd how hunters report different things, but from year to year the overall picture tends to be the same. Some hunters struggle one year, then tag out the next, while other hunters struggle. Our group of 5 all live in PA, but very close to the NY line. We had 15 tags in PA and NY, and filled 10. Here are our results, all longbeards:

Youth hunter -- 1 for 1 in PA. (did not hunt NY)
Adult male -- 2 for 2 in NY, 0 for 2 in PA.
Adult male -- 2 for 2 in NY, 1 for 2 in PA. (He's still hunting.)
Adult female -- 2 for 2 in NY, 0 for 2 in PA. (She's still hunting.)
Adult male (me) -- 2 for 2 in PA (did not hunt NY)

Assuming the two who are still in the woods don't bring in another gobbler, we've hit 10 for 15 this season. (the ones with NY tags batted a thousand; those in PA went 4 for 9.) The hunters who filled all their NY tags struggled in PA, and went only 1 for 6 in PA. The biggest bird of all weighed 23 pounds, 10 ounces (from NY.) We're all pretty satisfied. You can't do better than we did in NY, and we're happy with PA, too.

Steve

[Turkeybuster]

Sounds like a great season to me weather being what it was this year. But even if we would have had good weather it probably wouldnt have been any better than that. I found that the third week in Pa. was the best at least for me as there were fewer birds gobbling but the ones that did came to the call.

Jon

[grizzly]

quite alright Doug the weather the last half of the season made for some tough hunting my concern now is what is this doing to nesting and the poult count for this year the storms that roared by here put down alot of trees laid alot of hay feilds flat and delayed planting of corn and oat feilds and now we're adding wild pigs to the picture i'm a little worryed how this summer will affect hunting this fall
wayne

[NYSuperSportsman]

Well I had a pretty poor season myself. I had 2 NY tags 1 PA tag and 3VA tags and I still have the whole stack!!!! I have no idea if it was the weather, a low population, too many hens, or a whole host of other "excuses" or justifications. All I know is I didnt hear or see very many turkeys. Very little gobbling on the roost, and some spiratic gobbling late morning. I dont consider myself a "great turkey hunter" or an expert but I know for sure that I usually have more opportunities and alot more action than I did this year. Either way I had some fun and I will look forward to next year!

[Everyday Hunter]

ORIGINAL: NYSuperSportsman

Well I had a pretty poor season myself. I had 2 NY tags 1 PA tag and 3VA tags and I still have the whole stack!!!! I have no idea if it was the weather, a low population, too many hens, or a whole host of other "excuses" or justifications. All I know is I didnt hear or see very many turkeys. Very little gobbling on the roost, and some spiratic gobbling late morning. I dont consider myself a "great turkey hunter" or an expert but I know for sure that I usually have more opportunities and alot more action than I did this year. Either way I had some fun and I will look forward to next year!

It's funny how things go, Nick. Neither of my PA gobblers were very far from the NY line. And my buddy got two NY birds on the first two days but no PA birds at all. His wife also got two in NY, but none in PA.

The only thing I know for sure about turkey hunting is that it can be very easy, and it can be very hard.

Steve

[grizzly]

steve i live about 30 miles north of athens pa in tioga county ny and that's pretty much the way it went talking to my buddies they got their toms the first week if they got one at all after that it went down hill for many of us that's why i think that maybe the dec needs to look into a split season for ny an earlyer start for the lower have say the middle of april to the middle of may then keep it the same for the upper half and maybe all day hunting a trail run honestly i didn't think that there was a lack of toms and i also the weird weather we had this year didn't help matters any[:)]wayne

[retranger]

Reading all the post on the forum since I started in Jan. it seems that the hunting wasn't up to par in the whole eastern US. That makes me think that the weather was the reason. [8|] We did have a much later spring than normal up here, still snow on the ground in many areas when the season opened. I'm not sure the breeding was later than normal though. I did bump a bird off a nest of 11 eggs on the 21st. I think that would be about normal. But all said ,,,,, I'm only the hunter not the biologist.[;)] Another year is coming.[:D][:D]

[Everyday Hunter]

ORIGINAL: grizzly

steve i live about 30 miles north of athens pa in tioga county ny and that's pretty much the way it went talking to my buddies they got their toms the first week if they got one at all after that it went down hill for many of us that's why i think that maybe the dec needs to look into a split season for ny an earlyer start for the lower have say the middle of april to the middle of may then keep it the same for the upper half and maybe all day hunting a trail run honestly i didn't think that there was a lack of toms and i also the weird weather we had this year didn't help matters any[:)]wayne

Wayne:
For whatever it's worth, of the 10 gobblers our group got in NY and PA, 5 NY birds were killed in the first week, and one the third week. One PA bird was killed early (youth day), and three were killed late (May 19, 21 and 27.) All NY birds were killed within 5 miles of the PA line, and all PA birds were killed within 1 mile of the NY line. In terms of latitude, that's just 6 miles apart. For all practical purposes, there's no difference. I hunted only PA, and heard gobbling almost every day.

Steve

[fightingspurs]

This was the worst turkey season i can remember!!!!! the weather just sucked the life out of it right when it was starting i live in Ostego county NY and i can say it sucked they were hot in the late april gobbling there heads off then may hit and the first big storm came through and it all ceased. I had two days out of the whole season of gobbling the rest i was just sitting out washing my hunt clothes!! And let me state this if it was hen season i could have killed alot of them ole girls With no toms in tow i found this season to be a wash no pun intended but a very crazy season at best they ran silent most of the whole season at least here they did and alot of others i talk to say the same not a peep in the woods.....I wish our Dec would wise up and give us a longer season and all day hunting period it does not effect the hens sitting on there nests! The coyotes and other predators do as well as weather.Oh well next year we  will be traveling more of the country to hunt.