# Turkey hunting tips



## frdstang90 (Jan 31, 2017)

Can someone recommend some turkey hunting videos or books?   I have deer hunted all my life but never turkey hunted.  Every year during deer season I say I am going to turkey hunt the next year but never do.  I bought a Remington 870 about 10 years ago but it has never been in the wood.  I have decided I am going to give 3D archery a break this year and turkey hunt and trout fish but need to find out some things to try and not try.  Thanks


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## ol bob (Jan 31, 2017)

Your best bet is to try to get someone take you, he can show you more in a couple hunt that you will ever get from books or videos.


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## QuackAttack101 (Jan 31, 2017)

As far as learning to call, youtube for sure.  There are years worth of video on calling.

Also, read the "so, you wanna be a turkey hunter" sticky on this forum.  Good info in there.

As far as books, check out amazon.  There are a good bit of them on there and if you read the reviews, you can usually tell if they're suitable for a beginner or not.

Lastly, take every thing with a grain of salt.  You'll find one good turkey hunter that does X and swears X is the only way to do things while another good hunter swears by Y.  The great ones will incorporate both X and Y into their bag of tricks depending on the situation.  Said another way, there's more than one way to skin a cat but there are lots of folks who think their way is the only way.  I'd read as many different approaches as I could and keep all of them in mind.

But like ol bob said, going with an experienced hunter will cut down tremendously on the learning curve.  However, being completely self taught (with the help of books and internet but never hunted with anyone) and calling in and killing my first bird by myself was one of the most rewarding experiences of my life


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## Toddmann (Jan 31, 2017)

Google "Dave Owens youtube" if you want to watch some great turkey hunting footage.  I cringe every time a turkey hunting show comes on channels 395 & 396 on dish network, especially if my 7 y/o is in the room.  Also, as mentioned above by Mr. Bob, find someone who is successful at it and see if they will take you to shorten the learning curve.  Good luck this season.


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## Booner Killa (Jan 31, 2017)

One of the biggest pieces of advice I can give to a newbie is to make a decision. What I mean by that is when it gets exciting and you have two or three options and a decision has to be made quickly, make a decision and go with it rather than asking "should I do this or that". Many times, success is attained through quick decisions made when the bird is close. Embrace failure. It's going to happen a lot. Try not to make the same mistakes repeatedly. The old days of turkey hunting are dead when you have to learn through experience alone. You have tons and tons of info at your finger tips to learn quickly and be successful early in your turkey hunting career. Old timers didn't have that. They learned through years and years of failure. If you know the basics of good woodsmanship and apply an ounce of common sense, you can be successful. The other piece of advice I can give you is not to go unless you're prepared to get it by the bug bad. It will get in your blood in a hurry.


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## MesquiteHeat (Jan 31, 2017)

Boomer hit the nail on the head!  Woodsmanship kills


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## kiltman (Jan 31, 2017)

Ray Eye's Turkey hunting bible.  Very good read.  Plenty of tips and stories.


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## PappyHoel (Jan 31, 2017)

Booner Killa said:


> One of the biggest pieces of advice I can give to a newbie is to make a decision. What I mean by that is when it gets exciting and you have two or three options and a decision has to be made quickly, make a decision and go with it rather than asking "should I do this or that". Many times, success is attained through quick decisions made when the bird is close. Embrace failure. It's going to happen a lot. Try not to make the same mistakes repeatedly. The old days of turkey hunting are dead when you have to learn through experience alone. You have tons and tons of info at your finger tips to learn quickly and be successful early in your turkey hunting career. Old timers didn't have that. They learned through years and years of failure. If you know the basics of good woodsmanship and apply an ounce of common sense, you can be successful. The other piece of advice I can give you is not to go unless you're prepared to get it by the bug bad. It will get in your blood in a hurry.



This is good advice.  The best advice I've heard and trust me I've learned the hard way.

"You can't sneak up on a gobbler and don't think you can."


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## kmckinnie (Feb 1, 2017)

PappyHoel said:


> This is good advice.  The best advice I've heard and trust me I've learned the hard way.
> 
> "You can't sneak up on a gobbler and don't think you can."



They got them gobbler like strutted Dekes u get behind and crawl toward them.


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## SC Hunter (Feb 1, 2017)

The biggest thing I had to learn was to have some patience. Give the turkeys time to get to you, they have all day and you can't rush them. Also get still and don't move at all once they are within sight of you!


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## Twiggbuster (Feb 1, 2017)

^^ good advice!
Plus as others said, go with someone who has hunted and killed.
Good hunter can show you a lot, especially what not to do.
Then go on your own and apply.


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## DRBugman85 (Feb 1, 2017)

After hunting Gobblers 55 years I'm glad I had a mentor(Grandfather) to take me and teach me the way to be a woodsman,nothing beats wisdom of the old ways,hopefully you can find a old Turkey hunter to take you and teach the techniques in which will help you enjoy the sport and the love of the outdoors that I have enjoyed to share with the youth that will carry the heritage of being a TURKEY MAN.Good luck with the hunting and enjoy the hunt not the killing.


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## Core Lokt (Feb 1, 2017)

Where are you located? Maybe someone on here is close and can go with you.

Good advice so far. Less calling is better than more calling. Remember, they can see really good. Patience, patience, patience. In the real turkey world the hen goes to the gobbla. You are trying to get the gobbla to come to you..


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## turkeykirk (Feb 1, 2017)

kmckinnie said:


> They got them gobbler like strutted Dekes u get behind and crawl toward them.



Works every time (especially on the hunting videos and YouTube)


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## Bubba_1122 (Feb 1, 2017)

Watch "My Life as a Turkey" about Joe Hutto. 

You can learn a lot about how turkey's act and sound from that video. Just focus on the video and tune out the story and the narration - focus on the birds.

I bought the video several years ago (it's on Youtube - google it and watch the 58 minute version). 

I hunted 6 years before I had the opportunity to kill a bird (slow learner). 

I started killing birds when I realized that I didn't have to talk to them every time they talked to me.  When I realized that were so many barriers and distractions between me and them when I heard them that I often needed to work towards them.  When I realized that "be still" really does mean don't freaking move. When I realized I didn't have to know 25 different ways to call a turkey - that just a few subtle calls would do the job (and have). 

I've also learned that TSS is some bad stuff. 

I've learned that the farmer pushing back the edges of the fields the week of opening day phases the hunter a lot more than it phases the turkeys. They could care less.

I'm so glad deer season's over, because we're that much closer to turkey season (52 days).


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## cr00241 (Feb 1, 2017)

Great info on here already, don't get discouraged when it doesn't happen. I sat on top of a hill and went back and forth with a gobbler for an hour. Only reason I killed him was because another one gobbled behind me and he thought his woman was getting away. I only called 4 times within that hour. Less is more and have your gun ready before you enter the woods. 

I don't use a mouth call, only slate and box. Good luck!


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## Big7 (Feb 1, 2017)

ol bob said:


> Your best bet is to try to get someone take you, he can show you more in a couple hunt that you will ever get from books or videos.



This^^^^^^^

And go south. That will improve the odds several fold.
Especially for the big ones.

I know, there are some decent ones up north but south is way better. IMO.


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## Ben Athens (Feb 2, 2017)

All the above is great advice. My advice to you is Don't start! Lol


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## humdandy (Feb 2, 2017)

Hunt places that have turkeys...........lots of them.


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## Baracus (Feb 2, 2017)

You tube has a lot of videos. That and just go do it and learn.


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## turkeyman55 (Feb 4, 2017)

*turkey*



frdstang90 said:


> Can someone recommend some turkey hunting videos or books?   I have deer hunted all my life but never turkey hunted.  Every year during deer season I say I am going to turkey hunt the next year but never do.  I bought a Remington 870 about 10 years ago but it has never been in the wood.  I have decided I am going to give 3D archery a break this year and turkey hunt and trout fish but need to find out some things to try and not try.  Thanks


 last year i heard at lease 8 gobblers they were talking to a hen clucking about 50 yards from me i could not get them to come to my decoys. until i started copying the hen. then the hen came to see me then the toms come running  happy hour


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## Bubba_1122 (Feb 4, 2017)

One big thing I've learned: when the birds out there ready to be kilt, don't be in too big of a hurry to pull the trigger. 

Take time to enjoy the show if you're able. It's really absolutely amazing to watch these magnificent creatures put on their show ( I had 1 tag left last year and had 2 birds come in. Watched those two birds for a long time before I pulled the trigger on the bigger (who I had been chasing for over a month). 

Then watched his buddy (the bird in my avatar) put on a show for probably 20 minutes. Actually sat there and talked to him for a while. Practically yelling. He didn't leave until I stood up (was time for me to go to work). 

These are some awesome critters).


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## brittonl (Feb 5, 2017)

I would suggest reading as much material as you can get your hands on, Tom Kelly books are traditional and always a good start. Also I really enjoy Andy's podcast & you may wanna check out. Good luck this season!

http://iamturkeyhunting.com/turkey-hunter-podcast/


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## big lazer (Feb 5, 2017)

It's way easier than made out to be.


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## kiltman (Feb 6, 2017)

> It's way easier than made out to be.


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## Timber1 (Feb 7, 2017)

The more you can learn about turkey behavior the better hunter you will be.
The best advice I could ever give anyone about turkey hunting is to hunt like there is always a gobbler within hearing distance. His, not yours.


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## hoytman308 (Feb 10, 2017)

I don't kill them every time I go to the woods but no one taught me anything. I just went and learned. Every sit has something different to offer that a book or story can't compare too.


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## Lumpkin Hunter (Feb 11, 2017)

*woodsman ship, patience and light calling*

From my limited turkey hunting experience of 30+ years the best advice I can give is know your hunting area lay out very well. Understand how turkeys use it and be where they want to go. Have patience when working a bird and when blind calling. Don't confuse patience with being stubborn about not wanting to relocate when nothing is gobbling but have patience for a silent bird to have time to work in. I've killed several gobblers that only gobbled once or didn't gobble until they were within a hundred yards or so while working in. Knowing the land how turkeys use it and patience to hunt it properly kills a lot of birds. I also think that callings important. It's not critical that you sound just like a hen or a pro caller but knowing the cadence that most turkeys call in, frequency they call, how soft or loud to call, what certain sounds like clucks, slow yelps, excited yelps, purring indicate to the gobbler. Knowing how to use gobbler yelps and how to use silence are good tools to learn also. 
You will find that each hunt will teach you something whether the hunt is successful with a kill or not. Success is in learning what nature does and fooling a turkey when you encounter one is what I call success. Don't get me wrong I work hard at killing turkeys because I love to pull the trigger on a gobbler I have fooled. 
I live in southern Lumpkin Co. and hunt some on Blueridge WMA. Mountain hunting is different than flat land hunting not harder just different. Don't hesitate to message me if I can help you in some way. All I can share is what has happened with my hunting. There is no exact way to hunt turkeys but there are many good, bad and fun ways to hunt them. Each situation is different. Good luck with your new addiction, believe me it is an addiction.


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## Gamblinman (Feb 11, 2017)

Be where turkeys want to be and be patient.


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## erhunter (Feb 11, 2017)

I am a new 2-3 year turkey hunter.  I read a great piece of advice just the other night "Relax, don't rush the process, enjoy the woods...the turkeys will always be there, you're on turkey time now ...he's not on your time"

Being new, I keep hearing 'be where the gobbler wants to be'. I hunt a lot of public land, and I am curious if there is anything I could do now to look for areas where turkeys may want  to be come March?  
Once season comes around, and I locate a bird, what are you looking for that lets you know a gobbler would like to be here at some point during the day?  
Or do you just observe the birds tendencies preseason and set up in the areas you see he is heading?  

I appreciate the help


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## Timber1 (Feb 12, 2017)

Your best bet is to not worry about where he wants to be if he is gobbling. Thats why you have a call. The gobbler wants to be where a hen is. If he goes the other way he is probably being led away by hens or is wary of your location for one reason or another, and your chances of turning him are slim. Not impossible but slim. A hen will take a gobbler away from your calling most always. If a gobbler has made it to a strut zone he is hard to pull away from that spot. If you know where his preferred strut zone is that would be a good place to be. You can tell a strut area by the fact that he will gobble from that location for a while. Will answer you but not come. Trying to chase down and get in front of a gobbler moving away most always ends in the gobblers favor. Most of these things you learn by experience and time spent hunting these birds. Remember that nothing is written in stone when it comes to turkey hunting. They dont follow the rules. If you have the patience to wait one out they will some times come back to your original spot you called from, but it could be several hours. Once the gobbling bird moves out a subordinate bird may show up without gobbling. Usually from behind you, lol. Thats where the notion that gobblers circle around comes from. Sometimes a gobbler will get by you without you seeing him and come back to your calling but usually if a silent bird comes in from a different direction it is a different bird. There are way more silent gobblers in the woods than most people think. Moving from spot to spot you probably spook turkeys you never knew were there. You could easily write a book, and many have, on strategies about how to and how not to hunt gobblers. But in the end remember you are hunting a bird that usually doesnt know what he is going to do from one moment to the next. Also remember that you always have a chance with a gobbler as long as he doesnt see you.


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## antnye (Feb 12, 2017)

Timber1 said:


> Your best bet is to not worry about where he wants to be if he is gobbling. Thats why you have a call. The gobbler wants to be where a hen is. If he goes the other way he is probably being led away by hens or is wary of your location for one reason or another, and your chances of turning him are slim. Not impossible but slim. A hen will take a gobbler away from your calling most always. If a gobbler has made it to a strut zone he is hard to pull away from that spot. If you know where his preferred strut zone is that would be a good place to be. You can tell a strut area by the fact that he will gobble from that location for a while. Will answer you but not come. Trying to chase down and get in front of a gobbler moving away most always ends in the gobblers favor. Most of these things you learn by experience and time spent hunting these birds. Remember that nothing is written in stone when it comes to turkey hunting. They dont follow the rules. If you have the patience to wait one out they will some times come back to your original spot you called from, but it could be several hours. Once the gobbling bird moves out a subordinate bird may show up without gobbling. Usually from behind you, lol. Thats where the notion that gobblers circle around comes from. Sometimes a gobbler will get by you without you seeing him and come back to your calling but usually if a silent bird comes in from a different direction it is a different bird. There are way more silent gobblers in the woods than most people think. Moving from spot to spot you probably spook turkeys you never knew were there. You could easily write a book, and many have, on strategies about how to and how not to hunt gobblers. But in the end remember you are hunting a bird that usually doesnt know what he is going to do from one moment to the next. Just remember that you always have a chance with a gobbler as long as he doesnt see you.



Spot on timber!


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## erhunter (Feb 12, 2017)

Timber1 said:


> Your best bet is to not worry about where he wants to be if he is gobbling. Thats why you have a call. The gobbler wants to be where a hen is. If he goes the other way he is probably being led away by hens or is wary of your location for one reason or another, and your chances of turning him are slim. Not impossible but slim. A hen will take a gobbler away from your calling most always. If a gobbler has made it to a strut zone he is hard to pull away from that spot. If you know where his preferred strut zone is that would be a good place to be. You can tell a strut area by the fact that he will gobble from that location for a while. Will answer you but not come. Trying to chase down and get in front of a gobbler moving away most always ends in the gobblers favor. Most of these things you learn by experience and time spent hunting these birds. Remember that nothing is written in stone when it comes to turkey hunting. They dont follow the rules. If you have the patience to wait one out they will some times come back to your original spot you called from, but it could be several hours. Once the gobbling bird moves out a subordinate bird may show up without gobbling. Usually from behind you, lol. Thats where the notion that gobblers circle around comes from. Sometimes a gobbler will get by you without you seeing him and come back to your calling but usually if a silent bird comes in from a different direction it is a different bird. There are way more silent gobblers in the woods than most people think. Moving from spot to spot you probably spook turkeys you never knew were there. You could easily write a book, and many have, on strategies about how to and how not to hunt gobblers. But in the end remember you are hunting a bird that usually doesnt know what he is going to do from one moment to the next. Just remember that you always have a chance with a gobbler as long as he doesnt see you.



That's some great advice right there.  Much appreciated.


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## Bob Wallace (Feb 16, 2017)

I believe a lot has to do with knowing the birds' behavior on a piece of property. Not only where they strut or roost but also how vocal they are. On our GA property the toms talk a lot and like to be talked to. In South Florida, Osceolas don't talk hardly at all and I've lost my fair share by calling too much which means more than twice.
Get up before the sun and just listen. More than likely you'll hear a gobble if they are there. Once you locate that gobble, head that way. Stop and listen every once in a while and listen for crows. Get close, make a call or two and be patient. If you don't hear anything at all, I'm not opposed to keep moving and make a crow call or owl call every once in a while.


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## frdstang90 (Feb 16, 2017)

Bob Wallace said:


> Stop and listen every once in a while and listen for crows.



I know this is a dumb question but what will the crows indicate?  I know about using the owl call to help locate late in the afternoon the day before a hunt.


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## Beagler282 (Feb 16, 2017)

Crows will make them gobble just like the owl will.


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## Bob Wallace (Feb 16, 2017)

Right. It's not that the crows are zeroing in on the turkeys or anything however I've found that since crows are flying over the trees, I can hear them from farther off and the direction and when they caw I listen real close to that faint gobble.


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## eshoremd (Feb 19, 2017)

Decoys aren't mandatory.


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