Turkey help

[SilentKid0423]

Hey guys, first time ever turkey hunting and with the little experience I have, it was a pretty eventful morning. I was able to get a gobble at my last stand about 200 yards away. I called two more times and he responded but then stopped. I waited for 15 minutes to see if he’d show but he didn’t. I moved towards where I heard him last and called again. He gobbled once and went quiet. There was a storm moving in quickly so I waited another 15 and had to leave due to lightening and rain.
My question is, am I calling too much or not waiting long enough for him to show? Combination of both? I was pretty excited since it was my first time going for turkey and don’t know if I needed to treat it like an elk hunt and be patient while calling. Thanks!

 

[Birdbander]

I hope there will be many folks that can give you helpful advic. The only thing I can offer to a newer turkey hunter is something I was told starting out.
"Good days or bad days turkey hunting have one thing in common, most of the decisions are made by the turkey so try to enjoy your time regardless of results and hopefully learn along the way."

Welcome to the turkey addiction!

 

[np307]

Remember that the natural order of things is that he gobbles and she goes to him. Moving toward him reinforces that you're doing what he expects, so he's going to dig in and strut until you show up. I'd bet if you called just a little more with him and then shut up for 45 minutes, he'd probably come in. Now I don't always follow this advice, especially if I have convenient terrain to navigate.

 

[howl]

TURKEY HUNTING BOOKS NEW AND OUT OF PRINT

 

[TheBenHoyle]

The bad weather sounds like it was your downfall. If you had had a little more time to work that bird you might have been able to get him to come to you.

I am no expert in calling, but I have called many turkeys in. Sometimes I feel like I have called too much and other times I haven't called enough.

If you are making a call that he is responding to, remember that but keep it in your pocket. If you do it oo much it might shut him up. Each time you get a response try to get closer if cover and terrain allows. Eventually you will be close enough that if you stop making those calls, but you rake the leaves and make "little" hen noises like clucks and small yelps or purrs, he will probably come looking.

 

[SilentKid0423]

I hope there will be many folks that can give you helpful advic. The only thing I can offer to a newer turkey hunter is something I was told starting out.
"Good days or bad days turkey hunting have one thing in common, most of the decisions are made by the turkey so try to enjoy your time regardless of results and hopefully learn along the way."

Welcome to the turkey addiction!

Definitely have the itch now!

 

[SilentKid0423]

Remember that the natural order of things is that he gobbles and she goes to him. Moving toward him reinforces that you're doing what he expects, so he's going to dig in and strut until you show up. I'd bet if you called just a little more with him and then shut up for 45 minutes, he'd probably come in. Now I don't always follow this advice, especially if I have convenient terrain to navigate.

The bad weather sounds like it was your downfall. If you had had a little more time to work that bird you might have been able to get him to come to you.

I am no expert in calling, but I have called many turkeys in. Sometimes I feel like I have called too much and other times I haven't called enough.

If you are making a call that he is responding to, remember that but keep it in your pocket. If you do it oo much it might shut him up. Each time you get a response try to get closer if cover and terrain allows. Eventually you will be close enough that if you stop making those calls, but you rake the leaves and make "little" hen noises like clucks and small yelps or purrs, he will probably come looking.

Yeah it seems like I may have called too much and got too eager on the movement. I like the moving the leaves idea, didn’t do that and may have made the difference with the short window I had with the weather. Hopefully will have a better outcome in the coming weeks. Thank you guys!

 

[SilentKid0423]

TURKEY HUNTING BOOKS NEW AND OUT OF PRINT

Thanks for the recommendations!

 

[3855WIN]

Give him more time to come to you. Match the calling to his gobbling. He he wants to talk, then talk back.

 

[FairWeather]

Also pretty new to it, but racking learning moments quick. So far my biggest downfall has been not waiting long enough after calling, by far. My most recent hunt, it’d been an hour or so since I’d heard any gobbling, so I was bugging out back to my car just to run into the tom in the woods on my way out.

I’d assumed he wasn’t coming, so was not ready at all, he saw me and skedaddled REAL quick. Didn’t get a chance at a shot. Same thing happened last spring; called for an hour or so…nothing. Stand up, and there’s a hen not 15yd away, with a tom in tow. I was on the edge of a property where I couldn’t hunt, so they crossed that bounds and that was that. They’d been right in front of me and I had no idea, didn’t hear them at all.

Those were both in timber with pretty dense underbrush along the edge of a younger clear cut.

 

[bryanbliss]

This is all super helpful, thanks. Also new. Spent last weekend going back and forth with a Tom who never showed himself. Going out to some public WMA land in Minnesota to test my luck this weekend.

 

[bryanbliss]

Give him more time to come to you. Match the calling to his gobbling. He he wants to talk, then talk back.

When you say "match the calling to his gobbling" are you talkign about frequency? Something else?

 

[Brian in Montana]

Another thing to remember is a turkey's eyesight is every bit as keen as an elks nose. If you moved toward him at 200yds, it's not inconceivable that he might have seen some movement through the brush that made him nervous.

As far as calling goes, as a general rule of thumb, you want to sound a little quieter and less interested the closer he comes. Play hard to get, as it were. This will usually keep him working for your affections.

 

[howl]

Moving directly towards a gobbler is high risk. You sound like a turkey when you walk. If it hears that it may move towards you. It will then see you without you being aware. The game is over.

Everyone who has been chased by a gobbler when scouting preseason raise your hand.

You don't actually call a turkey to you most of the time. Most of what calling can do is simply convince a gobbler that there is a hen at your location. Once that is accomplished you find out whether you set up in the correct spot or not.

 

[jimss]

Things change dramatically from early April through late May. There’s nothing tougher than trying to decoy or sway a tom away from a flock of hens. Very similar to a herd bull elk during rut.

Things change later in the season after hens start breaking up