Favorite killer tactics??

[Strut10]

For the benefit of beginning & experienced turkey hunters, alike, lets share some of our favorite methods to put a gobbler on the ground.

I am particularly fond of a good, old-fashioned double-team. I'll put the person with the gun out in front of me while I drop back 40 or 50 or even 100 yards and go at it. I like to position myself (by the terrain) where I can be mobile, just like a real hen. I just call like a nut and listen for the gunshot. Ask Hangunnr how this one works. He's seen it twice.

[Exturkinator]

My single favorite situation is to spot turkeys from a distance (preferably in a field or opening), stalk in to them (usually not closer than 100 yards cause I like to see them respond to my calling - he he that is IF they respond to my calling), then sit and watch them for a little bit before calling them in and picking the best one to take... That way I get the thrill of finding and stalking them, watching them and learning their habits, then seeing them respond to the call and watch them come in across the open area...

[turkaholic]

I like to run and gun when I can. Keep moving trying to strike up a hot one. I move along slowly and call at points I know to be good or look good. I slow things down a bit as it gets later in the morning. When it comes to putting them down,I have to agree with Strut that double teaming gets er done.

[Rhino]

MY preferred way requires first doing some patterning on the birds from the time they start gobbling on the roost until they quit gobbling on the ground. Patterning starts before the season but even when I'm hunting, if I hear birds in the distance that I'm not working, I pay close attention to where it sounds like they are going. As long as they gobble, they are giving away their location.

After getting some birds patterned I'll try to get them to gobble on the roost the afternoon before I hunt them to confirm they are there. With late afternoon gobbling though, sometimes they cooperate and sometimes they don't. If they don't, I'll still assume they are there or close by. The next morning I'll move into position, in the dark to a point about 100 yards from where I believe they are roosted. I want to be between where they are and where my patterning homework has shown they preferred to go off of the roost. If I'm where I want to be when they gobble on the roost, I'll sit tight and almost always won't make a call until their feet hit the ground. There have been some occasions where it just felt right to give them a light cluck or 2 while they were still on the roost to peak their attention in my direction. If all goes well I'll sit there and work them in with what calls feel right. If they move away and keep going, I'll attempt to reloacte in front of where they are headed and the game begins again.

[magnatecsteve]

I do pre season scouting to locate roosting areas, although they are pretty consistent where I hunt each year. I'll keep tabs on their movement patterns. When season starts, I get out early and position myself between three of the known roosting areas and let out some locator calls and move in on the most aggressive bunch. I'll set up near their usual fly-down areas. If my first set-up doesn't pan out, I'll try to locate another tom with some cutts and yelps. If they shut up, I'll back out till midday and come back after they leave the hens. In the evenings, there is one roosting spot that works particularly well when they head in fron the fields to catch them near their roosts.

[Leo]

[ QUOTE ]
MY preferred way requires first doing some patterning on the birds from the time they start gobbling on the roost until they quit gobbling on the ground. Patterning starts before the season but even when I'm hunting, if I hear birds in the distance that I'm not working, I pay close attention to where it sounds like they are going. As long as they gobble, they are giving away their location.

After getting some birds patterned I'll try to get them to gobble on the roost the afternoon before I hunt them to confirm they are there. With late afternoon gobbling though, sometimes they cooperate and sometimes they don't. If they don't, I'll still assume they are there or close by. The next morning I'll move into position, in the dark to a point about 100 yards from where I believe they are roosted. I want to be between where they are and where my patterning homework has shown they preferred to go off of the roost. If I'm where I want to be when they gobble on the roost, I'll sit tight and almost always won't make a call until their feet hit the ground. There have been some occasions where it just felt right to give them a light cluck or 2 while they were still on the roost to peak their attention in my direction. If all goes well I'll sit there and work them in with what calls feel right. If they move away and keep going, I'll attempt to reloacte in front of where they are headed and the game begins again.

[/ QUOTE ]

Very good! You're killing turkeys for sure.

If you plan on hunting all day. Better SCOUT all day

[Colorado Bob]

Here in Colorado----I like to get close to the roost & see if he will come to me at 1st lite. If not, I see if he went up the canyon or down-----then I circle around & get way ahead of him. Set-up & call. Seems to be alot easy to call him where he wants to go. We have a lot of open county, so you can see them coming for a long way off.

LOL---talk about patterning a gobbler. Last year I knew this gobbler was down by the San Jaun River----it's river out here----back east it is a big creek. Anyway, I'm calling & see the bird flying across the river about a 100 yards from my setup. He calls, and then goes up stream to the riverbend & struts out there for 30 minutes. Then comes back to the same spot he landed & then flys back across the river. Next day, we set up where he struted, yesterday. He gobbles---flys across in the exact same spot as yesterday. I'm calling, where he was struting yesterday. Well, he the goes down stream to the next bend & struts there.

Next weekend, we set up in the exact spot he flys across the river & lands at. He gobbles, I call real ligthly. My wife sees him come out of the pines & sees him take-off, he flys across the river & lands 15 feet in front of us. My wife gave him a healthy load of 4's---at touchdown.

We hunted this bird for 3 years. It was unbelievable. CB

[Gobblegobblebang]

I like to put the ninja sneak on them and cut them off.