Alright decoy guys, found you all something

REN said:
Let me take a different approach for a second.

what are WE (traditional hunters) doing to keep that tradition alive?? are we doing all we can do to pass that along to other generations?? I think that is a very very good questions as it goes with anything...can we really complain about it if we are not really trying to do anything about it?

just a devils advocate approach is all, I personally don't like the way its going and try to do my best to show some younger kids how it once was especially my son.
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Anyone who goes with me is going to experience turkey hunting with no blind or decoys. We are not going to ambush or bushwhack a bird. Those are the principles I chose to hunt by, and anyone that tags along with me will learn those aspects.

Over the years I've taken a bunch of folks to the woods and some of them conform to those principles and others drift off to do their own thing.

IMO it's hard to promote the traditional approach because every catalog, tv show, add, etc etc is all highlighting killing turkeys based on the new generation approach. It is hard to rise above the noise created by the turkey reaper types.

Also, it is an uphill battle because hunters now want to kill immediately. They don't care to learn they just want to kill. It's all about the number of tags filled, not the challenge of filling a tag.

Also, the new era are ultra sensitive to having their approach critiqued. It's as if they know they're taking short cuts and hate being reminded of that so they lash out if presented with a more challenging form of hunting
 
Setterman said:
REN said:
Let me take a different approach for a second.

what are WE (traditional hunters) doing to keep that tradition alive??
. . . . I personally don't like the way its going and try to do my best to show some younger kids how it once was especially my son.
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IMO it's hard to promote the traditional approach because every catalog, tv show, add, etc etc is all highlighting killing turkeys based on the new generation approach. It is hard to rise above the noise created by the turkey reaper types.

Also, it is an uphill battle because hunters now want to kill immediately. They don't care to learn they just want to kill. It's all about the number of tags filled, not the challenge of filling a tag.

Also, the new era are ultra sensitive to having their approach critiqued. It's as if they know they're taking short cuts and hate being reminded of that so they lash out if presented with a more challenging form of hunting
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x 2

True, and besides the new era FEEEELINGS being ultra sensitive, there are some other issues that will steadily make the more "traditional art of turkey HUNTING" all the less opportune.

What am I talking about?
Land ownership patterns progressively becoming of smaller acreage. Unlike when I grew up, where much of the land was owned in larger parcels, and getting permission to hunt land you didn't own was usually easy, this is no longer the case for most hunters today (at least without paying dearly for the privilege).

With exception to the large public land tracts, many hunters are finding that their small place to hunt is not suitable for the traditional art of turkey hunting. This is just a sad reality.

On the bright side, we do have more turkeys and more places to hunt them than ever before. It's just that the particular turkey we hear gobbling on the roost may be two properties over from where we have permission to hunt.
 
Wes Parrish said:
There also seems to be quite a few turkey poachers using centerfire rifles, so I'd be afraid to use this particular decoy anywhere.
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A buddy of mine caught a known local poacher on his lease a few years ago walking gas lines during turkey season with a scoped 22 magnum. That kind of scum would shoot a "reaper" before they knew what hit them.
 
The TWRA can stop the use of decoys and fans,its on their shouldersI draw the line on some things ike the use of motorized decoys but I do use a stationary decoy.
 
Wrangler95 said:
The TWRA can stop the use of decoys and fans,its on their shouldersI draw the line on some things ike the use of motorized decoys but I do use a stationary decoy.
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I agree. Maybe I'm a hypocrite but I don't mind stationary dekes but these remote control decoys and the ones that strut down a track and spin around and come back cross the line for me.
 
This will get someone shot and killed this year. I hope I am wrong but I can see it now. Also I think that people are loosing the meaning of hunting. I talk to a lot of hunters every year and the vast majority of them if they don't kill a deer or turkey they feel like they suck and that they have failed. Its not all about the killing at all and more and more people are loosing that concept. Its far enough gone now that we will never get it back I don't think.
 
deerhunter10 said:
I talk to a lot of hunters every year and the vast majority of them if they don't kill a deer or turkey they feel like they suck and that they have failed.
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I've killed 2 deer since opening day 2008. Those 2 were my 2 biggest bucks. I love to hunt them and watch them, but I just don't care to shoot small bucks or does when my son kills enough to keep our freezer full. And apparently I'm not very good at killing big bucks. :blush: But the way I hunt makes me happy.

Turkeys are a different story. If I didn't kill a turkey all year I would feel like I failed. Especially when I read on here how easy it is. I would love to have land in middle TN.
 
The younger generation will buy it and use it. Hunting is an ever changing sport. When I say changing, it's that x-generation which adopts a new way of going about it. I'm sure Indians probably hunted that way. We all laughed when Jeremaih Johnson walked on the other side of his horse (horse with six legs?), etc...
 
Spurhunter said:
deerhunter10 said:
I talk to a lot of hunters every year and the vast majority of them if they don't kill a deer or turkey they feel like they suck and that they have failed.
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I've killed 2 deer since opening day 2008. Those 2 were my 2 biggest bucks. I love to hunt them and watch them, but I just don't care to shoot small bucks or does when my son kills enough to keep our freezer full. And apparently I'm not very good at killing big bucks. :blush: But the way I hunt makes me happy.

Turkeys are a different story. If I didn't kill a turkey all year I would feel like I failed. Especially when I read on here how easy it is. I would love to have land in middle TN.
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I'm with you I could care less about killing a deer unless its a mature buck, I could go years without killing a deer and be fine. I guess after working depredation permits for years and killing hundreds upon hundreds of them I just don't care to fool with a dead deer.

Turkeys are different, this is a war with them. The thought of getting blanked makes me very sad and a little anxious each year
 
Spurhunter said:
Wrangler95 said:
The TWRA can stop the use of decoys and fans,its on their shouldersI draw the line on some things ike the use of motorized decoys but I do use a stationary decoy.
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I agree. Maybe I'm a hypocrite but I don't mind stationary dekes but these remote control decoys and the ones that strut down a track and spin around and come back cross the line for me.
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Totally agree! I will use decoys when needed, but stationary type. Deks like the mojo in discussion here is BS, and straight up should be illegal.
 
I spoke with a hunter who only uses a muzzleloader shotgun and thinks anyone who needs a modern shotgun with 3 or 3.5 inch shells doesn't really know how to "hunt" turkey. By his standards, most hunters are not really challenging themselves. I guess it's all a matter of perspective.
 
Recoil said:
I spoke with a hunter who only uses a muzzleloader shotgun and thinks anyone who needs a modern shotgun with 3 or 3.5 inch shells doesn't really know how to "hunt" turkey. By his standards, most hunters are not really challenging themselves. I guess it's all a matter of perspective.
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That's a completely different discussion and one that really doesn't hold water if you want to get in the weeds. Using that logic if you don't wear a buckskin drape, loin cloth, and moccasins you're not really challenging yourself. Or if you're not living in a mud hut for weeks at a time and using sharpened rocks to kill/clean your kill your not challenging yourself.

Using that logic says if you sleep in a house with electricity running a refrigerator and drive an automobile to the woods you're not worthy.

In other words the weapon debate is not pertinent to this discuss unless we are talking about rifles
 
Recoil said:
By his standards, most hunters are not really challenging themselves.
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He should hunt in west TN if he wants to be challenged. We have many counties where turkeys are almost non existent. It's funny someone that hunts where there are turkeys behind every tree would talk about challenging himself by using a muzzleloader. I don't own a muzzleloading shotgun, but if it is as reliable as my Knight Disc muzzleloading rifle it's not a great handicap. I trust my Knight as much as my centerfire.
 
Setterman said:
In other words the weapon debate is not pertinent to this discuss unless we are talking about rifles
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I beg your pardon! :D
I only hunt turkeys with a bow, on public land, and only during the afternoons (too easy in the mornings). The birds are much more alert in the evenings, unlike those sleepy birds half asleep when they flutter down from their roosts.

Anybody can call in a half-asleep turkey, but it takes real skill to properly set up decoys for evening bowhunting. These birds are serious, and they are going to roost. You won't just call up one of these. You must know EXACTLY how and where to place the decoys when you limit yourself to a bow.

Yes Sir, it's a REAL CHALLENGE evening hunting turkeys with my bow, very hard to roll those cams over without jerking, and one must move VERY slowly to avoid being seen inside a pop-up. Also, one has to be very careful not to brush his fedora against the blind (this sound can spook a wild turkey).

Unlike a gun, you can't just hold a 95% let-off bow up forever ready. It also takes skill to line up my peep sight with the front pin with the turkey's neck ---- unlike simply pointing a shotgun and pulling the trigger. In fact, I shoot my bow every morning for several hours, just so I can be prepared for the evening shot.

So if you REALLY want a challenge, get yourself a Matthews bow, a couple decoys, a pop-up, and a black fedora. You won't need a call, but you will need to practice with your bow.

Recoil said:
I guess it's all a matter of perspective.
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It REALLY is.
 
Setterman said:
I'm with you I could care less about killing a deer unless its a mature buck, I could go years without killing a deer and be fine. I guess after working depredation permits for years and killing hundreds upon hundreds of them I just don't care to fool with a dead deer.

Turkeys are different, this is a war with them. The thought of getting blanked makes me very sad and a little anxious each year
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man been there for years! growing up on our farm in bama the state gave us 60-80 doe tags a year we had to fill and send in for management money, being the youngest of 3 boys i got most of those every year. for 10 years I bet I had to shoot 30-50 of those tags and it gets old after a while (however it will dang sure teach you how to shoot lol). If he isn't having a hard time getting his rack through the woods or is so old i feel bad for him and need to take him out i don't care to ever kill another one. I will still hunt half the winter for them like a fool haha

Turkeys i have ZEOR and i repeat ZERO issue shooting square in the face!!!
 
Setterman said:
Spurhunter said:
deerhunter10 said:
I talk to a lot of hunters every year and the vast majority of them if they don't kill a deer or turkey they feel like they suck and that they have failed.
Click to expand...

I've killed 2 deer since opening day 2008. Those 2 were my 2 biggest bucks. I love to hunt them and watch them, but I just don't care to shoot small bucks or does when my son kills enough to keep our freezer full. And apparently I'm not very good at killing big bucks. :blush: But the way I hunt makes me happy.

Turkeys are a different story. If I didn't kill a turkey all year I would feel like I failed. Especially when I read on here how easy it is. I would love to have land in middle TN.
Click to expand...

I'm with you I could care less about killing a deer unless its a mature buck, I could go years without killing a deer and be fine. I guess after working depredation permits for years and killing hundreds upon hundreds of them I just don't care to fool with a dead deer.

Turkeys are different, this is a war with them. The thought of getting blanked makes me very sad and a little anxious each year
Click to expand...

I agree with you to. but I am talking about the new generation I know a few new turkey hunters that go a few years without killing a bird because it just hasn't clicked yet. that's what I am talking about.
 

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