Birds under pressure?

[timberjack86]

Any of you guys got some tips to offer us guys that hunt public land?

 

[CBU93]

Gobbler cluck.

Public land turkeys are gay.

 

[muddyboots]

I hunt on a lease but i see this every year. I have told other lease members but they dont listen. I park at gate and walk to where i want to be at listening time. Sometimes this is a long way. There is no telling how many times i walk in and start hearing birds and zero in on them and someone drives up road and they go quiet but i know they are there. I just stay put and about 30 minutes they crank back up. Usuall the people that drive that close and dont hear anything they go somewhere else. The funniest example i have is i had killed 2 birds in a certain location and there were some more there so thats where i was headed next morning. i got in there early and sure nuff they started gobbling in front of me. one of my buddies had let it slip to one of our members and about daylight i hear him driving up road to within about 100 yards of me. He gets out hoots and stands there a couple minutes. He hears nothing and heads up road away from me. when hes out of sight i let out some light yelps and instantly i hear pffft behind me. There was number three in the bag with the other guy walking up the road 200 yards away. I loved it. Put a feather on his truck for a souvenir. LOL I dont think he saw the humor.

 

[Relentless]

Stay after 'em. If you don't kill one early, hang in there until after lunch. When he gobbles in the early afternoon, you won't have as much competition and he'll be lonely. Good hunting to you all.

 

[Roost 1]

When I hunt public land such as Fort Campbell, I never use locator calls and I never call while they are still in tree. My reasons are that I do not want to make them gobble more and sometimes when you call to a highly pressured bird in the tree he will sit there and gobble hoping the hen will come to him..I prefer them to hit the ground as soon as possible and then I will see what he likes best...but the more he gobbles the better the chance HE will call up other hunters...

 

[CopperHead77]

Go during the week if possible,less crowded and you'll have an over all better experience.

 

[7mminatree]

I hunt Cherokee WMA every year, in high preassure areas the birds usually go silent after the first week or so. 1st. Learn the area your going to hunt in. 2nd. find good listening posts for morning gobbling on the roost. 3rd. locate logging roads, its been my experience when they get call shy they will go to logging roads and strut in the mid morning and up in the afternoon. 4th. call sparingly, If the birds have lockjaw, I will not call until 10:am or so and then when I call it just cut no yelps,clucks or purrs. Just a loud series of cutts and then go silent, if you get a gobble, let him dictate the pace. 5th. be patient. 6th. be patient. When you can kill high pressure public land birds consitantly,farm and private land birds are no longer a challenge.

 

[wkyhunter]

All the above is good!
Locate multiple birds before season. I want plans A-Z for opening morning and after if at all possible. It never fails if you have only a couple spotted, someone will be parked or camped there. Hearing multiple birds before season, will give you confidence to go in an area without hearing them after season has started.

 

[Hunt 365]

Locate them early in a general area, preferably day before, cluck or yelp 2 times when you sit down, throw the call 50 feet away and scratch in the leaves every 25 to 30 mins.

 

[Lawrence]

SCOUT TO LEARN THE LAY OF THE LAND
AND DONT GET CAUGHT UP IN ROOSTING BIRDS
IT WILL ALL CHANGE WHEN ALL THE HUNTERS START RUNNING THE WOODS

 

[String Music]

Woodsmanship trumps calling on public land.

Find secluded areas that are not easily accessible. Don't try to locate birds from main roads. Hunt afternoons and rainy days. Leave your crow call and owl hooter at home. Constantly look for fresh sign (including from hunters). Be in shape.

My favorite: use a mountain bike. Most of the public land I hunt is gated off and my bike allows me to go faster and farther.

 

[TeamMainStreet]

Ambush

 

[nate17]

Woodsmanship trumps calling on public land.

Find secluded areas that are not easily accessible. Don't try to locate birds from main roads. Hunt afternoons and rainy days. Leave your crow call and owl hooter at home. Constantly look for fresh sign (including from hunters). Be in shape.

My favorite: use a mountain bike. Most of the public land I hunt is gated off and my bike allows me to go faster and farther.

pretty solid advice right there. bottom line, pattern the birds instead of calling em.

 

[WMAn]

Going deep is not an option on all public hunting areas. My advice would be to scout the hunters as much as you scout the turkeys. Some days, arrive at first light, have a map of the area, and document the parking location of every hunter. Another day, show up at mid-morning and do the same.

You are looking for two things, places that get absolutely ignored and places where everyone goes home early.

One year, I was hunting a four day hunt on public land. Before the hunt, I discovered a gobbler with three hens roosting within 50 yards of the only access road into the area. I did my scouting and found no indication of other hunters. On the third day of the hunt, I shot him in a field within sight of the road. I never saw another hunter all three days. They were all too busy driving past me and the gobbler.

 

[bvoss]

Locate them early in a general area, preferably day before, cluck or yelp 2 times when you sit down, throw the call 50 feet away and scratch in the leaves every 25 to 30 mins.

LOL thats awesome!