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edtcase

edtcase

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Ok, trying to get my first bird and I know I have asked a lot of questions so I hope you all will allow one more.

Friday night I roosted two birds on my lease. They are in two trees right next to each other. This was done about twenty minutes after dark. Come back in next morning, well before light, I get set to walk to tree line where I have determined i will sit to call, I use an owl call, two birds answer from same location I roosted them the night before. My "spot" will be about 75 yards from where the birds are roosted, really about as close as I could get without spooking them. I get situated, wait about 5 minutes, just as it is getting light out, I hear two gobblers, same spot. As they gobble, I purr on pot call, they gobble. I do this a second time, they gobble and then I wait. I wait for about twenty minutes, purr again, they are closer but I still cannot see them. I wait about five minutes, purr again and they are gone. No gobble, no nothing. I sit thinking they just might be cautiously approaching but nothing. I wait/call for next couple of hours and nothing. Suggestions? What did I do wrong or what should I have done instead? No decoys, I am set up about twenty five yards in the woods and the birds were roosted in the woods. Thanks in advance.
 
They either had hens with them or they saw you. 75 yds is pretty close to walk to them unless it was pitch dark this time of year. Also, I would avoid calling while they are on the roost. These are some of the things that "could" have gone wrong, but you may not have done anything wrong at all. Every situation is different.
 
Either they had hens or they were waiting to see you before they committed, did you ever hear them fly down?
Also I wouldn't have waited 20 mins to call if he is answering you. 5-10 mins is the most I would wait if he his answering.
 
Might be what's offered in the posts above and this could be just "details" but I've honestly never heard a hen purr on the limb right off the bat in the morning. A sleepy tree call is far more common hen-talk. From the moment you purred, the jig may have been up.
 
You can do everything right and they still don't come to you. They're very smart birds and very scared birds since everything in the woods is trying to eat them including us. I set up on a heck of a roost 2 mornings in a row, same roost, and they flew onto adjacent private land. Even after the first morning some of them either got shot or at least got shot at because I heard 3 shots. I figured that would smarten them up and they'd fly to me Sunday, wrong. They responded to every call I made once they were on the ground but I never saw them. I belly crawled a bit closer, never saw them, got the binoculars out and saw them through the woods going uphill on a hill that is on private land. They were all fanned out and still responding to my yelps but there was no chance at turning them around.

These birds can be frustrating!
 
Deerbuster1996":2jvo9cbq said:
Either they had hens or they were waiting to see you before they committed, did you ever hear them fly down?
Also I wouldn't have waited 20 mins to call if he is answering you. 5-10 mins is the most I would wait if he his answering.
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I was almost positive that I heard them fly down. The only reason that I waited that long, which seemed like an eternity, was folks have cautioned against calling too much. Thanks for the input. I appreciate it.
 
Boll Weevil":1x0jr8oo said:
Might be what's offered in the posts above and this could be just "details" but I've honestly never heard a hen purr on the limb right off the bat in the morning. A sleepy tree call is far more common hen-talk. From the moment you purred, the jig may have been up.
Click to expand...

That's a good point. Maybe it is when the jig was up. They did answer just lost interest mighty quickly.
 
MidTennFisher":17v3dna2 said:
You can do everything right and they still don't come to you. They're very smart birds and very scared birds since everything in the woods is trying to eat them including us. I set up on a heck of a roost 2 mornings in a row, same roost, and they flew onto adjacent private land. Even after the first morning some of them either got shot or at least got shot at because I heard 3 shots. I figured that would smarten them up and they'd fly to me Sunday, wrong. They responded to every call I made once they were on the ground but I never saw them. I belly crawled a bit closer, never saw them, got the binoculars out and saw them through the woods going uphill on a hill that is on private land. They were all fanned out and still responding to my yelps but there was no chance at turning them around.

These birds can be frustrating!
Click to expand...

You're right, they can be frustrating but I still had a ball Saturday. I will get one before long. I am just having fun learning and I appreciate everyone being so giving with their experiences and advice. Thanks,
 
edtcase":12mgum1p said:
The only reason that I waited that long, which seemed like an eternity, was folks have cautioned against calling too much.
Click to expand...
This is hard to explain, but my mentor years ago answered in this way when asked about how often to call. "In many cases you have to cultivate a dialogue with any given bird and get to a point in the conversation where he's calling you vs. the other way around."

What you say (cluck vs. putt or whine vs. purr) is no less important than when and how you say it. Know also that what you DON'T say can often be a far greater factor in the overall dynamic of shifting the conversation into your favor.
 
The only way to know would be to see them, their reaction and where they went....wont do any good second guessing, just keep hunting, flocks are breaking up and 2 year olds are searching like a buck in the rut!
 
Boll Weevil":e1b34ugz said:
edtcase":e1b34ugz said:
The only reason that I waited that long, which seemed like an eternity, was folks have cautioned against calling too much.
Click to expand...
This is hard to explain, but my mentor years ago answered in this way when asked about how often to call. "In many cases you have to cultivate a dialogue with any given bird and get to a point in the conversation where he's calling you vs. the other way around."

What you say (cluck vs. putt or whine vs. purr) is no less important than when and how you say it. Know also that what you DON'T say can often be a far greater factor in the overall dynamic of shifting the conversation into your favor.
Click to expand...

True, plus, my really bad calling is probably not helping the situation! :bash:

Thanks for the help.
 
gobblinfool":1a2x1lja said:
The only way to know would be to see them, their reaction and where they went....wont do any good second guessing, just keep hunting, flocks are breaking up and 2 year olds are searching like a buck in the rut!
Click to expand...

That is sort of what I thought but just wanted to make sure that something I did was not a "glaring" error. I will be after them in the morning. Thanks!
 

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