Trad Gang

Does anyone hunt turkeys without a blind and actually have success? If so, how?

I hunt out of natural blinds, sticks, logs, blowdowns, etc. I don't like shooting out of popup blinds, especially with a bow. This will be my first season with traditional gear, so we will see what happens. It's going to be pretty tough to shoot a turkey without some kind of cover around you. Good luck this year. John

GG -- I have never ever once used a blind, and I get shots every year. I do like Grizzly and use natural cover. Nor do I use a Ghillie suit and as my commercial camo wears out I am gradually replacing it with dark plaid shirts and dark pants -- all this is same-same for elk and deer hunting as well. But once in a while you'll get caught in the open, when all you can do is hold still until they go away and you can reposition and try calling 'em back. Why? Because I hunt public lands where the birds move constantly, unlike many ag lands. So moving and being flexible is simply more productive. And always more fun. And cheaper. Sometimes I use one hen deke, sometimes not. It does help to have a special turkey bow, shorter and lower draw weight, sinc I often have to hunker down in low oak brush, and hold at full draw for prolonged time waiting for a bird to walk out from behind a trees, etc. Good exercise, good fun, real hunting. Give it a try. dave

I have shot several turkeys no call, no blind, just stalking, but I must say my country is alot different probably than where you hunt. I,m hunting in rough canyon country in western Nebraska with cedar trees which makes it easier to glass from a long distance, circle them for an ambush or catch them in the bottom and shoot almost straight down on them.

Dan, unfortunately laws say we can't stalk turkey here in NJ. Too many people in the woods that may think your a turkey and shoot ya !!! That's what they tell us anyway. John

The reason for my question is because where I hunt also has hogs. I plan on stalking for hogs, but if I hear a turkey, I'll have to give him a try. This would be impossible while toting a ground blind around. Natural cover is my only option.

GG, it can be done, but you need to contact your doctor for some pills for depression. Because it will drive you completely nuts!

I used a chair, like the Anywhere Hunting Chair, backed up to a large tree. Then take a piece of camo fabric, 3 to 4 feet high, by 12 feet long with a stake on each end, and slits in the fabric.

The middle of the length of fabric goes round the tree and is staked out in an open V past your chair. Stick branches through the slits in the fabric if you have time before the bird comes in, and put a decoy in front of you, past the blind material about 10 yards or so.

The bird should be coming from behind, come around past the camo material, and will pick up the hen and move past you toward her.

Shoot him in the back. Ive killed a few like that.

Gee Ray....isn't that a blind????

I know of a "kid" that has killed several turkeys without the use of a blind, decoys or calls.  And he hunts in the open country of central Montana.  Kory Baker.  That boy is a Bowhunter with a capital B...

I`ve killed a couple without a blind. It will make you mad and you`ll start hate`n Turkeys. You`ll think they are laughing instead of gobbling. Hunt birds with a blind in the morning and get on the pork in the afternoon.RC

well, its not a POP UP blind, biggie. Its not much more than setting up a chair...not like having to move a bunch of brush or limbs around in a stack. Takes about 15 seconds to set up..and you don't mind moving it.

If he meant has anyone just sat on the ground and killed a turkey? yeah, done that too, once. Also stalked up on a field edge and shot one in the field strutting with 12 hens, once.

Yes. The area I hunt has lots of birds and lots of cover. I know where they roost and how they like to get to the strutting field. A roll up piece of camo cloth with stakes makes an easy set-up takedown, carry instant blind and doesn't weigh anything. Most times I like to travel real light though. I do have a pop-up blind I traded for and I may even get it out of the box this year but don't bet to heavily on it.

I'm with squirrel bait on this one!

It can certainly be done...but I like actually knowing there's a chance to kill one when I go hunting......

Also....turkey aint' all the same! I've seen turkeys in a lot of the US.....our NY easterns are as sharp as they get!!  I've just about walked up to turkeys in other states...that ain't happenin' here.....

If you REALLY want to kill a turkey...get a blind!

If you don't really care if you kill one...hunt without a blind...you'll have fun anyway    :thumbsup:

RC, I started hate'n em last year trying to kill'em with a shotgun. I will surely loathe them this year after huntin' them with a recurve.

GG...you're right about that! I got to the point bowhunting them where I wanted an 8 gauge so I could just vaporize the fish turds.

I like RC's scheme the best...it's hard to spend a whole day turkey huntin when you have squealing going on around you..

There's an organization for you, Big and GG:

Turkeys U R Dead Sucker, a Georgia corporation I believe...

TURDS for short.  :knothead:

I have to agree with Curt on this one. our birds here are very wary, so much so if you walk into a field and they are 800 yards away and catch you, there gone. Shawn

I love hunting them without a blind with a bow,, I have done both and been succefull by both,, I use natural cover to hide from them when using no blind and our birds here in MI are very wary birds,, so have fun and go get'em bud,,J

Well, it's definitely harder without a pop up blind.  One thing is for sure, you'll never get one without a blind if you are always sitting in one.  I have been successful.  I'm getting better at it each season.  I'm still not stacking'em like Guru, but I feel like my chances are good every time I go out.  My favorite hunt was the last day of the season, last year.  My wheelbow buddy had the same skepticism about "no blinds." I told him that if he would go with me the last morning, I'd guarantee he'd kill a bird.  I had roosted one the night before and felt like I could call it to a spot that would present a good shot opportunity.  He killed the bird at 10 yards and told me he'd never climb back in a pop up again.  The birds are the best teachers I've found.  I started out trying to follow all the how to articles and have aborted most of the stuff. Get you a bottle of Wild Turkey Rare Breed and a copy The Tenth Legion to get your mind right.  Keep telling yourself the lie  that turkey's can't see through tree trunks until you believe it.  Leave the shotgun and pop up at a friend's house.  Is it April yet?

I think it would be cool to hunt turkeys without a blind, but here in Kansas, the turkeys are just too darn cautious.  Guru's advice will lead you in the right direction.

I'm certainly no expert, but I have taken a few birds without the use of a commercial blind- so clearly, it can be done. My first bird, a jake, was taken using a discarded Christmas tree as makeshift cover. I took these photos yesterday afternoon.

    (http://i275.photobucket.com/albums/jj306/northernmichigan/IMG_1037.jpg)

(http://i275.photobucket.com/albums/jj306/northernmichigan/IMG_1034.jpg)

Duckbutt ... you got it! What do we want from a hunt? Max assurance to KILL sumpin? Or max assurance to have a good HUNT? Well, most of us want both, so it comes down to personal pref and, let's face it, the "developmental stage" we are in as hunters. At first and for a long time we need at least occasional "success" to confirm the worth of our efforts. At some point for most of us (unless we become "hunting heroes" in our own minds, constantly striving to "prove" and "reprove" and outdo ourselves), we have enough "success" that we can relax a bit and think about Why we hunt, and esp. why we hunt Traditional ... that's when the real fun starts: when we reach the point where, when someone we care about asks, "How'd you do this season"? or "Did you get your bird/deer/elk this year?" and we can, when we must, smile and say "No" and not feel that we have to make excuses ... That is when we have become Enlightened as hunters. None of which is to dismiss the necessity or importance or "it's OKness" of the previous stages. Just the way it is. As I've said before, I hunt without blinds because of where I hunt (wide-open public-lands forests) and personal preference. But if I lived in, say, Kansas, and the Only choice I had on turkeys was to hunt the flock that every day hung out in the middle of the corn stubble ... I might well use a blind. It's like camo and SO much more ... not that any of it is "bad" but rather, when having a great hunt becomes more important than assurance of a kill and we no long give a hoot about our honest answer when someone asks "How'd ya do?" ... and "having a great hunt" for a particular hunter means being loose and free and able to be spontaneous and not weighted-down with stuff that the industry tells us we "must" have ... personal choice. In sum: Blind or no blind ... some of the decision has to do with where and how we hunt. Another part has to do with why we hunt at a particular point in our lives. And too ... how much we like to eat wild turkey! Like it enough, and we hunt with a shotgun and get 'er done the first hour of the first morning out. All I want is to hunt, and killing ends it, so I'm never in a rush. Variety makes the world an interesting place. Anytime anyone tries to tell us that there is only One Way for Anything ... uh oh! Have fun, however, so long as it's fair chase. Crazy Dave

I tried it one season. Bow & no blind. I wish we could use the little roll up things that just stake in front of you, but those area illegal. Some years I have a hard enough time getting a bird with a shotgun, but I take the bow out a couple times each season as well.

In My Experiences..2 out of every 10 EASTERN and FLORIDIAN mature gobblers will SPOOK on a tent blind and hang up outside of bowrange. It is definitely harder to call these birds up to 15 yard decoy shot with a FRESHLY implanted Pop up Blind. Merrians,most RIOs and Goulds seem to "accept" the newly planted blind and come in mostly. It is definitely easier to call up a mature Eastern to Bow range WITHOUT a freshly planted POP UP BLIND or have one already set up up for weeks.....drawing strategys....well another thread  :D

Ok Joebuck. Two out of ten spook with a pop up. Getting eight of ten birds in bow range is sweet if every thing works out. But if they come you`ll almost everytime get a shot. Without a blind I`d say not.Sitting the decoys at around 5-7 yards and setting up in the wide open works best for me. I tried sitting in cover and I think the Turkeys are skittish of it.In the wide open they can see and seem to come on in.But I`m not the expert Turkey hunter you guys are.But I do shoot at them a bit. I think the 2 of 10 rule would apply on my connections though.....RC

My experiences are if you call 10 Mature Easterns (Eastern side of US species) up from afar ,then they walk up and see the PopUp Blind....only 2 will walk into bowrange..the other 8 will putt and walk around your setup out of bowrange. I called up and shot at over three dozen Easterns in a ghillie suit within 18 yards of me in the early and mid ninetys...Jakes seem to never mind my POP UPs though....My Pop Up is retired this year after FL. I'm going back to my chair and moving around and calling at muliple birds to try cull that Dumb one...Of coarse I hunt some of the toughest birds in the world on the Mississippi River where we have also had a turkey season before most states had even turkeys restocked so my fellow club members know how to work and educate a bird, it's in their blood unfortuatly for the bowhunter in me. I miss the days when Schuster and I stumbled around the Paradise and had it to ourselves! I missed a 2 year old at 3 yards squating behind a privet bush one time.. Schuster will never let me live that down...I should let him shoot and MISS....Lesson there was ...screw split finger...gun barrell that arrow!....

Here in north west tenn the birds we have are basically isolated to large river bottoms. They are also VERY educated and I can't think of any serious turkey hunters here who will use a decoy.  Most say the majority of the birds will hang up and shut up the second they see the decoy and if it doesn't react the birds will quietly turn around and get the heck out of dodge.  I don't hunt turkey enough to know really,  what do some of the turkey pros here think, use a DB without a decoy?

I always hunt 'em with out a blind.The pop-ups just don't suit me.I feel too much like I'm camping than turkey hunting,like I'm in a tent........which I guess I am.I just feel to closed in..........maybe I'm claustraphobic(sp)?I also feel as tho I'm not seeing or hearing everything while inside a pop up........used a doghouse,at least gave it a try and gave it away.

I like to find a multi trunked tree to use as a back drop,then cut a few small bushy saplings/limbs to stick in the ground a few feet in front of me.......palm fronds in swampy areas work great too.Killed my last one at about 12 yards with 6 hens and a jake between us.Draw very,very slowly..........leave enough room in front of yourself to the "cover" so you can move/draw without hitting anything.

I think dave2old and duckbutt sum it up for me. Most of the birds I've shot with a bow have been from a pop up...but most of my memories are from the birds called up in the woods without the blind and missed at close range(didn't miss them all).   Not to say I won't use the blind, in some situations like open fields or food plots in the afternoon, it can be pretty effective but no where near the fun. Our season starts in a week, my calls are already laid out, arrows selected, practiced in full camo with face mask using new seat from Mike / Ray....but pop up blind still in attic, humm.  Also re-read Tenth Legion.  Getting close....

Joebuck, those Florida birds were hangin up because of those decoys, not the blind.
You guys take this turkey stuff too seriously. A good pop up gives you room for a coffee table and a box of Krispy Kremes. You can move around and get things and it will cover some snoring. We're hunting something with a brain the size of an english pea. It's not that hard!

(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v295/whoffman1955/Turkey/blindhog.jpg)

Yes, I set up in the edge of the woods or thick fenceline a few yard in next to a field they feed in.  A decoy staked close and get the turkeys to walk by you or some cover between so you can draw.

Nice pic Biggie!

QuoteOriginally posted by Biggie Hoffman:
You guys take this turkey stuff too seriously.

Biggie,
It's hard to look at your pic and imagine my wife's words coming out of your mouth.  

Your right Biggie,,,it's not that hard hunting behind your house on 10 acres and shooting Jill's pets!!   :D    Eating donuts, hunting in Topsiders, bluejeans, drinking coffee....Man ole Man ....at least have a NWTF patch on or calls showing or something..Try to look like your turkey hunter instead of turkey shooter.  :rolleyes:

GREAT PIC BIGGIE

i'm going after them this spring with my bow and no blind.  i've hunted and harvested a lot of birds with a shotgun and i've been busted moving on numerous occasions.  it seemed that if i moved very slowly, the bird would stand there and look...giving me time to take a shot.

we'll see how it goes...i'll make sure to post pictures if i get one!

Hey I am going too this first week of April, for the first time with a bow against birds. Where do you want to put the arrow, ideally? Base of the wing? Sounds like shooting from a popup blind is really odd.

On a broadside turkey....straight up the legs,2/3 up in the body....adj. for 1/4 to and away...ideally.

And no, not odd at all, just shoot like any other shot.....

Duckbutt...sorry about that. No intention to bring up such a sad moment :-)

Joey...225 acres and if you call em and they don't come, they ain't pets.

Terry and MJB...see, you don't even have to dress up. Jeans and deck shoes.

Blind hunting and "chasing em" aren't mutually exclusive, of course.  I do some of both.  One of the problems with chasing them around here is that the land parcels are small, private and often posted.  If you hear a bird on the next ridge, it's often on another chunk of private land that one doesn't have permission to hunt.  

Also, few people can sit for hours without substantial movement, which is what it takes if you have to wait/call for the birds to come to you long after flydown.  Most folks can sit quietly for an hour or so after flydown, but after that, they start getting restless.  Then, a lot of birds that might be coming in/by will see the hunter and disappear with the hunter never knowing they were there.  So, later in the day, on small parcels of land, a blind helps.  Plus, it's a nice place to take a nap.      :goldtooth:

I LIKE NAPS!

Trouble is Biggie, when you nap in the blind, you always spill my coffee!

OK. So...bring a blind, a sofa, a coffeetable, a pillow, and perhaps my espresso maker and a generator to power it.
That should help me stay put for a couple of hours after flydown.....

  :D

I was kidding.

This is all very interesting, as I will be going on my first turkey hunt this year. Will be with my uncle (retired game warden) so he can call them in. I have never hunted them with anything yet and will take my longbow only. I don't even care if I don't get a shot. It will be just getting out to hunt in the spring for a change. I would like a chance to see some. I think it may be interesting, every one else will be using shotguns so my odds are probably not very good but I will be in the woods.

Ya'll don't let Biggie fool ya'll. He's pretty slick about these turkeys. He's got a deadly soft yelp and purr. He IS drinking coffee, sampling some pastries, and texting on the cell phone but........he has his game face on and calls up big birds every year to Buffet Tent!

Coaltroll...your Merriams usually come in readily to a blind. Try to borrow or buy a Double Bull and let your uncle scratch his magic...Take your camera..It's all fun!

Highpoint....no dude...they make battery powered coffe pots you know...

Joe, thanks, My uncle does have a blind, he just will not let me shoot from it. Even though I offered to replace the screen if I did shoot through it. I was kind of hoping I could find some decent cover off to the side of where he sets it up. The camera is a must.

I make tea with a stick fire and smoke my pipe when I hunt turkeys, how fire proof are those blinds?

I've killed a few over the years,all without a blind.

Find a strutt-zone along a field edge and set up within bow range on a bucket or stool. DO NOT use a decoy!!!!! Call untill you see the Tom come into the field,then STOP!!!!! DO NOT call again after you see the Tom.He knows "the hen" (you) were at his strutt-zone,and now you're gone.He will make his way up to his strutt-zone (be patient) and start strutting and gobbling to call you back.

Making The Shot:

Take your time and wait untill the Tom is all fanned out in full-strutt.When he turns his back to you and his fan is covering his head and blocking his vision,raise and draw your bow.pick a feather in his fan,and a spot half way between the top of his fan and the root of his tail.The objective is to drive the broadhead into his spine between the wing butts. All but 1 Tom "dropped & flopped" right where he was standing.The other one I had to chase across the field.(about 80 yards)

Hunting Turkeys without a blind takes some work,and ALOT of patients,but it's not hard.

GOOD LUCK!!!!!!!!!!   :archer:

May The Great Spirit Guide Your Arrows