Does anyone have any tips for trad turkey hunting? I have hunted several years with a shotgun but never with a bow...
Buy a pop up blind and decoy.
:thumbsup:
Oh yeah!! A string tracker too.
If you haven't already, learn to shoot sitting down, If possible, use a short recurve, something like a SuperMag 48 is a great turkey bow, if you can shoot it accurately. Have good camy on your hands and face. Know where to hit the turkey, see the sticky up top. If possible, have someone else do the calling. Bill
Sorry Bill, No one can shoot a short bow as accurately as a longer one. (Page 10 or 12 in Vipers book "shooting the stickbow) And accuracy is most important even on a short turkey shot, because the kill zone is so small. So sit in a chair and use your longest bow that will fit in your blind. I put a hen decoy at 3 yds and one or 2 (hen and/or hen and jake) at 5 yds. If you can let them get closer than 10 yards before you shoot, your better than I am. Put your decoys at 20 yds and you'll get a 22 yd shot. MOST IMPORTANT - use a string tracker and a 160 gr Snuffer. Quote after my hunting buddy saw my turkey last year, "How can an 1 1/2 inch broadhead make a 4 inch hole." Next time I see Roger or Ryan I'll have to ask them, cause I have no idea.
Oh yea, and don't call too much. Last year I shot that turkey and had not called in about 2 hours.
Bowmania
No more than ten feet from the blind... had something else in my hand when the gobblers showed up.
(http://www.tradgang.com/upload/charlie/09springturkkansas1.jpg) (http://www.tradgang.com/upload/charlie/09springturkkansas4.jpg)
String Tracker can save a heart ache...
(http://www.tradgang.com/upload/charlie/09springturkkansas5.jpg) (http://www.tradgang.com/upload/charlie/09springturkkansas6.jpg)
That string tracker seems like it would be a headache. Never used one though. What happens if your arrow goes through the bird?
Wear a Shaggie Suit and carry a big club:^) Joking aside, I reached down to pick up a "dead" turkey last season that proceded to come ALIVE. Somehow his 1 1/2" spurs became twisted into the bottom of my Shaggie and the rodeo was ON!
Paitience!!!
Be where the turkeys want to be !
shot placement Wingbutt or top of the drumstick if hes quartering away "Break em down"
I knew a turkey hunter from Arkansas and he was dumbfounded by the amount of calling we were doing in north dakota according to him in Arkansas call very sparingly if at all
Here in Mich. on public land Decoys are becoming a thing of the past At least where I hunt they see the Dekes and expect dekes to come to them
LMAO! Sorry to laugh Gary, but I would have loved to have seen that! If anyone has an extra slate call laying around and would like to get rid of it, please let me know. I have never used one before and would like to give one a try without spending a whole bunch. Thanks, Mike.
If you want to do it without a blind, there are 3 things to remember:
1. make sure you take the time to find a good setup with cover
2. call sparingly, move less
3. leave early enough to get to the grocery store to pick up your bird
Don't miss when the opportunity presents itself.
when you think its safe to get out of your blind stay 5 mins.cause sure enough thats when a gobbler will show right when you want to leave
Treetoppredator... the string tracker isn't a headache at all. Just put it away (has a cap that secures everything)when you leave your set up.
"What happens if the arrow passes through?" ... two strings to follow.
Huntnfool62... there is a great pictorial of shot placement at the top of the page.
How does the string tie to the arrow?
Those big old Easterns are hard to wrestle John:^)! Some of you are talking shot placement. My favorite shot method is launching an arrow up the anal opening (AKA: "Texas Heart Shot"). I hunt quite a bit wearing a Shaggie while sitting on a folding seat using a full mounted super jake decoy. I got the mount from my taxidermist. They are DEADLY on wary Easterns. DEADLY. My mounted decoy has lost so many feathers and is so disfigured that he is known in these parts as "Frankenturkey". Once a big bird gets between "Frank" and my arrow - AND FANS, I'm free to draw and slip an arrow up the old WAZOO!
FYI: The turkey on the cover of the current (April/May)issue of Traditional Bowhunter Magazine was taken by me last year using a Shaggie and mounted decoy.
String on the tracker attaches behind the point. No drag on the arrow to speak of. I'd shoot to 20 yards with confidence... if I just had to. I like 'em close.
Charlie do you use Velcro to attach the string?
What type of decoy works best? hen or jake? brand?...I have never used one before
Set your decoys CLOSE I have called for several hunters and myself that have killed birds at under 5 yards.
I like-em CLOSE too Charlie . . . like to see the detail in their beady little eyes!
"Don't miss when the opportunity presents itself."
If it were only that easy.
Charlie, I love those photos!
Dirtybird... Since I use screw in heads, I simple tie the string around the the "screw" and twist it in place. Haven't had a problem doing that.
"set up in the shadows"...for Blindless hunting...i have geared my blindless set up to blend into a tree trunk. Took a while to get it like i want it but it's all in the texture and shadows your fabric absorbs and displays. I am in the pic with no brush or foleage in front of me...good hunting
(http://i71.photobucket.com/albums/i150/jmb1221/turkeyhuntingchairdecoyview.jpg)
FYI....A non mortally hit gobbler can break a single lined hit with a 17# string tracker. it takes about 8# or less to break a stretched out singled line bird....go practice in yard, tie it on your cat and turn him loose!!!!...a lot people on here use it and that is cool with me...i persoanally will not use it
Lotta good stuff here fellas.JoeBuck,enjoyed your PBS tips.RC
Ever hear of those Stingerees a fishing head. I heard of guys screwing off the field point and putting on a broadhead and use the fishing setup with a bow fishing reel. They just shoot 'em and reel 'em in. Prairie du Chien, WI. I think they weren't bow hunters - compound.
TTT
Charlie,
Where can I get a string tracker?
Gary,
You were shooting an Acadian Woods bow at one time. Did you have to camo it for the turkeys?
Joebuck & RC,
Could you give some tips on bowkilling southern turkeys. I will be hunting out of a double bull. What kind of decoy set up should I use? Will this approach work in hardwoods?
For unpressured birds, you can just set up your blind w/a couple of dekes in the middle of the field and have success.
I hunt a highly pressured bowhunting only zone. Consistantly successful hunting tactics are quite different here. These birds become educated quickly and run from the site of a blind, even partially concealed and/or dekes. We set-up where the birds want to be in the 1st place. My trad partners and I may spend up to an hour getting a set-up ready to achieve virtually total natural concealment. This practise has increased our shot opportunities by 3X.
Call extremely sparingly and consider using calls that the birds haven't learned to associate with a hunter. My choices are trumpets or wingbones. The one problem I have encountered using this style call is that on least a 1/2 dozen occassions that I had inexperienced hunters actually hunting me.
We also use with much success, dummy blinds and dekes to move birds toward our concealed set-ups.
This tactic could back fire, however these birds are so pressured that they have so far gone out of there way to avoid the dummy set-up 100% of the time.
I am no expert but Turkeys are my thing and going this extra mile has paid worthwhile dividends.
Yeah, in Michigan my turkeys don't like dekes or blinds. I am going shaggy this year. Just used blinds last year of natural blowdowns but a shaggie should help. I had good luck but didn't connect. I found a brush blind on the edge of a commonly used field works well, about 3 yds from the edge. I sit on a gun hunter turkey seat and pad and shoot 68" longbows without a problem. Hoping I can connect this yr! Learned a ton last
Never used a blind or string tracker. I have been gobbler hunt with trad. The last 21 years with selfbows 7 with longbows and recurves before that.
I can shoot off my butt with a 60 inch self bow. I never set up where gobblers have to come straight to me. I'll set up where the bird has to go past me cow trails, loging roads, bottle necks just like deer hunting.
I never set decoys out in the open fields. It's likely the gobbler your hunting has aready been spooked with this set up. I never use the 2 hens and a jake decoy again everyone use's this set up. And again the gobbler likely been spooked with that set up.
I never do what your surpose to. Meaning set up my decoys where they can be see from a long way. I call the gobbler to the decoy. Meaning the gobblers aready comeing and when he gets 50 or 75 yards he'll see the decoys. This way I don't get very many hang ups. And he dos'nt see the decoy never moveing the whole way to him.
Once he see's my decoys I shut up and let the decoys do the calling. I never call when ever the birds coming or if I can see him. HE'S ALREADY BEEN FOOLED HE'S COMEING.
This is where the most important thing to learn comes into play PATENCE and the most important thing to do is SCOUT. I could go on for ever. Best teacher is just do it.And learn from what your doing each time.
And don't beleive all you see on TV.Lots of times they call then kill the gobbler and then edit the calling in later. They want you to here all that good good calling. Most pessured or most any gobbler don't or won't come to that much calling.
Unless the hens lost from her flock or her gobbers been killed the day before and she's looking for him. Natural hens don't call that loud or that much.
I for got to say that I've used a ghillie sence 80 or 81. Use'lly set my sites up before season. (SCOUT) No more than a couple logs to break up my out line.
Good tips Mr. Roy.I`ve found I`m a much better Turkey hunter than caller. I try to call`m the way they are already headed.RC
Lots of great tips here. Thanks for sharing this very useful information.
Bernie Bjorklund
NC Iowa/SW Wisconsin
Been trying for 8 seasons here in Michigan. :knothead:
State land birds are tough to trick. Lots of good info in her, keep it coming!!
QuoteOriginally posted by Gary Logsdon:
FYI: The turkey on the cover of the current (April/May)issue of Traditional Bowhunter Magazine was taken by me last year using a Shaggie and mounted decoy.
Gary,
GREAT job on the cover pic :thumbsup:
QuoteOriginally posted by joebuck:
"set up in the shadows"...for Blindless hunting...i have geared my blindless set up to blend into a tree trunk. Took a while to get it like i want it but it's all in the texture and shadows your fabric absorbs and displays. I am in the pic with no brush or foleage in front of me...good hunting
(http://i71.photobucket.com/albums/i150/jmb1221/turkeyhuntingchairdecoyview.jpg)
Joey,
OUTSTANDING !!!
I agree, a lot of scouting prior to season. Learn turkey hunting from the turkeys...take you video camera, it's a blast.
I also agree with: "Be where they want to be...that's where the scouting pays off...you know where they're headed.
Good hunting!
Good info. and tricks.It'll be our third turkey season only in here.Quantities and area are limited.
I just read a nice little article in the latest Outdoor Life. According to NWTF records, the best times to call birds in is during near full or new moon. April 16th-22nd, and May 14th-20th have been the prime days to call.
Good info for me, since I have to travel 4 hours to hunt turkeys. This spring I will plan my 2, three day hunts during those times. I just hope it's not a blizzard like past years. You gotta love Wyo weather. :banghead:
Good stuff guys.
Gary, when you are using your shaggie suit, are you ever able to get drawn on birds that are NOT facing away with their fan up? I mean if you have a gobbler that is folded up and broadside at say 15 yards, are you ever able to get away with drawing your bow, or do you pretty much always have to wait until they are strutting? I'm not much of a turkey hunter, so please excuse my ignorance! I've gone the blind route, and enjoy it, but some of the places I have to hunt are a real pain in the rear the bring the blind all the way out there.
I like using a jealousy decoy setup: jake mounted on top of a hen. Attach some fishing line to tug on simulating "action", put on some Barry White, and watch the longbeards come running like bearded bullet trains! My jake decoy has several battle scars from jealous boss toms.