Seeking answers to colville turkey hunting

[Meow]

I'm not experienced by any stretch. This is my first season hunting, and I've made some mistakes and probably looked like a moron a lot, but it's better to be lucky than good. My guess is that your setup is a chief problem if you're getting them to respond to your calls and never seeing them. I know it is something that I'm struggling with.

Choose a location that is fairly near where you think some toms are that affords good concealment yet good visibility of the potential approaches.  Think like you're playing hide and seek or setting up an ambush for some hostile force and evaluate the ability to remain hidden even when they get close. If possible, have terrain or other features that guide the birds into your kill zone. Do not be afraid to try a couple different positions in the area you've selected, sitting down, and seeing what you can see and how your concealment is.

Scan the heck out of the possible approaches visually before even calling. Know what they look like so when something changes you can key in on it before the birds see you. Then stay vigilant, even if some corner of your mind is screaming at you that you're a loser and there's no way you'll see a turkey and why did you waste all of this money on turkey specific gear like calls.

Thanks to Russ and the others who put on the mentioned virtual seminar. I believe it contributed greatly to my success. I also listened to many hours of podcasts, and watched hours of youtube videos. Having spent time in the woods hunting people.

[baldopepper]

Honestly over the years I've shot probably around a dozen that I considered called in (called lots of jakes that I chose not to shoot, but have nothing against others who wanted a bird taking a jake) My best luck is being where the birds want to be and then being patient. I'll often softly call them closer or get them to turn  a bit from their intended path. When they're henned up it's that old lead hen that you can often get to come over and see what's up and she'll drag the rest of the flock with her. Keep at it, the first year or two of turkey hunting can be a steep learning curve

[Russ McDonald]

Here is the link to the seminar along withblinks to gear.  The chat  dialogue we had going.  Some cleaning/gutting videos.  Open to anyone who wants to watch.  We have lots of turkey hunters in here willing to give out some helpfull tips.  Just don't ask where the easterns are on the west side.

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[Russ McDonald]

Maybe i should post the link https://drive.google.com/folderview?id=1fdgDbZ5ki6JmHENKUYPncKUAUmmcBehg

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[jrebel]

Definitely not a pro....but have killed a few over the last 10 years. 

I find most gobbles I hear happen in the first hour of daylight.....so you should be out listening half hour before the sun comes up.  You can make them gobble with a crow call or car horn for that matter.  As the day progresses, my experience is they don't gobble near as much.  If the big boys are hen'd up they are not coming....at least to my calls.  The gobbler my son shot last night strutted for an hour at about 100 yards around it three hens and did not give two craps about my attempt to call him.  I do believe my calls kept the hens close, which eventually lead to my son shooting the gobbler as they were passing us on their way to roost. 

I find more birds by listening for the hens.  Study and know what sounds the hens make and be very wary of the short cluck.....if you hear that the gig is likely up. 

With the above said....the last 5 years or so....I could have and / or have, shot birds after spotting them from the truck.  Last year I was spring bear hunting and drove by a huge tom that had about half dozen hens with him.  I drove about 50 yards past them out of sight, kept the truck running, got out and walked back to them and shot him.  I have never.....OK almost never.....driven around for a day in the NE corner without seeing turkeys from the truck.  I am not talking about the farmers fields either....I'm talking about in the middle of the woods.  Look for their prints on the road and as mentioned above, look for the strutting wing marks in the dusty roads. 

Lastly.....I have called birds one day and watched them ignore me, just to 12-24 hours later call the same birds and have them literally run to me.  If you find birds hunt them.....you never know when the gobbler will be tired chasing the old hen that won't put out, just to come running to you. 

P.S.  Don't be afraid to stop and ask a farmer out working on his equipment if you can hunt his flock of turkeys.  If the land is not leased out or his kids / grandkids aren't hunting, it is very likely he will say have at it.  Most of the farmers I know hate those dirty vermin.  We call them dirty birds for this very reason. 

Good Luck and make sure to post success pics.   

[KFhunter]

Once my daughter gets more experience I'm going to do like calling elk, setup behind the shooter 40-60 yards and call.

Right mow I need to be right next to her.

I carry camo burlap I drape over her legs, lap feet, and use shooting sticks cause gun is heavy for her. Helps hide movement.  She sits on my toilet seat/stool I always carry in the truck.

I'll setup behind brush in shady spots.

[Bogie85]

I'm not experienced by any stretch. This is my first season hunting, and I've made some mistakes and probably looked like a moron a lot, but it's better to be lucky than good. My guess is that your setup is a chief problem if you're getting them to respond to your calls and never seeing them. I know it is something that I'm struggling with.

Choose a location that is fairly near where you think some toms are that affords good concealment yet good visibility of the potential approaches.  Think like you're playing hide and seek or setting up an ambush for some hostile force and evaluate the ability to remain hidden even when they get close. If possible, have terrain or other features that guide the birds into your kill zone. Do not be afraid to try a couple different positions in the area you've selected, sitting down, and seeing what you can see and how your concealment is.

Scan the heck out of the possible approaches visually before even calling. Know what they look like so when something changes you can key in on it before the birds see you. Then stay vigilant, even if some corner of your mind is screaming at you that you're a loser and there's no way you'll see a turkey and why did you waste all of this money on turkey specific gear like calls.

Thanks to Russ and the others who put on the mentioned virtual seminar. I believe it contributed greatly to my success. I also listened to many hours of podcasts, and watched hours of youtube videos. Having spent time in the woods hunting people.

I agree with the luck part, but it never seems to be in my favor. We let my buddies son take a spot we knew because it was easier for them to learn that area. We hunted it hard the day before. But wouldn’t you know their day one they get two gobblers within 30 yards but couldn’t capitalize. And here my cursed ass is going on 3 years without even seeing one come in lol.

[Bogie85]

Honestly over the years I've shot probably around a dozen that I considered called in (called lots of jakes that I chose not to shoot, but have nothing against others who wanted a bird taking a jake) My best luck is being where the birds want to be and then being patient. I'll often softly call them closer or get them to turn  a bit from their intended path. When they're henned up it's that old lead hen that you can often get to come over and see what's up and she'll drag the rest of the flock with her. Keep at it, the first year or two of turkey hunting can be a steep learning curve

The gaps in knowledge are incredible lol, like I don’t know where they want to be. I am always guessing, it does seem like they avoid open areas and seem to favor brushy wooded areas. I hear a gobble and I don’t know if I should stop ASAP hit the deck and try to call them in. Or if I should move towards them.

[Bogie85]

Here is the link to the seminar along withblinks to gear.  The chat  dialogue we had going.  Some cleaning/gutting videos.  Open to anyone who wants to watch.  We have lots of turkey hunters in here willing to give out some helpfull tips.  Just don't ask where the easterns are on the west side.

Sent from my SM-N976V using Tapatalk

Thanks Russ!

Going to watch the seminar tomorrow, and I know better then to ask where anything is . Hunting has been a very challenging and unfruitful affair since I started 5 years ago. It’s hard to not let it affect your morale, fishing is easier to get good at. But your window for fishing is much longer so you can fill a lot of experience gaps each year. But hunting you have very small windows of time to crunch as much as you can. It’s not going to stop me, because I am stubborn . But I would be lying if I said it didn’t bum me out.

[Bogie85]

Definitely not a pro....but have killed a few over the last 10 years. 

I find most gobbles I hear happen in the first hour of daylight.....so you should be out listening half hour before the sun comes up.  You can make them gobble with a crow call or car horn for that matter.  As the day progresses, my experience is they don't gobble near as much.  If the big boys are hen'd up they are not coming....at least to my calls.  The gobbler my son shot last night strutted for an hour at about 100 yards around it three hens and did not give two craps about my attempt to call him.  I do believe my calls kept the hens close, which eventually lead to my son shooting the gobbler as they were passing us on their way to roost. 

I find more birds by listening for the hens.  Study and know what sounds the hens make and be very wary of the short cluck.....if you hear that the gig is likely up. 

With the above said....the last 5 years or so....I could have and / or have, shot birds after spotting them from the truck.  Last year I was spring bear hunting and drove by a huge tom that had about half dozen hens with him.  I drove about 50 yards past them out of sight, kept the truck running, got out and walked back to them and shot him.  I have never.....OK almost never.....driven around for a day in the NE corner without seeing turkeys from the truck.  I am not talking about the farmers fields either....I'm talking about in the middle of the woods.  Look for their prints on the road and as mentioned above, look for the strutting wing marks in the dusty roads. 

Lastly.....I have called birds one day and watched them ignore me, just to 12-24 hours later call the same birds and have them literally run to me.  If you find birds hunt them.....you never know when the gobbler will be tired chasing the old hen that won't put out, just to come running to you. 

P.S.  Don't be afraid to stop and ask a farmer out working on his equipment if you can hunt his flock of turkeys.  If the land is not leased out or his kids / grandkids aren't hunting, it is very likely he will say have at it.  Most of the farmers I know hate those dirty vermin.  We call them dirty birds for this very reason. 

Good Luck and make sure to post success pics.   

This is helpful, and I definitely listen to the hens and try to talk to them and get them engaged esp if the Tom doesn’t want to play. I did hear the dreaded cluck this trip, we were moving silently through the forest or as quiet as a human can be lol. And we heard a cluck and saw a big hen fly down the hill. We backed out and left, and tried a different area. I think the hardest part is not knowing if yelps are enough or purrs or when to use them etc.

[Bogie85]

Once my daughter gets more experience I'm going to do like calling elk, setup behind the shooter 40-60 yards and call.

Right mow I need to be right next to her.

I carry camo burlap I drape over her legs, lap feet, and use shooting sticks cause gun is heavy for her. Helps hide movement.  She sits on my toilet seat/stool I always carry in the truck.

I'll setup behind brush in shady spots.

I was thinking about getting one of those quick setup blinds just to hide any movement and maybe reduce extra possible errors. I know these beasts can see really well, but they are hard to see in the open unless moving let alone just a head popping up lol.

[TheStovePipeKid]

I'm headed out 1st week of May. PM me the details if your season and I'll work on getting you set on some birds. Also, Bearpaw has a map he sells. I've seen birds in every spot he marked and harvested birds on most of the areas. It's worth the cost, I've been using it for half a decade and it still pays off.

[Bogie85]

I'm headed out 1st week of May. PM me the details if your season and I'll work on getting you set on some birds. Also, Bearpaw has a map he sells. I've seen birds in every spot he marked and harvested birds on most of the areas. It's worth the cost, I've been using it for half a decade and it still pays off.

I have been eyeing those maps, do you buy new ones every year? I have heard good things.

[birddogdad]

I'm headed out 1st week of May. PM me the details if your season and I'll work on getting you set on some birds. Also, Bearpaw has a map he sells. I've seen birds in every spot he marked and harvested birds on most of the areas. It's worth the cost, I've been using it for half a decade and it still pays off.

I have been eyeing those maps, do you buy new ones every year? I have heard good things.

never heard of this map.. link?

[Sneaky]

Make sure you have a quality turkey call and you know how to use it. I use John Sinclair custom calls with rutland dymondwood strikers. This is a crucial investment. Having the ability and confidence to call birds in from extreme distances is a game changer.  There are lots of sound files on John's website for the assembled calls. You can also pick a completed pot and choose your own surface/soundboard if that's what you like. A lot of dudes sound like absolute doodoo and still kill birds...In my opinion sounding real and being loud enough when it counts is key to locating and killing birds. You can give yourself a leg up right out of the gate by having the best call money can buy.