quiet birds

[baldopepper]

Just returned from a weekend in unit 121 looking for bird #2.  I've never seen the birds so quiet this early in the season.  They werent even gobbling on the morning roost.  Defintiely birds around us as we saw numerous jakes and toms in the mornings, but they paid not attention at all to calls.  Much tougher hunting - not only from the no noise point of view, but foilage is now leafed out making it very difficult to see.  Anyone else finding the birds to be so quiet? 

[carpsniperg2]

could be they have already been messed with this year and are a bit call shy, they have been a bit shut lipped around here as well.

[baldopepper]

No question the birds can get very call shy, but normally when you have groups of 3-4 or more jakes in the immediate area you hear them sounding off on the roost and the area we hunt is very, very private with very virtually no pressure.  Usually I can hear them sounding off well into May and even June  in the mornings, but not this year.  Has to be weather realted, but I've seen years when May was very warm and they were still gobbling on the roost into the the latter part of the month.  would have thought there were no birds around except they'd show up after daylight. 

[carpsniperg2]

if you are trying to locate them shock them into gobblin, if you are just trying to locate them to move in and set up. crow owl what ever you like or have. i have a special call i found that works 99% of the time and me and only one of my best friends knows about this and have never seen anyone use it but us. and we are very careful not to let anyone know about it because it is so deadly we have had them come in to it as well

[baldopepper]

Well, I can't say I was necesarily trying to locate are even real seriously trying to hunt them.  I guess I was just making more of a coment about how quiet they are.  Just seemed strange that in an area where you normally hear numerous calls from the roost you hear virtaully none.  Not at all unusual for them to go quiet once they're down, I've just never seen them go so "dead" on the roost.  Seem to be still with hens in most cases and we did hear a few hens on the roost, but for the jakes and toms be so quiet is just really unusual .  Thought maybe someone might have experienced this before and had a plausible explanation.  I'll be back over off and on the next couple of months and I'm betting they get noisty again.

[quadrafire]

ii have a special call i found that works 99% of the time and me and only one of my best friends knows about this and have never seen anyone use it but us. and we are very careful not to let anyone know about it because it is so deadly we have had them come in to it as well

99%- yea right! Whats the big secret. . We're not gonna tell, we are all best friends, right?? You fartin in the woods and don't want anybody to know?

[baldopepper]

Quadrafire-it's really funny you'd mention that-SUPPOSEDLY  a true story from my brother this year.  He claims he was well hidden ,waiting quietly for birds when he was overwhelmed with a gas build up, released a rather noisy plume and a nice tom responded with a gobble not 30' behind him!!!  All I know is that he did indeed bring in a nice bird that evening.  Told my wife about it and her response was how much money we've spent on call's and evidently we've been literally sitting on the best one all along!

[quadrafire]

 

[turkeydancer]

But alas, gas warfare was outlawed by the Geneva Convention ....
             

[baldopepper]

My only question to him was did he think the bird gobbled from shock or disgust!

[PA BEN]

They do this every year. I think it has more to do with the weather then anything else. 

[Gringo31]

I haven't gone out yet this year but am headed out this weekend.  You guys are making me nervous.

[baldopepper]

don't mean to discourage anyone-birds are there, just a little tougher to hunt.  they were coming off the roost at 5:30 am and what little noise we heard was between 5 and 5:30.  I'm sure there are still some "hot" ones out there to be called in.  It is a truly glorious time of year to be out regardless.  Grouse are drumming like crazy, song birds are in full mateing color plummage and wild flowers are blooming all over.  For anyone who is a true outdoors person this is just a great time of year.  go out and enjoy,  getting a turkey is just extra frosting on the cake!!

[sneakyjake]

Walk very slowly on the trails or logging roads in areas you know they are.  I have caught the tips of their fans while sneaking into the area.  The birds are usually alone and just fanned out quietly or dusting on the road with no hens.

[Machias]

They were gobbling strong from sunrise to about 1000 this weekend, then it was sporadic, like always after 1000.  They seem to be talking pretty good right now.

[Elkpiss]

I havent been to the Eastside yet, but i am having a very very tough time to get these Easterns to Gobble.. I have been right on top of Toms and nothing. Caught 1 lone tom nothing before he seen me.. then a tom and a hen, no gobble...  Called a hen in but i seen her first too, their may have been a gobbler with her.. This isnt my first rodeo either.. I have said it before, the Easterns are so dam smart and tricky everything has to be just right... I dont know  .. Ive tried it all, i will get this big *censored* though!! I will get the last laugh on this sucker.. I canceled one of my eastside trips just to kill this son bich.. He is pissing me off.. Now i am mad again.. uuggg..

[Machias]

THOSE are the birds I love to pursue.  It's an honor thing with me as well, if I have a big sucker that has outsmarted me or I've made mistakes with and got busted, I still will only shoot him on my terms, no ambush, no happen stance.  If I can't call him in he walks, because when you do figure out a way to sucker him in, man those are the ones you will always remember.  I have killed probably 50 birds, but I think about the ones who whipped me over and over until I figured out how to sweet talk them in.  Good luck sticking your tag on him!

[Machias]

P.S.      Easterns are hands down 10 times smarter, (or spookier) then a Merriams or Rio ever thought about being!

[Elkpiss]

I will get him.. They are the most challenging thing to hunt on the Westside of hte state.. I have killed a few Easterns but this sucker has beat me 3 times already.. I want to kill him so bad, i am canceling all my other turkey hunts to dump this *censored*..    It has been pretty fun though, if i get him or when i get him.. He is going on the wall!!!  I ll keep you posted!

[Machias]

If you haven't already read this book, this book more than any other captures old time turkey hunting traditions and battles with smart old gobblers, awesome read.

The Old Pro Turkey Hunter, Gene Nunnery (Author)

[carpsniperg2]

ii have a special call i found that works 99% of the time and me and only one of my best friends knows about this and have never seen anyone use it but us. and we are very careful not to let anyone know about it because it is so deadly we have had them come in to it as well

99%- yea right! Whats the big secret. . We're not gonna tell, we are all best friends, right?? You fartin in the woods and don't want anybody to know?

yeah i guess i couls tell you and only you, see the magic call is "I am a dip $hit" so next time you are out in the woods run around and yell out the above call. will work every time for you

[fishunt247]

If I can't call him in he walks, because when you do figure out a way to sucker him in, man those are the ones you will always remember.

I'm with you here. None of that "otherness" for me. I guess it's kinda like being a dry fly purist: if the fish aren't rising and you aren't willing to nymph, you'll get a few until they start rising again. If they aren't in the mood for coming in that particular day or week, I'm not going to kill a bird. So be it.

This morning was some of the best gobbling on the ground I've heard so far. On Friday evening and all day Saturday I maybe heard ten gobbles on the ground. Between the two days I heard at least 8 longbeards on the roost plus a ton of jakes on the roost, then only ten gobbles between them on the ground. Frustrating, but they'll come around.

[yelp]

I watched several toms..gobble strut a little and then walk and peck..almost like the interest was kind of there.  I believe these dominate birds have been doing a lot of breeding since early March in some areas.  The toms that responded the best in the last week were subdominate toms IMO.  I think that dominate toms as they lose hens to nesting and incubating will get more aggressive..I hope.  There are also several factors that decrease activity such as weather, temp, etc.. Stay with it it still beats work..LOL

[Tom Tamer]

IMO they are in the " Henned up" stage where they're all roosting real close together, not much need for more than a couple gobbles and the hens are popping out ready to go. another week or so and they'' start venturing farther apart durint the day and most likely won' be roosting so close to each other. and I was hearing  more hens near nesting areas that's a good sign. To further convince myself of this, Friday we watched as one Tom and two hens pitched up into the same tree.....Saturday morning he gobbled twice to let them know he was awake and down they went.....in a direction we couldn't follow   I'll bet they'll be a little more gobblely this weekend. Another factor too could be the Jakes are getting tired of a butt whooping

[yelp]

IMO they are in the " Henned up" stage where they're all roosting real close together, not much need for more than a couple gobbles and the hens are popping out ready to go. another week or so and they'' start venturing farther apart durint the day and most likely won' be roosting so close to each other. and I was hearing  more hens near nesting areas that's a good sign. To further convince myself of this, Friday we watched as one Tom and two hens pitched up into the same tree.....Saturday morning he gobbled twice to let them know he was awake and down they went.....in a direction we couldn't follow  I'll bet they'll be a little more gobblely this weekend. Another factor too could be the Jakes are getting tired of a butt whooping

We do have a lot of hens out there.  In Lincoln County we have hens already on the nest.  Tamer..I wish to use your word "Gobblely" in future posts if that is OK....LOL   

[Tom Tamer]

Love it when the hens finally get sent to their room   Just means the season's starting to get good.

[yelp]

Love it when the hens finally get sent to their room   Just means the season's starting to get good.

I modified my above post..read tamer..LOL

[Tom Tamer]

No problem as long as there's a clause in the contract to where I can us it also

[turkeydancer]

Tamer - is the Toad still kicking your tail feathers? I wish you'ld kick his as I may venture out for Easterns soon, but the thought of Toad's continued existence has me a little scared that I could run into him !
       

Thinking of getting out there for at least one of the weekend days for the next 2 or 3 weeks ... see if I can get whipped by the phantoms while I still have a little sanity left.
 

[Tom Tamer]

In my NIGHTMARES .....I'm gonna head after him next weekend, my legs can't take the 5 mile bike ride and two miles up hill walk yet. I hiked all over He!!'shalf acre last weekend and my career is based off climbing up and down ladders constantly, so turkey season plus work is he!! on my legs.......Damn work

P.S. Got you message on the fall hunt.....THANK YOU!!!!! Callie is super stoked about it already

[turkeydancer]

May take my trailer down by the reservoir Friday May 7th (for the weekend) instead of getting up at 3am to drive down there and then not get home until 10pm ... enjoy that drive as much as the numerous biking and hiking miles.