Turkey advice?

[SpokaneSlayer]

So here's the deal.  I've been hunting my spot all season.  We've got our blind set up in a good spot (bowhunting) in a good clearing about halfway up a hill that leads to a flat area.  We've thought about moving the blind all the way up, but we would have to walk right under the roost to get to it.  We have no less than 4 birds, up to 6, gobbling in the morning at distances from about 75 yds out to about 200 yds.  I would call softly and would usually get an immediate response.  But when they pitch down, they never show up.  We are using hen decoys.  I've tried sweet talking them with purrs and clucks, and also the silent treatment.  Nothing seems to be working.  Anything else I could try?

[saylean]

Try nothing. No decoys, no calls...you never know..it might work. Try it one morning....see what happens.

[KimberRich]

Sounds like you've spent some time in the blind and know what they are doing so which way do they tend to go after they pitch down?  If they tend to work in the same direction towards a field or water or whatever, maybe you could set up closer to their travel path.  Like Saylean said, maybe just be silent and don't put out any decoys.  They may walk right by you.  If I'm working some birds that aren't cooperating by coming to calls, I try to figure out their travel paths and get in front of them and just sit still.  As for walking right under their roost tree, if you're going to do it I would make sure it's well before light and you are super sneaky.  Like an hour and a half before shooting light at the latest. Good Luck!! Hope to see some pictures soon!  I'm betting you'll get it done. 

[SpokaneSlayer]

Thanks for the tips.  They seem to be half and half on which way they go.  Some go uphill, some downhill.  Walking past them on the roost would be difficult at best where I'm hunting.  There's a lot of litter on the ground from some logging that was down and it's really hard to be super quiet in the dark.  I'll give the no decoys/no calling a try one morning.  Any other words of wisdom is welcome.

[KimberRich]

If there are 2 of you and they tend to split up maybe one of you set up on the uphill side and one on the downhill side??  You would have both paths covered.  Not sure how small of a chunk of land or where property lines may be but if it's loud to walk under them could you circle around a couple hundred yards above them and get set up possibly? 

Thanks again for the Spokane firearms restriction map you showed me a while back.  It really helped in my planning for the season and figuring out where I was going to hunt.   

[SpokaneSlayer]

No problem.  I'm probably heading out after the wife gets home.  Try to get one coming back to roost.

[KimberRich]

Good luck man. 

[turkeydancer]

I once advised a friend that had Easterns on the top of a ridge and had only a noisy gravel road for his approach to slowdown and walk like an elk and throw out an occasional cow mew and they would just think he was another critter passing through in the dark ... it worked too ! 
  

[SpokaneSlayer]

Well, no dice last night.  Had 3 gobblers about 200 yards away heading up the hill but I couldn't convince them to come my way.  Which brings another question.  I want to get out tonight and try to get up to where I last heard them before packing it in.  Problem is since I am bowhunting and the blind is a pain to move, would it be possible to do this without the blind.  Should I just try and tuck into some brush and take my chances of getting busted?  I really need to get this done since this will be my last turkey season for 4 years.

[tlbradford]

Sounds like you need to set up the blind right where they have been pitching down.  Head in before they return to roost and set up without dekes.  They may be avoiding the dekes on purpose.  If they roost next to you, snuggle up in your sleeping bag and enjoy the sounds of the night.  If not, head home and enjoy your bed.   

That is pretty hardcore and to me turkeys aren't worth that much work, but it is up to you.

Have you hunted mid day yet?  They might be more receptive to your calls at that time.  Too many variables to really give you accurate ideas, I am just kind of spitballing here.  I would toss a pair of clippers in your bag and build a couple of blinds in different areas with some fabric and twine/stakes whatever.  That way you would have a couple more options when listening to them on the roost before flydown.  Good luck.

[NWTFhunter]

Why wont you be able to hunt them for 4 years ?   

[SpokaneSlayer]

Moving to Alaska. 

[yelp]

I find that Merriams tend to run up or use ridges.  I would set above roost or on the other side of where they tend to go.  Most likely they are running around looking for hens which most are sitting by now.  The other thing is to use your locator to nail down location rather than use the yelp.  Use the yelp very sparingly.  A "Where are you " cluck and a couple purrs and a soft yelp thats it.  If they gobble they know where you are 9 times out of 10.  Just give them enough.  Good luck. 

[yelp]

Oh yeah try the SQUEAL!  LOL  They come running!   

[PA BEN]

I'd set my blind up on top, set out hens and a strutter decoy. Try to get them coming back to the roost or spend the night in the blind. Set your decoys out so they can see them from the roost. Most toms will come to a strutter decoy or a jake and a hen.

[BPturkeys]

Don't feel to bad, one of the biggest lies in all of turkey hunting is that you can call in birds fresh off the roost. Oh, sure it might happen, but in reality, 99% of the time, you know, or you are lucky enough, to be in the path they want to take and ambush the poor bastages as they stroll by. By the time the birds on the roost get through with their morning tree calling, they know where every other bird in the neighborhood is and they are going to meet up with the birds they are familiar with...oh, you didn't know that all the birds in the area know the voice of all the other birds in the area...well, they do, and not only that, they're all friends. Anyway, the best, and probably the only way you are going to get those bird first thing in the morning is to be where they want to go. Either be right in the fly-down zone, or along their normal route of travel. There is one other way, but since it is kind of sneaky, I hesitate to talk to much about it here, oh well, WTH, here is how it works. You need to arrive at the roosting area long before daylight and locate the boss hen, you'll know her cause she's always sitting on the best branch in the tree. Get right under her tree and hit her with one of those 3 million candle power spotlights and she'll drop right out of the tree into your waiting arms. Then, sneak back to your blind and stake her to the ground within shootin range. As daylight starts to break, she'll start raisin all kinds of particular hell and the old toms will come a-running right to her aid...from then, it's just ka-bamm, (or I guess swish if you're shooting the old bow)...meat on the table.
 

[Phantom Gobbler]

 

We can tell you are just kidding us right?

[SpokaneSlayer]

Wow.

I've called in quite a few birds off the roost in the past few seasons.  I just didn't shoot them or they didn't produce a good shot.  And I do know that they know who's who by their voice.  I even know their voices, as I've spent hundreds of hours in this particular spot.

I think some of you are right about setting up on top.  I hunted up there tonight and bumped 6 birds while walking.  Now I just need to convince my partner that we need to move the blind.  Learned another good piece of information that will help us be more mobile.  I can draw my bow while sitting on the ground.  Thanks for all the tips.  Hopefully I'll be posting some pics soon.

[BPturkeys]

We can tell you are just kidding us right?

Ya see, this is what I get for letting out one little well guarded secret...doubt! But actually, the first part I made up, when birds are on the roost, all ya got to do is throw out a couple decoys, squawk a few times on your favorite call and walla, in run the toms, tongues hangin out, ready for some good lovin. If you don't believe me, just tune in the huntin channel and watch how they really do it in real life. Now, as to the second part, all fact! Not to say things can't go wrong. I know a guy that mistakenly picked out a very young hen and brought her back to his blind. In the morning when she started to fuss, a bunch of very angry, outraged old hens (mothers I suspect) showed up and nearly pecked his blind to pieces.

[PA BEN]

Out of the roost is the best time, BUT, it doesn't always work. Set up close for the best chance.

[Tom Tamer]

Out of the roost is the best time, BUT, it doesn't always work. Set up close for the best chance.

X 2

 While yes they recognis each others voices, this time year tom's are out trolling for the last of the hens that need loving, so they'll roam up to three miles searching, last year I ran into just that, a tom I'd battle for three weeks was not in his roost on the last weekend, but with all the activity in the area with hens and my calling for the previous times, a new and even bigger tom had moved in, I tree yelped, he double gobbled and flew right out in front 40 yards out, I watched him strut his way to twenty yards before I aired out his head. This guy was a constant grumbling of gobbles and drumming, if I didn't shoot him I think he may of died from  a heart attack he was so fired up. 

[turkeydancer]

My first bird this year was the same ... thought he was going to pass out and fall out of the tree from gobbling so much ... once he flew down within 20 yards of me, he hardly gobbled and mostly spit and drummed for the next 5 minutes ... he was already dead, he just didn't know it yet because I wanted to enjoy the show some more ...

[Hangfire]

Getting them to come in right off the roost doesn't always work, at least for me, BUT when it does, and it does some time every year. It is the grandest experience there is turkey hunting.

Having a gobbler answer your call in midday, you set up and he keeps answering, getting closer each time until he comes in strutting, spitting and drumming is in the same category, wonderful.

[Mike_D]

I had the same problem this last week on the border....  I finally when up into the ridgeline of the hills overlooking my area in late morning, and started calling.  I had several answers and was able to spot them by binos and simply watched them.... Interestingly every time I called, they responded, but walked in the opposite direction.  so I quit calling after 6-7 tries, and simply watched where they walked and the time of day (it requires burning up a good hunting morning)

the next morning, I got in their "walking area" about 2 hours before I had seen them and started waiting... no calling just waiting.... sure enough about a 1/2 hour past the time I saw them walk by the day before, they showed up.... a couple of #5's later, the Tom was on the ground... (so I ambushed them... I was getting frustrated... )

[PA BEN]

In the mid 90's I killed each and every tom off the roost. Put them to bed the night before and you had a tom in the morning. As the hen numbers increased it became harder. You have to work a little harder these days, but I feel first thing out the roost is the best time.