Youth Season

[Gobble Doc]

For the last 2 years I've taken my youngest son (now 13) out for youth turkey season.  Last year I remember pretty well and the birds seemed unresponsive to calls.  It was the first weekend of April and the weather was crummy.  This year it will be one week later.  Any suggestions?  Maybe it makes more sense to approach kind of like fall season and try to intercept them when they are roaming and eating rather than thinking about "spring".  Thoughts?  Decoys?   

[benhuntin]

Youth season can be awesome but we need some warmer weather, it also helps to pattern them early.  Good luck

[Gobble Doc]

Last year I thought we were going to be golden.  We scouted together for 3 days and watched birds take the same trail each day.  Then on the opener we had the blind set up and it poured on us.  No birds even showed up that day.  Still good to spend the time with my son but no gobbler in the cooler.  So it goes. 

[carpsniperg2]

Yeah the weather was pretty crappy and cold last year. I found one bird that was going nuts everytime I called and talked to him he would pipe off. Got all setup with the kid and his dad. Then right at light the bird shut up and I could not figure it out. To youth hunters all alone one with a shotgun the other with a 22 came walking down the hill to see if they could blast it. I had a good talk to them about whats legal and whats not and to use common sense in the woods.

[yelp]

Always have back up plan and don't limit your youth to just youth season.  It is the most difficult time to hunt them with all the toms being henned up.  However scouting helps but having several options.  I talk to lots of private landowners.  Many of them will let kids hunt.  Leave it at that..also remember to teach kids to thank landowners and how to ask for permission.  I am taking my son out this year..it won't be easy but I am really looking forward to it.    Gobble doc..another suggestion myght be try setting up blind a week or so earlier so birds get used to it..   If they have been going down a trail for several dayss and all of a sudden there is an object that wasn't there ..just saying..

[Gobble Doc]

Thanks everyone for some new idea.  You have got me thinking about new strategy(s) for those birds this next youth weekend.  I agree with thanking the land owners.  Last fall my son got a nice bird off private property and when we got home I made up a pretty neat card at Bartell's using the in store photo maker and put a pic of my son's bird on the front with him holding it along with some text that said "Thanks for the Hunt".  It only took about 5 minutes.  Then added a gift card and sent it off.  The owner was a really nice guy and it was a great experience.  I can't wait for April!

[turkeydancer]

GD -

You didn't mentioned if you had put decoys out or not. I find that early in the season they seem to hurt more than help as the lead hen often takes the group away. 

May also need to tweak your calling. Also I like to start off soft and infrequent, then gage the toms response.  If one answers from the roost to your "sleepy wake-up" yelp, he has identified you as a real hen and I don't call anymore because toms will sit on there limb waiting for you to appear below him before he flies down ... when you don't show up he usually will smell a rat and go the other way after flydown.  The most I will do until he hits the ground is too do a flydown cackle with a hat or wing simulating beating wings.  Use his curiousity and sex drive against him.  I also have been known to do an occasion gobble call or aggravated purring and hat slapping if nothing else is worling.

Ambushes work too if you've done your scouting and patterning of the birds.  But as you know, weather and hunting pressure will change their normal routine or patterns.

Best of luck ....  Al

[wannabhntr]

Just the opposite for us last year. I called in a Merriam and a Rio for my boy opening day of last year during the youth season. No more than forty yards and fifteen minutes apart. I have never had birds gobbling like that day. Rest of the season was a bust for me.

[Gobble Doc]

wannabhntr:  Great that you had a successful youth hunt last year.  Good to hear.

Turkeydancer:  The decoys.  Well, I was experimenting with them but I can't tell that it actuall made a difference one way or another.  I definitely might forsake the decs this next youth season though.  I was driving back from visiting my mom on the eastern side of the state this weekend and drove past turkeys where I had never seen them before.  It completely got my son and I jazzed up.  Nothing like a good visualization to get the juices going.

[turkeydancer]

GD - Good to hear about the turkeys ... been working 6 days/wk & 10+ hrs/day for over a year now, but will be back to normal in about a week ... looking forward to getting away for 9 days of turkey hunting this spring as the juices never stop flowing ...