Post by: kevinp16 on March 09, 2011, 11:19:30 AM
Any help would be great. Thanks in advance.
Post by: NWBREW on March 09, 2011, 11:37:20 AM
Welcome to the site.
Post by: kevinp16 on March 09, 2011, 12:15:45 PM
Post by: vandeman17 on March 09, 2011, 12:26:02 PM
Post by: STIKNSTRINGBOW on March 09, 2011, 12:41:04 PM
I have seen Turkeys scratching under trees that have little to no snow on ground when you had to walk on a 6' deep hill of Ice (frozen snow) just to get there, just because you cannot drive up the road, does not mean that there is snow everywhere at whatever elevation........
South facing slopes and whatever areas that do not have snow can/will hold birds, surprising how the top of a hill has less snow than the sides.
I would suggest looking for areas that have new growth from snow melt and clearings, do not worry about snow-line (unless you are hunting Sherman Pass) as no matter how deep the snow is, there will be melted spots by April.
But the again, where I was is at Sherman Pass............
I had good luck following creek/river drainage's, as the colder temps make water important, they cannot get the needed water from frost.
this time of year food is predominately new growth and seeds, you will find the freshest sprouts near the edges of recently melted snow.
As nice as "all the turkeys being squeezed into lower valleys for food" sounds, the ones in that circumstance will most likely be on private or leased lands.
Any birds easily accessible will already be scouted, and most likely you will have more competition from other hunters....
I do not know where you plan on hunting, but the more time you spend locating Turkeys pays off when the time to hunt them comes around, according to my friends in Chewelah and Kettle Falls, it is worse than deer season, as far as number of hunters in town, but this is good news for someone who actually hunts, you would be surprised at how many birds get passed over by hunters because they don't respond in early morning.
If you can locate 3-4 flocks before season, and hunt all day, you might ambush or call one in while everyone else is in town eating pizza and shooting pool......
The harder it is to get to them, the more likely someone hasn't "educated" them, if they are a 2 hour walk up hill because the snow keep the lazy hunters away, the more your chances of success :twocents:
Post by: MuleySniper on March 09, 2011, 12:49:17 PM
(https://hunting-washington.com/smf/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi94.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fl89%2FMuleySniper%2Fwashington%2520turkey%252008%2FIMGP2323.jpg&hash=f99dd56bb9ea95571a1c7aed13279d44af140a98)
Post by: WildfireArcher on March 09, 2011, 02:39:00 PM
Wildfire
Post by: PA BEN on March 09, 2011, 03:59:26 PM
Post by: bearpaw on March 09, 2011, 04:04:07 PM
Post by: lewy on March 09, 2011, 04:13:27 PM
Post by: Phantom Gobbler on March 09, 2011, 10:42:33 PM
Post by: KimberRich on March 10, 2011, 12:10:25 PM
This will be my first year turkey hunting. Because of all the snow, will or do the turkey try and move to lower grounds to roost or feed? Just thinking it might be a great opener if all the turkey are squeezed into lower valley for food.
Any help would be great. Thanks in advance.
It could be a great opener if the birds are squeezed into the lower valley's for food if you have access to private ground/farms. Most that land is going to be private for sure. I've definitely sat on a snowy hillside looking into the valley at flocks of birds next to barns and on farms.. Cool to see but frustrating also. Let's hope for some warm weather to help melt some off and get them into the hills!
Post by: kevinp16 on March 18, 2011, 08:19:59 AM
My guess is that the turkey are still lower in the valleys, or even higher up on the south facing hill tops that have no snow.