Seasons For Turkey Hunting
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Bercle George
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Published on 06/27/2008
For the majority of turkey hunters, springtime hunting is where it is. Autumn is a busy time for hunters it is deer season, upland hunting season, waterfowl hunting time- the list goes on and on.
For the majority of turkey hunters, springtime hunting is where it is. Autumn is a busy time for hunters it is deer season, upland hunting season, waterfowl hunting time- the list goes on and on. For that reason, most hunters put off the turkey hunting until the spring, but this fact can make autumn turkey hunting so satisfying. Hunting turkeys during the fall is less crowded, and you will have less competition for the birds. In addition to that, the fact that autumn tends to be turkey eating seasons, and you can see how forgoing the deer hunting for a little turkey hunting in the fall can be a very ideal thing.
Turkey hunting during fall is an altogether different beast than spring turkey hunting, and it can be quite a bit more challenging. In the spring, the male turkeys are on the prowl, looking for a hen, so it can be fairly simple to lure one away from the pack by making hen calls. In the fall, the male turkeys are not so interested in the hens and instead tend to roam around in packs together (likewise for the hens, of course, but hunting mature male turkeys is preferable). Segregating these groups can be a little bit harder and needs a different techniques than spring turkey hunting.
When you hunt in the autumn season, it is best to stick to a certain progression of activities. The ideal situation is to stumble upon a pack of male turkeys and take position hidden from view. When you are out of eye shot of the turkeys,ideally at least 100 yards away from them start trying to call them in to you. Now, it is essential here to not make hen calls as you would in spring hunting.
If the whole pack of male turkeys moves in on you, or if they do not make any respond to your calls, you need to go on to plan B. Instead of trying to call the turkeys, scatter the pack. You can do this by rushing up on them and by making loud noises, or you can utilize a turkey hunting dog that is trained to scatter (you do not want the dog to chase them too far away once they scatter).
At this point, it is just a matter of waiting. Because the turkeys are not trying to mate like they are in the spring, they are a little less motivated to respond to calls. You may have to repeat the scatter and call routine a few times before somebody takes the bait. This is the fun part for most autumn turkey hunters, however. Still, this activity has a lot of fun.
Turkey hunting during fall is an altogether different beast than spring turkey hunting, and it can be quite a bit more challenging. In the spring, the male turkeys are on the prowl, looking for a hen, so it can be fairly simple to lure one away from the pack by making hen calls. In the fall, the male turkeys are not so interested in the hens and instead tend to roam around in packs together (likewise for the hens, of course, but hunting mature male turkeys is preferable). Segregating these groups can be a little bit harder and needs a different techniques than spring turkey hunting.
When you hunt in the autumn season, it is best to stick to a certain progression of activities. The ideal situation is to stumble upon a pack of male turkeys and take position hidden from view. When you are out of eye shot of the turkeys,ideally at least 100 yards away from them start trying to call them in to you. Now, it is essential here to not make hen calls as you would in spring hunting.
If the whole pack of male turkeys moves in on you, or if they do not make any respond to your calls, you need to go on to plan B. Instead of trying to call the turkeys, scatter the pack. You can do this by rushing up on them and by making loud noises, or you can utilize a turkey hunting dog that is trained to scatter (you do not want the dog to chase them too far away once they scatter).
At this point, it is just a matter of waiting. Because the turkeys are not trying to mate like they are in the spring, they are a little less motivated to respond to calls. You may have to repeat the scatter and call routine a few times before somebody takes the bait. This is the fun part for most autumn turkey hunters, however. Still, this activity has a lot of fun.