new to fall turkey,any hints

[TIMBERTRAMP]

the state i live in maine is having a fall firearms turkey season for the first time,in oct,although i've hunted turkey in the spring using calls and have done pretty well, the few hunters i"ve talked to that have fall hunted say it's a whole different ballgame no toms running to hen sounds they instead drive around till they see a flock in a field then try to get to the edge of the woods ahead of them for a ambush ,i'm hoping there are better ways any help appreciated thnks tt

[buck460XVR]

i"ve talked to that have fall hunted say it's a whole different ballgame no toms running to hen sounds they instead drive around till they see a flock in a field then try to get to the edge of the woods ahead of them for a ambush ,i'm hoping there are better ways any help appreciated thnks tt

I have called in Toms in the fall to the same calls that brought them in during the spring season. Most of the time it is hens and their young of the year that comes in, but you never know. Your friends that drive around till they see a flock and then try to ambush them probably use the same tactics in the spring. My best luck is if I spot a flock, whether it be hens or toms, is to get as close as possible and then call loud and aggressively. Again hens will be more responsive than Toms at this time of year, but the Toms will respond....just not as fast. Spotting a flock and busting it up is a good tactic as long as you get the flock to scatter in more than one direction. If they all run/fly in the same general direction you won't be able to set up between them as they regroup. If scattered correctly they will return to the exact spot where they were flushed to regroup. There have been times when I have scattered a flock that I've had to drive the little ones off a coupla times before the larger hens would come in. I have also had good luck just going to an area where I know turkeys hang out and call.....alot. In my opinion, as long as you don't screw up, you cannot call too much in the fall. It's a great way to practice your calls and a good way to learn new calls for use in the spring. I have learned a coupla subtle calls  from fall hens that were just what the Toms wanted to hear the following spring. Don't attemp to drive Turkeys and then shoot them on the fly or on the run......just to much risk in wounding a bird and not recovering it. IMHO....Most any body that hunts turkeys much, knows that a turkey mortally wounded and not hit in the head or spine will not appear hurt and may suffer for days till they succumb to the wounds or coyotes. Now some say they are a good enough shot to hit a flying turkey  only in the head or cleanly miss them. I would assume the ones they  don't hit in the head and wound in the body fly off somewhere to die a slow and painful death. To them, because the bird flew off without showing signs of being hurt meant a clean miss.

Good luck and have a safe hunt.

[dukkillr]

Old thread on topic:

http://www.gboreloaded.com/forums/index.php/topic,65100.msg400334.html#msg400334

I really can't disagree with the above post more.  I won't address his moral indignation other than to say that he doesn't know what he's talking about.  I can promise you you can shoot them in the head.  The target is the size of a dove, and I kill lots of doves every year.

If he thinks he knows how I hunt in the spring based on how I hunt in the fall I'll send him a PM and straighten him out.  Quite frankly, he no idea what I do, or what I know about turkey hunting.  A well organized turkey drive is as safe, as lethal, and as ethical as a good pheasant hunt, the only difference is that great big birds really get your blood going.  Try it,

Follow the link, it's a couple of years old, but it's several guys' answers on fall tactics.

[TIMBERTRAMP]

Thanks for the advice,i'm been seeing so many this fall, I almost hit 2 driving my daughter to school yesterday I think it should be easy going to bag one, I think i'll try calling to a known or spotted flock to check reactions i'll try some real soft stuff -ke-ke's
thanks again-tt

[dukkillr]

You will struggle calling to a large group.  If your goal is to call one in, you should bust up the group, then set up where they went and try to call them in as they try to regroup.  Usually a raspy old hen call works the best.

[buck460XVR]

Old thread on topic:

http://www.gboreloaded.com/forums/index.php/topic,65100.msg400334.html#msg400334

I really can't disagree with the above post more.  I won't address his moral indignation other than to say that he doesn't know what he's talking about.  I can promise you you can shoot them in the head.  The target is the size of a dove, and I kill lots of doves every year.

My moral indignation is caused by a lack of ethics and lack of respect for their  quarry that some folk have. Guess that's why some call themselves hunters and sportsmen, while others are proud of the name "killer". You own words from the above link are a good indication of your shooting and ability to hit a flying Turkey.....

I shot myself out of shells (2 3/4" 6s), fell in a creek, dropped by my lucky model 12 in mud, and finally killed my 2.

how many other birds did you hit as you shot yourself out of shells? Just because they didn't drop out of the sky doesn't mean they weren't hit and left to die. Comparing a 20 lb turkey that can take a full load of sixes to the body at 10 paces and still fly or run a mile with a broken wing to a dove that weighs in at a few ounces and drops when hit anywhere with a #9 pellet is whimsical. As to me not knowing what I'm talking about, here's a quote from the back of my Turkey huntin' regs.....I didn't write this, the Wisconsin DNR did. 

Reduce Crippling Losses
• Pattern your gun to know at what distances you have
an effective pattern (at least 6 pellets in skull and neck
vertebrae).
• Avoid shooting beyond 35 yards.
• Aim for the base of the featherless portion of the neck—not
at the head.
• Never shoot at a flying turkey.
• Be prepared for a second shot if necessary.

 Altho I'm sure you are much more skilled and knowledgeable than them, I notice they also recomend patterning your gun.

If he thinks he knows how I hunt in the spring based on how I hunt in the fall I'll send him a PM and straighten him out.  Quite frankly, he no idea what I do, or what I know about turkey hunting.

I'm still waitin' on that PM bro. No, I don't know how you hunt in the spring, nor do I have any idea what you know about turkey hunting.. What I do know tho, is that folk that use desperate and unethical methods to fill their tags on one species or season generally do it on all their excursions. Driving around randomly looking for game to try and ambush is a poor excuse for scouting and woodsmanship. It's guys like that that wreck  someone else's hunt by trying to sneak up on or drive a flock or a tom that someone else has already set up on and has been working. They haven't learned or grown up enough yet to realize it's all about the hunt and not just the kill. They're more concerned about what a bad ribbin' they'll get from their huntin' buddies if they come home empty handed, so if they gotta wound and cripple a few others using poor judgment to fill their tags, so be it.

I aint tryin' to trash you dukkiller, nor am I questioning the majority of your hunting ethics. I just think recommending a method of hunting to a beginning hunter that is low success and high on the probability of crippling is not a smart option. Especially when there are other options that are safer, more fun and have a higher rate of success with a lower probability of crippling. At the spring turkey hunting seminar I took my youngest to this last March the instructor there advised against "Turkey Drives". At the local NWTF banquet this spring,  the guest speaker also touched on this method of hunting and advised against it. It's not just my opinion dukkiller, it's the opinion of the majority of folk that know more than you and I put together. We both love to hunt, that is obvious, and we're passionate about it. As I have said before, as long as a person hunts within the confines of the law, I will support his right to hunt, but I don't have to agree with the ethics or the methods he uses. You are entitled to your opinion and I respect that, I just hope you can give me that same respect. You do what you think you have to do to fill your tags......and I'll do what I have to do to enjoy and take pride in my hunt.

Being familiar with these types of forums, I know moderators sometimes have a way of adjusting posts to their advantage.........I'm  thinkin' you are a much better person than that.

[dukkillr]

Well I've given this some time to sit, so as to avoid being labeled as some type of bad moderator... I've also decided you must be right.  Clearly shooting at a flying turkey is unethical.  Obviously.  There is no question that while I may be completely comfortable with the shot, and I might attest that it's both fun and lethal, what do I know?  After all, I've done it, and you apparently haven't.  I could suggest that perhaps someone who wants to know if it's ethical or not should try it for themselves and see if they believe that a turkey can be safely and effectively dispatched while flying, but...

So on the eve of the Kansas and Missouri duck seasons I've decided to start a new movement.  I'm going to call it the, "Shooting flying targets is unethical" movement.  I intend to only shoot ducks and geese (a goose is almost identical in size to the turkeys that can't be killed flying) on the water.  In addition I'm going to have to discover a way in which I can kill pheasants while they are not only on the ground, but standing still.  Doves can be killed in trees, but what about quail?  There can be no debate that holding out for stationary headshots at close range is more lethal, more reliable, and less likely to wound.   As such I've decided that it must be the only ethical way to hunt.  Any pheasant hunter in the world knows that losing roosters to butt-shots is a common happening (unless you only hunt tame pheasants) and certainly I can't count the number of crippled ducks I see each year from unethical wingshooters.  I clean ducks, geese, and pheasants every year with old pellets in them.  That these birds were still flying around appearing healthy should be ignored to further incite our rage.  Why haven't these guys read the NWTF guidelines?

I've compared this horrible style of fall turkey hunting to pheasant hunting in the past.  In a lot ways it is very similar.  The birds are tough, shot selection and blocker safety is important, and the action can be pretty intense.  They're often spread out in a given woodlot, much as pheasants would be in a given strip of grass.  I've also said, with regard to the shooting, that it's not as hard as people would lead you to believe.  Flying turkeys never get very high, they also fly almost perfectly straight with the head and neck stretched out.  They are slow to take flight, and make lots of noise in doing so.  In my opinion the head is bigger than a dove, and far easier to hit.  Hitting that head kills the turkeys dead.  There is no question it's easier than killing a giant Canada.  Of course, what do I know?  After all, I've only done it both ways and am offering an informed opinion.  Perhaps if I just read more people's opinions about something rather than actually doing it, I would be better off?  Maybe I should read all those letters to the editor of Turkey Hunting that followed the article "To Bushwhack or Not?".  The self righteous tone in some of those letters reminds me of someone, I... Just... Can't... Place... It...  So much for that, "hunters need to stick together" stuff, right?

The only thing you said that I agree with is that people should be free to hunt, as long as it's legal, however they want (free legally, or free of traditionalists' brow beating?).  I don't particularly enjoy traditional fall turkey hunting.  I think it's boring, stupid, and relatively easy.  I've killed several turkeys that way, and it's just not for me.  I'd rather duck, goose, pheasant, quail, elk, bow, or rifle hunt.  I see fall turkey hunting as a target of opportunity.  Often it happens during a quail hunt, sometimes during a bowhunt.  Sometimes just an evening scouting.  What follows is usually a short, fun, shoot that fills some fall turkey tags. 

In a lot of ways I'm lucky to have the opportunities that I do.  I grew up not only hunting, but hunting great places, and being taught by great hunters.  I see hunters every year that are disasters.  Terrible shots, terrible callers, setup all wrong, cheap gear, you name it.  But in a time when hunter numbers are declining I don't see any place for insulting those people.  If they're having fun in a safe, legal, manner, why should I discourage them?  They're out there givin' it hell, instead of sitting on the couch getting fat.  I commend them for that. 

I gave my advice to someone who asked about it.  I think it's good, safe, ethical advice that will produce results.  I welcome anyone who's curious to try it, and should they decide it's unethical they can choose a different way of hunting.  I won't judge them on their conclusion (or their login name). 

[simplicity]

I'm new to turkey hunting as well, that is I've never done the spring season. I live in Maine and we've had a fall archery season for a couple years now, it's also right in the middle of bow season on deer. I've shot a couple turkeys with a bow and am starting to do the spring season now. ( it gave me an excuse to buy a new gun ) to the fall season from what I've watched of turkeys during bow season on deer is that in the fall turkeys are very pattern-able hence they do the same thing roughly about the same time every day and they are very easy to ambush if you know what that pattern is. From what I've watched  and studied they are roughly plus or minus an hour time wise during the fall if they are undisturbed (this is studying three different groups) then if if left for a week will return to the same pattern. I saw that you were from Maine so I thought I'd throw in my two cents. On what I've learned about turkeys here. If things are different in other parts of the country I'd love to know. Like I said I've never done spring season only fall archery for turkey for the past three years.

[SHOOTALL]

fall hunting is different here in VA. we like to locate a flock and bust it up , just run into them and make them fly in all directions .Often a dog will be used to do this .
then we set up and call them back . That way you can make a good shot on a good bird . A turkey dog is a prized dog around here ! It takes a great dog to lay by your side and not move while a turkey is coming to the call .
other ways are while deer hunting and sniping with a rifle from a stand . But for pure fun - busting and calling gets the vote !
I don't know if a bird could be called from a flock in the fall , never tried .

[simplicity]

In Maine we can't use a rifle, the only thing we can use is a shotgun 20-10 gauge using 4's, 5's, and 6's. I think kinda dumb but hey what do I know. Remember that's what the 25-20 Winchester partially designed for. They are actually becoming a problem up here there are so many turkeys. They are pushing deer out of their feeding plots and covering everyone's law  with well fertilizer. In other words if you wanted to poach turkey no on has a problem with it except for the game warden. I'm not saying it's right it's just I understand.

[SHOOTALL]

nice problem !