There are three keys for success when hunting turkeys on public land.
- Scouting
- Stealth
- Timing
The keys listed above are critical if you want to bag a mature gobbler on public land. These keys are universal no matter what part of the country you are thinking about hunting.
In this post we are going to break down the three crucial steps to achieve success turkey hunting public land.
Scouting
We know someone that seems to have good luck every spring on opening day in the turkey woods. That guy always seems to fill his tag with ease and rarely comes back to the camp empty handed. Of course, The hunters who are not so lucky always seem to come up with the same excuses of why they couldn’t get the job done while the guy that got the bird is just lucky or he is just in a better spot. Well truth to be told, the guy that always seems to fill his tag first is in fact in a better spot. Why? Because, some hunters fly by the seat of their pants every opening day hoping to get in front of a gobbler, while others scout and know when and where the birds will be.
In order to kill a bird on public land, you have to scout. Sure you might get lucky every blue moon but you will not be consistent. In fact, scouting should be your main focus before even considering a hunt. Let’s break down three steps to scouting.
Before hitting the field, take advantage of google maps. Locate the specific tract of land you intend to hunt on google earth. Zoom in on your area and take note of the landscape. Observe the different types of timber and access points. By doing so, you can immediately get an idea of the area you will be hunting. You can also get an idea of where turkeys might hang out by looking for logging roads and open fields from google earth.
Locate the birds. This can easily be done by listening for gobblers before the hunt. The sooner you can begin listening for gobblers, the better you can pattern the travel routes and get a plan for an early morning setup. If you have limited vacation time, I suggest you try to dedicate at least one day scouting prior to the hunt. However, one of the most successful public land hunters I know, dedicates two days to scouting if he is hunting a new tract of land.
Verify what you have heard with your eyes. From a distance, I take binoculars and carefully scan for ruffled leaves and turkey droppings. However take caution when scouting turkeys in the woods. The worse mistake a hunter can make is bumping a group of turkeys while scouting.
Finally, locate the other hunters. If you scout, there is a great chance you will find others doing the same. Casually observe where the other guys seem to be hanging around. By locating the other hunters, you can either move on to another group of turkeys or formulate a plan of how to bag that gobbler first.
Stealth
Public land turkeys experience tremendous pressure throughout the spring from hunters. Year after year mature gobblers and hens become leery of every unnatural sound in the woods. When hunting shy educated birds it is critical to be stealthy when positioning yourself to hunt a gobbler.
Turkeys are spooky animals by nature. Most hunters underestimate a turkey’s ability to hear. This fact has always amazed me due to the fact hunters use a turkey’s hearing ability to lure him into gun range.
Some hunters have the option that public land birds are used to all the noises because they hear people all the time. This is not true. A wild animal never gets used to human noise. They simply avoid the source of the noise when possible and possibly tolerate more human noise then perhaps birds living on secluded private land tracts.
Put yourself in a gobbler’s shoes. When you are watching tv, chances are when you hear your spouse open the fridge you rarely think anything of it. However, when you are sitting on your couch watching tv late at night and someone knocks on your door unexpectedly, you immediately go on high alert! Turkeys are no different. Their living room is the public land in which they inhabit.
The best way to become stealthy is by utilizing your feet. Not an atv or pickup truck. Sure, you can drive up to a reasonable distance from where you intend to hunt but do not get right in the middle of their living room with your vehicle. Parking your vehicle a couple hundred yards farther from where you wish to hunt can pay huge dividends. Not only will this reduce the chance of spooking birds, it also reduces the chance of other hunters keying in on your spot you worked so hard to find.
Timing
Often, new turkey hunters do not understand the natural behavior of turkeys. Often, newbies will go after gobblers right at daylight and hunt until mid morning then call it quits for the day. This is a huge mistake, especially later in the season.
Some of my most successful hunts took place from 9:30 to 11:00. Why? As the season starts drawing to a close, hens begin to routinely break away from the gobblers to go tend to nest and lay eggs. This is an excellent opportunity for a hunter to call a gobbler. When a gobbler is separate from the hens, he is more app to respond to a call. Take advantage of this opportunity while other hunters are busy eating lunch.
There has always been a debate about when is the best time during the season to hunt public land turkeys. Some say the best chance to kill one is the first weekend in the season. Others say late season is best because all the inexperienced hunters have gave up and went home for the year. To be honest, both reasons have legitimate points. However, both also have negatives. Opening weekend provides a hunter the opportunity to hunt birds that have not been pressured. Yet, there always seems to be hunters walking on top of each other during the opening weekend of season. If you hunt later in the season chances are you will not encounter as many hunters and a majority of the hens have begun to separate from the gobblers to lay on their eggs. However, when hunting late in the season, the birds have been educated and there a less gobblers to hunt. I suggest you hunt whenever you get time to do so. The more time spent in the woods the better your chances of bagging that old tom.
Summary
Most articles you read about hunting public land tend to focus on calling tactics. I felt compelled to write this because it seems other writers fail to mention the importance of scouting, stealth and timing when it comes to turkey hunting. Combine what you know about turkey calling tactics with the information in this post and you will be successful. If you want to successfully harvest a gobbler on public land, you have hunt smart. Not only are you trying to trick a gobbler, your also outsmarting the other hunters.
If you are interested in calling tactics then check back with us at Americanhuntingsafari.com for upcoming posts about turkey calling tactics on public land. You can even subscribe below to Americanhuntingsafari.com so you can receive email notifications when a new article is posted.
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