Did you learn anything this season???

jug

Old Mossy Horns
Contributor
;):cool:Been awhile since I learned anything major about Turkey hunting but today was one of those days...
I did not get the ghost bird today but I manage to figure out why my 'lucky' spot on the creek' is lucky. I watched a hen literally fly across the road about a quarter mile and into the 12 yr old pine cutover where the ghost bird gobbled last . Started hunting around here in 2017 once we got enough birds. Never occurred to me but,,,,Evidently hens like to roost on my farm and fly across the road to where the gobblers like to roost. My lucky setup spot on the creek' which is on my neighbors farm just so happens to be smack dab in the middle of the 2.
I also learned that turkeys will hang in my neighbors thick 12 yr old pines on a cold windy day.:sneaky:
 
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georgeeebuck

Ten Pointer
Yep. Don't set stone still for one hour with my gun pointing where I thank he will appear and second guest myself and move it 90 degrees because I think he has moved uphill. Like Helium said I try to learn something ever day I turkey hunt.
 
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np307

Ten Pointer
1) Don't hunt where turkeys were before. Find where they are now.

2) Don't keep walking familiar pieces of ground if you aren't finding birds.

3) Don't expect to have any game lands spots to yourself in the midst of a global pandemic when every single human in the world will be hunting turkeys apparently.
 

Ol Copper

Twelve Pointer
I learned that my new boss, that gave me 3 weeks paid vacation, wouldn't let me take any time off during turkey season, just when he says I can....🤬

That won't happen again...start my new job this Monday morning, and I got 5 weeks paid vacay to boot 😁

The birds in KS and NE are in serious trouble next year...road trip !!
 

QBD2

Old Mossy Horns
I learned to start looking for another place to hunt in VA.

I didn’t have any trouble putting turkeys in front of the gun. Except there.
 

Sp8

Ten Pointer
Took my son every weekend this year. Learned Turkey's can give a little boy buck fever. They are very smart and slow to respond here at my place. Normally theyve got one direction on their mind and youd better be set up in between roost and that location.

Sent from my SM-G950U using Tapatalk
 

GUP

Eight Pointer
I learned that if your red dot scope is off you’ll miss not 1 but 2 birds in the same season!😬. Chalked up the first miss as operator error. But after the second at 22 yds I knew something was up. Also learned again this season that decoys really just get in the way most of the time.
 

gobbler

Eight Pointer
I had more time to hunt this year and had a spectacular start to my season, it let me mentally slow down and take my time more this season, I didn’t set the world on fire killing birds but I did enjoy each and everyone and appreciated them each more I think because I wasn’t in such a hurry, I was able to hunt more methodically in some tuff areas and enjoy success, I learned I’m gonna try and slow down more in the future and enjoy each one a bit more
 

Familyman

Twelve Pointer
For one, I learned not to take your buddy's word for it when trying to determine the approaching tom's direction by his gobbles. :LOL: It was a super windy afternoon last Wednesday, and we finally had a distant bird answer my calls with a faint gobble. My bud thought it came from straight in front of us, but I couldn't tell if it was straight in front....or instead, possibly straight behind us. Less than a minute later, the bird gobbled again, and was clearly closer, but I still wasn't certain as to its direction. But my buddy seemed absolutely sure it was straight in front, and so he got his gun on his knee pointed in that direction. At that point, I was still concerned, but I trusted his judgement. He seemed 100% sure. The next gobble we heard about blew our hats off....and came from over my left shoulder......behind us!! Dang it!! At that point, as Everett McGill would have said, we were "in a tight spot!!" We could hear the bird fast-walking up our left flank...definitely already in sight of us. No time to reposition. I whispered to my bud, a left-handed shooter, that he was going to have to try him right handed, and he agreed. Things went downhill quickly from that point, and it turns out the 30-yard shot didn't connect and the gobbler got away. No biggie.

Here's the main lesson my buddy and I learned; obstructions can distort sound. We had set up in front of a couple blown down trees, and their canopies formed a pretty thick wall of brush behind us.....(which, as it turns out, was between us and the direction from which the gobbler was approaching). The brush pile was absorbing / muffling the direct sound waves and we were picking up the reflections off trees of the sound waves passing by us. It was weird....I heard the first two gobbles as if they were in stereo...straight in front as well as straight behind. :unsure: At the time of the final gobble, the tom had cleared the brush, and there was nothing between us but air. There was no confusion where that one came from! But it was too late!

Lessons learned! Pay attention to possible obstructions that may distort sound....and make sure you and your buddy can agree which way the gobble came from!
 

Aaron H

Old Mossy Horns
Contributor
The painful part for me was learning AGAIN what I learned years ago. Patience can be the biggest part to success in a hunt. I blew 2 nearly perfect chances simply because I anticipated what the bird was going to do (wrongly) and changed my position. Both times had I stayed in place and given him a bit more time I would have had the shot.... at least that's what I think now. That hindsight stuff is so much better than me in the moment of excited decision making. Ah ....... but then there was that morning that I started to move and didn't (but should have). My brother said it best one morning on a mountaintop hunt in Ashe County, "whatever we do, it will be wrong".
 

CutNRun

Ten Pointer
Contributor
I learned that having everybody and his brother off work from the start of turkey season is a bad thing for my turkey hunting success. Property lines limited me and other hunters where there didn't used to be hunters negatively impacted my season in a big way.

I learned that I definitely need to find new, bigger, and more remote pieces of land to hunt turkeys on. A hunt club might be in my future, if I can find one that might allow me for turkey season only. I don't need a new place to hunt deer.

I also learned that I really enjoy and appreciate having a state-wide forum to share thoughts and celebrate others successes. Thank Y'all. It takes one to know one.

Jim
 

oldest school

Old Mossy Horns
I learned that i was dang lucky to have turkey hunting as a stabilizing familiar activity to keep me occupied during this mess we all are enduring.
there are a bunch of people that have no clue "what to do with their selves" Turkeys kept me from being like them.
 

jug

Old Mossy Horns
Contributor
I learned that i was dang lucky to have turkey hunting as a stabilizing familiar activity to keep me occupied during this mess we all are enduring.
there are a bunch of people that have no clue "what to do with their selves" Turkeys kept me from being like them.
This is very true. Alot of people were having mental and anxiety problems during this down time. Raven Rock state park in Mamers NC was overwhelmed with visitors yesterday. That has never happened since I moved here to Harnett county in 1993.
People needed to get out.
 

Lucky Clucker

Old Mossy Horns
I learned you can't killem all.lol It was a good season.Cold and raining most yes I got to hunt .Public land made up most of my hunts my private lands had turkeys but sparse and lots of Jake's . hopefully they will be here next year Alot got killed all around where I hunt seemed like everyone was out of school and work all season and hunted everywhere public and private.I stayed persistent and confident .walked over 100 miles I believe.several days were 4 to 8 miles .in areas and or several others.Found birds in some of the older places and a few where I never seen anything.I learned a real hen is your enemy after working a gobbler for 3 hours and have her run in at the last second and lead him away from certain death.And if you blow a hint or spooked one they will be there again.Hopefully next spring will be just as good or better.seen tons of Jake's this year so that's a plus.
 

bowhuntingrook

Old Mossy Horns
I was able on 7/8 occasions to work multiple birds. Just my mouth call and moving through the woods. I was more aggressive than most seasons and knowingly only spooked a couple after hours of playing the game. On 2 occasions had trespasser spook birds I had gobbling and moving. More often then not my calling got a response. The turkeys were good to me but what made it a great season was my son was with me to experience the cat and mouse game that we are so addicted to.

Sent from my Pixel 3 XL using Tapatalk
 

Brad_Colvin

Eight Pointer
I learned that being aggressive with setup and moving on birds is ALOT more effective, and fun, than playing the passive patient game. Its amazing what you can convince them to do when you get inside their bubble.

Sent from my SM-G960U using Tapatalk
 

hawglips

Old Mossy Horns
I learned a couple spots a little better. Always rewarding to figure out how to hunt a place more effectively.

Re-learned how important it is to use stealth and respect a turkey's ears while in the woods. I had two birds walk to me as I was VERY carefully approaching an afternoon spot, thinking I was a turkey. Both died. That's at least five I've killed like that over the years. Very likely that we bump right many more turkeys than we think we do....
 

nhn2a

Ten Pointer
I learned exactly where the turkeys roost on the property I hunt. I've had a general idea in the past but got to see them on the roost several times this year.
 

sky hawk

Old Mossy Horns
Contributor
I was reminded that you go every day you can because you never know what will happen. I had only heard one bird in the last 2 weeks, and I killed him. It turned out to be the most active hunt of the year, hearing at least 2-3 gobblers and a couple jakes and seeing several hens. You don't know unless you go.

And as for that sound thing... I've learned over the years never to trust other people's direction on sound. I'm at the point where I trust my own guess. It certainly can sound like it's in front of you and behind you at the same time due to echo. That's why a dog training book recommended when recalling your dog, turn away from him and call so the sound and it's echo is in the same direction.
 

oldest school

Old Mossy Horns
I was reminded that you go every day you can because you never know what will happen. I had only heard one bird in the last 2 weeks, and I killed him. It turned out to be the most active hunt of the year, hearing at least 2-3 gobblers and a couple jakes and seeing several hens. You don't know unless you go.

And as for that sound thing... I've learned over the years never to trust other people's direction on sound. I'm at the point where I trust my own guess. It certainly can sound like it's in front of you and behind you at the same time due to echo. That's why a dog training book recommended when recalling your dog, turn away from him and call so the sound and it's echo is in the same direction.
if you'll humble yourself (admit you cant tell) and cup your ears with your hands and the turkey will gobble again-- you can determine the course on behind or in front.
if he's in front it'll be obvious.
not too easy if you are exposed/or close and he's subject to object to movement but works well otherwise. I just did this saturday on one I would have swore was behind me on the roost. He was not.
 

josh

Old Mossy Horns
Contributor
I learned that my new boss, that gave me 3 weeks paid vacation, wouldn't let me take any time off during turkey season, just when he says I can....🤬

That won't happen again...start my new job this Monday morning, and I got 5 weeks paid vacay to boot 😁

The birds in KS and NE are in serious trouble next year...road trip !!
Good deal

Life’s too short to not be able to enjoy our favorite activities.

Hope you were a big loss to your former employer
 
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