If there's one thing I've noticed about turkeys, its that people either love to hunt them, or they've never really been. I can count on one hand how many people have told me they just don't care for turkey hunting. Those few told me the story of their first time, and I can see why they never went back. So on the eve of the South Carolina's 2015 season, I want to persuade you to give it one more shot.
I've heard it said that turkey hunting isn't a challenge and I couldn't disagree more. There has never been an animal that has kept me on my toes like a turkey does. There has been countless times when we've told ourselves "We've got him figured out now. By tonight he'll be dead" just to come home empty handed once again. There's been times when a hunt looked like a piece of cake from the car, but once the plan is in motion it takes four hours to even get a chance to seal the deal. Then once that opportunity comes you miss, which happens more often than you may think. I've been told "If you've never missed a turkey, you haven't hunted them long enough" and that is the mantra I live by when I feel the pressure closing in.
So lets say you've gone once, maybe twice, but never understood the obsession others had with turkey hunting. I'm not being pretentious here, but I'm going to try to tell you why and how to push through and really fall in love with turkey season.
You or your guide can't call. The reality of it sounds harsh, I know. You never touched a call in your life and you decided on March 30th you wanted to turkey hunt by April 1st. Or maybe your buddy who has never chased turkeys before watched some videos on YouTube and he's got it figured out. You go along and you don't hear or see a thing. You sit on the ground for three hours and the woods are dead. You know there are turkeys here because you've seen them all year round, but they've all disappeared that morning. Or worst yet, you have some fly down but practically run the other way once you start to call. That's enough to discourage most people from going a second or third time. But that's also how you learn. All these world champion callers didn't get that way over night. It takes hours and hours of practice to get good with a call. I've seen many people who don't sound great on a call still manage to kill birds every year. I'm far from being good with a call. I can struggle through some yelping but that's it. I know I'm not good enough to kill a bird on my own, but I've been blessed with a husband who can rock a mouth call like no ones business. I know that if I would have went alone to try and figure out turkeys, I would have quit five years ago the moment I started. Find someone who knows what they're doing. Ask them for help and ask them to teach you. Research and practice. Soon you'll be calling well enough to get a bird in on your own, and you'll be so grateful you didn't give up.
You have absolutely no clue how to work a bird. There's a lot more to it than just throwing up some decoys and working a box call. Ever heard gobbles but they left you before you even had a chance to catch a glimpse? Yeah, it happens to all of us. Its a giant chess match. There are so many factors to killing a bird that it would make your head spin. What's hardest about hunting them is it's all trial and error in order to get experienced in the enigma that is the wild turkey. Quick quiz: You're hunting very mountainous public land. You've roosted your bird and he's cozied up with his hens at on the top of a ridge. How do you approach that bird the next morning? Now I came to my answer because we know how the birds work (most of the time) in the areas we hunt. You may be hunting areas where birds are completely opposite of what I'm used to. But if we wanted to get on that bird the next morning and have any chance of him leaving his hens, we would circle up that ridge and try to get on top of him. Around here, birds don't go downhill. In five years of hunting turkeys I've seen one gobbler come down a hill to a decoy. One out of the hundreds we've been on. Now say we're on this ridge. Do you call aggressive or softly? How are his hens acting? Are they acting like they're mad he's answering you? Or are they going the other way? What do you do next? All these things factor in to turkey hunting. The sooner you get out there and make mistakes and experience, the more you'll grow to love the challenge of it. And always remember there are exceptions to the rules. What you may have never expected to happen may just happen on your next hunt. That's the beauty of it!
You didn't stick with it. If you think all turkey hunts are like what's on the outdoor network, I hate to disappoint you. If you haven't killed a bird by 8:30, that doesn't mean stop until 3 PM. Public land around here clears out by nine in the morning, and that's our gain. Don't call it quits just because they didn't fly off the roost like you had planned. Don't give up just because they aren't being as vocal as you'd hoped. Don't go home because they're henned up. Every hunt is different and every hunt is an opportunity. Those who push through and persevere are the ones who bag birds, not those who hit up Hardees and are home by ten.
You wont humble yourself to ask for help. Its hard for us "big bad hunters" to sit back and say "I have no clue what I'm doing. Will you help teach me?" and truly listen. I've seen my husband try to give advice to so many people when they complain about not killing birds. Majority of them bow up, get offended, and continue doing what they have been doing (and yielding no birds). I've seen him take people to try and introduce them, but they think all they need are expensive decoys and calls and the rest is easy. It's ok to ask for help. Most turkey hunters I know would be ecstatic to take you and try to help you learn. We don't become turkey slayers after one hunt, and odds are you wont grow if you step out of your comfort zone.
These are just a few things that I see when people complain about turkey hunting and how they dislike it. Turkey hunting is an acquired taste, especially if you're used to deer hunting only. There is not waiting over bait or long range rifle shots during this season. Its all about the effort you put in to see what rewards come out. So with that I want to say good luck to all of you trying it this year, and don't give up if you fail at first! May all your tags be notched and your deep fryers be full this turkey season!
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