Anyone else discouraged by the season opener?

[luvtohunt]

I am all for getting the youth involved in hunting...I even have 2 boys that will be of age very soon, but opening on April 3rd? This is bs. Normally I am almost done by the end of the 2nd week....Now with the limited time that I have hunting due to other commitments and it starting late, I am seriously thinking about not buying a license this year. I am sick of this type bs from TWRA.

end rant/

 

[Baxter83]

I'm sorta glad it's moved back. The last year or two it's been too cold opening weekend.... IMO

I know what you mean about the other commitments though. Seems like there's always something.

 

[REN]

wow.....to each his own so in no way am i bashing your opinion but I thought it use to open in April a few years ago...I may be mistaken about that though.

personally It dont bother me, I would obviously rather start in march but oh well.

 

[tophat]

I will be hunting the fort march 27 and 28th.

 

[luvtohunt]

wow.....to each his own so in no way am i bashing your opinion but I thought it use to open in April a few years ago...I may be mistaken about that though.

personally It dont bother me, I would obviously rather start in march but oh well.

If I am not mistaken, it always starts the last weekend in March (as long as it falls toward the end....like now)So basically we are being screwed out of an entire week....Which is always one of the most productive for me and my friends.

 

[REN]

well like i said i could have been wrong. Does it suck?? sure but hey it is what it is. The good lord blessed me with the ability to hunt again this year so I will just keep on keeping on so to speak.

 

[TheLBLman]

I think it normally opens on the weekend closest to April 1st.
Sometimes this is in March, sometimes this is in April.

Personally, I'm glad to see it opening on April 3rd intead of March 27th (the prior Saturday). Other than our turkey limit being too many, I think TWRA is doing a fine job with the turkey regs.

Also, if I'm thinking correctly, TWRA has "x" number of weekends/days for which turky hunting is going to be legal. That last weekend in May is often better than than a weekend in March, and we'll have the same number of days to turkey hunt regardless of when it opens.

 

[Baxter83]

Also, if I'm thinking correctly, TWRA has "x" number of weekends/days for which turky hunting is going to be legal. That last weekend in May is often better than than a weekend in March, and we'll have the same number of days to turkey hunt regardless of when it opens.

ding ding ding

 

[Setterman]

Fine with me, I always want it to start early as I am dying for the season to begin. However, the March openers are usually sketchy weather wise, and at the elevations I hunt, the hunting usually does not get really good until May. So the longer the season stays open into May the better IMO. The early season stuff is not nearly as much fun to me, with birds being ultra henned up and silent. The best killing time is the last 3 weeks of the season versus the first 3 weeks.



One thing that does suck, is the season opening on Easter Weekend this year, that was poor planning by TWRA IMO. There will be a ton of folks unable to enjoy opening weekend, because of this event.

 

[luvtohunt]

I think it normally opens on the weekend closest to April 1st.
Sometimes this is in March, sometimes this is in April.

Personally, I'm glad to see it opening on April 3rd intead of March 27th (the prior Saturday). Other than our turkey limit being too many, I think TWRA is doing a fine job with the turkey regs.

Also, if I'm thinking correctly, TWRA has "x" number of weekends/days for which turky hunting is going to be legal. That last weekend in May is often better than than a weekend in March, and we'll have the same number of days to turkey hunt regardless of when it opens.

Around here the early season is always best. The longer the season goes the more it turns into "deer hunting". In other words, the calls are not as good and you just wait for them. You are correct about the opening date. It opened on March 28th last year, March 29 the year before. I know you have to "reboot" and start in April at some point, but IMO they pushed it too far this time.

One thing that does suck, is the season opening on Easter Weekend this year, that was poor planning by TWRA IMO. There will be a ton of folks unable to enjoy opening weekend, because of this event.

Yes.

 

[TheLBLman]

Around here the early season is always best.

When the season opens, you're hunting undisturbed birds.
A week or two later, most have seen a lot of turkey hunters, heard a lot of turkey calls, and many are in fact now dead.

To some extent, the early season being better has more to do with there simply being more birds, a lack of disturbance prior to the hunting starting, and less to do with whether that hunting begins in March or April.

But I do believe you're less likely to have opening weekend messed up by bad weather when it opens in early April instead of late March. Be fine by me if turkey season was just set to open the 1st weekend in April on an ongoing basis, even better if the powers that be would make Easter the last weekend in March. :)

 

[Harvester]

I love it opening in April, that means the juvy hunt will be a week later than the two previous years. Last year my boy bout froze to death and didn't enjoy it as much as later on in the season after it warmed up a bit. Its just too cold for the youngsters when it opens that early. IMO. Would not bother me a bit if they made the juvy hunting in the middle of April.

 

[RUGER]

As long as it eventually opens I am good with it. :D

It may swing a week one way or the other due to the calendar but I am like Wes I am thinking the season lasts about the same number of days.

I personally don't care either way and pushing it a week in either direction won't have that much effect on me or my hunting.

 

[THE ONE]

Im glad its been cold the past few years!

 

[scn]

wow.....to each his own so in no way am i bashing your opinion but I thought it use to open in April a few years ago...I may be mistaken about that though.

personally It dont bother me, I would obviously rather start in march but oh well.

If I am not mistaken, it always starts the last weekend in March (as long as it falls toward the end....like now)So basically we are being screwed out of an entire week....Which is always one of the most productive for me and my friends.

You are mistaken. It has been set to open the Saturday closest to April 1 for several years now. No days were cut from the season. It is just the way the calendar fell this year.

 

[spitndrum]

I personally like it moved back too, they usually don't fire up really good til 2nd week of April around here!

 

[scn]

I personally like it moved back too, they usually don't fire up really good til 2nd week of April around here!

You are right on differences in the "hot" period. Just like with the deer season and rut, it is impossible in this "long" state to have a common peak period. Where I hunt in mid-TN it is usually cranked up when it opens, and I like it as early as possible. Where my buddy hunts in ETN it usually is a couple of weeks behind what I am seeing and hearing. Hopefully some of those folks will hit it right this year.

 

[WingNut]

Im glad its been cold the past few years!

Heck it rained all morning last year and was pretty chilly.
I will hunt when ever it opens. I am all in March, April who cares just hurry up and get here

 

[Setterman]

I personally like it moved back too, they usually don't fire up really good til 2nd week of April around here!

You are right on differences in the "hot" period. Just like with the deer season and rut, it is impossible in this "long" state to have a common peak period. Where I hunt in mid-TN it is usually cranked up when it opens, and I like it as early as possible. Where my buddy hunts in ETN it usually is a couple of weeks behind what I am seeing and hearing. Hopefully some of those folks will hit it right this year.

It ended just a shade early here last year. I was tagged out super early with the 3 in 3 days jaunt to West TN, but I took folks up to the last day, and it was just getting red hot when the season closed down.

I would love the season to stay open to the end of May for the mtn birds, but the season structure doesn't bother me to any great deal.

If it were moved up it would be much worse for me, as it would conflict with my 3 state southern tour which starts March 15th every year.

 

[Bertman]

Im good either way

 

[VolDoug]

You are right on differences in the "hot" period. Just like with the deer season and rut, it is impossible in this "long" state to have a common peak period. Where I hunt in mid-TN it is usually cranked up when it opens, and I like it as early as possible. Where my buddy hunts in ETN it usually is a couple of weeks behind what I am seeing and hearing. Hopefully some of those folks will hit it right this year.

Any chance we could ever see units for turkey season with staggered opening dates? Later is better for Plateau birds also.

 

[scn]

You are right on differences in the "hot" period. Just like with the deer season and rut, it is impossible in this "long" state to have a common peak period. Where I hunt in mid-TN it is usually cranked up when it opens, and I like it as early as possible. Where my buddy hunts in ETN it usually is a couple of weeks behind what I am seeing and hearing. Hopefully some of those folks will hit it right this year.

Any chance we could ever see units for turkey season with staggered opening dates? Later is better for Plateau birds also.

I've learned never to say never on anything, but I doubt it. With the length of the season that we have everybody should have some hot periods. Multiple open dates would complicate things a great deal for law enforcement purposes.

 

[Lawrence]

I think it normally opens on the weekend closest to April 1st.
Sometimes this is in March, sometimes this is in April.

Personally, I'm glad to see it opening on April 3rd intead of March 27th (the prior Saturday). Other than our turkey limit being too many, I think TWRA is doing a fine job with the turkey regs.

Also, if I'm thinking correctly, TWRA has "x" number of weekends/days for which turky hunting is going to be legal. That last weekend in May is often better than than a weekend in March, and we'll have the same number of days to turkey hunt regardless of when it opens.

you would be correct

 

[luvtohunt]

I researched the start dates all the way back to 2002. It started once on April 3rd....in 2004. I wonder how that years number of birds taken compares with the rest? I understand that you have to have a "reboot" and maybe start April 1 every now and then, but April 3rd is just too late (around here).


Edit: From an article I read...In 2005, Tennessee turkey hunters failed to set a new harvest record for the first time in 21 consecutive years.

The start date for 2005? April 2nd. (I admit that there could be some other factors contributing though too...weather etc. because I don't remember)

 

[Setterman]

luvtohunt, I am not trying to disregard what you are saying but, April 3rd is not too late for West TN. You are only looking at a difference of 3 days versus it opening the last day of march.

The birds continue to be killable well into the last part of march.

Here is a picture of a bird I killed last year in GA on the last day of their season. Check the date on the pic, 5/15/09, the temp that day was 98 degrees. I was also 70 miles from the Florida border. I spent 3 days there and worked birds the entire trip, morning and afternoon. This was also not the first time I have killed birds way south, late in the season, and if they are still gobbling etc etc, that far south in mid may, then they are still doing the same here as well. Which has also been proven many times over.

The main reason folks have bad late seasons is because of things that they do during the early season, mainly putting ridiculous pressure on henned up birds or continuously spooking birds where they hunt. Hunt smart, and the late season can be better then the early season. With the exception of snakes and bugs :)

 

[Grizzly Johnson]

Well I personally am just glad to get to turkey hunt period. I remember growing up I never even gave it a thought, why? Because in west tennessee where I grew up, turkeys were never even seen. I never saw my first real live turkey until a few years ago.... right around the time I started to hunt them..... They may have been in Benton County before but I never saw them.... maybe they were just not as plentiful as they are in areas back then..... But I will hunt just the same no matter when it opens..... weather, work, happenings, or whatever..... anything can affect my time in the woods, but I will be there when I can regardless...

 

[luvtohunt]

luvtohunt, I am not trying to disregard what you are saying but, April 3rd is not too late for West TN. You are only looking at a difference of 3 days versus it opening the last day of march.

The birds continue to be killable well into the last part of march.

Here is a picture of a bird I killed last year in GA on the last day of their season. Check the date on the pic, 5/15/09, the temp that day was 98 degrees. I was also 70 miles from the Florida border. I spent 3 days there and worked birds the entire trip, morning and afternoon. This was also not the first time I have killed birds way south, late in the season, and if they are still gobbling etc etc, that far south in mid may, then they are still doing the same here as well. Which has also been proven many times over.

The main reason folks have bad late seasons is because of things that they do during the early season, mainly putting ridiculous pressure on henned up birds or continuously spooking birds where they hunt. Hunt smart, and the late season can be better then the early season. With the exception of snakes and bugs :)

Nice bird man. It is not too late to kill some birds...I agree, but 3 days could be 3 birds....when they are hot. That is all I am trying to say. However, if it opened on March 27, it would actually be 5 days.

 

[bvoss]

I'm ready for it to open sometime around Jan 1st of each year. The sooner it opens, the better.

I usually start off hot and heavy as well and kill two or three birds the first few days of the season, however, I've also killed many birds late in the season. The lull around mid April is my third favorite time to hunt. ( Notice I said third favorite :D any time during the season is a good time in my book :) )

 

[TLRanger]

I would like to see a permanent opening date such as April 1st or the first Saturday in April for all the people that prefer the opening day to be a Saturday.

 

[mathews338]

Also, if I'm thinking correctly, TWRA has "x" number of weekends/days for which turky hunting is going to be legal. That last weekend in May is often better than than a weekend in March, and we'll have the same number of days to turkey hunt regardless of when it opens.

ding ding ding

ding