Evening hunts?

[PalsPal]

I have changed jobs and may not be able to hunt weekday mornings much.

But this is the first year in years that I haven't had one of my daughters softball games interfering, and I might be able to hunt more evenings.

My main issue is I turkey hunt for the gobble, and while I've killed a few in the evenings I only remember one that gobbled much at all.

Most of my evening hunts are sitting an area near roost spots that has birds and hoping, but usually hear nor see anything.

I guess I need advice, pep talk etc to see if it's really worth hunting evenings.

 

[Gravey]

If it's your only choice I'd do it. I prefer mornings and usually am done by lunch or sooner if they're not talking. That said find a lonely one later in the season during the afternoon that gets fired up and I believe the chances of killing him go up.

 

[Remington700]

Like you already said..... Afternoon hunting is typically being near a roost area or catch them traveling to the roost. I have only killed a few wanting to work in the afternoon.

 

[Carlos Viagra]

I can't help but agree with the replies here. I don't care to shoot 'em if they aren't gobbling and looking for the Hen, parting my hair so to speak.

With those higher standards, come different results. If I can bag 1 Gobbler and have an awesome hunt/show/display, I'd prefer that every other year, over ambushing one.

Good luck to you this season!

 

[utvolsfan77]

Definitely can't shoot them lying on a couch!

 

[megalomaniac]

5p is my personal cut off time and I switch from hunting to roosting one for the next morning.

I've had some GREAT early afternoon hunts with birds gobbling and working in to the call, but usually before 3p. Maybe just a couple decent hunts after 3p.

If you have to work until 5p, then go to hunt after work deer hunting style (sitting and waiting near an established roost hoping a bird shows up), I don't think I could get very excited about that either.

 

[scn]

It is a different game, but can be a lot of fun. I've called in three in the afternoon. The first was a "drag along" bird that was strutting behind a group of hens. I got lucky with a loudmouth hen and called her in with him dragging behind. He only gobbled a couple of times.

The other two were by themselves and came from a LONG way away. They would gobble a pretty good amount of time after a call. Both took over 45 minutes to shoot after I first heard them gobble at the edge of my hearing distance. They maybe weren't as much fun as a hot morning bird, but were probably more satisfying due to getting to play with them for a long time.

 

[WestTn Huntin man]

You can get a Evening Gobble at times with a Owl Hoot.

 

[Griswold]

If you dont hunt evening gobblers your missing out, we have some very good evening hunts every year

 

[deerfever]

Not as much gobbling but if you strike him up , you best get set up and ready !

 

[younggun308]

I'd probably keep it moving till I came across sign and then camp out on it, or (in more open areas) spotted a flock then try to cut them off.

 

[UT-longbeard]

I have changed jobs and may not be able to hunt weekday mornings much.

But this is the first year in years that I haven't had one of my daughters softball games interfering, and I might be able to hunt more evenings.

My main issue is I turkey hunt for the gobble, and while I've killed a few in the evenings I only remember one that gobbled much at all.

Most of my evening hunts are sitting an area near roost spots that has birds and hoping, but usually hear nor see anything.

I guess I need advice, pep talk etc to see if it's really worth hunting evenings.

Some of my best hunts have been in the evenings.

 

[bloodtrailing]

I kill them however they want to be killed. I have killed silent birds and I have killed vocal birds. I do have a preference but most of the times I do not get a choice. Blind calling in the afternoon is not the most exciting, until one appears out of nowhere and now they have the drop on you.

 

[Gobble4me757]

I've had evening birds gobble 200 times…I've killed em gobbling good as well as killed em silent. Sometimes all you hear is a drum…if that's how you got to hunt em, you can't kill em on the couch!

 

[Displaced_Vol]

I like afternoons and evenings. It's one of my favorite aspects about turkey hunting that you can literally be in the game any time of day just go when you're able. In my experience the gobbling is less, especially compared to day break, but far from nonexistent. Conventional wisdom and my limited experience is if you do get one gobbling, close by in the afternoon then it is game on & a higher chance of getting him.

 

[catman529]

One of my favorite hunts of all time was in 2013 calling in a hot bird right before sunset when his hens left him to roost across the power line. That was the first time I heard one drum

 

[bvoss]

Less gobbling overall in the afternoon/ evening, but birds that I have gotten to talk in the afternoon seem to be willing to play the game.

 

[Derek]

I prefer hunts after lunch in the early part of the season. IF you get one to goggle, your chance of killing him is much greater.

 

[rem270]

I plan to hunt most evenings after work now that I'm living back home. Sometimes it's not as vocal with them but if they come in range I'll be just as happy as I would be if they gobbled to the gun barrel.

 

[PalsPal]

Sometimes it's not as vocal with them but if they come in range I'll be just as happy as I would be if they gobbled to the gun barrel.

That's just it, I'm not. In fact if a non-gobbling bird happens to slip in, I may not even shoot, especially early in the season.

I hunt for the memories. I couldn't care less if I tag out, I just want to play the game as many times as possible and have those memories for the off-season.

Now, with that said, me and a buddy were set up on a decent sized field on a WMA one evening. I was cold calling every now and then and time was dragging by. About an hour before sunset, I let out a call and one hammered, but he was already close and had me pinned down as i was halfway laying down with my gun on the ground. THAT got the heart pumping, and no I wasn't able to seal the deal before getting busted.

 

[rem270]

That's just it, I'm not. In fact if a non-gobbling bird happens to slip in, I may not even shoot, especially early in the season.

I hunt for the memories. I couldn't care less if I tag out, I just want to play the game as many times as possible and have those memories for the off-season.

Now, with that said, me and a buddy were set up on a decent sized field on a WMA one evening. I was cold calling every now and then and time was dragging by. About an hour before sunset, I let out a call and one hammered, but he was already close and had me pinned down as i was halfway laying down with my gun on the ground. THAT got the heart pumping, and no I wasn't able to seal the deal before getting busted.

I understand where you're coming from. I consider myself still a newbie I guess, I've hunted turkeys off and on since about 2007 but didn't get bit with the but until 2016. I've honestly never killed a bird just sitting around and it walked by. I have put the slip on 2 that I was able to crawl close to 2 mornings in a row. All the others came in gobbling. But to me sitting and waiting I don't feel like it's wrong but one day I might not like to do it. There will still never be anything better than them putting on a show and then getting the chance to kill them.

 

[PalsPal]

But to me sitting and waiting I don't feel like it's wrong but one day I might not like to do it.

Absolutely nothing wrong with it.

I've just been at it 35 yrs or more, so I'm picky.

I still think I can swing a few mornings but time will tell.

 

[Longbow2240]

Get after'em! Some of my most enjoyable hunts have been afternoon/evening hunts.

 

[tickweed]

I've killed a lot of gobblers. Many in the afternoon. Often, if you strike one in the evening, hes dead

 

[PossumSlayer]

Both of mine last year were around 3 pm, the one I missed was morning and gobbling going on all around me.

 

[AT Hiker]

Anytime a horny Tom is willing to come dragging his wings towards me, gobbling his head off and believes the BS I'm yelping at him then it's game on.
Right off the roost, 10-2, or the very random chance I'm in the woods the last couple hours of daylight…if he is willing to bark I'm willing to give him a bite, 90% of the time I tuck my tail and head home.

Those late afternoon birds seem to have a purpose, "headed straight toward the roosting woods". They usually get fired up but don't stray too far…when they do it can be epic. When they don't, it's a leg up for the next day.

I don't like to ambush them, which seems to be the most opportunistic style that day of day. Ive found if I can get in the "zone", whatever that is, then every once in a while it's a great hunt. More times than not, I've just let a silent slick Tom walk by, fly into a tree and gobble until it's time to go home. Hoping the next morning we can play a little more fair.

 

[mike243]

! of the finest turkey hunters I know sez in early season wait till the afternoon, most mature gobblers will be hened up right off the roost, they will breed then move along to feed, the gobbler will still be looking for love after they have drifted off.

 

[SJS]

One time I shot a nice gobbler by going out a 4pm, settling in next to a Oak tree with a hen decoy out. About every 15-20 minutes I would let out some purrs and clucks. After about an hour and a half I see a Tom coming down a drainage ditch looking for the hen silent as can be. His tail feather and beard are on my wall.

 

[PickettSFHunter]

Some parts of the country, I can strike birds routinely in the evening and do well. I'm my area of TN, I just rarely have luck ever even hearing a gobble in the evenings.