What would you have done?

[Spurhunter]

I sorta roosted a bird Thursday afternoon in MS. I didn't know exactly where he was but I knew the area he was headed when he last gobbled pretty late. When he gobbles Friday morning he's on a ridge next to the property line. I'm in a bottom the turkeys like, just below him, 100 yards away. By the time he gobbles it's too light, too open, and the leaves are too dry and loud to move up the ridge. I try calling. I try extended periods of silence. I just know he's coming eventually and I'm in a good spot, so I stay put. Patience kills turkeys, right? He stays on that ridge until 9:45 gobbling at me when I call and gobbling when he doesn't hear from me for a while. But he won't budge. The whole morning it seems his feet are stuck in concrete. Finally he drifts off into the cutover across the line and goes directly away from me. I never heard a hen and I'm pretty sure he was alone. Another reason I just knew he was coming. If I had it to do over again I would've made a big loop and got up on the ridge with him, but that's easy to say now. Had I tried that and bumped him I would've been mad at myself for not being patient. How would you certified turkey killers handle that situation? I seriously want opinions on what I should've done. But keep in mind, I'm not hunting a place where you bump a bird and you just move on to the next one. I have limited acreage and there isn't a ton of turkeys there. If you hear a couple birds gobbling on the roost it's a good day. It's that kind of place. Bumping a bird will end your day pretty quick.

 

[Popcorn]

Without having been there I cant say you did anything I wouldnt have or didnt do anything I would have other than scouting this area during the mid day and afternoon times. Even the most experienced turkey hunter has these days where he just went the other way or would not travel down opting for a path around or up the hill.
Personally I dont hunt early season much and when I do start I hunt mid day to afternoon when most have gone to the house. I scout my birds for these times and am there when they show up.

 

[Layne]

Yeah wouldn't say you did anything wrong from what you describe, if you were silent for a long period and he never came down that ridge then not sure what else you could do. Most times I find if he is alone and gobbling he will eventually come if you go silent on him... what very well may have happened is that he gobbled on that ridge until he called in a hen and then followed her off.
I had a bird last week that would gobble and never close in, I went silent for a while and he just continued to gobble from his little wood lot, I figured he had a hen so I just really got aggressive with my calling and he and the hen eventually came over onto our property. Just never know what a bird is going to do, it's what makes the hunts exciting.

 

[timberjack86]

Not a certified turkey killer by no means, when I get on a bird like that I will switch thru calls till I find one he really likes. A double gobble at a new call means he's real interested and probably coming. Sometimes just a different striker on the same pot call will do the trick.

 

[Setterman]

Doesn't sound like you did anything wrong, and honestly playing the patience game given it's early in the season, the open woods etc was smart.

If he won't gobble on his own, I mean not being prompted by calling or crows flying by etc I almost guarantee he had hens and that's why he wouldn't budge. He just stayed above you strutting until they decided to move on.

By not spooking him now you can try getting on the ridge top with him next time and see if that works better.

 

[ImThere]

with my limited opportunities to hunt I would have made a move. I have to be more aggressive if I'm going to kill birds

 

[poorhunter]

Only possibility I can think of is to use the terrain to get up on the same level if that was possible. Circle way down the ridge and get on it with him. But at the same time you were in a place they like to be so my advice is only in hindsight.

 

[clwg97]

You played it right. I always prefer to be on the same level or above them, but sometimes it won't be able to happen. And you didn't bump him so he will be there to chase again. I try to be less aggressive earlier in the season.

 

[megalomaniac]

Was there water/ live creek in the bottom you were in? If so, I would have not done anything different than you this early in the season. The flock will often work its way in the direction of the closest water off the roost, especially after the hens are actually laying.

I pretty much assume toms have hens this time of the year, sometimes you get lucky and find a satellite without.

that being said, if this were my only chance at him (I wouldn't be hunting the property again this year), I would have gotten crazy aggressive with the calling... like 2 hens fighting using a pot and a mouth call at the same time, throwing jake yelps at him, and then even gobbling back at him to challenge him. Sure, that will probably shut him up and send the flock the other way, but if it's your only chance at him, what do you have to lose? I once had a hung up tom that wouldn't budge for an hour break for me after a series of jake caulking.

 

[muddyboots]

I've changed my tactics last few fears. I throw patience out the window. Too many times the scenario you explain would happen. I'd make a move. Works good for me. Totally against the grain but you should do what you think is right.

 

[Andy S.]

If he won't gobble on his own, I mean not being prompted by calling or crows flying by etc I almost guarantee he had hens and that's why he wouldn't budge. He just stayed above you strutting until they decided to move on.

I bet he had hens too, especially this early in the season. With that said, I try to always get level or above them before I call, regardless of how big of circle I have to make to gain ground on him. Assuming I have enough access to make that big of a swing. If not, then I would have gotten as close as possible like you did and did my best. With traditional turkey hunting (no decoys and no TSS 75 yard shots), expect to get beat more times than you win, especially early season when competing with hens, open woods and being lower them him where he could easily look your way and not see a hen.

 

[bobbuck]

I do not think you did anything wrong. However, early in the season I generally want to be higher in elevation in order to call turkeys up hill. They of course cannot not see as far headed up hill so gives you the advantage with it being so open this time of year. Just my 2cents. Good luck!

I never hunted in Mississippi but high ground is probably a lot harder to come by than where I hunt

 

[JCDEERMAN]

The reality of it is, sometimes you can do everything right and it doesn't work out, while sometimes you can do everything wrong and somehow it does work out. I align more with what you did in playing it conservatively in that situation. The only time I'm super aggressive is when there are plenty of birds in the area, plenty of real estate, or the clock is ticking for whatever reason.

 

[Plateau Hunter]

Gobblers are much more difficult to coax downhill in my less than expert opinion and experience...

 

[PickettSFHunter]

Easier said than done, especially without leaf cover but I try to get on the ridges with them. They normally strut back and forth up and down the ridge at least alittle, try to get tight in that bubble when they strut away.

 

[TN Larry]

I would have made a move once I realized that he wasn't budging. I would have circled as far as I could and used the terrain if possible to have gotten on his level. It has worked for me several times where they wouldn't budge until I was on their level.

 

[2in1shot]

Pickett beat me to it. As soon as he left that top I would have moved to where he was on the ridge. Possibility that he would have came back to his strut zone to see the lady he called up.

 

[Setterman]

I bet he had hens too, especially this early in the season. With that said, I try to always get level or above them before I call, regardless of how big of circle I have to make to gain ground on him. Assuming I have enough access to make that big of a swing. If not, then I would have gotten as close as possible like you did and did my best. With traditional turkey hunting (no decoys and no TSS 75 yard shots), expect to get beat more times than you win, especially early season when competing with hens, open woods and being lower them him where he could easily look your way and not see a hen.

Absolutely agree, and I fight my internal battle often of back out or try and different set up. As I get older I'm more inclined to back out, and come back the next day to get screwed as he does the opposite of what I expected

 

[woodsman04]

I'd done similar to you. My number one rule is to not spook him. At all cost.
Without being there, I can't say. But I always like to try and get above them or on the same level.

 

[Spurhunter]

Thanks for the replies guys. I like the idea of moving into "his" spot after he left and trying to call him back. That's pretty much basic turkey hunting 101 and it never crossed my mind. I'm going to say it's because it was my first hunt of the year and I'm not in the swing of things yet. Getting on his level would've been awesome, but without crossing property lines it would've been difficult. Maybe not impossible though. As far as getting really aggressive and risking bumping him, I had 2 more days to hunt, there's not a ton of birds around, and I was on a small parcel. We have a couple large parcels in the area but most of the land we can hunt is 80 acres here, 45 acres there, etc.