Set in one location inside a blind? Or "run n gun" until within a hundred yards or so of a gobbling turkey and set up against a tree? Is one truly better than the other or is it a matter of preferance?
as discussed in another post,hunting and killing turkeys is an art,I personally would rather hunt a turkey the old way,and that is to find him then just try to trick him in to gun range,and I believe most others on here would also. However there is a time and place for everything,to sit down and work a turkey is very rewarding so let your own conscience be your guide. A dead turkey is a dead turkey no matter how you get him that way,it is just a matter of preference.
I've done it both ways, but its alot more rewarding to me to get to go to a gobbling turkey and call him up than it is to hunt one like a deer. The few times I've gotten lucky and been able to crawl up on a hung up bird and kill him I've got a real charge out of that too. You have to overcome some of a turkey's best defense mechanisms if you can do either one of those.
It's preference.
It's running and gunning for me. I don't have the patience to sit in a blind.
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I do enough sitting and waiting deer hunting in the fall. It's run and gun for me!
Knowing where a gobbler roosts and having a good idea where he wants to go in the morning and getting in between him and his strutting area I've found to be a good way to be successful. Especially when there are alot of hens roosted nearby.This is very rewarding to me because it means I've done my homework and it's paid off. It's not a sure thing though ,a hen may have roosted near him and lead or call him in the other direction. So I call a little to let him know I'm there. It's exciting to get them fired up and getem coming in double and triple gobbling, cutting your calls off and hammering back at you. But , when other hunters are in the same woods, all that gobbling draws their attention and they come and try to work the same bird often either spooking him or worse yet sneaking in to your settup, which creates a potentially dangerous situation.
Every hunt has it's own characteristics. My favorite scenario would be to have one roosted, have an idea which way he wants to go off the roost and get in well before light and set up 70yds or so from him.
That don't happen very often cause I'm too lazy to go roost one. So most times I go in before light where I think a gobbler will be and listen. If I don't hear any gobbling. I will tree call a little, then give a fly down. If nothing I move on to my next best spot and do it all over again changing calls as it gets later in the morning.
On up in the morning I'll set up in different spots and call for about 1/2hr.
I dont own a blind per se. I use a tree umbrella for rainy days and i brush in some good set ups near traditional roosting sites and strut zones that i hunt year after year. Besides that, i like my mobility and flexibility. On properties i've hunted for years, i can expect birds to follow patterns typical year to year and i know good places to kill birds with regularity. On less familiar land, i like the added challenge of figuring the birds out and mobility isnt just a preference, its a necessity. Ill jump up and move in an instant if its what i feel i need to do to get the position i need. Its a great thrill to just choose a listening vantage point, wait for gobbling time, make a critical split second decision which bird to go after and take off in his direction. Right choice or wrong wont be revealed till later but its the thrill of the chase that keeps me coming back....
Is there an option "C"? Those two you named were pretty opposite ends of the spectrum and I'm usually somewhere in the middle depending on the situation.
I do tend to be more on the aggressive side in that I'm not going to be content to sit in a spot all day and hope one comes by. I dont consider it running and gunning what I do though either.
I do think being able to vary your approach makes you a better hunter than the guy that just picks one way of doing things and wont adjust it to fit the particular situation.
No blind or deke for me. And no run and gun either. Slow, steady and deliberate is what consumes my day in the turkey woods.
I like the idea of moving into better position to kill a bird, more so than just remaining stationary in one location and waiting/hoping for the bird to come to me. I think I'm going to try and leave the blind at home alot more this year and only take it out on rainy days.
I don't like hunting out of a blind unless I'm hunting with a kid.
I'm usually running and gunning
I don't use blinds or decoys. It's run and gun for me.
Neither...when one gobbles i go to him, but don't get in a hurry. Im pretty much tip toeing to him. Many times i will end up hunting another bird before I get to him.
No blind,no deke. Heck a good tree is a bonus.
I don't run and gun anymore. The turkeys I hunt don't react for me like they did 15 or so years ago.
With a bow I tend to hunt near roosts in my blind. With my shotgun I run and gun.
Quote from: guesswho on March 04, 2012, 12:22:09 PM
No blind or deke for me. And no run and gun either. Slow, steady and deliberate is what consumes my day in the turkey woods.
X2.
I personally feel hunting turkeys from a blind is good for first time youth hunts and maybe archery. Other than that there doesn't seem to be much sport in sitting in a blind waiting for Tom to show up and shooting him through a peep hole. Just my opinion.
Run and Gun for sure. You miss so much of the experience in a blind.
I usually sit and wait then I get bored, move and scare the bird that was on his way in silent!
I think after just a few minutes you know what a particular bird is going to need you to do to get him. If I get the usual every answer is 100 yds farther its off to the races. If he seems to sit tight and seems interested I will wait it out even if he seems to not be coming in he probably will eventually.
I wouldn't say I'm one to sit and wait for any period of time unless the situation warrants. Thats the best way I can describe my style. I hunt several different places as most turkey hunters often do and each place is unique. For example, I tend to be less patient when I'm hunting mainly woods with little to no fields. I'm more patient if I'm hunting say a cattle farm with lots of short grassed fields.
Knowing when to move, when to call, when to go home is the ultimate question most turkey hunters seek the answer to. I believed even the best hunters do not know the correct answer 100% of the time.
It's not something you master, but evolve with.
run and gun is how i was taught and its how i have always hunted
I've hunted many different ways. My favorite way to hunt is the way that puts the gobblers head under my boot! :newmascot:
Love to Run n Gun, but will do whatever the bird and or terrain dictate to kill him.
Runnin and gunnin is the most fun to me.
I run and gun howbeit I have slowed down and now I do more of a walk and gun. I let the hunt come together piece by piece. I've killed more birds moving with calculation than impulsively.