Turkeys still silenter than rock here, the last two days one gobbler will come to the edge of the ridge and gobble twice around 8 am, he doesn't make a peep on the roost or any other time besides around 8am. i'm gonna set up on that ridge but not too hopeful beacause i always change my strategy and the turkeys seem to change theirs as well, one good sign is that all the gobblers are alone and Hens are on the nest but the Toms just aren't responding. So hows your season been getting any better/worse/same?
The birds in my area have been very tight lipped and there seems to be a lot fewer birds. I really do believe that we had more die off this winter with the harsh cold temps and snow.
In my area, it seems as though things are picking up. Had one gobbling on Sunday until another hunter slipped in between me and the bird and shot him (got to love public hunting). This morning I was able to call in a nice one for my nephew to 40 yards where he got gobbler fever and missed him.....lol. Hope the end of the week is good when I can chase them again.
If you don't mind, what county do you guys hunt in? I'm in Oswego County and i just want to see if its wide spread across new york or just certain areas.
Dead in Dutchess :'(
Steuben
Im in Niagara County and it has gotten worse. Haven't even heard a gobble over the past 5 days. A week and a half ago in one of my spots we hear 4 different gobblers.
I've been hunting in Sullivan county. The first few days of the season was extremely good with both hens and toms talking up a storm. Most talking I have heard in years.
Birds have quieted down considerably as I hunted this weekend and heard one bird and managed to call one in for my nephew. This bird came in silent and he had a hen with him. Unfortunately my nephew missed him. Gonna hunt Thursday and Friday and I'll be looking to fill my second tag.
The toms should be active as I've seen quite a few lone hens in the woods and while driving around.
There's always hope as long as the season is open!! :icon_thumright:
I tagged out Saturday on a decent tom. I called one in for my buddy on Sunday, his first ever turkey. Also seen two others in full strut while driving. By far my best weekend so far.
I am in Oswego and Cayuga counties
So it's definitely wide spread silence, but also random too, thinking the weather has something to do with the hamper on these birds.
Oneida Co. and I'm hoping tomorrow is better but like Lou says there's always hope with the season open. Hunting PA this holiday weekend.
I've hunted Genesee, Livingston, and Alegany counties. The first few days I had gobbling but it's tapered off to nothing. The last few days have been silent. The good news is, I'm seeing birds. They have come in silent and at awkward angles leaving me empty.
I'm in Jefferson County and they were still not very vocal as of last weekend. We'll get maybe 10 gobbles total on the roost from 2 or 3 birds and then that's it. They are very henned up still as well. I am going down tonight to scout and see what's around and maybe take the morning off from work if it looks good.
I pretty much know where they are consistently exiting the field each morning so I'm hoping I have them figured out as well as I think I do.
I haven't been out since sunday but plan on taking my wife out and hunting with a buddy of mine over the long weekend...
We went out this morning to try a quick hunt before work since I had seen a tom on our piece last night. Apparently when I saw him last night he just kept going to the neighbors property. He sounded off maybe 15 times between 5:15 and flydown, which is usually around 5:45 for the birds we have been hunting. He was a ways off and shut up once he was on the ground, as usual. We had to leave around 7 and the woods had been quiet with no sightings for over an hour.
Not for me in Sullivan and Ulster counties. I'm giving it one more shot this weekend. Good luck.
Well, things are getting better in my area, had about 4 different gobblers gobbling their tail fans off, and they didn't shut up till about 9 am, so looks good maybe the rest of the week will be the best of the season.
Quote from: NYlogbeards on May 21, 2015, 01:35:08 PM
Well, things are getting better in my area, had about 4 different gobblers gobbling their tail fans off, and they didn't shut up till about 9 am, so looks good maybe the rest of the week will be the best of the season.
That's good to hear. I havnt had it like that in about 10 yrs.
I hope it pics up for everyone. Weather has been good.
Due to a serious illness with my wife, I cancelled planned hunts to MO and KS. I didn't think I'd be hunting here either. It was her decision for me to hunt and, as she was feeling better, pretty much chased me out of the house! My first day was the 4th...I went a known good spot with no scouting. I heard 2 birds on roost, positioned on the closest and called him in. Though in range, I couldn't tell if he was an adult or jake so let him go. After he got out of range he fanned out...darn! I worked on him and got him to come back to 20 yards. Two-year old, about 18#, 8" beard.
I decided to hunt a different spot on Tuesday, the 5th, where I've had good luck in the past. On my way there, about 10:00, I spotted 3 adult gobblers, alone, feeding in a field. I stopped at a farm down the road and got permission to hunt. Swinging back to the field a good bird and hen crossed the road right in front of me...almost road kill! Tuesday morning I parked down the road a ways, walked to the field and cut across...about 300 yards to the woods. At gobbling time, I heard one just inside the woods about 200 yards away. I positioned as close as I dared because he only gobbled twice and I couldn't get a good fix. I made a call, he never responded. I figured I'd better set up where I was...didn't want to bump him and made a call. Right behind me a bird flew down. I knew it wasn't him, figuring it was a hen. Two things...I have no idea how it didn't see me and I didn't want it to come right in behind me, figuring it was a hen, and she'd go bananas! Well, it was a jake with a gobble very much like a fall jake. I gave it a bit before making another call, not knowing what he was doing. Well, from the direction I heard the initial bird, here comes a hen legging it along the edge of the field looking for me; pretty much explains him not gobbling any more. I just sit there until she goes away then make another call. Now, from across the field and road, I hear multiple gobbles. Looking out into the field there are 5 jakes legging it right toward me. They come into the woods straight at me...I'm only 20 yards off the field. One of them makes me out and goes to light putting...all the other 4 did was continue gobbling, but they all left anyhow. Due to the activity I decided to go back to where I was in the first place, keeping the original bird in mind for later. I set up just off the field and called every so often. Behind me quite a ways two different birds gobbled at me. Off I went for the closer one. I kept him answering as we closed in on each other. I set up...he was just over a knob, then a hen started yelping non-stop to my right, his left, but closer to him. He shut up and she just kept coming...I can't see either one of them due to the knob. Then there she is walking straight toward me. She stopped 15 yards away and just stood there, yelping and looking. Then, I hear more yelping off to my right..two more hens end up 15 yards away...I can just see them out of the corner of my eye. In the meantime, I hear him drumming just over the knob where hen #1 came from. Then #1 charges #2 and #3 and they're fighting. Good fight...wing thumping, bighting, fighting purrs et al. Watching them to my right, he's still drumming and coming. Then there he is pretty much where hen #1 was. He's in full strut, walking and drumming to my right, looking for me and starting to quarter away. He's going to go behind a big tree, easy to get the gun in position, but the girls are still at it just off my right shoulder. Well, I figure I'll give it a try...if they go bananas he'll just live for another day, at least! I swing to the other side of the tree...hens are too busy with their squabble...as he exits all I can see is his snowball head, not even his wattles. He walks into the red dot and BOOM! I go running up there because he went out of sight...he's laying there stone dead. With him angling away, it ended up being 38 yards. Another two-year old, heavier than yesterday's, with a 8" beard. The other gobbler was still a ways off but was closing the distance until I shot. I think I've come upon another good spot...never did have to go to the area I intended to. I've talked to several guys that haven't had much action but I can't complain.
This season has been a strange one. Just got back from Cooperstown area and this is the 3 rd week of really poor hunting. I have over 40 miles logged on my GPS. The first week there was some gobbling on roost, but now even that has tapered off. I know there are still birds around but not as many as past years. This morning I was after a big tom that has givin me the slip a few times. No gobbles a first light but an hour after ,5 jakes came in silent. Even the jakes are silent. I did get a bird,he shock gobbled to some Ravens flew down in front of me and Died. I was planning on going back up on Sunday but to my surprise I closed up the camp. I don't think I can take another week ,it's to damn depressing. It will be a long winter with very few good memories of this turkey season.
Mine has been decent all year. Somewhat. More often than not I'm hearing, seeing n even calling birds into range. They've been mostly jakes though. Been tough trying to find Longbeards. Hunting in Orange County NY. Same situation in Sussex co NJ. Last Sunday was one day I never got a bird to work. They were off property but yacking up a storm. Unfortunately hens flew down w em n they went instantly the wrong way. We still have time. Last weekend alone I called 2 jakes, than 7 more. Than 5 more on dif parts of same farm n on dif sides of road. All good gobbling birds but all shorties
I've hunted Chenango county for at least 12 years or better. I didn't hunt there this year. Last year was brutal putting a lot of miles on my boots. With the only gobbling I cought was in a thunder storm from long off. One sit we were lucky enough to call in a silent hen.
Most of the seasons I hunted were only 4/5 day hunts. But that's all it took. It really wasn't all that tough to get on some birds.
There was a post last year similar to this one. Reading this again makes me believe there has been a real bad drop off. Bad winters and predation are laying a beating on the birds. Hopefully it rebounds. That was my favorite place to hunt. Beautiful country that part of NY.
I am lucky that my job allows me to get into the woods most mornings for 2 or 3 hours before work. What I have been seeing in northern Cayuga County is that any turkey that makes much noise (hens or gobblers) is quickly harassed by coyotes. I have hunted this same property for 15 years and have never seen anything like this. One day, during the first week of the season, I saw 5 coyotes. No wonder they are so quiet! perch
I also noticed a big rise in coyote sign. I had a yote come into my calls but turned as I tried to give him a blast. I would think that this can put a damper on the amount of gobbling you hear and why they shut down so quick. We had 4 or 5 groups of birds we were working but the birds got quiet after the first week, and even that was a few gobbles and then clam up. Very disturbing !
Quote from: turkaholic on May 22, 2015, 05:58:11 AM
I also noticed a big rise in coyote sign. I had a yote come into my calls but turned as I tried to give him a blast. I would think that this can put a damper on the amount of gobbling you hear and why they shut down so quick. We had 4 or 5 groups of birds we were working but the birds got quiet after the first week, and even that was a few gobbles and then clam up. Very disturbing !
2 mornings out of 8 I called in a coyote at first light. Never could get a shot at either of them. 2 different spots by the way.
one morning I saw 1 coyote running around in a field trying to get a bead on were the gobbling was coming from.
thwre was a bird gobbling on the rooste and he was going crazy trying to find him.
Guys I've said it before but the coyotes are def keying in on turkey noise. Remember that on predator hunts
I can honesty say that after spending 21 seasons in the spring turkey woods here in Steuben County, I have never called in a coyote with a turkey call or seen them stalking turkeys in the field. If I did, I would probably have to shoot it...er wait...they aren't in season... ::). I did call a couple of coyotes in during a fall hunt several years ago and one of the little dogs paid dearly for it. IMHO, there is a far more deadly turkey predator out there that can definately impact gobbling activity and they carry shotguns...
Quote from: WNY Bowhunter on May 22, 2015, 09:06:38 AM
I can honesty say that after spending 21 seasons in the spring turkey woods here in Steuben County, I have never called in a coyote with a turkey call or seen them stalking turkeys in the field. If I did, I would probably have to shoot it...er wait...they aren't in season... ::). I did call a couple of coyotes in during a fall hunt several years ago and one of the little dogs paid dearly for it. IMHO, there is a far more deadly turkey predator out there that can definately impact gobbling activity and they carry shotguns...
We used to call in yotes every spring while turkey hunting. Haven't in several years now for some reason. I'm sure some probably started coming in down wind and split before ever seeing them.
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I have been towards the eastern portion of the state and the western portion and in the southern finger lakes region and it seems about the same no matter where I have been. Gobbling on the roost then it gets quiet and I have never seen more gobblers with hens this late into the season. I did get my first of the season last friday (a week ago) and he came in alone gobbling his head off. I had birds gobbling very good on the limb this morning but am saving them for this weekend when I have more time. Hopefully with the leaf cover, I'll be able to slip in nice and quiet and try to bag this bird that I have been playing cat and mouse with. Still hoping it gets better, usually love hunting the late season!
I don't have any first hand experience on coyotes going after turkey or stalking their calling. I do know that we have a healthy population of coyotes where I am and I had one roaming around the plowed field I was hunting last weekend for about 15 minutes just as I was starting to be able to see decent. The bird I had roosted the night before only gobbled once on the limb. His 3 hens came down at their normal time, 5:45, and acted very spooky. They would run a little bit, stop and look, run a bit more until I lost sight of them. The tom came out, did a half strut on top of the hill, turned around and started putting and went back in.
I'm sure they had to have seen the 'yote because they were only about 10 yards inside the woods on the limb. He definitely had those birds spooked and it kind of ruined our hunt that morning. I was only about 60 yards from where they were crossing. Had the tom continued on the same path that the hens went, there was a good chance he was going to cross paths with my dad.
Quote from: WNY Bowhunter on May 22, 2015, 09:06:38 AM
I can honesty say that after spending 21 seasons in the spring turkey woods here in Steuben County, I have never called in a coyote with a turkey call or seen them stalking turkeys in the field. If I did, I would probably have to shoot it...er wait...they aren't in season... ::). I did call a couple of coyotes in during a fall hunt several years ago and one of the little dogs paid dearly for it. IMHO, there is a far more deadly turkey predator out there that can definately impact gobbling activity and they carry shotguns...
I tend to disagree with that. I have been turkey hunting for 21 or 22 years myself now. Only in NY.
There are in my eyes no more turkey hunters. I have been hunting the same areas for about 12 years now and 10 yrs ago may 1st all the hotels bars r esteraunts gas stations etc would have turkey hunters in them. And now if I see a truck or 2 in 10 days of hunting that's alot. When I'm up hunting I usually log in some were between 1000 and 1500 miles in a week looking for birds looking for land etc. So if I dont cross any hunters were are they. Hunters are definetly playing little impact on turkey population. First off hunters can only take 2 birds and coyote probably gets 2 a week.
So then, why is public land generally considered harder to hunt than private land? More coyotes I suppose?
I attribute the lack of gobbling this season to two things:
1.) Henned up gobblers
2.) It is no secret that the turkey population is down significantly and some areas of the state are seeing the decline worse than others. I agree that hunting (by humans) is not the primary cause of this. I also believe that predation by coyotes is not the culprit either. My area has a thriving coyote population but it's no worse than it was 10-15 years ago...
r=WNY Bowhunter link=topic=56338.msg558065#msg558065 date=1432309194]
I attribute the lack of gobbling this season to two things:
1.) Henned up gobblers
2.) It is no secret that the turkey population is down significantly and some areas of the state are seeing the decline worse than others. I agree that hunting (by humans) is not the primary cause of this. I also believe that predation by coyotes is not the culprit either. My area has a thriving coyote population but it's no worse than it was 10-15 years ago...
[/quote]
I feel that public land birds are harder to take because what few hunters are left are mostly hunting the public and in fact not killing alot but are making the birds wiser.
Second if you think about your coyote comment. I agree that the coyote population is probably stable for the last 15 yrs
But since the turkey population being down as a whole the same amount of coyotes put a bigger dent percentage wise.
Read this article predator chapter. Think about those numbers.
http://www.nwtf.org/hunt/article/life-turkey-nest
Years ago when I saw "Henned up gobbler" 1 or 2 toms would be with 15 hens.
now when I see a henned up gobbler he has 1 or 2 hens. times have changed drastically and it has to be something. I believe its a motor combination of alot of things. Winters, wet springs, hunters and predation.
That article was quit enlightening.
I'm not sure how stable coyote populations are across the state but on the farm property I hunt they are out of control, and they are targeting turkeys. This is based on the number of coyote sightings I have personally seen. This includes five instances where coyotes have stalked me as I was calling. In previous (approximately 25) years I have had a total of only three such encounters. I had two situations this year where I was working a gobbler and he was run off. Sadly, soon they will be targeting fawns. I agree that numbers of turkeys are way down and also they do seem unusually henned up for this late in the season. jperch
Quote from: mikejd on May 22, 2015, 11:58:39 AM
http://www.nwtf.org/hunt/article/life-turkey-nest
Years ago when I saw "Henned up gobbler" 1 or 2 toms would be with 15 hens.
now when I see a henned up gobbler he has 1 or 2 hens. times have changed drastically and it has to be something. I believe its a motor combination of alot of things. Winters, wet springs, hunters and predation.
That article was quit enlightening.
I agree, the decline in the pop. can be attributed to all the variables that you listed. With the ever increasing numbers of raccoons, crows and hawks we have...it's a wonder that that any nests even hatch out.
I shudder to think of how many nests, hens and fawns are going to be destroyed over the next couple of weeks when the hay mowing season gets rolling...
A friend of mine suggested lowering the bag limit to 1 bird for a couple years. How would you guys feel about this? Give some time to maybe help populations a bit. I know hunting isn't the only thing that affects it but im sure it would help. I personally think hunting regs in NY need a large overhaul. Don't even get me started on deer lol.
Quote from: BABS9 on May 22, 2015, 02:20:46 PM
A friend of mine suggested lowering the bag limit to 1 bird for a couple years. How would you guys feel about this? Give some time to maybe help populations a bit. I know hunting isn't the only thing that affects it but im sure it would help. I personally think hunting regs in NY need a large overhaul. Don't even get me started on deer lol.
I really dont think that it will affect much. Like I said earlier I seriously doubt that hunters are the problem at all.
that said I do think that the fall os a problem. I think more turkeys get killed in the fall as a by product of a deer hunt.
most of those birds are hens as well. The fall season should be shorter.
Today the turkeys were very talkative in the morning, and I called in a gobbler across the field at 30 yards but I missed when I shot at him, have no idea how/why so I took a couple practice shots from the same distance I shot at the bird and my pattern is fine, so its probably human error as I jumped the shot too early, I hope that's not the last chance I get this year cause i'll be kicking my self in the butt for years.
Quote from: mikejd on May 22, 2015, 03:40:15 PM
Quote from: BABS9 on May 22, 2015, 02:20:46 PM
A friend of mine suggested lowering the bag limit to 1 bird for a couple years. How would you guys feel about this? Give some time to maybe help populations a bit. I know hunting isn't the only thing that affects it but im sure it would help. I personally think hunting regs in NY need a large overhaul. Don't even get me started on deer lol.
I really dont think that it will affect much. Like I said earlier I seriously doubt that hunters are the problem at all.
that said I do think that the fall os a problem. I think more turkeys get killed in the fall as a by product of a deer hunt.
most of those birds are hens as well. The fall season should be shorter.
100% agree with you on that. People just shoot them straight from the stand during deer. And shooting a hen can do some damage.
They're all gonna gobble tomo. Get out there n kill one.
I too have hunted NY for over 30 years and have seen things go down hill fast. I have on several occasions called in not only coyotes but fishers. I shot fishers and coyotes even though they are not in season and will continue, sorry this my offend others. Maybe the state should allow these predators to be killed at will or maybe a bounty should be applied like in the old days. I believe the state introduced fishers to keep turkey populations in check due to car vs turkey collisions. As for the amount of hunters I see. Almost nonexistent ! The area I hunt outside of Cooperstown would see a fair amount of hunters. Now when I see someone around I make it a point to talk with them to see what there seeing and hearing. One thing they all have in common is how many yotes they see and CALL IN. A bounty is needed here again for coyotes. Wake up NY before all your hunters go to other states like I'm considering.
Quote from: turkaholic on May 23, 2015, 07:27:41 AM
I too have hunted NY for over 30 years and have seen things go down hill fast. I have on several occasions called in not only coyotes but fishers. I shot fishers and coyotes even though they are not in season and will continue, sorry this my offend others. Maybe the state should allow these predators to be killed at will or maybe a bounty should be applied like in the old days. I believe the state introduced fishers to keep turkey populations in check due to car vs turkey collisions. As for the amount of hunters I see. Almost nonexistent ! The area I hunt outside of Cooperstown would see a fair amount of hunters. Now when I see someone around I make it a point to talk with them to see what there seeing and hearing. One thing they all have in common is how many yotes they see and CALL IN. A bounty is needed here again for coyotes. Wake up NY before all your hunters go to other states like I'm considering.
I agree with you. I dont know why nobody wants to say its a problem. I mean there are yotes running around NYC every few weeks. Clearly the population is out of check.
Another theory that my friend has is that all of the talkative birds over time get eaten by predators so then the ones that are left to survive and pass along there genetics are the quiet birds, then there young learn from them and calling is not something they do very often so they learn these traits. Over time we only have quiet birds. I dont know if its possible but it does make some sense.
I took a drive around this morning and didn't see much. I stopped at a spot where there's been a big old boss gobbler with hens regularly for the past month (he's still got the hens with him). I stepped out of the truck and hit the crow call @ 7:00...boom...he gobbles back. Try it 3 more times and he responded each time like he was hot to trot. This farm has had virtually no hunting pressure at all the season which is why he's remained so visible. This area is absolutely loaded with coyotes but he had no fear in opening his beak to announce his presence. I've got plans to go after him in the morning with a friend who's father-in-law leases the property. Hopefully, he's still in the mood...
Quote from: turkaholic on May 23, 2015, 07:27:41 AM
I believe the state introduced fishers to keep turkey populations in check due to car vs turkey collisions.
Hmmm, that's a new one for me. I know that the DEC is letting out mountain lions (mostly black ones) and wolves to keep the deer herd thinned out for the insurance companies... ;)
Quote from: WNY Bowhunter on May 23, 2015, 09:14:49 AM
Quote from: turkaholic on May 23, 2015, 07:27:41 AM
I believe the state introduced fishers to keep turkey populations in check due to car vs turkey collisions.
Hmmm, that's a new one for me. I know that the DEC is letting out mountain lions (mostly black ones) and wolves to keep the deer herd thinned out for the insurance companies... ;)
:P
Well I still haven't even heard a gobble since Thursday the 14th. Been about a week and a half since and I've hunted just about everyday and absolutely nothing. It gets pretty frustrating.
It ain't over yet!!!
My dad tagged out today. He called two longbeards in from several hundred yards away and dropped the hammer on one of them @ 11:50. That makes 4 gobblers that he's called in over the past three days after 11:00...
(http://i21.photobucket.com/albums/b284/WNYBowhunter/zDSCN0471.jpg) (http://s21.photobucket.com/user/WNYBowhunter/media/zDSCN0471.jpg.html)
(http://i21.photobucket.com/albums/b284/WNYBowhunter/zDSCN0475.jpg) (http://s21.photobucket.com/user/WNYBowhunter/media/zDSCN0475.jpg.html)
Also, a good buddy of mine has been involved with a Wounded Warriors hunt in Yates County and they've taken 7 birds in the past two days...
(http://i21.photobucket.com/albums/b284/WNYBowhunter/11011678_784610701653481_5775234277946455564_n.jpg) (http://s21.photobucket.com/user/WNYBowhunter/media/11011678_784610701653481_5775234277946455564_n.jpg.html)
Glad to see that. Been real quiet here the last couple days. Maybe it will turn around for us as well.
Great pics. Congrats to your dad.
Anyone calling in any jakes. Last year was supposed to be a good hatch with the dry weather, I did not see any jakes this year. Pretty surprised about that.
Yes, there seems to be a fair amount of jakes around. The 2013 hatch was pretty good too, almost all of the longbeards that have been taken this year are two year olds.
I did see and hear quite a few jakes this year and that is a good thing. All of the jakes that I did see came in looking but no gobbling for the most part. After a little over 3 weeks of hunting I did see about 40 hens, some of these are the same hens seen a few times I think, but still quite a few. I am hopeful that with this spring being so dry, they will have a good hatch. The problem is not the hatch but the freaking predators. This fall instead of hunting turkeys I may switch to coyote and beat down the dogs.
I saw more jakes than usual as well.
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My wife and I went out this morning after a longbeard that I spotted last night. I had an idea where he would roost. We got set up and at 5:00 he started gobbling. With the foliage we were able to get within 50-60 yds. of him. I gave him some soft calling and he gobbled off an on til he flew down at 5:50. He hit so close we could hear him "thump" when he landed. Instead of running in to get his face blasted he went away from us on to the neighboring property that was more open and made a stand just gobbling away and waiting for us to come to him. Headed back out in a few minutes to another location...
Same story for us this morning. We roosted 2 longbeards and a hen last night. My dad and I setup at the 2 spots that they usually take to leave the field. The hen read the script and passed by me at 61 yards. The toms did not. About 20 gobbles on the limb starting at 5:10, 3 gobbles on the ground and they were gone. One of the birds does most of the gobbling. He has a much deeper gobble than the other. I don't know if the other bird even gobbled at all this morning.
If they roost there again tonight, I am going to come in from the other side in the morning and try to get within 50 yards of the tree and hope they head the same way as this morning. There is an old logging road that I think they were roosted on this morning so I'm assuming they pitched down onto the road. I feel like it's going to be the death of me trying to get one of these birds this year, and we're running out of time.
I did have a skunk pass by me at about 5:00 this morning. I saw him and stood up. He kept walking directly at me close enough to where I could smell him about 5 feet away so I skipped out of the brush and got to the edge of the field. I figured if he was going to get spooked, I was getting out of there before he did. He wasn't bothered in the least and sniffed around the tree where I was sitting and proceeded to sniff my seat and my calls sitting on the ground. I made a "psst" sound and said "get out of there." He just turned and wandered off. I went and sat back down and could smell a hint of him around my stuff.
I have been hesitant to call at all this year. The only thing that I feel good about is scratching in the leaves and using my turkey wing. If you make a call it seems the hens pull them the other way. The only bird I got was last Thursday and I never made a call. Herd him gobble to some Ravens and got as close as I dared and only scratched leaves. He few down and started to walk my way. I actually kinda felt bad about killing him. I walked over 40 miles so far this season, so that bad feeling turned into a good one pretty fast.
When we have a season like this I usually try to concentrate my calling on calling hens. No its not as exiting as you are rarely hearing any gobbles. However if you do it enough usually you can find a gobbler in tow. We scored 2 this season doing that.
Well, we got in to the big boss gobbler we were going after right away around 10:45 and messed with him for about an hour. He was in a small 10 acre island woodlot surrounded by fields...he was fired up between the crows and my calling...ended up moving and setting up on him several times but couldn't pull him across the planted cornfield to us. We will be after him again bright and early tomorrow when he's roosted in the same woods as we are. Overall, a very productive day, especially for this late in the season!!!
Quote from: njdevilsb on May 24, 2015, 11:45:59 AM
I did have a skunk pass by me at about 5:00 this morning. I saw him and stood up. He kept walking directly at me close enough to where I could smell him about 5 feet away so I skipped out of the brush and got to the edge of the field. I figured if he was going to get spooked, I was getting out of there before he did. He wasn't bothered in the least and sniffed around the tree where I was sitting and proceeded to sniff my seat and my calls sitting on the ground. I made a "psst" sound and said "get out of there." He just turned and wandered off. I went and sat back down and could smell a hint of him around my stuff.
Man, I've been there several times!!! :o
Almost forgot, I saw my first ever bobcat cross the road in front of me on the way to our spot this morning. Now, there's a turkey killing machine!!! Also, when we set up on the bird this morning we had coyotes yipping in several different directions in the distance but it didn't seem to bother Mr. Mouthy as he started lightening the woods up at 5:00...
I would love to see a bobcat, awesome!
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I finally did it on 5/21 in Sullivan county. The bird weighed 17lbs 4oz, 8.5" beard, and .75" Spurs. I was starting to believe it was going to be a shut out for me. He came in with a smaller gobbler following four hens.
My buddy still taking ppl out and has called in 3 birds in the past 3 mornings all great 1 1/8 spurred birds or better.
It's typical late season hints though, not a lot of gobbling just get a known bird and call the hens your way and mr round fan comes following right in.
Ive called in a few hens the past 2 weeks all which were alone. I even seen 3 hens in a field last weekend all alone.
Last evening I spotted the bird from yesterday morning, he was heading up to roost in the same area that he has been with one hen close by. The problem is, the past couple of times that I've hunted him he hits the ground and goes away from the calling and up to the neighboring property and stays there gobbling instead of heading out into the planted cornfield where I see him in the afternoons. I didn't see the big boy from our late morning hunt out in the field but saw a hen headed to roost where they typically do. I decided last minute to try the later spot first. We never heard a single gobble. I drove up the road to the other spot and wouldn't you know it...there's our longbeard strutting up the cornfield all by himself at 6:15!!! I believe we will concentrate on tagging him for the rest of season now, but I don't believe he will come in to calling.
I hunted the three rivers WMA this weekend. Hunted Friday Saturday from 430-noon. I'm not sure there is a turkey in that place. I have never hunted there before so I walked as much of it as I could. I saw zero sign of turkey. Obviously I heard none either.
I hunted a place up in Hannibal NY Sunday morning. Silent there too.
Headed to Southern Erie and then Allegany county this weekend. Going to spend a few days in Genesee county starting tomorrow morning.
I had a few chances at jakes early in the year. Missed a couple opportunities on a Tom in the first week. I have not heard a gobble from the ground since the second weekend. Even the hens have been quiet lately. I've had several jakes come in silent but I have not seen a Tom in a few weeks.
I have never seen any sign of turkey at three rivers either.
I have been hunting turkeys for not as long as some of you but spend 20 plus days a season in the woods chasing them. Never once have I called in a coyote to my setup or had one hunting me. My question is that, if they are such a problem, why are you guys not hunting or trapping them during their season? It's like they get ignored till "the turkeys aren't gobbling"...... ::)
Quote from: steinea286 on May 26, 2015, 01:33:24 PM
I have been hunting turkeys for not as long as some of you but spend 20 plus days a season in the woods chasing them. Never once have I called in a coyote to my setup or had one hunting me. My question is that, if they are such a problem, why are you guys not hunting or trapping them during their season? It's like they get ignored till "the turkeys aren't gobbling"...... ::)
I agree with your question, but who has the time between the family and two jobs. I wish my hunting area was a lot closer to home. I will tell you one thing, this is the first year I did not see a coyote in either Sullivan or Ulster counties.
I am not a foremost expert on coyote. But I have been calling them since 97 or 98 in NY. I have a fascination with the animal. I spend countless hours hunting and scouting for coyote (turkey now too). I hunt and scout year round. I may designate my trip to hunting a particular species in season, but I take it all in. I am scouting and hunting, not just hunting. I am digressing from where I want to go here but felt some of that was pertaining to the following.
I can say a few things regarding coyote with confidence. Killing one coyote here and there does little to nothing in regard to reducing population. Normally they fill in quickly, sometimes only days, after killing one. Also they are fast learners so you are not able to call an area with enough frequency to continue killing them. A good caller will be more successful but there is a ceiling.
Baiting is arguably least effective. You may be drawing critters in with your bait. You may be drawing in a transient that was just a passer bye. Or you may just be keeping residents fat. I would put this in the same category as the guy/gal who whacks some in deer or turkey season.
Trapping and land management are you best options. If you have resident coyote, then there is somethings that keep them there. If you can remove those things, it will help. Trapping is kind of like hunting 24/7 for months on end. A good trapper will make a difference. A bigger difference if you can get permits to trap right through the spring <---- you may have a hard time getting permits.
If you do not have the time (I do not either) to devote to trapping, than it is quite easy to find a good trapper that will do it for you. Most will jump at the opportunity to add new ground to their trap line. I stress "good" because it takes a good trapper to get desired results. Finding a good trapper is easy. First find a local fur buyer. If not themselves, they will know a good trapper or two. Second option would be to talk to a local taxidermist. They might be able to help or at least point you in the direction of someone who will.
For the record I am not knocking folks that take the opportunity to take a coyote in deer season or turkey season (where legal). I am not knocking folks that like to shoot them off bait piles either.
Sorry to the OP. I went way off topic here... but given the chance... I cant resist talking coyote.
I recently read somewhere that you can take 75% of a coyote popultion from particular area and they can fully recover in 1 year.
Their liter sizes go up if the numbers go down so, I do not doubt it. I would like to read that article if you happen to remember where you read it, please let me know.
We roosted 2 longbeards and 2 hens tonight. The one tom was strutting every step of the way and they were both following right in the tracks of the hens still. My dad and I are going to go out before work tomorrow to try and finally seal the deal on one of them.
Quote from: njdevilsb on May 27, 2015, 10:12:12 PM
We roosted 2 longbeards and 2 hens tonight. The one tom was strutting every step of the way and they were both following right in the tracks of the hens still. My dad and I are going to go out before work tomorrow to try and finally seal the deal on one of them.
Good luck. Lets us know how you make out.
Well they have changed their morning routine once again. It started off with wind and a decent amount of rain which surprisingly kept them on the roost until after 7 as far as I could tell by where his gobbles were coming from. The tom gobbled on and off from 5:15 until a little after 7, every time in the same exact spot. One of the 2 hens came to us at about 7:30, the other hen and the 2 toms did not and he didn't make another sound. I called to him a few times over the course of the 2 hour period while he was still on the limb and never got a direct answer. The crows, however, would get him fired up every time.
It's pretty thick woods where they are roosting so on Saturday I'm going to get as close to the roost as I'm comfortable with and just wait. We tried this the other morning but the toms had roosted elsewhere and we didn't know it at the time.
seems like the seasons getting better, turkeys were gobbling like crazy and two gobbler were battling it out, me and my dad were set up along a muck and a couple 1 year old jakes got close enough for my dad to take one. going back tomorrow to get another.
My brother was able to take a nice longbeard yesterday here in Niagara County. Could have shot 4 jakes today but I let them walk. Still not hearing much gobbling. Few days left to get it done!
Good luck to you guys who are still at it.
Quote from: mikejd on May 28, 2015, 09:05:02 PM
Good luck to you guys who are still at it.
x2 sounds like it still doing good there
The gobblers were on fire this morning. I had a plan to sneak into a woods in the general area where I know one has been roosting. I didn't make it there because of aggressive gobbling I heard before I got there. After flydown he came in to my soft calling, a nice two year old I believe. All done by 5:40. I think I heard four other gobblers in different locations. Still two more days to fill my second NY tag. This is only the second gobbler this season that was coming into my calling. The first was almost nailed by a coyote. Good luck all. jperch
Good luck. Unfortunatly, Im done in NY. My schedule will not allow me to escape for the last hoorah!
We didn't even hear a bird this morning. I got in tight to where they typically roost and they were nowhere to be found. We didn't get to roost them last night so who knows where they went. They have been changing their routines a lot lately. Tomorrows forecast isn't looking good either.
Had a tough time getting out of bed...skipped the early hunt and headed out around ten. We ended up getting on a bird around 10:45 or so. I called...he gobbled...we tried to close the distance a bit....called again...he gobbles again but only half the distance he was before!!! We hastily set up but he he doesn't show. Next time he gobbles he is up above us headed away. We chased after him for the next hour before catching up with a him...ended up being a longbeard and a jake. They were picking away up in a hayfield and we crawled up on them using a thick hedgerow between us for cover. When I spotted the gobbler he was picking our way at 65-70 yds...my wife crawled up into a prone shooting position but neither of us could see him. I poked my head up and spotted them along the woodline. I tried cutting a them real load but the wind was howling and I didn't press the issue since it was so close to noon. One last try tomorrow...
I took my younger brother out this morning it was very quiet first thing with only a few distant gobbles.I struck one up @ 8:45 and he came in on a string as if he read the script that i was filming this hunt. Long story short he caught my brother making the final "swing" on him and he whiffed the shot as the gobbler turned to leave. He was pretty bummed out about the miss but i told him it happens its part of it. Happens to everyone . Not the note i wanted to end my season on but @ least i got to spend some quality with my brother. I might take a friend out in the morning so hopefully we can make something happen.
Some good stories here guys. One more day go get em.
Seen a strutter in a field this morning tried to make a little move on him but couldn't. Gonna go after him tomorrow. Seen them in the same field this afternoon as well. my brother said he seen 10 total. I know for sure 4 of them are jakes and 2 of them are hens. Hopefully I can get on a longbeard on the last day. Goodluck to everyone getting out for one last day tomorrow!
YES because now it's closed. Real tough year for hearing gobbles at any time of day but real bad for any after 7 am. I should have tagged out on the 15th but had missed a bird days before. Went to PA for the holiday weekend and worked birds but nothing that would come in past the 75 yard range. One bird we worked from roost till close to 10 am and never got a look at him. Back in NY to hunt on the 26th and never heard a bird until I was heading out and got one to gobble to my scratch box. I worked him a few more times on the scratcher then called with a mouth call to finish about 10 mins. total from striking the bird to flopping in the plowed field. I also took a friend who never really cared much about turkey hunting and had a very talkative hen with jakes show up. He shot one of the jakes and has already talking about the next days hunt. ;D I think I created a monster. I know that I filled my tags but believe me it was not easy by any means. I hunted a lot of days this spring with very little sleep getting up at around 3 every day and many hours and miles of walking not hearing anything at times. One of the toughest seasons I have ever hunted with lessons learned. One being making the best of any opportunity you get. This one bites me in the backside every now and then. I'm glad it's over for now as I'm really spent but that will change in a few days when I miss being out there and wondering what the birds are doing. Thankful to fill my tags and call in a friends first bird. Looking forward to the fall season even with the big changes coming.
Took a friend out today for one last time in the woods until fall. Silent for the first couple hours then i struck up a gobble around 8:30.we closed the distance and he gobbled @ everything for about 10 minutes but i could tell he wasnt gonna leave the plowed field to come into the woods where we were set up. The fog rolled in so we eased to the edge of the plowed field and i got the gobbler(a beauty) and a hen to come to 80 yards but thats as close as they would get. All in all i had a good season even with the lack of birds. My brother got a nice one youth season and i scored on gobblers May 2nd and 10th.Hopefully we have a good hatch this year because our population is definately in trouble.Id say we have less than half the number of birds around now as we did 10 years ago.Hopefully the state and nwtf will wake up soon and do something to adress the issue. I heard the state wants to shorten fall season to 2 weeks and limit to 1 bird but i doubt that will have little if any effect on the population.I think the biggest issue effecting the population that we can actually control is predators.I think a 24/7/365 coyote season would help as well as loosening the restrictions on hunting and trapping nest robbing furbearers.We cant control harsh winters or poor nesting seasons but one thing we can control is predators.Im no expert on the issue but i beleive if they allowed supplemental feeding in the winter months it might help the population bounce back.
I should have ended the season in style this morning...
Yesterday evening I roosted the longbeard that my wife and I have been after for the entire second half of the season. He was strutting out in a planted cornfield with two hens all afternoon, even in the pouring rain. Boy, did he get fired up with the thunder!!! They finally left the field at 7:30. The plan was to set the blind up where they went in in hopes that the rain would push them out into the open in the morning. Well, our power was out all night and the weather was cold, windy and raining when I woke up at 4:15. Since my wife is just getting over being sick for the past two weeks, I thought that sitting out in a cold, muddy field wasn't the best idea and I didn't press the issue with her getting out of bed. I couldn't get back to sleep so I drove by the farm this morning to see if the birds had come out where we were gonna be...sure enough, the hunt would have been over by 6:30. Not exactly how I planned on ending the season. Oh well, his hooks will be longer next year. Only 11 months to go...
My buddy and I each took a jake Friday. He shot his then I shot the runner. It was his first bird and the first bird I have called and shot. I have been fortunate to call birds for others that died but this was my first do all. I killed a turkey about 15 years ago out of an apple orchard near my house. He was gobbling his but off and I snuck in and shot him. That was the extent of my turkey hunting till a few years ago. Work never allowed me spring turkey time until then.
Friday started good. Had a Tom gobbling good. He was servicing some hens so we decided to sneak out and come back later. On our way to the next spot we found some birds in a freshly planted filed. We swung way around being them into the woods. Walked through the woods to get inline with them. Called them to the edge of the field and took them. Our morning was done around 8am.
Saturday was dead after 7am. We moved into our spot at 4:45 and sat silent listening for birds. Had a hen pitch down 50 yards from us. She went ballistic with the yelping and cutting as soon as he feet hit the ground. When she finally shut up I would agitate her and she yelped and cut some more. That was all we had till noon.
This morning was slow until 9:30. We worked 3 toms till noon and had to quit. They just took too long. The sky began to pour on us at the same time.
We didn't even go out this morning. It was a downpour when I got up at 3:30 so I went back to bed. It pretty much rained decent all morning. I wanted to get out for the last day but honestly, this season was so frustrating and I was so completely worn out from all the early mornings that it felt really good to just sleep in before the work week started again.
This was the toughest year that I can remember. I have been turkey hunting since I was 12. I'm now 28. This is only the second year that I have not tagged a bird in the spring since I started turkey hunting. My dad and I did have a couple close calls but we only got one tom that was borderline within range. I was guessing him to be right at 40 but I don't know for sure. He was behind some brush and I wasn't going to take a marginal shot.
As soon as they hit the ground, you may have gotten a handful off gobbles after that, but by 6:30 or 7, they wouldn't make a sound. We thought we had them figured out a few times and got to where they liked to exit from one field to another. We sat silent for most of the mornings this spring since they were so unresponsive, but once we got where we thought they were going, they would choose a different path for a few days. It just seemed like we were one step behind them every day. One morning, my dad and I sat about 150 yards apart on the same edge of one of the fields, and wouldn't you know that they passed directly in between the 2 of us, offering neither of us a shot. They had no interest in decoys of any kind since they had so many hens throughout the month.
I saw a saying once that said "It takes 3 days to pattern a turkey, but turkey change their patterns every 2 days." That was pretty much the story of our season. We resorted to hunting them like deer and mostly left the calls in our vest and tried to get on their travel routes.
I'm sad that it's over because it was fun chasing them, even though it got so frustrating. I did have some cool experiences with other animals and had some hens get real close. There is nothing like sitting against a tree in the calm of the morning and hearing a gobble thunder out in the darkness. All of that makes it worth the early mornings and the time spent. It will be nice to recharge for a few days but I'm going to want to get back at it by this weekend. I sure wish next years season started this coming Saturday.
Well I went out and sat for about the first hour of the morning but it was just way to windy with a continuous downpour that wasn't stopping. So i decided to pack it in and call it a season. The last two weeks of the season were terrible very frustrating. The worst ive ever seen here in NY. Didn't even hear a gobble. I know the birds are in there they just weren't cooperating like many others are saying. Still leaned alot and had fun chasing them as always this season and looking forward to next year! Time to start getting ready for deer season!
Worst season for me and my brothers in almost 30 years of hunting NY. Same thing as many have already said. No gobbling after flydown if any at all. The first few days of the season was not to bad but the birds were Henned up bad. Two of us actually had coyotes come to the call. This tells me that any bird calling is making a target of themselves. NY needs to place a bounty on these bad dogs. There was talk of the state making fall season shorter, this is a joke! Fall season does not effect the population much at all ,if any. This fall I will be hunting coyote with vengeance. I hunted 23 days and walked 42 miles this season and hunted with 3 other people the whole time. We all said the same thing.
Quote from: turkaholic on June 01, 2015, 02:38:26 PM
Worst season for me and my brothers in almost 30 years of hunting NY. Same thing as many have already said. No gobbling after flydown if any at all. The first few days of the season was not to bad but the birds were Henned up bad. Two of us actually had coyotes come to the call. This tells me that any bird calling is making a target of themselves. NY needs to place a bounty on these bad dogs. There was talk of the state making fall season shorter, this is a joke! Fall season does not effect the population much at all ,if any. This fall I will be hunting coyote with vengeance. I hunted 23 days and walked 42 miles this season and hunted with 3 other people the whole time. We all said the same thing.
You can hunt yotes 24-7 here in PA and we had the same problem for much of the season.