Silent Birds....

[guesswho]

I kill'em for being quiet.  Don't want them breeding.

If you have an idea what their doing when their gobbling, then you have a good idea what their doing when their not.  Just apply the same tactics and stay alert, which you should do on a gobbling bird as well.   

[bamagtrdude]

I dont have that kind of patience and it just eats at me to feel like I've "wasted" hours in an area when I havent heard one sound off and I know I got some ground available to me. Thats when that little devil on my shoulder starts telling me that somewhere out there I can ease up on one to get a visual or find one that's willing to sound off...

Hey Red: Ya man, I know the feeling that you're talking about above.  I have this feeling more during deer season than turkey season, but nevertheless, I have to "fight" this feeling -- and fight against it I do.  Like others have said, if you've done your homework, tracked & scouted birds, and you play the "waiting game", I think you'll be rewarded for it - eventually.  I always have to remind myself that the birds are on THEIR schedule, not mine. 

A dude I listen to a lot says this: "Preparation time is never wasted time".  Stated another way, any time you're spending out in the woods, hunting and/or scouting (more scouting & observing than hunting for me, most times!!), I feel like I'm being "productive" in preparing myself to kill a bird -- whether they gobble or not.  I try not to let too many negative thoughts creep into my mind, even if I haven't seen/heard anything and even if, given an opportunity, I've blown a chance at a good bird I've prepared for a long time.

I'm patient - up to a point.  I really like what is said right here (and you can find these "kill spots" where you hunt):

I use my woodsmanship, as well as my knowledge of how turkeys move through a certain piece of ground, to locate what I like to call, "kill spots". These are places I feel confident I can persuade an educated turkey, or smart turkey, as I prefer to call them, to feel comfortable enough to come look for me. More times than not, these are areas that the "googans" have not yet tried to call a particular gobbler to.

I'm patient on these "kill spot" areas FOR DAYS, 'cause hunting history, animal patterns, etc. have just *proven* that I'm gonna kill something on this spot at some point in time.  Maybe that's the goal this season - identifying some "kill spots" & proving that this season.  Some spots have just "paid off" for me over the years -- for example, we've got an old graveyard from the 1800's on our property - and dude, deer & turkey *LOVE* that spot.  Why?!?!  Well, I've got some theories, but I don't over-think it; but I *DO* check it regularly, and setup on that spot regularly, and kill stuff there regularly.  It's the exact same tactic I used on public land, too.

Maybe I'm a weirdo, but I *love* to setup observation stands & just "watch" what happens; these are places where you can really see a lot of land at once.  Even if nothing happens, I still feel like I've been real productive - 'cause I'm watching like a deg'gum HAWK what is happening on & around that spot.  I really love to do this on high points on pasture land, where I know there's game on the property.  Once the animal "shows" itself, dude - I get a *RUSH* & put a plan into place to get him.  And by showing, it could be gobbling, or it could be a totally silent bird, cruising through an area, feeding on bugs.

Sorry for the long answer, but I encourage you to take a different perspective this year.  You'll enjoy this ultra-frustrating sport a lot better if you do.

[bamagtrdude]

BTW, one of our "kill spots" on my Dad's land in SE Alabama -- only just a few weeks ago -- I saw nearly 30 deer & had 7 mature gobblers within 30 steps of my "kill spot" over a 3 day period of time.  Good woodsmanship, scouting, and "hunting history" has proven that spot, and I was rewarded for it.

Guess where I'll be this spring??

[Greenshed Longbeard]

If they won't gobble they may have more hens than they can handle. Call the hens

[RutnNStrutn]

If they're not talking, I do one of two things. If it's an area where I can slip along, and scan open woods or fields, I look for birds to set up on. If the area isn't conducive to that, I set up in a spot I know they travel through, put out my dekes, and play the waiting game, calling every 15-20 minutes.
Some will say that is too much calling, but I'm like you, if I am not hearing or seeing them after a while, I get restless.

[TauntoHawk]

Spot and stalk ambushes work pretty well in ag areas when they're in fields.

[surehuntsalot]

Patience and confidence in your setup are keys to success with this style of hunting. I have the patience of a rock.

I dont have that kind of patience and it just eats at me to feel like I've "wasted" hours in an area when I havent heard one sound off and I know I got some ground available to me. Thats when that little devil on my shoulder starts telling me that somewhere out there I can ease up on one to get a visual or find one that's willing to sound off...

If I hear one that morning but he goes silent, that's a different story. I can hang with them all day in that area until I kill him or feel like I learn something to come back and kill him later.

If I know that birds are using the area,and not gobbling,I have the patience of a rock also.
I will hang out in the area all day long.

[MuddyRiver]

Most of the time I hunt by sitting in front of a tree.  But if they aren't gobbling and the woods seem dead, I will throw up a blind and just sit until something shows up.   I do a few yelps every 20 minutes or so just to let anything in the area know I am there.   

It is a lot easier to sit in a blind for long hours instead of out in the open.  You can move around some and even stand up and stretch when needed.   You never know when those black eyes are looking your way.  If you are sitting out in the open, any movement on your part and he'll be gone and you'll never know it. 

[tomstopper]

Patience and confidence in your setup are keys to success with this style of hunting. I have the patience of a rock.

I dont have that kind of patience and it just eats at me to feel like I've "wasted" hours in an area when I havent heard one sound off and I know I got some ground available to me. Thats when that little devil on my shoulder starts telling me that somewhere out there I can ease up on one to get a visual or find one that's willing to sound off...

If I hear one that morning but he goes silent, that's a different story. I can hang with them all day in that area until I kill him or feel like I learn something to come back and kill him later.

If I know that birds are using the area,and not gobbling,I have the patience of a rock also.
I will hang out in the area all day long.

^^This

[redleg06]

I kill'em for being quiet.  Don't want them breeding.

I bet you'd kill them either way but I did think about that the other day...  how we basically end up "culling out" the loudmouths every season while the quiet ones probably tend to live a little longer. 

[R AJ]

For two years I found tracks and strut marks in the same sand bed ,road and never heard that bird gobble before I would take off to hunt one in the distance. One day after a rain I found his tracks in the afternoon,
marked his last tracks toward the truck with flagging and paced back 200 yards or so. The next morning I slipped in , sat parallel to the flagging in the woods about 10 yards from the road.

After hearing another bird gobble a few times I pulled out my Lynch's box and made one cluck. A few minutes later I heard wing beats and got ready. He landed about 20 yards from me, went into full strut and when he came out of strut I sent the Fed Premium #6s to his neck. One of the oldest birds I ever killed and he had become a loner as I never saw hen tracks where he had strutted.

Note: I hate silent birds and ones that shut up when you yelp or cluck but you just have to deal with it.
There are some birds that we refer to as guest birds because they will entertain you but they aren't likely to get their picture taken.

[bamagtrdude]

RAJ, killer story; thx for sharing your woodsmanship skills with us...  Like an old buck, the older gobblers are tougher to bag - but it *can* be done!