New Nebraska Turkey Hunter

[Schemy]

Had this in the Tips & Tactics area.  Thought it would be more appropriate here.

Also Hi by the way, thanks for the add to Old Gobbler.

Going to take a flyer here (pun intended).  I am relatively new to NE, and brand new at turkey hunting.  I was hoping to see if there were any other NE hunters on here that might offer up some tips for hunting NE.  So far the resources I've looked at are pretty general.  It would be great if I can find a mentor type individual. 

Thanks in advance.

[GobbleNut]

 

From what I hear, Nebraska is a great place to start turkey hunting!

[JuniorPre 360]

The most helpful tip I received was to go out and buy a turkey choke for my shotgun, and pattern your gun. I like the new Winchester Long Beard shotgun shells in the #5 3 inch. Good luck and stick around this site. Everyone is a lot of help and you'll find a tone of useful information.

[cornfedkiller]

Sorry I can't really help you since I am not in Nebraska, but I hunt Nebraska every year, and its my favorite place to hunt turkeys!

What part of the state are you in?

[Schemy]

Sorry I can't really help you since I am not in Nebraska, but I hunt Nebraska every year, and its my favorite place to hunt turkeys!

What part of the state are you in?

I'm in Omaha.  I've been trying to get an idea of what public ground is close, but the states information seems very confusing to me. 

[neal]

Go North of you to the NE corner of the state. There's public up there and the Santee Indian Reservation. Good amount of birds and plenty of land to hunt on. I've hunted there a few times myself. Hasn't been an issue getting permission on private either.

Good luck!

[Schemy]

Go North of you to the NE corner of the state. There's public up there and the Santee Indian Reservation. Good amount of birds and plenty of land to hunt on. I've hunted there a few times myself. Hasn't been an issue getting permission on private either.

Good luck!

Thanks Neal.  I'll look that direction.

[SCGobbler]

Welcome Schemy,

I hear Nebraska is amazing to turkey hunt.  I hear if you find the right piece of property out there, turkeys are like roaches leaving the roost tree in the morning and returning in the evening!

Its definitely on my bucket list.

There are plenty of resources on here for you to pick up the finer things about this sport.  Best advice I can give you starting out is patience.  I did not have a mentor, I learned it all on my own through the first VHS Tape of "The Truth about Spring Turkey Hunting" and a few cassettes from Will Primos and Ben Rogers Lee.

Good luck and welcome to the highly addicting sport of Turkey Hunting.

[CT Spur Collector]

We hunted in the NW corner a few years back. Very close to the SD border.  Loaded with birds, had a great time. Don't get too caught up in only trying to call a tom to you.  Use different tactics if you need too, you'll know what I mean when you get there. There were so many hens, it was almost impossible to call a tom to the bbl.

Good luck, be safe & have fun.

[boomer]

Pretty much the farther you get away with Omaha the public ground gets less crowded. There is some good ground in the SE corner of the state.

[Schemy]

Thanks everyone for the replies.  I'm sure I'll have a bunch more questions as the season starts.

[jcour4]

Not from Nebraska but I've hunted different parts of the state and the information given so far is true. Lots of turkeys and I like the nw part of the state over the eastern part, just for a change of pace. The nw part of the state can be tough to hunt because of pressure and the amount of hens but there are a lot of turkeys there. I don't like the whole spot and stalk thing for turkeys but sometimes that's what you have to do to get a bird. you should have no trouble finding turkeys to hunt in Nebraska.

[Joe2Kool]

I'm from Tennessee, but hunted public land in the NW corner of the state a few years ago.  Looking to get back this year.  The Merriam's responded differently than the Eastern's here in TN.  They hit the ground moving whereas the Eastern are a little more relaxed.

If you hunt alone, like I do most of the time, learn how to use a mouth call.  Turkeys may respond to a box, slate, wingbone, etc..., but at some point, you have to put the call down and pick up the gun.  Many times you just need them to turn, or look up, or something, and a mouth call is just the ticket