Bumping The Roost Tree

[Greg Massey]

Opinion on bumping a gobbler on the roost. i hear so many people stay i want to slip into the roost before daylight and kill that bird. i think a lot of the time this is a big mistake. Most of the time no matter how careful you are your going to get busted and chase that bird off. He can go a mile or better from your hunting area. I just don't like calling to a bird on the roost because for one it can make the bird stay longer on the limb and that give's hen's a better change of getting to him first. To me your better off slipping into his area say around 40 - 60 yards away while he's gobbling and don't start calling until he hit's the ground. I want to be the first hen on the ground and i start calling softly in hoping he will come check me out after he fly's down.  That's why i never try and bump a gobble off the roost. I want him to stay in the area and to me this gives you a better change of killing him during the day. So my opinion is to avoid those roosting places and that lesson's the big mistake of bumping him out of your area. Were i hunt the turkeys have around 6 different areas they like to roost and we avoid those areas and never try to get right on top of him or bust him off that roost tree. Just a opinion ,, What do you think on bumping birds off the roost ?

[g8rvet]

It depends.  If I know what limb he is on, 40 yards sounds WAY to close.  I have never intentionally sat up that close to one, but have gone in blind to a new area and ended up right under them.  Did not kill either because I was so close I could not call to them until they flew down and the one place they knew a hen WAS NOT LOCATED, was the tree they just flew out of.   

I have a few places I set up near a roost when blind.  I try to never have to walk right near or under a likely roost area, even if it is well before daylight.  2 places I hunt I set up 100 or so yards from the only roost site on the property and either call them to me or live to fight another day.  I used to push up close to them there and ended up bumping a few and they would fly across the creek only to not show up again for a couple of weeks.

There is a creek bottom that runs through a heavily hunted area.  Moving in to the roost area before daylight and calling him down to the bottom instead of onto the hill where all the other hunters are set up is a great way to kill one.  Has worked several times.  It is a risk to bump them, but there is a ton of land and a ton of hunters and a ton of gobblers.  If we run him off, we go look for another.

[Swather]

I've gotten within a range before daylight that proved to be "too close" for those particular birds.

I've also been led into a new place by someone else and he went on down and accidentally set up right under them without bumping them. 

When you get one that is roosted by himself, you might call to him while still on the tree and get him to fly down to you.  But calling less while he is still on the tree is the safer approach.

No two turkeys are made in a mold.

[Farmboy27]

As far as bumping birds, I never worried about if I know where they are and can get in in the pitch dark.  Other than that I use my best judgement for how close to get.  I still try to get good and tight to them on the tree.  The less distance they have to come to me,  the less chance a hen of another hunter will mess things up.  As far as not calling till he hits the ground,  I've seen gobblers wait in the tree for the hens to walk in before flying down lots of times, so if you want to sound like the first hen on the ground then you're to late!  If you're truly that worried about bumping birds off tree then just wait until 8:00 to go into the woods.  I kill more birds between then and 12:00 anyhow!

[Cut N Run]

I'm not quite sure why everybody seems so fixated on getting right under the roost to kill a gobbler?  What percentage of your total gobbler kill do you get that way anyway? 

I have shot a few that had only been on the ground for a very short time, but because of the smaller size of the primary properties I hunt, I usually can't get close enough to hunt near the roost tree.  Instead, I rely on calling them to land I can hunt on.  Sure, it is fun to get in on a roost tree, but it isn't totally necessary to get the job done.  I understand that your odds are better if you can get him before he decides to go somewhere else, but I love the challenge of getting out ahead of him or beating him to someplace he already likes to go.

Lots of times the roost tree is surrounded by heavy or really open cover in early season and you'd make so much noise trying to get close, you'd get busted. It seems to me that scouting ahead of time and hunting the area he prefers to go first might be the best bet.

Jim

[VaTuRkStOmPeR]

We routinely position ourselves within 60-90 yards of roosted birds an hour or two before light begins to crest the eastern skyline.

There are two distinct, strategic advantages created by employing this tactic:
1. If the bird flies down in your direction he will likely be in gun range or very close to it.
2.  If he doesn't fly down in your direction you are still close enough that a quiet cluck, purr and scratching in the leaves can finish that bird within minutes of touching the ground.

Obviously, if I can see the bird on the limb, I'm not calling to him. However, 80-90 yards in the early spring timber is often the threshold where you're just far enough that you can't see him and vice versa.

Turkey hunting is all about proxemics and making it as easy as possible for a gobbler to surrender to curiosity.  It's also equally important to get close to hen flocks that have a gobbler to exploit a hen's confrontational tendencies. 

I should probably note that employing aggressive roost tactics in merriams and rio country can be counter-productive.  Those species often utilize the same roost trees and disrupting the large numbers of birds using them can definitely be catastrophic for success.

Utilizing aggressive roost tactics requires a lot of precision and double the level of investment.  You have to take the time while roosting to actually know exactly where the bird is, have to utilize patience and woodsmanship to sneak in that tight on him at 330 in the morning and you have to be able to remain still enough to avoid detection from the cubic view an elevated gobbler and his hens have over the forest floor.
But the truth is, when you're sitting 60 yards from a roosted gobbler and his flock, you experience the privilege of listening to them wake up, watching them preen, and hearing the soft bubble clucks and almost inaudible tree talk that a hunter who waits for the birds to start to gobble before moving in on them will never experience.  You also get to enjoy the heavy scent of sulfur on dew soaked leaves within mere minutes of flydown and will find your success rates soar.

If you think that "Most of the time you are going to get busted," I've got a cell phone full of dead turkeys pictures that we've killed in the morning twilight......

There's no turkey hunting rule that says you are required to shoot a turkey with boots on, boys. Take off your boots, slip on a second pair of wool socks and get another 20-30 yards closer....

[Fullfan]

Not me , I have killed some of my better birds by bumping them off the roost on purpose. Get him away from his hens and in an hour he will be mighty lonely.

[Farmboy27]

Lots of times I only have a limited time to hunt before work.  I don't have time to work a bird for a long period of time so getting tight to the roost is the only option.  I only get a few saterdays to hunt all day and all the rest of my hunts are quickies.  I do kill most of mine on Saturdays later in the morning but still love getting in tight to hear and see the show close up at sunrise!  Its part of what makes turkey hunting "magical" for me!

[dirt road ninja]

I try to get close enough to have a chance. Our birds do have historical roosting areas, but they might be 12 - 20 acres. I try to move in the final distance once he starts gobbling. To me the closer you are to him at any point in the day, the more likely he will wander towards you. He may not leave hens to travel 125 yards to you, but he might walk 30-40 yards if your in tight. Seems like I've had better luck, the closer I can get. I guess what I'm trying to say is the more distance you can cover means the less distance he has to cover. The less distance he has to cover better your chances are.

[Bowguy]

I never bump birds. You can see them in the trees in the dark, I go in very early w no light. It seems it's impossible to bump one if you're careful n I believe the closer the better. I set up blinds w my daughters with birds visible in trees. Just gotta be slow n quiet. They don't take off from every sound, if they did they'd never rest. Imo setting up near a roost is a key first light tactic

[VaTuRkStOmPeR]

I'd also agree with treerooster that 70% of our kill is achieved right at fly-down.  The other 30% is achieved between 730-9am.

[Bowguy]

I'd also agree with treerooster that 70% of our kill is achieved right at fly-down.  The other 30% is achieved between 730-9am.

I also agree it's pretty high percentage. We gotta remember it's not only being close that helps it's having a good idea of where they'll fly down n which way they're headed. Being close though you can imagine a clock, if you're thinking they're gonna fly down from 2 to 5 o clock n sit 3:30 about where they'll fly down distance wise you don't have to call em as far n less can go wrong, like coyotes running in, other birds or hunters messin you up, etc. you certainly can kill em later n some great hunts happen than. Odds are highest in the am off a roost

[BowBendr]

Everybody is fixated on his actual roost tree. I want to know exactly where he is roosted too, but I believe it is more beneficial to know where the tom likes to fly down TO.
If he is roosted off the end of a point or on a bench right below the ridge line there are a very few select places he will WANT to fly down to. A lot of times its exactly where they flew up from. I try to scout enough to kill him where he wants to be. Knowing your turkeys is the best bet, imo.


2015 Old Gobbler contest Champions

[Cut N Run]

I wish I had the luxury of getting in tight to roost trees, but that's seldom an option where I hunt.  They're almost always a few hundred yards off at best.  Don't get me wrong, I love to have short fly down hunts, but I don't mind spending hours in the woods hoping to strike a late morning bird.  Seven of my 10 best gobblers have come between the hours of 9:30 AM and 11:30 AM after the hens left them.  Some of that may be related to where I hunt too.  A lot of guys are out of the woods on their way to breakfast by 9:30 AM.   One of these days I'll get to try an out of state hunt, but it doesn't look like this year. 

Good luck to everybody this Spring, no matter what time of day works best for you.

Jim

[Farmboy27]

Good luck to you too Jim!  Go hunt em your way and have a great season.  That's what this "sport" is all about!!