Outing tracks

[Smooth_Operator]

I will "out" tracks quite frequently. Although I do it to find at which point during the day a turkey is traveling by the area. I will do the same with dusting bowls, raking them out smooth with my boot or hand, basically just separating fresh sign from old...

[870FaceLift]

Not only do I rub out tracks, but I carry a stick with a turkey foot on it and leave a lot of tracks near the road.

I'm laughing as I visualize you doing this

[GobbleNut]

I rarely do this turkey hunting,...there are so many tracks that you would spend all your time trying to scuff them out.  I have used that tactic for some other game species, however. 

As for leaving human tracks, if I am hunting somewhere that I want to possibly discourage others from hunting, I will consciously leave my own tracks in very obvious places in hopes that anybody else that comes along will see my boot tracks, get discouraged, and move on. 

Ahhh, the games we play to try to give ourselves an advantage....

[Bill Cooksey]

Best stunt I ever pulled was faking the death of a turkey several folks were hunting. There was a spot on a dirt road he liked to strut in the middle of the day, and that spot had to be walked by to access the area. Thing is, the bird didn't roost anywhere near that spot. I had a few minutes to hunt before work, but I had the next day off. Instead of trying to find an early bird (late in the season, and birds were scarce), I got to that spot early. I carried a bag of feathers with me. At sunrise, I pulled the trigger, ejected the hull where it would be easy to see, walked into the road and dumped a bunch of feathers around and then walked all around the spot.

Next morning I got there about 10:00am after getting beat up by another bird. There were two sets of bootprints going in and out. They stopped at the site of the "kill," and turned around and walked out. Oh, and my hull was moved about ten feet. The turkey showed up at 10:45. I did make him gobble at a call before pulling the trigger so I could claim I called him.

[fallhnt]

Yes...I hunt public land

[owlhoot]

Not only do I rub out tracks, but I carry a stick with a turkey foot on it and leave a lot of tracks near the road.

I was a waiting on that one  :TooFunny:Have to make and sell a turkey pooper scooper . Make a fortune and retire where there are REAL turkey tracks!

[Andy S.]

....but I carry a stick with a turkey foot on it and leave a lot of tracks near the road.

Please post up a pic of this contraption....

[VaBoy]

Bet I have kicked the soles off a couple pairs of boots doing it over the years . Throw turds out the roads too. Hunt a lot of public land and do what I can to keep the lazy hunters at bay as some don't hunt turkeys they just hunt some of the people that hunt turkeys.

[g8rvet]

Not only do I rub out tracks, but I carry a stick with a turkey foot on it and leave a lot of tracks near the road.

HA!   We made a turkey foot on a dowel rod to mess with my brother one year.  My nephew put tom tracks in his boot print like 4 times before he figured out we were messing with him. 

[Farmboy27]

I used to make Sasquatch prints all over where I hunt to try to scare others away. Next thing I knew the entire cast of the "finding Bigfoot" tv show were stomping all over my area. So I started borrowing all my neighbors cars and parking them at my spot the night before so it looked like a pile of people were hunting there. But every teenager that drove by thought that there was a party going on and stopped. Soon there would be a bonfire and loud music. As a last resort I started parking by my spot during preseason scouting and walking around wearing nothing but rainbow colored speedos trying to make everyone too uncomfortable to stop and scout. It turns out that doing that drew in an even less desirable group!  I was at my wits end on what else I could do when suddenly it hit me!  What if I worry more about calling in and killing the birds myself and worry less about someone else finding them?  Well I know it sounds crazy but guess what, I tried it and it really works!  I actually have more fun not stressing about something I can't control and my wife isn't worried about me leaving the house in speedos anymore. It's like a win/win!

[g8rvet]

Funny advice Farm.  I used to really worry about how others think and what they do, but then I stopped judging other people and learned to find humor in other rituals that seem silly to me.  Now I am happier.  If this thread offends you, I would suggest not reading it.  You will be happier to.  win/win

[Farmboy27]

It's all good g8rvet!  Just poking some fun.

[g8rvet]

Gotcha.  What is typed on the internet is often difficult to comprehend what would be simple to understand in person, humor or sarcasm is lost.  I had a ranch manager that spoke a little English and I speak very little Spanish.  On the phone, we could not understand each other. In person, no problem. 

[Farmboy27]

Understood. I don't do what you do and you don't do what I do. Doesn't mean it would be pleasure to sit and talk turkey with you! Lol.

[Tail Feathers]

Yep, I've obliterated some tracks in my day.
I've also taken great care on more than one occasion to pick every single feather at a kill site to avoid folks who would try to take over a honey hole.
Nowadays I'm not so sure it's necessary where I hunt.  It's private land and the 8 or so other turkey hunters on the lease have had so little success over the years I feel kind of sorry for them and leave the clues these days.