YouTube and public land

[kytrkyhntr]

Care to post a link catman?

[deerhunt1988]

Gobbling birds will make people do even crazier things.

No doubt. On a piece of public ground in Maryland, I set up on a gobbling bird I put to bed the night before. He was roosted off a main dirt road about 150 yards down the sidehill, my truck was parked in line with his roost tree at the ridge top. Got within 80 yards of his roost in the dark early.

He lit up at daybreak gobbling good, and right then, heard a truck stop, door open dinging / keys in ignition. Bird gobbles again.

Guy starts his truck, and parked where I was and few minutes comes sliding down the sidehill through all those leaves, sees me waving about 60 yards below, and slides to a stop at my tree. Looks at me and asks "you gonna hunt that bird?"

Duh.

Guy looks all disappointed, dejected, and watched him climb back up to the top, making a bunch of noise in the leaves, get in his truck, keys in ignition dinging, and drive off. Never heard that gobbler again.

Public ground. Most often everyone is courteous. Once and a while, you get a zero. That was before this youtube stuff was popular.

Before my channel really took off, I roosted a bird in 2017 and got there the next morning before everyone else. Two guys from another state parked by my truck and snuck in on me and shot the bird off the roost. I was 50 yards from the bird and got it all on video. That's got to be the best public land story I've had to date.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Pro

Definitely one of my favorite vids back when I watched them!  If I watched it again right now, i'd bust out laughing and think "Arkie got 'em!"

[simpzenith]

I'd be plenty happy if they stuck their video cameras where the sun doesn't shine and let people figure things out on their own.

The wild turkey was doing a hell of a lot better than it is right now before all the youtubers and media brands began highlighting public lands and areas of the country with robust turkey populations.  Now we have a rapidly declining turkey population while turkey hunter numbers are surging and harvest rates are high.

If you believe the wild turkey is better off with the amount of exposure it has been and continues to receive, I've got some ocean front property in Colorado for you.

Come on man! You could wipe out the entire population of turkeys on all public lands east of the Mississippi and it wouldn't make a significant difference in the overall population of wild turkeys in that area of the country. To blame YouTubers for the decline in turkey populations is just silly.

[Kyle_Ott]

THP showed a fan coming up to them at a gas station one morning.  Just to prove a point, I told a buddy, give me 30 minutes and I'll tell you where they are.  Using google street view, Took about 10 before I figured it out. Guess what, they were right next to a piece of public, where they were showing gobbling birds.   
Same can be said for guys talking about a distance from an airport, city, etc. all it takes is showing an exit sign and people can hone in. 

If you guys think these YouTube hunters aren't putting a lot more people in these areas they publicize, you are dead wrong. 
Once you see an area(s) bombarded with people after someone puts a video out there, your attitude tends to change...
buddy of mine sent a podcast about Dave Owens talking about how bad the pressure on south FL public has became.  Why do you think that is

Dave has single handedly changed the dynamics of hunting on Big Cypress and he will continue to kill turkeys there despite the pressure because he is tenacious and talented.  A close industry friend of mine who hunted down there last year was told by the ranger there was a 400% increase in the number of people who hunted a particular area on opening weekend compared to opening weekends in the past. 

Everybody found out that THP was on Bienville last year and it's now the number one draw application WMA in the state of Mississippi.  Everybody knows that Dave hunts Homochitto; ask a local how enjoyable things are down there from a pressure perspective. 

There are countless locals who have had Youtubers visit their local public hunting spots only to deal with the masses who descend afterwards.  The reality is, the average turkey hunter doesn't have the disposable income or the vacation time to travel all over the country and they have to deal with the consequences of exposure once it happens. 

The majority of the United States now has a decreasing turkey population despite the fact that turkey hunter numbers are increasing.  There are still plenty of places a guy can go and hear turkeys gobble, BUT the reality is most of those places were considerably better 5,10 and 15 years ago. 

Most people have not travelled extensively enough or long enough to have any perspective on this.  I started hunting out of stated in 2003.  There is something impactfully saddening about visiting a piece of public land where gobbling turkeys were abundant 15 years ago to see it over run with trucks.  If you've never experienced it, I'm happy for you.  But no one can tell me it's better for the turkeys.  As far as I'm concerned, until we start shortening season lengths and reducing bag limits, the turkeys don't need additional hunter recruitment and they sure don't need Youtubers broadcasting where you can get unlimited OTC tags to kill turkeys until your trigger finger is broken or your conscience finally catches up to you. 

To be clear, I don't have any fundamental problems with videoed turkey hunting.  I've consumed thousands of hours of it from the earliest Truth series videos, to Cutt'n and Strutt'n to Youtube.  But for the life of me, I do not understand why the YouTube crowd feels compelled to disclose what state and/or region they are hunting when it comes to public land.  It's unnecessary and it's the the root of the problem but they continue to do it.   

My opinions are not popular among the fanboys and everyone promoting inclusion these days but they are formulated based on a lot of personal experience and quantifiable data (harvest numbers, population data, etc).  Turkey hunting is more fun with more gobbling turkeys in the woods.  Despite the fact that it's rewarding, it's considerably less fun when you have to walk 15 miles in a day to find one.  My kid can participate in plenty of activities that provide more immediate rewards and satisfaction than turkey hunting on public land offers a kid these days.  The better hunting is on private land and you're going to continue to see lease prices escalate as those with $$$ become more willing to pay absurd prices to avoid the public land rat race. 

Goodluck this spring. 

[Nathan_Wiles]

Back in the early 90's I moved to SC from TN. I started hunting WMA here and was enjoying a cheeseburger burger after an uneventful morning learning to turkey hunt by myself. A fella had doubled on longbeards and brought to the check station (we no longer have these). We all congratulated him and went back in, there was a group of older guys talking about it all and next thing you know they are sorting out where he was hunting from his truck...I recognized it too. My thought then was if I ever get lucky enough to actually kill a bird I need to be ready to never hunt that spot again cause folks that are determined to figure stuff like that out most certainly will.
I had a guy bird dog me for two days once, everytime I came out of the woods his truck was a 100yds up the road. Kind of a jerk thing to do but he never walked in on me or disturbed my hunt in any way he just parked his truck 100yds from mine at 7 different spots in 2 days. I should add i had killed a bird shortly after flydown on the first day due to a forum buddy that had left me an envelope at the check in box marking 6-8 gobbling birds. I like old familiar ground as much as anyone but public ground hunting has developed in me a "find the next spot" attitude. I felt like the turkey woods were more crowded in the late 90's than they are now...probably just my perception though.

Sent from my SM-N960U using Tapatalk

[silent tom]

THP showed a fan coming up to them at a gas station one morning.  Just to prove a point, I told a buddy, give me 30 minutes and I'll tell you where they are.  Using google street view, Took about 10 before I figured it out. Guess what, they were right next to a piece of public, where they were showing gobbling birds.   
Same can be said for guys talking about a distance from an airport, city, etc. all it takes is showing an exit sign and people can hone in. 

If you guys think these YouTube hunters aren't putting a lot more people in these areas they publicize, you are dead wrong. 
Once you see an area(s) bombarded with people after someone puts a video out there, your attitude tends to change...
buddy of mine sent a podcast about Dave Owens talking about how bad the pressure on south FL public has became.  Why do you think that is

Dave has single handedly changed the dynamics of hunting on Big Cypress and he will continue to kill turkeys there despite the pressure because he is tenacious and talented.  A close industry friend of mine who hunted down there last year was told by the ranger there was a 400% increase in the number of people who hunted a particular area on opening weekend compared to opening weekends in the past. 

Everybody found out that THP was on Bienville last year and it's now the number one draw application WMA in the state of Mississippi.  Everybody knows that Dave hunts Homochitto; ask a local how enjoyable things are down there from a pressure perspective. 

There are countless locals who have had Youtubers visit their local public hunting spots only to deal with the masses who descend afterwards.  The reality is, the average turkey hunter doesn't have the disposable income or the vacation time to travel all over the country and they have to deal with the consequences of exposure once it happens. 

The majority of the United States now has a decreasing turkey population despite the fact that turkey hunter numbers are increasing.  There are still plenty of places a guy can go and hear turkeys gobble, BUT the reality is most of those places were considerably better 5,10 and 15 years ago. 

Most people have not travelled extensively enough or long enough to have any perspective on this.  I started hunting out of stated in 2003.  There is something impactfully saddening about visiting a piece of public land where gobbling turkeys were abundant 15 years ago to see it over run with trucks.  If you've never experienced it, I'm happy for you.  But no one can tell me it's better for the turkeys.  As far as I'm concerned, until we start shortening season lengths and reducing bag limits, the turkeys don't need additional hunter recruitment and they sure don't need Youtubers broadcasting where you can get unlimited OTC tags to kill turkeys until your trigger finger is broken or your conscience finally catches up to you. 

To be clear, I don't have any fundamental problems with videoed turkey hunting.  I've consumed thousands of hours of it from the earliest Truth series videos, to Cutt'n and Strutt'n to Youtube.  But for the life of me, I do not understand why the YouTube crowed feels compelled to disclose what state and/or region they are hunting when it comes to public land.  It's unnecessary and it's the the root of the problem but they continue to do it.   

My opinions are not popular among the fanboys and everyone promoting inclusion these days but they are formulated based on a lot of personal experience and quantifiable data (harvest numbers, population data, etc).  Turkey hunting is more fun with more gobbling turkeys in the woods.  Despite the fact that it's rewarding, it's considerably less fun when you have to walk 15 miles in a day to find one.  My kid can participate in plenty of activities that provide more immediate rewards and satisfaction than turkey hunting on public land offers a kid these days.  The better hunting is on private land and you're going to continue to see lease prices escalate as those with $$$ become more willing to pay absurd prices to avoid the public land rat race. 

Goodluck this spring.

Hammer meet nail.  100% excellent and spot on post. 

[simpzenith]

Everybody found out that THP was on Bienville last year and it's now the number one draw application WMA in the state of Mississippi.  Everybody knows that Dave hunts Homochitto; ask a local how enjoyable things are down there from a pressure perspective.

You can't blame Dave or THP because they didn't reveal their locations. The blame lies at the feet of those that publish that info on forums and Facebook. Your post is a prime example of this. If anyone reading this thread didn't know where they were hunting in Mississippi, they certainly do now.

[eggshell]

Come on man! You could wipe out the entire population of turkeys on all public lands east of the Mississippi and it wouldn't make a significant difference in the overall population of wild turkeys in that area of the country. To blame YouTubers for the decline in turkey populations is just silly.

I hope you seriously don't believe this! There are many large tracts of National forest in the east that do indeed hold a significant part of the local population. I will be honest and say I have never followed you on social media or watched more than a couple of your videos and after this statement I will make it a point to not watch "ANY. I may be wrong, but I'd suggest rethinking this post. To me it kind of comes across as a "kill them all" attitude. I truly  hope you just were being facetious and not serious. I wish you well in your endeavors, but i think you made an error posting a statement like " wipe out the entire population of turkeys on all public lands east of the Mississippi "

[arkrem870]

look at me! look at me! I killed a turkey!  What a joke these social media guys are.   

Go hunt and enjoy it for yourself.... you don't need others approval/verification by posting videos online. You've lost sight of what turkey hunting is or maybe you never knew if posting videos like it's your job appeals to you as a turkey hunter.  Keep it quiet. Loose lips sink ships

[simpzenith]

Come on man! You could wipe out the entire population of turkeys on all public lands east of the Mississippi and it wouldn't make a significant difference in the overall population of wild turkeys in that area of the country. To blame YouTubers for the decline in turkey populations is just silly.

I hope you seriously don't believe this! There are many large tracts of National forest in the east that do indeed hold a significant part of the local population. I will be honest and say I have never followed you on social media or watched more than a couple of your videos and after this statement I will make it a point to not watch "ANY. I may be wrong, but I'd suggest rethinking this post. To me it kind of comes across as a "kill them all" attitude. I truly  hope you just were being facetious and not serious. I wish you well in your endeavors, but i think you made an error posting a statement like " wipe out the entire population of turkeys on all public lands east of the Mississippi "

I was trying to make a point. Public land makes up a small percentage of the total land area. Therefore the number of turkeys on public is very small compared to the number of turkeys on private. The density of turkeys on private is also much higher. My point being that to imply that increased hunting pressure on public lands has a significant impact on the total turkey population is just ridiculous.

[The Southpaw]

Wow, this thread makes me want to leave the forum. What a bunch of whiners. As hunting evolves, you have to evolve with it. Just because a youtuber was in "your" spot, doesn't give you the right to bash everyone. It is in fact public land. Their license dollars help pay for it every bit as much as yours do. Instead of complaining about the amount of people trying to capitalize on pieces of ground that THP, or Dave hunt, figure out another place to go so that you don't have to deal with it.
Yes, there was an increase of pressure on public last year, but how many people had a heck of a lot more time to hunt because of covid? I know I did. As a teacher, I was off school, and was able to hunt every single day from April1-May 31. I think that is where the majority of the pressure came from last season. Sure, certain areas that youtubers hit might have a few more people, but instead of complaining about it, figure out a new game plan. Youtube isn't going away, and complaining isn't going to help you kill turkeys.

[GobbleNut]

Just a few thoughts about all of the above:

1)  I like "turkey hunting" videos,...."turkey killing" videos, not so much.  I won't go into the details about which is which to me, but suffice it to say there are certain videos I will turn off the instant I see certain implements being incorporated into the hunt.  In addition, if those implements are being used in certain exclusive, turkey-rich environments that a blind-folded toddler could kill a gobbler in, I will turn them off twice as fast.  There are just too many really good, real-turkey-huntin' videos (Dave, Shane, THP, Catman, Panola, etc.) out there to put up with the wannabees. 

2)  All video dudes should eliminate all references or clues to where they are hunting other than generalizations.  It's okay to say you're hunting in Alaska,...just don't say (or show) that you are hunting at "Gobblers Last Stand WMA",...or wherever.

3)  I believe the increase in turkey hunting popularity is more due to the bird itself than anything.  It is just a blast,...and people that start hunting spring gobblers, in particular, soon find themselves wanting to do more of it than what they can get in their home state alone.  If you want to blame something else for the existing crowds, then look squarely at things like the mindset of certain organizations of "let's get every single dad, mom, and child into turkey huntin' so we can soak everybody for as many dollars as we can,...the impacts on the resource be damned."   

...The End...(For Now)   

[Ol timer]

look at me! look at me! I killed a turkey!  What a joke these social media guys are.   

Go hunt and enjoy it for yourself.... you don't need others approval/verification by posting videos online. You've lost sight of what turkey hunting is or maybe you never knew if posting videos like it's your job appeals to you as a turkey hunter.  Keep it quiet. Loose lips sink ships

Most You Tubers posting there videos we know who they are, it is there only real job making money off you viewing there channel. If you stopped watching you tube the problem goes away.

[arkrem870]

  Turkey hunting is not about views or likes!!! 

[GobbleNut]

Come on man! You could wipe out the entire population of turkeys on all public lands east of the Mississippi and it wouldn't make a significant difference in the overall population of wild turkeys in that area of the country. To blame YouTubers for the decline in turkey populations is just silly.

I hope you seriously don't believe this! There are many large tracts of National forest in the east that do indeed hold a significant part of the local population. I will be honest and say I have never followed you on social media or watched more than a couple of your videos and after this statement I will make it a point to not watch "ANY. I may be wrong, but I'd suggest rethinking this post. To me it kind of comes across as a "kill them all" attitude. I truly  hope you just were being facetious and not serious. I wish you well in your endeavors, but i think you made an error posting a statement like " wipe out the entire population of turkeys on all public lands east of the Mississippi "

I was trying to make a point. Public land makes up a small percentage of the total land area. Therefore the number of turkeys on public is very small compared to the number of turkeys on private. The density of turkeys on private is also much higher. My point being that to imply that increased hunting pressure on public lands has a significant impact on the total turkey population is just ridiculous.

If I might interject in an attempt to be a peace-maker here....
As far as I can tell, both of you are really good folks with what I consider to be the right attitude.  I just think there was an initial misinterpretation of the point Shane was making. 

As an aside, eggshell, if you do not watch Shane's videos, you might give them a look.  In my opinion, his are some of the best in terms of showing what turkey hunting is really all about,....at least from my own perspective.