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When do turkeys start gobbling?
Posted on 2/20/17 at 3:22 pm
Posted on 2/20/17 at 3:22 pm
I joined a lease last year, and didn't have time to scout all 6000 acres before summer was over and hunting season arrived. I've spent the last couple of weekends scouting, putting over 100 miles on my gps between walking and 4wheeler, so I learned the place pretty well. I've only turkey hunted a few seasons, and always with my dad or brother who hunt all of the time and do the calling. I'm going to try the first week or two turkey hunting by myself this spring. I found some turkey sign and know some good areas to key in on. I was going to make a few early morning weekday scout trips to listen before work. When do the turkeys start gobbling? It's about a 45 minute drive for me from home, but way worse as I head back into Baton Rouge during morning rush hour. I don't want to make any wasted trips if I can help it.
7
Posted on 2/20/17 at 3:26 pm to lowhound
They've already started.
Look for cool, sunny mornings with calm winds. Usually the day before and the day after a front comes through aren't as good for gobbling.
Cover a lot of ground. If the place has a good road system where you can move around by truck or ATV, keep moving.
Learn how to hoot owl with your mouth.
That's about all I got. Good luck.
Look for cool, sunny mornings with calm winds. Usually the day before and the day after a front comes through aren't as good for gobbling.
Cover a lot of ground. If the place has a good road system where you can move around by truck or ATV, keep moving.
Learn how to hoot owl with your mouth.
That's about all I got. Good luck.
Posted on 2/20/17 at 3:34 pm to lowhound
usually in the morning or evening.
Posted on 2/20/17 at 3:48 pm to LSUTIGERTAILG8ER
Normally they start gobbling good a little later in the year but as warm as it is I would suspect they are gobbling now. No Colors was spot on but I'll add fog tends to be shitty for gobbling also. Doesn't mean they can't gobble in fog or wind they just don't gobble as much or as well.
Posted on 2/20/17 at 4:10 pm to lowhound
There are no absolutes, but typically they will start gobbling on the roost about 30 minutes before sunrise
Sometimes they gobble a lot on the ground. Sometimes not Some old gobblers will gobble once on the roost to let the hens know it's time then get quiet or not gobble at all on the roost
If you get one gobbling way up in the morning, those are the easiest turkeys to kill as they are through with the hens they were with and are now looking for more
You are basically doing everything backwards by calling a turkey to you. The gobblers gobble and strut to attract the hens
They tend to gobble the most early in the season as they are trying to attract hens. Later in the season, they don't gobble as much, but they are not as henned up and work much better. Plus a LOT less people in the woods. Opening day can be down right ridiculous on public land
Sometimes they gobble a lot on the ground. Sometimes not Some old gobblers will gobble once on the roost to let the hens know it's time then get quiet or not gobble at all on the roost
If you get one gobbling way up in the morning, those are the easiest turkeys to kill as they are through with the hens they were with and are now looking for more
You are basically doing everything backwards by calling a turkey to you. The gobblers gobble and strut to attract the hens
They tend to gobble the most early in the season as they are trying to attract hens. Later in the season, they don't gobble as much, but they are not as henned up and work much better. Plus a LOT less people in the woods. Opening day can be down right ridiculous on public land
Posted on 2/20/17 at 4:12 pm to lowhound
Best advice is to know the terrain very well and find out where the turkey wants to go. Be there before he gets there and it's easy. Be somewhere the turkey doesn't want to be, and he may respond to you a whole bunch, but he ain't coming
Posted on 2/20/17 at 6:01 pm to lowhound
If you can get there in the evening before dark you can listen for them going up to roost. The hens will make some cackling noises and you can hear wings as they fly up. Sometimes a Tom may gobble at a locater call and sometimes not. But if you hear hens going up he ain't far away even if you don't hear a gobble. Then just be there at the arse crack of day the next morning.
Posted on 2/20/17 at 7:34 pm to lowhound
Seen 3 goblers fanned out today so I suspect they gobbling now. First good clear crisp morning I'll be listening.. Can't wait to sit on my tailgate with my coffee and listen to them thunder chickens. That's just as fun as hunting them to me
This post was edited on 2/20/17 at 7:35 pm
Posted on 2/21/17 at 12:29 pm to WPsportsman
A coworker told me it may still be a little early, and it has to do with day length more than temperature. Still a month before the season opens. If they're gobbling now, may not gobble as much during the season as they get henned up. I learned the terrain really well and know where the clearings and food plots are with lots of tracks and sign near thickets and big timber. I figure I need to locate which clearing he's roosting near and which ones are his mid-day dusting strut zones are.
Posted on 2/21/17 at 12:37 pm to lowhound
The sign you are seeing now is good and all but many turkeys are still bunched up and will likely be a long ways from you are seeing them right now Can be miles away
Had some turkeys banded at the end of February a few years back and one of the gobblers was shot opening day four miles from the banding site
Had some turkeys banded at the end of February a few years back and one of the gobblers was shot opening day four miles from the banding site
Posted on 2/21/17 at 3:51 pm to Ron Cheramie
My lease has a good mix of hardwood creek bottoms with mostly pine clearcuts of varied ages. Some are very old, some cut this fall, and a lot of the pine has been stipped with varying amounts of briars/grass in the stripped areas. I saw a lot of sign in the brand new cutovers, and I figure old tom will want to show his stuff out in the open. However, I always see hens and jakes crossing the road in this one area heading to a big bottom that's real thick, viney, and a lot of palmettos. Do I need to stay close to the thick areas or in the new cutovers where the sign is? I've got every road, 4wheeler trail and food plot marked on my gps now, so I can make my way covering ground between areas pretty easily, just wondering on what type of habitat to try and focus on, the hardwoods w/ palmettos, or clearings/pipelines in the pines.
Posted on 2/21/17 at 7:27 pm to lowhound
They like to strut in open areas where they can see and be seen so a fresh cutover is good for that. Logging sets and food plots or a good open ridge or bottom are good places also
They tend to avoid overly thick places as their vision is their main defense. That is not a hard fast rule though as I have killed them in some pretty thick palmetto in tensas. Hens will utilize thicker areas to nest though so a good mosaic in the landscape is excellent for turkeys
They tend to avoid overly thick places as their vision is their main defense. That is not a hard fast rule though as I have killed them in some pretty thick palmetto in tensas. Hens will utilize thicker areas to nest though so a good mosaic in the landscape is excellent for turkeys
Posted on 2/21/17 at 7:30 pm to Ron Cheramie
Heck a few years ago it was a very cold spring and things didn't really start warming up tempwise until May. I didn't hear a gobble until the 1st week of May.
Posted on 2/21/17 at 9:37 pm to lowhound
Heard 2 hammering from the roost in South Ar Sunday morning.
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