Decoy's: Friend or Foe?

The question has to come up at least a dozen times a season... "Do you use decoy's?" Yeah, I sure do and wouldn't have it any other way. Even during the most rushed times, I find it crucial to at least have a Jake and hen set up. I used to feel much differently about it though. If I was running late to a spot, I'd rather just be set up without any decoy's thrown into the mix. Why the change of heart you might ask. I'll tell you why... Even if the Gobbler coming into your call isn't interested in the decoy at all, it still gives him something else to focus on, other than yourself. Now let's be clear, more times than not, that big Gobbler is looking right at those decoy's for a reason! Yet on the flip side, there's no evidence saying that it's impossible to call in a bird without a decoy present. The most important thing about them is that it takes the attention of of you. Maybe you'd get away with putting a call down, or moving your gun slightly, when otherwise you wouldn't.

Old School or New School?

I recently read an article about the usage of old time calls. You know, that wingbone call or old box call that is 40 years old and held together with bits of tape and string. What is it about these calls that make them so special? Is there a story that goes along with them or is it nothing at all? Do you have more faith in one than the other? I think more times than not, it all comes down to what the call has produced in the past. Why go with the new one, when the old one called in that slammer you bagged last year? The article I was reading questioned the sound of the older call vs. the newer ones. Personally speaking, I have quite a mix of new and old in my vest, mostly because I want a variety of sounds. For a while there I would try to get every new call possible, yes I am a sucker for good marketing... But time and time again I sat at the base of the tree pulling out my slate call from 10 years ago that I called my first bird in with and more times than not, that call gets the attention of more birds than any new call(which I needed a loan to buy). When you think about it, calls are a relatively simple thing to construct. Every so years I find that a call maker will venture into a new area, with new material and build something different, cool. But for the most part, many of them are the same. What's the point here? Stick to what works, but next time you're sitting in the woods or on the couch practicing your calling, look at what call you choose first; which one do you have more faith in?

Crunch Time

So, it's now about a week away from Spring Gobbler season and the tension is starting to build. What is the right spot for opening day? Will there be any birds talkin'? Looking back on the numerous years of Turkey hunting that I've been through, it's so tough to predict what will happen. Some years, opening day can produce an abundance of different birds responding to the call. Other years, it seems like it's still January and the birds aren't even interested in a hen. Hopefully this year turns out to be a successful one. But the whole point of this blog post is to address one question: Are you ready for opening day? Whether or not opening day has started in your state or not, do you prepare for opening day? I sure have changed my ways.

I used to not get ready for the Spring season at all. I would pretty much throw a bunch of stuff in the back of the truck and then head up to camp for the hunt. But the past few years, I've changed my ways. Starting about 3 weeks before the start of my season, I get all of my gear together and boy it's amazing how much stuff we can accumulate over the years! This year I finally brought myself to buying myself a new vest. I had an LLBean Plenty O' Pockets vest from about 7 years ago(which of course is not made anymore), and I got stuck crawling under a barbed-wire fence. That in itself is a longer story that I won't touch on...

Anyway, I prep my calls, sand down my slate and attempt to use my mouth calls for the first time each year(each year's first time is always a good laugh). Like any sport, practice makes perfect and practicing with all of your calls is a way to eliminate those slight imperfections that can get you busted in the woods. Having played around with the calls and tweaked some things allows me to feel a lot more at ease on opening morning when my back is against the tree.

18 Days and countin'

We're only a short 18 days away from Opening Day in New York and then the chase for big bird commences again. What will this Spring season bring?

Got Beat or Busted Last Year... Not This Time Around.

Last year, I got on a bird early in the season yakking away every morning. But every single morning he hung up. It all started when I had seen him out in his strut zone with 2 hens. What the hell I said let me ambush him and set up on him. As any good Turkey hunter knows, stealing a gobbler away from 2 hens is near impossible, but its always worth a shot, call it desperation, but its worth a shot. So here I am set up in the middle of the pines, a good spot. Throwing a few soft clucks at him I wondered what he was doing in the field. I couldn't quite see that far to the field where he was, probably 150 yards through the pines. Heck, I wondered if he was even still there, we've all been in that position before. But then he gobbled back. I could hear him spittin' and drummin' and it got deeper and deeper and louder and louder. If you've never experienced a bird spittin', it's pretty crazy. I had the Benelli up and got the bead on his head, but he was way to far through way too much brush to blow a first shot. I managed to hold off on shooting a desperate shot that wasn't gonna make it and try for him the rest of the season.

I must have set up on this bird at least 5 more times throughout the course of the season. Every morning I would get him gobbling and then he would hang up. So I would set up on him a different way the next morning and he would hang up again, always making you believe he was right on the other side of that knoll.

I made it a goal for this year to kill that bird. I am changing my tactics and we'll see if it works...

Things to Change:

Hunting with a partner- This bird only got more educated over the last 11 months that I haven't hunted him. By having one caller and one shooter, I can pull this bird farther a lot easier without having him hang up on me.

Time to scout the land before the season- Last year I went in blind and had no idea about how the land was laid out. Lots of small meadows to use instead of getting hung up in thick brush or heavy pines where taking a shot can be compromised.

Time to Pregame...

April is indeed upon us and just like every year that can only mean one thing, Turkey season is rapidly approaching. For most hunters the Spring Turkey season in the northeast is a time to get back into the woods and start chasing those longbeards. May 1st is opening day in New York State but I'll be in the woods scouting plenty before that. I'm pretty sure that it is safe to say that a good amount of people don't scout for birds as much as they will for deer season, but why is that? I used to be the same way until I realized that birds can be awfully predictable, especially if you know the land you're hunting on.

Starting around the second week of April, I'll get out in the woods right at daylight and listen for some gobbling. Each year is so different. So many times it seems to be just slightly too early to ever hear a bird sounding off. Other years, you would think Turkey season was in full swing. We'll see what kind of response we get this year.

By late in the second week/early third week I'll start to give some yelps back. Walking around some large fields, glassing and walking for most of the morning seems to always work well. I'll never set up on a bird before the season though. All you need to do is get busted by that longbeard and then you just educated him more. We all know those birds are smart enough!

By the last few weeks of April, I'll have a good if not great idea of what is happening in the Turkey woods for this season and by the time May 1st rolls around I'll know where to set up... if only things were that easy...

Preseason Gear:

• 1 Good Set of Binoculars
• 1 Cody Glass Call
• 1 Wood Witch Slate Call
• 4 Woods Wise Strikers
• 1 LL Bean Plenty O' Pockets Vest
• 4 Cups of Bold Coffee
• 1 Favorite Realtree Hunting Cap