Newbie to turkey hunting with a question or two!

[hunter322]

Hey everyone im new to the sport and have a couple questions as im starting to get frustrated. I have seen darn near 100 birds over the last 3 days and countless toms struttin their stuff but they just wont come that last 30 yards. It also seems if im here they are over there and if im there they are over here. One of my questions is do turkeys have good sense of smell? I know they have sharp sense of sight and hearing but how bout smell? My other question is, im hunting from a blind on the edge of a picked corn field that the turkeys are frequenting. Like i said i have seen countless toms but they just wont close the distance. im using 3 hen decoys and 1 tom decoy that is not in strut. are these decoys doing more harm then good right now? it seems like the toms wont respond to calls they are to busy with the other birds. any help would be greatly appreciated!!!

[ANYFISH2]

I give you some advice that was given to me. If the birds are hanging up in field and frequent the same spot in the field, set you blind up there, right in the open. As long as you know where they seem to come from and do not allow to much light in your blind turkey don't seem blind shy.

Also with decoys you may want to expirment with numbers and style, most guys I know seem to prefer one hen and one jake(unfaned) however in situations like you have described they seem to think a fanned jake decoy seems to help pull a lone tom from a group of toms and hens.

If the Toms are stuck on hens they can be very frustating, they don't want to leave the hens.

These are all tips that have been given to me over the last year. A disclamer though I have yet to harvest a Tom myself in the last two seasons. But not because of a lack of opportunity, these tricks have gotten me close enough though.

[FrontenacPike]

Hey everyone im new to the sport and have a couple questions as im starting to get frustrated. I have seen darn near 100 birds over the last 3 days and countless toms struttin their stuff but they just wont come that last 30 yards. It also seems if im here they are over there and if im there they are over here. One of my questions is do turkeys have good sense of smell? I know they have sharp sense of sight and hearing but how bout smell? My other question is, im hunting from a blind on the edge of a picked corn field that the turkeys are frequenting. Like i said i have seen countless toms but they just wont close the distance. im using 3 hen decoys and 1 tom decoy that is not in strut. are these decoys doing more harm then good right now? it seems like the toms wont respond to calls they are to busy with the other birds. any help would be greatly appreciated!!!

Don't worry about scent at all. Turkeys eye sight compensates for no scent defense. I'm assuming that the toms you are seeing are "henned up". That is one of the toughest situations for a turkey hunter.

Here is a couple things you can try

A. Pick a fight with the boss hen and try and pull the whole flock to you. Try and get her into a heated challenge, by being aggressive on the call and when she does respond interrupt her.

B. Hunt later into the day. The hens will eventually go off and nest or simply wander off. The toms will get lonely and you can have an opportunity at them.

C. Scatter the flock. This is done by sneaking up as close to the as possible and running at them. The only way this can be effective is if you scatter birds in all directions. Once they are scattered set up close to an area that a tom flew or ran off to. This technique is usually done in the fall but can also be used in spring hunt.

D. Make your own flock. A couple years ago I had the same problem, so I called all my buddies and borrowed their decoys. I ended up setting out 15 deks and was able to call in the whole flock using 5 different calls.

E. Set up an ambush. If you can figure out the birds travel route, set up in front of them with out decoys / no calling and wait till they walk by you.

Make sure you are in their comfort zone. "It also seems if im here they are over there and if im there they are over here." Turkeys unlike deer don't care about blinds. If you have to set your blind in the middle of the field go ahead and do it. This may sound dumb but what color clothing are you wearing? Leave the camo at home and wear all black. Camo inside of a blind stands out, just something to try.

Another thing to give a shot is adjust your spread. Try using just one hen and one jake / tom decoy. Make sure you face your decoys towards you, that can help birds close.

Given only what you wrote and not seeing the whole thing play out like you did, here is what I would do. I would move my blind to the spot that the birds hung up. I would use 1 hen and 1 strutter both facing towards me with their butts in the directions the birds most like approach from. Since you have them somewhat patterned and know that the birds will eventually be there I would go easy on the calls and only use very subtle calls (purrs and cluck). If I had no luck in the morning I would ditch the blind and do a some run and gunning. I would try and find a vocal bird and move as close as possible. If the birds wont respond to a locator call, I;ll use my slate / box. I start off subtle and work my way louder. If nothing responds move to the next spot. Make sure that before you let a call loose have a spot nearby to set up...you never know how close he might be.

Good luck, don't loose patience...keep trying new things!!!

[Borch]

Try it without the decoys and move where the turkeys seem to be traveling. We had the same issue until we left the decoys in the truck. Close encounters from that point forward.

[Outdoor Authority]

Take your decoys and put them with in 5yards of the blind. They may still hang up, but hopefully they do it with in range. Try adding some movement to your decoys with some fishing line. Try a different call type or brand. I like the other guys struggle to bring in hened up toms. It seems every time I get a Tom to come in a hen brings him in. If you are setting your blind in the open field try hiding it in the woods, most of the time it dose not matter but makes me feel better. Good luck and keep at it. Things will fall together for you.

[Hoyt4]

Leave the decoys at home. Get out of the blind and get or move the blind. Move you position. Try and get loud and aggressive on the calls. That seems to get the hens going. I had luck this weekend using the cackle and they would gobble every time and came in looking I was just setup in a bad spot.

[hunter322]

well my season is over and have a big fat 0 to show for it! im frustrated as all get out! i also have another question do jakes gobble too? or is that something that comes with maturity?

[Traxxx]

Jakes definately do gobble. I think they actually gobble more than the Toms do most of the time. Typically a Jakes gobble is shorter in length, than a mature Tom.

Keep at it, it'll be that much sweeter when you get that first one!