I don't disagree with societies over-reliance of cell phones. But think of it like a modern day GPS...that can call people if you get hurt...woooowwww. I went turkey hunting weeks after ACL surgery with my leg still in a brace by myself. Yep I jumped creeks on one leg and if I got hurt how would I get help, cell phone would be handy in that situation.

Cellphones are absolutely essential these days.I don't mean for playing video games to pass the time either. First off, they allow you to reach out to somebody in the case of an emergency. That alone is worth the price of admission. Also, it is a fantastic and silent way to communicate with your hunting parnter(s). Let's them know how the action is on one side of the area you are hunting compared to theirs. This alone has helped my friend and I bag birds each of the last three years. By having this open communication, we were able to communicate where a hot bird was when things were quiet in one area or in one case I had tagged out and was fishing, with gobblers blowing up all around me. Where my friend was hunting things were quiet. I let him know the action was hot where I was at and it led to a dead bird. Why use handheld radios that are noisy when cell phones serve the same purpose and are completely silent through texting/messaging? Also, it's great for taking and sending pictures while in the field. Sorry, but get with the times. Cellphones are a useful tool period.
It's just useful tool for hunting.

I saw this list in the magazine and my first reaction was also: using a cellphone to pass the time? what are you, an 8-yr old kid? sorry, md, but the greatest and most consistent joy of turkey hunting is being in the outdoors during the spring, and if you're missing that, you're missing the point of being out there. I LOVE the sound of the woods coming alive in that 1/2 hour before sunrise. And the rest of the day is pretty good, too. Not that I don't carry a cellphone for emergency uses (and to make my better half feel more secure). I set it on vibrate and don't pull it out of my sportsman's wallet (wallet and cell in plastic ziplock) until I hit the paved road and give her a call to reassure her. But before cp's, there was blessed relief from all that "noise". Now it follows you, but you CAN still control it instead of the other way around.

As for calls, I hope you restrained from telling the world how many calls you really carry with you. Most experienced turkey hunters I know carry quite a few. Persoally, I carry 5 different pot calls (slate, aluminum, 2 glass, 2 crystal) because they are easy to use and offer many different voices. I often work the same bird from different spots at different times and giving him the illusion of different hens seems to work better than hitting him with the same thing at 9 am that he heard at flydown. I also carry at least 2 but often 3-4 mouth calls for the same reason. Also, using both diaphragm and pots at same time makes it sound like mulitiple hens are looking for a party. I only carry one box call because of the bulk, plus to be honest, I'm not that good at using one anymore.

I also carry extra ammo, spare gloves and facemask, ThermaCell, a single hen deek, call cleaners, 3-4 locator calls, carry handle/tape measure, T-handle corkscrew to put deek stakes in hard ground (you don't need it until you do), deer stand umbrella cover for portable blind, compass, GPS, blaze orange to attach to vest when carrying bird out on public land, and a few other things I probabaly left out. Sounds like a lot, but I've used all of it at one time or another and when you're a mile or more from your vehicle, its pretty tough to go back and get that one item you really need.

Of course, to carry all that stuff I have an old vest with large pockets capable of holding it al(old HS Strut). By sheer coincidence, one of my best hunting partners uses the same vest. I have tried to buy a new vest but can't find one with large and small bellows pockets. All of the new ones assume you're only going to carry 1 or 2 pots and strikers, a small box call, and uncased diaphragms, and not much else. -Why can't somebody make a good useful flexible vest anymore? How about it HS Strut?

Probably the only thing I see missing is a small pair of pruning shears for customizing my hide when I sit to a turkey. You could use a pocket knife, but this is just easier. I may have a few more calls in the vest, but there won't be any decoys in that I am not gonna hunt the kind of places where they would be most beneficial. Anyway, gobbling or not, I prefer turkeys to come look for the call, not the bird making it.