sounds like typical experiences spring season

I am totally convinced the birds you shoot for the most part are "hotheads"

and I agree the ones who gobble their heads off at everything, but you never see them, are great mysteries. Had more than one this season that gobbled over 100 times to the point you wonder how he could even have the energy to keep that up, but just wouldnt come in and no creek/brush/road, no nothing to hang him up terrain-wise.

Lately this last is my most common spring turkey experience [besides the days when none of these birds will talk at all!]

Phil quote:
I dropped my younger son at school and got to the public area I hunt a little after 7:00 a.m.......

Man, school must start early for that young man.

Jim

jjas -- My son has either football conditioning or jazz band practice before school three days a week. Most of the time I complain about having to him to school early, but not during turkey season.

Tagged 2 gobblers shot on different days at the same place. The photos and stories are posted in the answer section. my friend Billy had a fantastic year so far. He has taken 5 gobblers in 3 states. Four of them had spurs ranging from 1 1/4 to 1 3/8 inches. My other friend Dan not so much success. Seasons not over yet.
Found one nice bag full of Morels and got 2 ticks so far.

I did rather well this spring accounting for four gobblers. After visually locating the first at about 200 yards I called and he couldn't get there fast enough but then hung up at 50 yards. 20 minutes later he left, then came back, then left etc etc etc. Since I was trying Federal Heavyweight, I let loose the next time he came to what I thought was 50ish yards. Over he went and never twitched. The next two came after a few days of bowhunting where the birds were plenty close but no shot was there so the gun came back out. Called them both in at once, shot the first, the second didn't get the hint so I shot him too. #4 I lucked into. On the way back to the truck I topped a hill and there he was so I shot him. No skill in that one, just a plain ole blundering. I went back to bowhunting and I am done using strutting tom decoys. The damn things just keep hanging up looking at my decoy and won't come in. I didn't deploy them while using the gun but after three years and no turkey while being used, the test is over.

Other things of note:
I found one deer skull with horns attached.

I saw a badger and made my diaphram call into an impromtu predator call and he came right in close enough to hit with a hammer.

Only one tick.

I had a great time.

Time to go fishing!

One in my home state of NY. Two Merriams in Nebraska. One more tag to fill in NY. I am going out tomorrow morning.

Phil, nice season. At my hunting ground, the birds were henned up horribly. I hunted HARD for 18 of the 21 days the seasons open. Had lots of gobbles, but nothing but jakes came in. On the next to the last day of the season, my brother and I slipped into a big hilly pasture where I'd seen a tom w/ hens the morning before. We crested a hill and there they were. 11 birds, a tom in full strut, another long-beard, 7 jakes of various sizes, and 2 hens. We stuck our decoy out and got in the treeline. We watched those toms/jakes for 1 1/2 hours zigzagging around this pasture, following those hens. They couldn't care less about our calling. Finally, the hens went into a creek bottom, and some cutting got their attention. All 9 of the guys came in, the boss tom gobbling his head off the whole time. I took him @ 30 yards, chaos ensued, and my brother got a jake that ran right at us. Great hunt, the only downside being that it was my bro's first day of hunting, and my 18th!

In 18 days of hunting:
I found 3 1/2 gallons of morels
I found around 187 ticks on me
I walked up on 3 rattlesnakes, one of which bit my friend and hospitalized him for 3 days, almost killing him.
I saw 7 toms w/hens after the 1pm deadline for hunting
I tumped my 4wheeler once making a trail
I think you had a better season than me!

I have not had any success at all. Talk about bad luck... all the turkeys I have called in have either been scared away by me or somebody else. I will take blame for the first turkey I saw but one of the hunting members of my club came driving his truck down my path where I was set up and that scared the second one.

Phil, Mine was a little slower than yours, except for the ticks (3). Still very enjoyable though. Couple days were too windy. A couple days i was 10 min late getting out of bed. One day someone beat me to my spot. I Saw only a few gobblers, and only had 2 gobble for me, each time, once. They're hunted pretty hard here. Still have thursday and friday and will give it at least one more try. Best gobbler i saw all year was on the golf course, which is where i'll be at 10:37 today.

What do most turkey hunters think is most important in hunting turkeys,

a] good calling, good camo, good equipment

or

b] good skills as woodsmen/hunters, turkey knowledge in general ?

I have had the privilige of hunting with some world-class turkey hunters, and if I get some replies I'll tell you what they said and I'll give my opinion.

I had my first hunt this year, and after about 5 different days in a blind. I shot a youg Jake. I will be hooked for the rest of my life. Of the numerous ticks, and hot sweaty days, a few rain storms, it was great, by the way I'm 57.

Elmer Fudd -- You left out c.] patience Once I finally learned to give a turkey time to do whatever it is going to do, I became a much more successful hunter.
Of the pros I've been around, Ray Eye would certainly answser b]. The rest would answer b.] too, but they would really be thinking you need both a]. and b]. plus a good measure of c].

One thing I have learned the last few years taking friends out turkey hunting. It's much easier to get myself a gobbler than one for another hunter. Try it and you will see why my respect for guides just goes up. You want your friend to taste the sweet fruit of success so badly. Two people make more noise, more movement, more of everything that leads to zero fried breast strips.

Turkey Season!?

How about turkey "frustration" season!

Turkey Season recap:
No. of turkeys responding to calls: two
One turkey responded from Texas, I was calling from Oklahoma. The other responded from approximately 800 yards. Some jerk had been to the gun store and bought a "Bucket O' Bullets" and began target shooting, scaring the bird away.

This had to be the most "worst" season on record, for me anyway. This is the first year since '03 when I didn't harvest at least one of our three bird limit!
I have acquired three new hunting sites. All three proved to have an abundance of turkeys, but alas, all toms were henned up and refused to come to any call or decoy. Mentored one young man in his first "Youth Season". Birds would gobble off the roost, fall silent, then hen up and move off. Roost locations were never on my hunting sites so was unable to set up anywhere near roost. This proved to be the situation for the entire season, with the two above mentioned gobblers the ONLY ones responding to ANY call other than to move their harem of hens away from my "Pretty Boy/Pretty Girl" decoys. Only after the season was three days closed was I able to get a tom to respond and come in. #$%^&*!!!!

First Bubba

Del in KS, thanks, looks like the conversation moved to there!

I didn't go out but still got a bird. The Neighbor likes hunting them but not eating them, so I got a bird with no cost, snakebites or ticks.
Is that a perfect season?