Florida Turkey Hunting Tips
On our spring gobbler hunt in April 2009 at Watermelon Pond Plantation in Archer, Florida, We used the new “Primos” hen and jake decoys called She-mobile and Jake-mobile. I really like these decoys because they are made of soft plastic, do not make a lot of noise when carrying them and they have an iridescent paint job that makes them look life-like. The Jake-mobile only has a 3 inch beard which is less intimidating to wary gobblers and you can use real tail feathers on the Jake-mobile fan if you prefer.
Although the decoys roll up and fit easily into a big pocket on your hunting vest, some people do not like carrying extra “stuff” around with them. However, I really get a kick out of watching turkeys interact with the decoys and they can be a real asset in drawing the turkey’s attention if you need to draw a bow or pull the turkeys to a specific location for a camera shot. I have had some turkeys run from decoys in the past but have had really good luck overall with the new Primos turkey decoys.
Calling is probably the number one reason why people go turkey hunting. It is an exciting time of the year to be in the woods during spring-time with all the green plant life popping out. It is challenging to try to stimulate the long beards to let out monstrous love yodels in response to your calling. As such, most hunters have a vest full of calling apparatuses and practice diligently before the hunting season in the anticipation. We watch hunting shows, seeing all of the “successful” footage of other hunters calling in a turkey. If you want to be a good hunter you should try to mimic what happens in nature, not what you see in on TV. Don’t get me wrong, you can learn a lot from watching hunting shows but you can become a better hunter by spending more time in the woods while remembering that in the context of hunting shows you are only seeing a very small amount of the time spent in the woods to produce a successful hunt. Have you ever heard a hen continuously call all morning long, really loud, AND NEVER MOVE? In nature, hens usually only yelp once or twice as a means of locating a gobbler. When a hen hears a gobbler, she will go to the gobbler, if she is ready. As hunters, we have to remember this and try to outsmart the gobbler since we are not “going” to him but instead we are trying to get him to come to us.
Four tips that Josh and I used at Watermelon Pond Plantation that really helped our success included:
1).Two callers: Hunting with a buddy can increase calling effectiveness, by having more ability to fool a wary long beard. But it is important to have a plan for the day especially if the buddies are two different types of hunters. What I mean is one buddy might be the type of person to sit still all day long where the other buddy likes to move around, so it is important to talk about a plan for the hunt but remain flexible in adapting to new situations that arises. A successful hunt is much more enjoyable if you have a buddy there to share it with, plus, hunting with a buddy is much safer.
2). Effective Calling: Being effective means two things to me, being a good caller and knowing when to call. To learn this takes practice in the off season as well as many years of experience. My hunting partner, Josh is one of the best callers that I’ve ever hunted with. You can tell that he practices in the off season to mimic sounds that “naturally” occur in the wild, as opposed to sounds that would win a calling contest. He has a good friction call that he knows how to use. He is also very effective with a mouth diaphragm call. He can produce any natural hen sound with the diaphragm as well as a gobble! Try saying “tick-a-tick-a-tick-a” really fast to produce an immature gobble. This call can be very effective at fooling a true limb hanger.
3). Mimicking a fly-down: I carry a turkey wing feather in my vest. If we are close to a roosted gobbler in the morning, I will use the wing to mimic two hens (while making clucking sounds) flying down off the roost. We used this technique to successfully fool the 12 ¼” bearded Osceola Gobbler on April 3rd!
4). Be patient and do not over call: Most birds I’ve killed have been taken between 11:00 am and 1:00 pm. You can use a crow call to stimulate a shock gobble and once you find one you have to be patient. If a turkey gobbles to your yelp then hush up and let him come. When you think it is time to get up and go, wait another 15 minutes. Too many hunters move around too much and call too much, and usually quit hunting at 9:00 am.
For me, hunting is also about enjoying nature and relaxing in the wild. I like to be prepared to spend the entire day in the woods. Sometimes I take a book to read. I also like to fill out my hunting journal during the afternoon hours with details from the previous day’s hunt. Take a nap while your buddy takes first watch. I love taking a nap around 1:00 pm on a spring day just after eating lunch, sprawling out under a Live Oak in the shade with a light breeze blowing – you never know, when you wake up, that big Tom might be dancing with your decoys!
Thanks again, Kate, for a great hunt at Watermelon Pond Plantation. We hope to return this Spring Gobbler Season for more great Florida turkey hunting!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
