Toxic Turkeys: 5 Reasons You Aren't Tagging Any Gobblers

Turkey hunting with a bow can be as rewarding of a hunt as you can participate in. It also can humble and frustrate even the best bowhunters time and time again. In the last 20-plus years, I’ve bowhunted turkeys all over the country and  can tell you from experience that I’ve shared more frustrations, heartbreaks, failures and disappointments than I’d like to admit. But through trials and tribulations I’ve also learned a thing or two, and with that has come more success and more opportunities. I’ve learned what works and what doesn’t, and there always seems to be a few general themes that make or break a turkey bowhunt. Here are five reasons you're not tagging more turkeys.

1. Lack of Patience

The old adage “patience pays off” couldn’t ring more true than in the turkey woods. In my experience, there are plenty of turkeys harvested because of patience, but even more saved due of a lack of patience. In today's world, with an overwhelming abundance of turkey hunters across most states, patience is more important now than ever before. Flocks of birds that once were rarely hunted now hear tons of calls and face a lot of pressure every spring. Due to the spike in hunting pressure — which almost always involves too much calling — we’ve created some very smart turkeys immediately after the season opener.

To combat this, I've found that less calling and more waiting equals more opportunities at gobblers! I like to locate birds, call slightly to let them know I’m there and then let patience work its magic. Instead of overcalling, I’ll sit tight and wait — let curiosity kill the cat! This is more natural and creates a sense of safety that the “hen” he's has heard is in fact real. More on this in a bit!

Also, do not move positions every 15 minutes and rely only on aggressive plays. Sometimes soft calling and waiting for 45-60 minutes is what it takes to convince an old, stubborn tom that he needs to come check out your calls I love to run-and-gun as much as the next guy, but sometimes sitting down in one spot and spending some time there does more good than trekking through the woods all morning.

2. Stuck in a Mental Rut

When it comes to bowhunting turkeys, patterning is rarely the gameplan that works out. Turkeys are scratching, feeding and moving all day long. Unlike a deer, or an elk for that matter, turkeys do not bed down during the day — instead opting to move from area to area that provides them with food/water and a safety buffer. I have found that it is extremely easy to fall into a rut when bowhunting turkeys, which can put you days behind the flock and absolutely out of the game.

A prime example of this took place in Kansas — on public land — a few years back. Two mornings in a row I watched a local flock use a creek bottom as its mid-morning approach to some agricultural fields that were on a private piece of ground. After seeing this behavior, I immediately thought that I had the perfect spot picked out to wait on these birds with a “perfect pattern” already in place. Boy, was I wrong! For the next three days I hunted this creek bottom, only to come up emptyhanded, disappointed and frustrated. I barely heard any gobbles and never saw a bearded turkey in three days. Those birds quit using the bottom as fast as they started, and instead of realizing I needed to figure out another move, I stayed stuck in a mental rut by thinking that those birds just had to come back and do what I watched them do. Long story short, if something isn’t working, don't keep doing it. Try a different tactic and get out of your own rut. Do this and you’ll see your success rate go up!

3. Overcalling

If I had to put my finger on the number one mistake I see (and hear) turkey hunters make, it would be calling too much! With the growing popularity of turkey hunting across the country, it’s no surprise that there are more hunters in the woods each spring. Seeing as the most effective and fun way to hunt a turkey is by calling to them, one can assume that there are a lit of people in the woods calling to turkeys each year. This, however, creates an atmosphere where a tom must decide if what he's hearing is a real hen, or just an imposter.

In my opinion, we generally call too much, giving away our position in the process. Remember, these birds have been called at, called in, shot at, etc. if they’ve lived a few years, so they know the game by now. 

My strategy is simple: I like to let a bird know I’m there, allow him to respond back with a gobble, and then I'll move toward him so he knows that I’ve moved closer to his gobble. After one more calling sequence, I'll go silent for 10-15 minutes and repeat. Letting curiosity get the best of an old, smart tom is your best bet to get him to come in. Don’t forget, we are playing the reverse order when calling them in — the hens go to the tom’s in the wild. Call less and be more patient — I guarantee you’ll have more gobblers coming into your lap.

4. Leaving Too Soon

My favorite time to hunt turkeys — and when I have had the most success — is when most of the other hunters head for home. Mid-morning on is some of the best turkey hunting there is because the hens — your biggest enemies when hunting gobblers — have now been bred, have left to go sit on nests, etc. and you’re left with lonely toms looking for love.

Most toms will roost with their hens from the previous day, or very close to them at the very least. So, if you’re not underneath their roost trees, or where they want to go immediately after fly down, the next few hours can be extremely frustrating. A tom will not usually leave his hens right off the roost, and most hens will take their tom away from your calling as you’re sounding like their competition. But, if you wait until mid-to late- morning, when he has already bred his hens and is now broken away from them, this is a fantastic time to peak his interest.

You’re now dealing with a single aom, who is back to looking for hens to spend the rest of his day with. I like to cover a lot of country during the mid-morning period, calling and walking and repeating until I strike up a hot bird that wants to play the game. More times than not, if you get a bird fired up during these timeframes, your chances are high to get him to commit. Also, there is less pressure from people during this time. Most have given up due to a frustrating morning of dealing with henned-up toms. Cover country, call and absolutely do not give up before that mid-morning window — you’ll be happy you didn’t!

5. Not Scouting During the Season

I think I’ve learned more about where and how to hunt turkeys by scouting while hunting. Sure, we all love running trail cameras and scouting before the season — it gets us fired up and excited for the season to begin. But once it actually starts, things will certainly change and we need to adapt. Scouting during the season can unlock a ton of answers to the common questions of why you're not seeing turkeys, why you're not hearing turkeys, etc.

By taking off and scouting the areas you hunt, you can quickly identify recent dust bowls, scratchings, scat and tracks. Hunting the most recent and fresh sign will put you immediately back in the game. Things like recent agricultural crop changes, hunting pressure, bad weather, etc. can all alter where turkeys currently are. Scout during the season and stay up to date with where they are, and don’t forget to set up some cameras in these new areas if possible.

All in all, bowhunting turkeys is a challenging and ultra-fun endeavor. Remember, the more effort you put into it and the more open-minded you allow yourself to be, the more success you’ll find.

---