24 turkey hunting seminars hosted by NCWRC, NWTF

Seminars are all free

It’s time to get geared up for turkey season, and the best way to do that is to attend one of the 24 free turkey hunting seminars scheduled across the state in March and April. The seminars are a joint effort between the N.C. Wildlife Resources Commission (NCWRC) and the National Wild Turkey Federation (NWTF).

12 sites will host two seminars apiece. One seminar at each site will be an introduction to turkey hunting. The day after the introductory seminar, the advanced seminars will take place. Each seminar will take place from 6:30-9 p.m. The seminars are all free, and are open on a first-come, first-serve basis. All ages are welcome to attend, and anyone under 17 needs parental permission to take part.

The introductory seminars will focus on beginning turkey hunters, or those who feel they need a refresher course. Instruction will touch on an array of topics such as the biology of turkeys, hunting techniques, calling and decoying, proper gun and ammo selection, dressing for turkey hunting, and cleaning and cooking methods.

The advanced seminars are geared toward experienced turkey hunter. On top of a more advanced look at the topics covered in the introductory seminars, these will also go over tactics for luring in those hard-to-hunt gobblers that become the stuff of legend for their ability to evade hunters.

This is the second year the Commision has held these seminars, and this year they have increased the number from eight to 12, and added 30-minutes to each seminar.

The hosting sites and dates are as follows:

Feb. 29 (Intro) and Mar. 1 (Advanced)

N.C. State University SAS 2203 Auditorium, Wake County

2311 Stinson Dr.

Raleigh, NC 27607

Mar. 2(Intro) and Mar. 3 (Advanced)

Tidewater Research Station, Washington County

207 Research Station Rd.

Roper, NC 28970

Mar. 7 (Intro) and Mar. 8 (Advanced)

Pasquotank County Extension Center, Pasquotank County

1209 McPherson St.

Elizabeth City, NC 27909

Mar. 9 (Intro) and Mar. 10 (Advanced)

Pitt County Extension Center, Pitt County

403 Government Circle, Suite 2

Greenville, NC 27834

Mar. 14 (Intro) and Mar. 15 (Advanced)

Cumberland County Extension Center, Cumberland County

301 East Mountain Dr.

Fayetteville, NC 28306

Mar. 16 (Intro) and Mar. 17 (Advanced)

Brunswick County Extension Center, Brunswick County

25 Referendum Dr.

Bolivia, NC 28422

Mar. 21 (Intro) and Mar. 22 (Advanced)

Onslow County Extension Center, Onslow County

4024 Richlands Hwy.

Jacksonville, NC 28540

Mar. 23 (Intro) and Mar. 24 (Advanced)

Bass Pro Shops, Cabarrus County

8181 Concord Mills Blvd

Concord, NC 28027

Mar. 28 (Intro) and Mar. 27 (Advanced)

Tri-County Community College, Cherokee County

21 Campus Circle

Murphy, NC 28906

Mar. 30 (Intro) and Mar. 31 (Advanced)

Haywood Community College, Haywood County

Freedlander Dr.

Clyde, NC 28721

Apr. 4 (Intro) and Apr. 5 (Advanced)

Caldwell County Extension Center, Caldwell County

120 Hospital Ave. NE/Suite 1

Lenoir, NC 28645

Apr. 6 (Intro) and Apr. 7 (Advanced)

Forsyth County Extension Center, Forsyth County

1450 Fairchild Rd.

Winston-Salem, NC 27105

These seminars couldn’t come at a better time; the bearded turkey season is April 9-May 7. Youth-only season runs from April 2-8.

Seminar attendees must be pre-registered. Click here to register online.