Seven deadly turkey hunting sins

Avoid these pitfalls to avoid dooming your turkey hunt

Turkey hunters work hard to do everything right to get a gobbler within shooting range. And many valuable strategy options are proactive.

But the ever-lurking sins of omission create a myriad of turkey hunting pitfalls that often doom a hunt. These sins can trump the positive strategies, ensuring you don’t kill that gobbler. 

The potential pitfalls for a turkey hunt to end without a dead gobbler are legion, but hunters often compound their misery by making avoidable mistakes. Hard rules are few in this sport, and that’s the beauty (and the beast) of hunting wild turkeys. 

These seven deadly sins of turkey hunting are preventable, and with a little effort, and a sprinkling of patience in the heat of the hunt, dodging them will dramatically impact the outcome.

Some should be accomplished before a hunt, freeing you to focus on the gobbler that seems so willing, but oh so cautious.

Sin 1

Not Knowing the Details of the Property 

Nothing beats boots on the ground in terms of preparation for turkey season. And hunters have options and tools to help them understand the dynamics of the land they hunt.

Tyler Chappell, a professional turkey hunting guide from Fair Play, SC said knowing the property is essential to consistent turkey hunting success.

“Every gobbler is different, so even if you strike a gobbler in the same place where you’ve successfully called a bird in the past, this one’s likely to behave differently,” he said. “Like hunters, gobblers are uniquely individual creatures.”

But Chappell said a hunter can do much to improve his odds regardless of how a turkey responds.

“I use every resource available to understand the property in terms of how I see it, and just as importantly, how a gobbler views it,” he said. “Turkeys have prime roosting areas, other favored locations for feeding, another for strutting and breeding, and they’ll have travel corridors they frequent when moving around the property. 

“It’s not enough to know the property well enough to simply not get lost,” Chappell said. “I want to know the specific components of the property from a gobblers’ perspective, so when I hear a gobble, I’ll know his location, but also what he may be doing in that spot. With that depth of information, I can plan a more effective setup strategy.”

Sin 2

Waiting Until the Night before Hunting to Practice Your Calls

Steve Cobb of Union, SC said elite calling is a difference-maker in turkey hunting success. But the lack of calling skills, especially from a lack of practice, is also a difference-maker; in the wrong direction.

“Not everyone is going to put in the time to be an elite caller, and while beneficial, it’s not essential to kill turkeys,” Cobb said. “But a hunter needs to practice to develop the skills to replicate basic hen sounds. Clucks, purrs, yelps and cutts are the basic calls. These basic calls that sound realistic, blended with patience and moderate hunting skills, enable hunters to have opportunities to kill gobblers.

“But pulling your calls out of storage the night before you hunt to practice, is poor timing,” he said. “I’ve witnessed this strategy often. And the results are predictably poor.” 

Sin 3

A Hunter in a Hurry Means a Longbeard Lives Another Day  

Many turkey hunters talk about fast-paced, spirited methods for taking gobblers. There’s nothing wrong with aggressive tactics. They can certainly be productive. But it can kill a specific hunt if the situation isn’t favorable.

Cobb said the sin here is trying to make something happen that’s not appropriate for that specific situation. Every gobbler is different, and hunters must decide on how to call, approach, and set up, for a specific gobbler. 

“It may be an obvious choice on a red-hot ‘kamikaze’ gobbler to get him while he’s hot,” Cobb said. “But if in doubt, slow the process and start soft and subtle on calls and setup. If you rush in too fast, it’s over. But if you start slow, odds are good you can increase the calling tempo and become aggressive if required. It’s far more likely you can speed up and be successful than overstep your advantage quickly and try to recover.”

At the outset, you have an advantage when he answers your call. You know his approximate location, and he thinks a hen turkey is standing in your shadow. Analyze, before you finalize, the plan.  

Sin 4 

Lacking Patience

This is different from being in a hurry to rush to an aggressive gobbler. This situation is about a gobbler that has been gobbling to your calls. It’s easy to be rock-solid and butt-firmly-planted-to-location when you know he’s closing the distance rapidly. 

But when a hunter hears a single, gobbled response to their call, then no further gobbles, or when working a gobbling bird that suddenly hushes after gobbling repeatedly, this requires potential game changing decisions.  

Cobb said this situation is one that hunters struggle with, fighting the urge to do something quickly to gain an edge.

“My tactic is to sit still, watch the area closely, and let good stuff happen and avoid the bad,” he said. “Odds are better than 50/50 that gobbler is headed my way. The truth is, the hunter likely now has the edge. So sit tight and don’t blow it.”

Cobb said successful turkey hunting is about making the right decision at the right moment. Hunters often make an ill-advised move when the best option is to wait. A gobbling bird that suddenly goes silent is likely moving. He may circle, he may acquire high ground to approach, but odds are high he’s coming. If you move when he’s silently approaching, he’ll see you first.

The end.  

Sin 5 

Not Knowing Distances and Shotgun Patterns 

Most hunters, even consistently successful hunters, probably struggled with judging the distance of an approaching gobbler early in their turkey hunting career. A full-fanned, brilliantly colored bird, gobbling repeatedly, can indeed look bigger than life. It is breathtaking and a prime reason many are addicted to this sport. Unfortunately, it’s often mind-blowing.

Chappell said misses occur because hunters get “gobbler in the headlights” vision and shoot before the gobbler is in range. This is fixable.

“Practice judging distances in the woods prior to hunting, and check your estimates with rangefinders until you’re proficient,” he said. “When you hear a gobble and have a few seconds to spare, use a range finder to get exact yardage to specific trees, logs, or other objects. If not, eyeball objects and judge distance based on practice. Except for having self-control over the trigger, problem solved.”

He said for hunters that know the pattern of their gun at various yardages, out to the extreme range for a killing shot, they’re good to go. Simply pick an object at the effective, killing range and don’t shoot until the gobbler is inside the kill zone. 

If you haven’t patterned your gun and don’t know your weapon’s killing range, don’t hunt until you do.  

Sin 6  

Only Hunting Early Mornings

Dawn in the turkey woods is magical to turkey hunters, even if only one gobble is heard. Most hunters arrive on time for the early morning rush hour of gobbler chasing.

“But the odds of this tactic being successful on a regular basis is not high for most hunters,” Cobb said. “If hunters leave prior to the second shift, that time from 10 a.m. until 2 p.m., they’re likely missing a prime opportunity to get a gobbler with his guard down.”

Gobblers usually get with hens early. But by mid-morning, their mating duties with that harem of hens is often complete and they’re alone, and lonely.

“A good call at high noon to a gobbler that’s been without hens for a couple of hours is a high percentage situation,” Cobb said. “But you’ve got to still be in the woods to make it happen. If work keeps me from hunting early, I’m still going when I get free. Even if I arrive at 10 o’clock in the morning, I still have high expectations of success.”

Sin 7 

Calling Before you’re Ready to Kill a Gobbler

“I may not know where every gobbler is in the woods, but when I stop to make a call, I know where I’m located and the basic layout of the woods all around me,” Chappell said.

“If I’m slipping down a logging road, Ill move off to the side near a tree or brush,” he said. “If I’m slipping through the woods, I’ll find some form of cover to blend with before calling.” 

Chappell said that often a turkey call from a hunter goes unanswered, it’s the way of the turkey hunting world. But when he does get a gobbled response, he’s already got a plan of action considered from a 360-degree angle.

“If the gobbler is a distance off, I can consider options,” he said. “But sometimes a gobbler may cut my call before I finish and be almost within range, perhaps just over a crest of a hill or around the corner of a logging road. I’ll still have a good chance because I’m in a place where I can just drop down and get the gun on a knee immediately. It’s crucial to not be caught in the open when you call. If you call from unprotected setups, you will eventually get burned, and badly.”  

Hunters can overcome these sins of omission, but they are easy traps to fall into. Be proactive and be assertive on tactics that can help you jellyhead a longbeard. 

But first, avoid the sins that ensure failure.