JFT Turkey Tour 2021

[slayr]

I’m still a beginner myself with the whole run and gun style of hunting and been working at it the last few years trying to get a lot better. I’ve noticed the exact same thing you’re talking about the last 2 weeks I’ve been hunting.

Friday found a Tom in his strut zone with 5 hens. Tried to call to his hens and irritate them to come check me out but it didn’t work so I made a stalk on him (credit to picking up that tip from Dale Outdoors YouTube channel) and got him an hour into the stalk at 45 yds. Decent 2 yr old bird.


Later in the day got 2 toms to follow their 6 hens into my calling location but they stayed back in the brush line while the hens searched all around me for the lone lost hen I was trying to be. I think if I had put out one of my hen decoys one of the toms would have given me at least one shot opportunity before the hens took them back the way they came.

Saturday morning was set up to get my girlfriend her first turkey. Roosted 5 jakes, figured it was a for sure deal, as soon as they hit the ground I let out a few soft yelps, 2 of them gobbled cutting me off, then ran the other way to never be seen again. Thought it was weird as a group of jakes will take on a single Tom and whip him.

Been a weird and tough season it seems. Planning to hunt the last 2 weekends while the hens are nested up and hoping to catch a few lonely toms wanting to play.


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Nice bird, congrats! I’ve learned these things are smarter than I figured them to be, or I’m really dumb.

[slayr]

Definitely have some gobblers henned up. My lone opportunity this weekend was because I called in the 4 hens they were with. They were very vocal but the gobblers were not...not until they were leaving with the same hens and they gobbled a few times. The hens stood in my decoys, fighting with and pecking my DSD hens but the gobblers stayed just outside my windows watching and never came into my shooting windows. It's like they were scared of my jake....or just lucky they chose the right place to stop and strut. When the real hens walked away (back the way they came) the Toms followed them and never came in to my window. With a shotgun they would have been dead.



To add a kick to the nuts, after they left flat, my Covert showed them later in the hunt with those same hens strutting around in my deer feedpen area....

Ours have been hammering the feeders, too. Not really how I wanted my boy to kill his first, but I may need to quit being a purist and let him hammer one there. Just thinking the experience of calling one into decoys would be much cooler for him to witness.

[ClayW]

Nice bird, congrats! I’ve learned these things are smarter than I figured them to be, or I’m really dumb.

Don’t overthink it

At the end of the day, they are birds.

The fly down, eat, drink, mate, fly up, and repeat. Sometimes we catch em in good moods but more times than not, we don’t.

Just have to put in the time and it’ll work out for you.

[ClayW]

Tomorrow kicks off the back end of our season

Headin to southern Karnes county tomorrow to “guide” a few buddies on their SA river place. 5k acres and a few miles of river bottom [emoji7]

Followed by a short week at work then PoPo and will be heading West on Thursday. Couple day stop at another buddy’s ranch then on to NM for a few days.

I’ll update as much as I can.

[slayr]

Good luck!

[Smart]

Another slow day out west. Finally had one talking to me late mid morning and could hear him drumming behind me but he would never show himself. That lasted about 15-20 min. Then two real hens came through and drug him off and away. I saw them enter to the woods to my left and his drumming got lighter and lighter.[emoji2959][emoji2959]. Never saw the Tom.

Called in a group of hens early and they came running to my set. Was hoping they were dragging Tommy with them. The only thing bearded in that group was the boss hen.

So far very similar to last weekend. We just don’t have the birds we normally do. I’m about to change it up for tomorrow if this persists this afternoon. To top it off it’s a windy hot mutha. Supposed to be 94 today [emoji2359]

[TwoHighways]

Hunting low bird density populations is rough, but it sure makes you a better hunter. Off to menard. Hoping to fill at least one of my remaining two tags. NM in two weeks. Colorado in May (maybe)

[Smart]

I like dumb, horny birds that like to fight .... [emoji23].

[eradicator]

Another slow day out west. Finally had one talking to me late mid morning and could hear him drumming behind me but he would never show himself. That lasted about 15-20 min. Then two real hens came through and drug him off and away. I saw them enter to the woods to my left and his drumming got lighter and lighter.[emoji2959][emoji2959]. Never saw the Tom.

Called in a group of hens early and they came running to my set. Was hoping they were dragging Tommy with them. The only thing bearded in that group was the boss hen.

So far very similar to last weekend. We just don’t have the birds we normally do. I’m about to change it up for tomorrow if this persists this afternoon. To top it off it’s a windy hot mutha. Supposed to be 94 today [emoji2359]

Should have whacked that boss hen!

[ClayW]

Another slow day out west. Finally had one talking to me late mid morning and could hear him drumming behind me but he would never show himself. That lasted about 15-20 min. Then two real hens came through and drug him off and away. I saw them enter to the woods to my left and his drumming got lighter and lighter.[emoji2959][emoji2959]. Never saw the Tom.

Called in a group of hens early and they came running to my set. Was hoping they were dragging Tommy with them. The only thing bearded in that group was the boss hen.

So far very similar to last weekend. We just don’t have the birds we normally do. I’m about to change it up for tomorrow if this persists this afternoon. To top it off it’s a windy hot mutha. Supposed to be 94 today [emoji2359]

They’re smelling you!

[eradicator]

They’re smelling you!

[TxBowHntr]

I am far from a turkey expert like some of the folks on this thread, but we are seeing much of the same thing. Gobbler’s just generally not interested in coming in.

Ours seem to be roosting right along with the hens and are ‘henned up’ within minutes of flying down. Maybe this is normal, but it seems as if each gobbler will have 2-3 hens, sometimes more, with him. Even later in the afternoon (4-5pm) the gobblers are still stuck to those hens. The jakes are still running in groups for the most part, saw several groups of 4-7, and they seem to not even want to look in the direction of the decoys/calling. They’ll just feed on through.

I’m definitely open to any pointers y’all have.

This is how it has been lately in Bee Co. While I am by no means an expert, I have had success from 10:30-2:30 in the middle of the day this season. My guess is the toms are henned up in the morning, and it takes a few hours for the hens to be bred/lose interest. I called in numerous birds this past weekend, all in the middle of the day (though most were jakes that got a pass). 1 of those birds being a very large 2 year old. If they are being active, but aren't interested first thing, wait em out and try later in the morning.

[ClayW]

This is how it has been lately in Bee Co. While I am by no means an expert, I have had success from 10:30-2:30 in the middle of the day this season. My guess is the toms are henned up in the morning, and it takes a few hours for the hens to be bred/lose interest. I called in numerous birds this past weekend, all in the middle of the day (though most were jakes that got a pass). 1 of those birds being a very large 2 year old. If they are being active, but aren't interested first thing, wait em out and try later in the morning.

what are the characteristics of a "very large 2 year old"?

[ClayW]

Another slow day out west. Finally had one talking to me late mid morning and could hear him drumming behind me but he would never show himself. That lasted about 15-20 min. Then two real hens came through and drug him off and away. I saw them enter to the woods to my left and his drumming got lighter and lighter.[emoji2959][emoji2959]. Never saw the Tom.

Called in a group of hens early and they came running to my set. Was hoping they were dragging Tommy with them. The only thing bearded in that group was the boss hen.

So far very similar to last weekend. We just don’t have the birds we normally do. I’m about to change it up for tomorrow if this persists this afternoon. To top it off it’s a windy hot mutha. Supposed to be 94 today [emoji2359]

Take a 6 pack of Keystone Light this afternoon and I guarantee he commits to the decoys

[Smart]

They’re smelling you!

No way. I washed my slate call and flocked DSDs in the dishwasher with Dead Down Wind.[emoji12][emoji51][emoji23]

Take a 6 pack of Keystone Light this afternoon and I guarantee he commits to the decoys

**** that sounds good. Should have picked up a dirty 30.