Turkey season prep makes the wait worth it
Turkey season prep makes the wait worth it
By Tyler Frantz
Like fresh meat dangling just beyond a lion’s reach, Pennsylvania’s spring turkeys have been taunting me for several weeks.
Distant gobbles heard before work, evening drives featuring aggressive toms fighting over broody hens, and countless facebook posts of big ropers killed out of state pretty much have my mind in an accelerated state of “AAFTSO” (that’s Acute Anticipation for Turkey Season Overload- for anyone lacking official knowledge of “psycho-outdoorlogical” terminology).
But a healthy dose of longing only sweetens the pot, as a tall glass of water is more satisfying to a parched mouth than a thirst already quenched by several pints. Here in Pennsylvania, we endure a later start to spring gobbler season than many other states. So when opening day finally does roll around, the wait always seems worth it- especially when conscientious turkey hunters use this delay to carefully prepare for springtime hunts.
As opening day draws nearer, now is the perfect time to put one’s excitement to good use, organizing gear and planning strategies ahead of time. What follows are several items to check off the pre-season turkey prep list.
Scout it out
Obviously, the number one priority is to find birds. Some areas reliably hold turkeys year after year, but it’s important to ensure nothing has changed in the layout of the landscape, food availability or cover, as all of these can impact a turkey’s home range.
Do a little legwork ahead of time, hang some trail cameras, and listen in the early morning for gobbles to pin down a few hotspots ahead of time. Do not call to the birds before the season, as this only educates them. Save it for the opener!
Make ready your weapons
Whether hunting with shotgun or bow, it is imperative to go through a few practice runs with your weapon of choice to ensure it is lethally accurate.
Shotguns will need to be patterned to learn which loads fire well from your barrel. Experiment with a variety of turkey-specific loads and chokes to find what works best. Most hunters prefer full or extra full chokes to extend their maximum effective range, but it is important to practice shooting longer shots at a turkey silhouette target to see how many pellets actually strike the neck and head area. If few pellets are in the kill zone, try a different load, change to a tighter choke, or acknowledge the shot is likely beyond your maximum range. Today’s specialized turkey guns have the potential to reach out and kill birds well beyond 40-yards, though a much safer bet would be to wait for the birds to close the distance to a more reliable range before pulling the trigger.
Closer is usually better when using the bow too. Even with regular target practice, it is important to test shoot your arrows with the broadheads you plan to use for hunting. Some larger diameter broadheads may fly differently than your field tips, especially at greater distances, so be sure to check this ahead of time. While you’re at it, practice shooting from a seated position to prepare for realistic hunting scenarios.
Establish the blind spot
Blinds conceal movement and help hide hunters. Though some turkeys will walk right up to a fresh blind plopped in the middle of an open field, the conservative approach would be blend one’s hunting blind in with natural vegetation.
Breaking up the blind’s outline with a natural backdrop and placing some cut vegetation in front will help make a blind more approachable. Be sure to clear the area ahead of time, and even consider setting out the blind early for birds to get used to it. Just be sure to have it staked firmly to the ground- a lesson I learned the hard way when I arrived before daybreak one year to discover my blind had blown 150-yards across the field I intended to hunt.
Fine-tune calling
Turkey hunters who call well kill more birds- period. While you don’t need to be a national grand champion turkey caller to be effective, you should have a variety of go-to calls with which you are reasonably proficient. A few diaphragm calls and a friction call or two are always good options to produce a reliable range of sounds.
Work on purrs, cuts, clucks, yelps and cackles for the basic gamut of spring vocalizations. Practice calling while driving to work or when no one is home to avoid driving your family crazy. Several how-to videos are available online.
Upgrade gear
Gear wears out over time, and boots with lots of miles eventually need replaced. Take a quick inventory of what you have in your vest, and make upgrades as needed.
Last year, I finally swapped out my old foam decoys for a brand new Avian X mating pair, and the realism is unmatched. Making simple upgrades as time and money allows can certainly help take your game to the next level, but there’s still no substitute for good old-fashioned woodsmanship and hard hunting. Do yourself a favor and use the next few days to properly prepare for this year’s hunt. Time invested wisely makes the PA opener well worth the wait.
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