Ollin Magnetic Digiscoping System

Turkey calling question

LukeDuke

Well-known member
Joined
Feb 7, 2015
Messages
718
Location
Minnesota
I will start this off by saying that I have never hunted a turkey but I am really looking forward to giving it a shot this coming spring. I live right on the Mississippi River here in MN and there is a flock of about 30-40 turkeys that roost in the trees on the opposite side of the river. The river is about 80-90 yds across on this stretch and I was wondering if you experienced turkey hunters thought it might be possible to make some early morning calls to see if they would fly across the river when they come down from their roost? I have watched them drift pretty far along the opposite bank when they come down, but didn't know if they would come across the river if it sounded like there was some action over here? The terrain on both sides is almost the same...just a few more neighbors on this side.

Any insights would be much appreciated. Heck I may try it just for the fun of it and see what happens.
 
Absolutely a possibility of getting them across the river at first light.

I would become familiar with how to make tree yelps to get their attention when they are still roosted. It’s simply a very soft and quiet Yelp. Having decoys set out would be another good way to get them to commit to your side of the river as well.
 
Yes and will probably work better a better later in the season after a lot of the hens are bred.
 
Practice, practice, practice your calling for spring turkey hunting. Mouth call aka diaphragm allows hands-free calling so great for in-close when a gobbler will see even slight movement unless are in a blind. Using a slate ball and box call allows you to duplicate two turkeys calling when use one of those along with the mouth call.

When are hunting, waiting minutes between call sequences is something that works for me. I have called and 10 minutes later a gobbler shows up. I have softly called and paused for first light and had a gobbler fly down from the roost almost landing on me. They hear a lot more than you would think.

I tend to run and gun in the spring. Will either roost gobblers the night before or before first light will shock call with owl or crow call (or honk car horn when leave the shock calls on the table by the front door) to locate some gobblers. Then I set up close to where the sound was and wait. If nothing as sun rises then call and after 20 or 30 minutes will move 400 years of so and call again. No need to worry about the wind though if windy a box call seems to carry better than slate calls or mouth ones.
 
You can get them across but go in early in the dark and tree call. Call for 15-20 minutes sporadically and then stop. I've had a couple toms that were hung up a hundred yards or so away fly in when I quit calling. I've not done that across a river but some pretty substantial creeks. Good luck and prepare to be frustrated.
 
Its a possibility, ive had them do it several times. I wouldn't count on it. Odds are low especially early when there are a lot of hens. I would find some additional back up areas. Its worth a try but I wouldn't bank my season on this scenario. If it was me I would crank the calls right off and try to get a tom to bail out to me before any hens fly down.
 
I've seen turkeys hung up over ditches, fences (some that were partially down already), roads and open fields, just because they are turkeys. And I've seen turkeys fly high cut bank over the river to the opposite high cut bank just because they wanted to cross for some turkey reason.

Roosting turkeys the night before, or finding them in the dark and getting to fly down into my lap hasn't happened often for me. I find that a slightly pissed off hen will hear me and she will by force of turkey hen-ness pull the whole flock 180 degrees away from where I've set up.

I hope it happens for you LukeDuke. Just make sure to video the procession across the river. Could be stunning footage if the light is right.
 
Just use a box call for a few clucks and have a diaphram call in your mouth. If a tom is hot to trot he can move fast. If you get a gobble to your call then just do a few clucks right after his gobble then stop for a few minutes. If you cluck and he gobbles closer to you get ready to rock'n roll. Use the diaphram to get him to puff up and blow his head off.
 
I'll mirror what kansasdad says. I've had them hang up over some of the stupidest obstacles, and I've had (a few) fly right in to me. You never can tell with a turkey. Sometimes they gobble but won't come in, sometimes they come in but won't gobble, sometimes they do neither. They are fantastically aggravating, and I love hunting them. About the only thing to do is try. I've mostly became an ambush predator when it comes to turkey hunting. I usually just figure out where they are going and get in front of them. They are a creature of habit, unless something has them spooked up. I rarely call unless one is really fired up.
 
This is great info. It kind of sounds like the same frustrations that come with trying to call in an elk, but those frustrations/learning experiences is what I love about hunting. I need to get a similar fix during the spring so I figured turkey hunting might fill that void. I have lined up a few other hunting spots as well, but trying to call one into my backyard would be sweet.

Thanks again everybody....I sure do appreciate the tips.
 
Decoys Are great if they can be seen at first light.
Calling before first light may anchor it for you.:cool:
 
Turkeys are lazy. I’ve heard that from my grandpa since i can remember, they don’t like crossing any kind of obstacle if they don’t have to. They hang up over the stupidest things, but in my experience right off the roost is the best time to try that.

No I don’t believe turkeys are lazy, but that sticks in your head and it accurately describes that behavior.
 
You could always try to convince your friend to take a walk on the other side of the river...
Just kidding, but you could hope that there is a hunter over there who gets a bird and makes a ruckus that send the birds over the river.
Beyond that, you already have some great calling tips in this thread. Good luck!
 
I haven't hunted turkeys much in the last 15 years but I always had a difficult time calling them over a natural barrier like a river or creek. Not saying it can't be done, but flight is really not a Turkey's first choice of locomotion. And you're talking 80 or 90 yes. Definitely pull out all the stops and use a decoy along with calling.

And turkeys have outstanding vision. They'll easily pick up your movement at the distances your talking. Camo from head to toe, litteraly, and be very economical about your movement.
 
That is true. Face mask and have the gun up on your knee in the direction the gobble came from. A soft cluck with the mouth call when you see it and it will puff up. Aim for the head. I use the hi-vis sights on my shotgun. I have a hunt here in April and just love to hunt them. Good luck.
 
I think your up for a challenge if the turkeys aren't being seen on your side of the river already. But a few decoys and lonely hen talk might fool them across.
 
I would try and set up in a spot where there isn't a bunch of cover for a predator to sneak in, and try setting a jake decoy with a hen.

I am no expert, but turkeys, like a lot of critters, will only come so far in without seeing what is making the noise. Also, it seems like if they are nervous, they might have a hard time committing to a tight area where a bobcat or coyote could get the drop on them.

I have also seen toms throw caution to the wind if they see a jake getting ready to breed a hen. It could be the thing that gets them to commit.

With the right conditions you definitely have a shot to get it done.
 
Its possible but i wouldn't count your entire hunt on them crossing the river. The flock could move and roost elsewhere for various reasons. Have some backup plans. Turkey hunting is easier to gain access on private land on MN than deer. Try and line up some other hunting land as well between now and turkey season. Good luck!
 
The Book says they won’t cross the river. Most of the time, that’s true. I’ve called them across rivers and creeks before.
Soft “I’m just waking up” Tree yelps. Make a fly down cackle. Use a turkey wing to simulate a fly down.
 

Forum statistics

Threads
110,806
Messages
1,935,132
Members
34,885
Latest member
bizarrnes
Back
Top