Fall calling?

[Turkeygirl]

I was wondering, how much calling do you guys do or don't do fall turkey hunting? Especially if you don't have a flock located and/or scattered and you are basically hunting areas where you think they are? I went out yesterday afternoon, didn't hear or see a thing. Today I think after school I'm going to go over to the state land where I heard all those turkeys 2 weeks ago, and see if I can't call something up. I saw alot more scratchings over there, have seen none here so far, but we have alot of fields and on the state land there are none. So how much should I call and what types of calls (yelps, kee-kees,etc...) should I use?

[LifeNRA]

Stay with the basic hen yelps or kee-kee. They say the trick is to bust up the flock and call them back in. I say, why not try to bring in the whole flock! If you know there in an area feeding, I would go back to that area and set up an ambush. Once you see the birds give some soft yelps and wait to see what happens. If they start moving away, then I would kee-kee. I been hearing gobblers also sounding off everyday during the archery season as well! Sometimes two of them gobbling at different locations. Might not hurt to have a gobble call too, but use it sparingly though! Good luck!

[western NY bowhunter]

My favorite tactic is to call in the "boss" hen of the flock. Mimic every call she makes just like in the spring...she'll get ticked off and come into investigate and bring the whole flock in with her. It worked like a charm for me on opening morning.

[Bowtech_archer07]

I recently read an article that said, whatever you do.. do not overcall. It said that overcalling in the fall is completely different from overcalling in the fall. It also said that it depends on what kind of flock you are dealing with. If it is all hens, do not call often, and when you do call either make it sound like the boss hen to tick her off or call very softly like a flock of birds feeding. When you are dealing with a group of gobblers, you use a completely different tactic.

Last fall, my buddy and I were hunting and we set up on a roosted flock before sunrise, we knew where they were going to fly down, so we didn't make a sound until they flew down. When they did, we could tell which hen was the boss hen and I started mimicking her every sound, with my buddy calling as well every once in a while. This got her very riled, and she started to come in, but just saw something she didn't like.

Since you said that you are hunting evening.. we sat up where we knew the birds were going to roost, and just sat there. We gave a few yelps, and just other feeding noises, MAYBE once every 30-45 minutes. Right around flyup time, these birds came in... i'm talking well over 60 birds, came in and roosted right over our heads. I wish we would have had a video camera.

I apologize for the length, but thought examples might help you out!!

[Turkeygirl]

Thanks for the tips...I wish I could figure out where they are roosting...I have only guesses...but I'll try that...go to an area where I think they may be and just do some soft calling once in a while and see what happens.

So when the weather gets colder or its winder, do turkeys tend to roost more in like the pines or thick swamps than on the hardwood ridges like in the spring?

[Bowtech_archer07]

We never hunted really windy conditions, but we did hunt some chilly conditions. They never really changed their roosting patterns. They were always in large oaks, hickories, or cottonwoods. In other words, big sturdy trees that wouldn't move if it did get windy. They roosted both in the timber and on the edges when it got a little cold as well. One thing I can tell you is that they will roost in the same general area every night unless you spook them.

[Strut10]

When blind calling in the fall, I do about the same thing as in the spring. Single clucks and 2-3 note yelps every 30 to 50 yards as I walk & listen. Nothing excited or too loud. Just natural, relaxed turkey talk.

Once a flock is busted up.........I've found it's just pretty darned hard to over call. Kee-kees or assembly yelps. I usually switch back & forth between a higher pitched diapragm and kee-kee's and a lolwer, raspier one to yelp.

[maytom]

I always hear that your suppose to "bust up" a fall flock, then try calling them back in? Why??? If you hear birds, set-up and try calling them in!!!

[Bowtech_archer07]

Busting a flock is just one way.. it surely isn't the only way. My buddy and I tried busting a flock.. didn't work. For 3 weeks, all we did was set where they were flying up in the evenings and where they were flying down in the morning.

I have heard that when a bust does work.. it is one of the most effective tactics because those birds' natural instinct is to group back together which allows you to call them back in pretty easily.

[Strut10]

I have heard that when a bust does work.. it is one of the most effective tactics because those birds' natural instinct is to group back together which allows you to call them back in pretty easily.

Most of the time, after a good bust, shooting a fall bird is like shooting a fish in a barrel. It ain't too difficult. The challenge is locating the flock and then getting a good break. After that..........well...........it's kinda all downhill from there.