Lookinq for advice?

[mason0366]

New to the turkey hunting! I am going to take my middle son this weekend! I was looking for some advice on calling. how to start and how long to call. I was also wondering if got lucky and killed one do you need to field dress it or anything? I do not no anyone locally to show any of tis stuff about hunting turkey. I thought about just take calls out in morning and seeing what I could do. I know this is kind of last minute but maybe you all can help.

[Joe Bryan]

What kind of calls are you familiar with and how confident are you in your calling? Don't worry about being an expert caller, some of the worst calling I have heard have been from live hens. The one common variable is learning to call with good cadence and rhythm.

[kidd rock]

sent u a PM

[turkeyhunter91]

like posted above u dont have to be a professional caller to call in turkeys,if i didnt have a whole lot of practice with calls i would take a box and a slate call,both of them are fairly easy to use and you could let your son call if nothing was happening to keep him interested,but one mistake a lot of people have made myself included in that,is they call to much and the turkeys lose interest.as far as feild dressin goes i never have feild dressed a bird i just take it home weigh it and after pics and everything i go and skin it.

i hope this helps you out.

[pope and young]

It's not legal to call before the season, you have to practice at the house until season opens. A box call is one of the easiest calls to use, it's what I killed my first bird with. Do ya have a good place to go to? I would just go out at day light and see if you can hear any gobbling. I live here in Science Hill, write me if you have any more questions.

[buckfever]

Mason - I googled Eubank on Mapquest and see that you're about 30 miles north of Somerset near Lake Cumberland, and from your post, I assume you have some property that you have permission to hunt.

If true and since you're taking you son for youth season, I'd recommend that you simply revise your request and ask somebody on this board if they'll serve as a "guide" for you and your son. It will certainly cut down on your learning curve, and having an experienced hunter makes success much more likely, which would serve to maintain your son's interest.

A lot of guys on this forum are very experienced turkey hunters and would welcome the opportunity to do a little turkey calling for a youth hunter before the regular season comes in.

I'd offer to do it myself, but I live too far away and already have plans. Personally, I enjoy calling, interacting and seeing turkeys as much if not more than actually whacking them. :)

It warms my heart that you are new to turkey hunting yourself and have obviously never shot a bird, but made plans to let your son have first crack at a bird. Good luck!!! :D

[mcdenney]

If I didn't have plans with my son, I would be happy to help you especially since I was raised in Eubank. Like BF says, I would try to get someone to help you if you could, just so you can learn the ropes. If not, get some some videos that talking about learning the calls and watch them.

Some general thoughts on turkey hunting are......some of the easiest calls to use are friction type calls IMO. I think the easiest of the bunch is a slate call. You can do everything you need to kill a ton of turkeys with a slate. It's one of my favorite calls. Mouth calls take a while to master as it takes lots of practice. One of the main things to consider when turkey hunting is not necessarily the calling but rather woodsmenship such as setting up on a turkey (not too close but around 100 yards), knowing where the turkey wants to be and remaining undetected (which is usually the harder of the three). Remember that if you can see the turkey he can see you and chances are he has already seen you, lol. Use hills, cedars and big trees to your advantage to get to the spot you want to setup, preferably where the turkey wants to be and don't move. Call softly (trying to sound like a hen) and don't call too much. Call a couple times and then be quiet for 20 minutes or so. If he answers you a time or two, he knows exactly where you are located. Play hard to get as in the wild hens go to the gobbler not the other way around. Too much calling and he will just stand and gobble and probably not move much in your direction especially once he gets about 75 yards away. If he gobbles back at your calling and moves in your direction, then stop calling. If he hangs up and gobbles in one spot just out of range then cluck and purr lightly a couple times then go quiet again. Also, keep in mind that turkeys generally will not come thru fences or fly across deep ditches or creeks. Stay on high ground if you can and make it easy walking for him to come to you. Learn the differences between hens and gobblers plus identify your target before pulling the trigger. Have you gun up and be ready before you see the turkey if you think he might come to you. Also, just because he is not gobbling does not mean he is not coming or will not come to you. Be patient and move your eyes looking for birds sneaking into your setup. Decoys can be an advantage as this will draw the attention of the turkeys away from you and allow you to move a little if needed. Find the hens and gobblers will be close by. Good luck!

I know I was rambling so let me know if I can help answer any questions or if you want to call me. I will be happy to help answer any questions.

[stevemeadows]

My advise, make it FUN for your son. Enjoy the woods coming alive and the sun coming up. Let your son try his hand at the call if he wants, these are things he will remember. Killing a bird in this case is just icing on the cake. Hunt safe!

[turkeytalker]

Looking back on when i first started my biggest mistake was calling to LOUD and frequently.
Its really easy to get carried away when you have one booming at every sound you make!

I agree with Mcdenny about the slate call,very easy to use and easy to adjust volume as needed. Best of luck

[JerryO]

It's not legal to call before the season, you have to practice at the house until season opens. A box call is one of the easiest calls to use, it's what I killed my first bird with. Do ya have a good place to go to? I would just go out at day light and see if you can hear any gobbling. I live here in Science Hill, write me if you have any more questions.

Where in Science Hill do you live, I live on Stanford st in S Hill. I don't have any place to hunt but down at oil center