Do you start out using them? Hen? Hen and Jake? Have you used a full strutting tom before? Do you just call from behind the hunter and draw the bird into the hunter?


I mix it up....I will start off without a decoy on the ground on Sat morning at the first spot, but after that I will add the hen. I hold the jake until later in the season of if birds force me to use it......Now, I have gone out with three hens and a jake before and it really made the big boys mad....

I set my buddy in the wheelchair up with the decoys off to the side, so that a bird coming in will be looking at the decoys and not him. Last year I got him and another buddy set-up about 75 yards apart, shooting away from each other, with a decoy spread out from each of them, and I think it helped James get his bird, since the birds that were working us could see 2 different groups of birds(decoys) and had 2 different calling pattern or styles going. JMO

Early in the morning when birds are fresh off the roost, I like to set up between two roosts that I know....no decoy at all..I sit back about 20 feet to 10 yards behind my buddy and call...this has proved very effective in years past. Later in the morning I set up the hen if need be. Second weekend, i usually set then hen out first and then add the Jake as we move from spot to spot.

We use the jake and 2 hens in each spread, but have not had that much luck early in the morning. From the best of what I have kept track of, nearly all of the action we get starts around 11:00 and goes till about 2:00.

I move to some wooded areas when it is hot or later in the morning..those black feathers sure do not like the heat and they want some shade...So, off I go into the thick stuff...However, I am usually packed up and on the way home by noon.

Ive allways started out using one hen decoy.Ive had birds sneek in on me and never gobble and they always come from the diretion Im not expecting them when they do that.Gives me a chance to get on him before I get busted.Hopefully he cant take his eyes off the decoy.

That alone is a good reason to use decoys, they will keep their eyes on the decoy. I alway seem to get busted.

This will be my third spring on this lease. The last two years I have started the morning out with decoys set up, but have not been able to get them to cross the fence usually. I usually end up having to walk and call. Once I've located them (in the past) I work as close to them as I can without getting busted, then I sit and draw them in. I hunt by myself most of the time so I don't have the luxury of someone else doing the calling. I'd like to get a shot on video, but the guys on my lease usually bunch up in groups of 3-4 sometimes even 5. That's too many folks in a pack for me. Two are ideal. Back to the decoys. The last time I had any action at my decoys, it was the cows! I've got video of them coming in, then licking the decoys, while a short time later the Tom crosses about 300 yards out. I'm stoked, can't wait for daylight saturday morning!

I have had many birds sneak in in the afternoon on me, they are silent...I get bored and move to another spot and when i stand up.....I see them, they see me- game over. I always have the hen out in the afternoon anyway.

Two more days!

I almost always use at least a Hen decoy. I think it give the gobblers something to focus on. My setup is a huge field that's the struting zone with thick trees all around the field. I will setup a hen decoy so that it's on the fenceline behind my position, I setup in some thicket at the base of a tree that about 20 yards off the fenceline in the field.

I will say I have only taken 3 birds in my life, but also only been turkey hunting 3 years. First year I had a Gobbler charge my jake decoy and stomp it into the ground, blasted that bird right as he tried to mount the hen decoy. Got another that was focusing on the hen decoy and gobbleing, i think he was about to run cause there was no wind to shake or move the decoy and he was about to figure out that it was a decoy. The last one was late in the season last year, I had setup my decoys and then saw gobblers moving out of the field, I had to change positions 3 times and finally ended up back where I started and got a shot off only because the turkey was paying so much attention to the decoy. For me I think they are the best.

Also, spreading corn and milo in the struting zones helps keep the birds around longer, and appear to make the seeded area a semi fight zone for the gobblers so you have a lot of birds working that area, and many more circle around it.

I'll let you know how it goes this weekend. I for one will have my decoy setup before sunrise on Saturday morning, got a string attached to my hen decoy so I can make it move, I think I got it down to a science, at least hope, man this stuff is addicting!

just about 32 hours to go!

I got my truck loaded, I get off at 3:30, I hope to be in the field early enough to watch them roost. I hope I did not jinx myself buying 7 gallons of peanut oil. =-) But I have a good feeling about Saturday morning.

Goodluck everyone! I can't wait to hear a gobble thunder thru the grass.

OK, Ok, I though I was going alright with these, but I am beginning to wonder now. I am not going to be able to hunting the spring season, because we are changing leases. I know I have to except that, but now that it is HERE I am having a hard time with it. And having to sit here and a listen to yall, darn sure doesn't make it any easier. So if yall would just quit talking about it and just go. I don't want to here any results after this weekend either. OK, OK.

YEA I get to go!!! Thought I wasn't going to get to this year. Booked up with clients fishing, customer called and postponed trip yesterday. Have trips going out Sun Mon Tues etc etc. So I am pulling boat to lease tonight, Turkey hunt tomorrow then head down to Whitney for some top water Stripers. Will have to take my call out on boat with me and call as I am running and gunning shoreline chunking for Stripers. Good practise.

are the fish hitting topwaters and soft plastics at whitney now? I sure wanted to go try it last sat, but it rained all darn day.

It took several hours of "prep time" locating, following and finally putting him to bed on Tuesday night, but it all paid off Wednesday morning. I set up between the roost and the trail he used to get there the night before. He roosted about 400 yards from a cattle trail in the edge of a pasture. I set up my decoy about 10 yards to my right, his roost was about 100-150 yards to my left along the same fence line, and the trail he was using was several hundred yards to my right past the decoy. About 7:00, I called to verify he was still there. He answered and I stayed quiet until he called about five minutes later. I laid it on him pretty hot and thick. After that it was text book, just like a puppy on a string! I was back in camp by 7:30.

Turkey 04/06/05

nice bird tigil!

Nice! I will hit it again this weekend...hope the respond better...No during the week this week, but will sneak out one morning next week.

I hope to get back out next week myself.A friend said the birds where starting to turn on around our place.

I sure hope they are going to get more active. Last weekend was the worst we have had up at our place in 5 years.

He said they killed three birds Tuesday and one yesterday.Said it looked like the toms were starting to part ways.Opening weekend we saw several big toms still running together and they could have cared less about a call or a decoy.

well my buddie that hunted last night south of dripping springs said that the gobblers really started to respond to his calls last night. He said he got into position in our big field at around 4pm and dident see anything, got the decoys setup and called and had 3 gobblers respond all around him. He did not get a shot off but had 2 great looking (his words) gobblers at about 50 yards thru some brush but never steped into the lane before flying up into the trees for the night. So it looks like at least on my lease the gobblers are on the prowl now. I am heading out Friday morning and will let you know how it goes.

sure sounds encouraging for this weekend, but man it might be tough with high winds...going to have to start close to the roost I bet......but i will be out there again.

Well ya'll think about me I'll be stuck at home this wekend

Steve,
The wind was tough when I went mon-wed, but it didn't seem to have any affect on the birds. They almost always answered the call, just shy about coming into the open. I bet this weekend will be more like we're used to seing on opening weekend. I think I'm done(atleast that's what I told the wife), I'll probably start fishing more. I would like to get back done there and try the coyotes again though. They really seemed to be on the prowl the last two times I was down there.