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By Zack Azar

Turkey hunting is one of the most exciting and frustrating sports of all. Hunters using calls, decoys and strategic setups, match wits with one of the most alert, sensory-acute game birds in the forest. 

And usually, the turkey wins. 

Hunting the Eastern wild turkey is an exercise in patience and cunning. The wild turkey has excellent hearing and vision and can disappear quickly. Turkey hunters have commented that if these birds could smell as well as they see and hear, no hunter would ever bag one. Truer words were never spoken! 

Turkey season comes in on the 25th of March, with a special youth hunt on the 21st and 22nd. Most hunters go out before daylight, locate a roosting gobbler, ease in as close as possible, put out a decoy or two and call to the gobbler. All too often, however, when the gobbler flies down, he shuts up and never comes in. 

One proven tactic that hunters can employ if a gobbler simply won’t come in is to make him think the hen is leaving. I used this trick to harvest the biggest gobbler I’ve ever taken. We all know that the natural order of things in the turkey woods is that the gobbler calls and the hens come running to him. So, when a tom hangs up, it’s probably because he’s waiting for the hen to come to him. 

We all know that one of the toughest feats in spring gobbler hunting is to lure a tom away from his harem of hens. Quite simply, why would the gobbler leave hens he can see to chase after one he can’t. It’s just not likely to happen. But gobblers aren’t the only turkeys that will respond to calling. Hens will answer and approach as well — especially when they’re angry. 

If you can get an old boss hen fired up, she’s likely to come looking for a fight. And she’ll drag that lovesick gobbler right along with her. If you encounter a gobbler that’s with hens, try cutting loud and aggressively. “Cutting” basically is a series of fast clucks put together. Keep changing the cadence of your calls to accent different notes during a sequence. It’s those heavy notes that are likely to anger an old hen. If one of the hens starts calling back with some cutting of her own, you’re in business. Before she can finish calling, cut her off with your own calling. 

Don’t worry about which calls the gobbler seems to be responding to. Focus on the hen. Once the hen is good and mad, she’s going to come looking for you. The tricky part in this scenario is getting past the boss hen — and all the other hens in the flock — to get a shot at the tom. Typically, the gobbler will be the last bird in the flock, which means you have to avoid being detected by every other bird until the tom is within your shotgun range. Being still and quiet when the turkeys are in sight is critical.

In hunting, there’s no such thing as a perfect turkey call. Unlike turkey-calling contest pros, live birds crack notes and make all sorts of weird noises that would never pass muster in a calling competition. So, instead of looking for turkey calls that sound exactly what you think a turkey should sound like, look for calls that sound different from others — calls that are unusually high-pitched or raspy or loud, etc. If birds in a pressured area hear the same mouth diaphragms and slate calls day after day during the season, a unique-sounding call is going to stand out in the woods. 

Decoys are allowed from April 4 until May 8, and the drawing power of a decoy when you’re turkey hunting is no secret. But as increasing numbers of hunters use turkey decoys, gobblers are becoming increasingly wary of statue-like “hens” standing alone in a field. It used to be that you could bank on a gobbler running straight in if he heard your calls and then spotted your decoy. Today, however, it’s not uncommon for an old tom to spot your decoy and then begin to circle it — usually out of shotgun range, of course. The gobbler will eye your decoy the whole time, and, when he doesn’t see any signs of life, often he will retreat. This is where a moving decoy is invaluable. Some are powered by wind and some require a hunter to tug on a line. And while we’re on decoys, by the second week of the season, most gobblers in a hunted area have probably seen the typical hen and jake combination or even the old jake mounting the hen setup. I think that turkeys believe there is safety in numbers, so this season, try putting out 5 or 6 decoys. The first gobbler that spots the fake flock is likely to walk right in.

Another thing hunters can try this season is a midmorning hunt. As we all know, gobblers are going to get with their hens at sunrise. About three hours later, the gobblers have bred the hens in their harems and those hens have gone off to lay their eggs, leaving the gobblers alone and still interested. 

Hunters can sleep in, avoid the early-morning rush and wait for the mid- morning lull. There’s less competition from other hunters and gobblers often are moving around without any hens and searching for more.

While turkey hunting is truly exciting, it is also important to be absolutely sure of the target. Turkey hunters are not required to wear hunter orange. A fully camouflaged hunter, well-hidden and sounding like a turkey, is the cause of accidental shootings every year. 

Be safe in the woods this spring, and if you get a chance, introduce a young person to the outdoors. Next month, we’ll take a look at spring fishing for crappie and bass.

Zack Azar is a retired businessman and columnist who spent many years volunteering in a high school press box. He wrote monthly columns for the Alabama Gazette for seven years and has four grandchildren involved in sports at Lowndes Academy.