So much is said and written about trailing the wild turkey when the weather turns warm that many hunters have forgotten that our turkey-hunting heritage actually began in the fall. It was in the autumn that old-time turkey hunting legends like Tom Turpin, Henry Edwards Davis and Archibald Rutledge spent much of their time going after the gobbler. In their day, many regarded spring hunting as unsporting; they believed that any novice with a call could fool a “lovesick” tom. For that reason, and the fact that not many places had huntable populations in the first half of the 20th century, few states offered spring seasons. Fall was the turkey hunter’s time to be afield.
Fortunately, all that has changed. Thanks to wildlife agencies and NWTF volunteers, turkey populations are plentiful across the country and fall and spring are equally great times to head for the woods. As many as 40 states offer fall hunting, which gives turkey chasers another chance to tag a bird. Whether you’re looking for that second-chance tom or simply trying your hand at a flock of first-year birds, the tips that follow will help you have a great autumn experience.–Doug Howlett
FIND THAT FLOCK
Oftentimes, one of the most challenging aspects of hunting fall turkeys is finding them. Unlike the spring, when toms can be found by the sound of their gobbles, fall hunters must rely on less audible yelps, clucks and kee-kees, or turkeys scratching in leaves or flapping their wings. And unlike the spring when turkeys typically frequent the same roosting, strutting and feeding areas day in and day out, fall flocks range over a wider area in their search for food, sometimes not returning to the same tract for days.
The typical range for a fall flock is between 250 and 400 acres, depending on the habitat and availability of food, according to Bryan Burhans, director of the NWTF’s land management programs. If food is found easily along corridors that stretch for great distances, turkeys may range much further, maybe even for miles. Read on….