typical week of turkey hunting with mazz

[mazzgolf]

Here's my A-week so far (this is how my typical turkey seasons go):

Monday - sit next to a wide creek - hear a gobbler across the other side of the creek (off limits to me). Listen to him for 45 minutes before all goes silent. Saw nothing.

Tuesday - sit next to the wide creek again - hear 3 or 4 gobblers across the other side of the creek. Listen to them until one gets its face shot off - at least I heard a shotgun blast. I assume one turkey met his demise. I saw nothing on my side.

Tuesday night - I decided I want to switch it up and try the place I got a turkey last year. So I did a quick scouting trip:

* Walked to a small field, I see a nice Tom stroll out in front of me - literally could hit it with a rock it was so close.
* Continued walking, see a second  Tom on the other side of field.
* Walked a half mile to another field, and I see another Tom on the far side of the field.
* Walked back to leave, pass the small field again, and I see ANOTHER Tom there, real close again (maybe 30 yards, wasn't one of the 2 I saw before)

Toms everywhere I look - a little honey hole. I'm thinking, it should be a good day in the morning.

Wednesday: I get there this morning at 4am, set up a blind and some dekes on the small field and.... I don't see a thing. All I hear are faint gobbles way off in the distance nowhere close to where I am.

I pack up to leave, but before I go I say to myself, "I saw so many Toms here last night walking around,  I'm gonna walk around again and see if I can kick some up like that!" I walk back to the second field and I see a turkey at a perfect shooting distance!  aaaaand of course it is a hen.  No Toms in sight.

I have absolutely no doubt that my  Thursday and Friday morning hunts will result in the same "luck" 

[hammer4reel]

Mazz  look at each day as a learning experience. 

If you tag out quick . You don't learn as much to be successful on future hunts .

Learn to hunt the tough ones.

Will make the easy ones even easier 

[mazzgolf]

5 minutes ago, hammer4reel said:

Mazz  look at each day as a learning experience. 

If you tag out quick . You don't learn as much to be successful on future hunts .

Learn to hunt the tough ones.

Will make the easy ones even easier 

Words of wisdom!

And, I will say, the weather has been absolutely beautiful the past 3 days. I've enjoyed just being outside.

[Bonefreak]

Love the mazz turkey stories!  Lol

Never give up!  U got a spot that has em!!

Good luck!!

[Devil Horns]

Keep at it. It's only a matter of time. They are there. I'll be looking for the pics.

[mazzgolf]

Sucks that I have to leave early to go to work. I'm sure if I had the whole morning to noon to hunt, I would be able to get one. Tough getting the birds to come in before I have to leave at like 9am when they are all probably hen'd up. But at least I can get out for a couple hours each morning - I need to count my blessings  

[hunterbob1]

Didn't you have the creek problem last year where they wouldn't fly over?

[mazzgolf]

8 minutes ago, hunterbob1 said:

Didn't you have the creek problem last year where they wouldn't fly over?

You remember well! This is the same spot - and the same thing happened to me last year - heard a shot over there, too, while turkey hunting.

Here's the interesting thing about this spot. That other side of the creek is (IMO) posted with bogus no trespass signs.  I am actually in contact with someone that works for the company that owns this property (and it's actually property they own that they are required to keep undeveloped as part of some DEP arrangement, as I was told) - and I asked "What are these signs? And can you give me permission to hunt on your property?"

The guy I spoke to doesn't know what these signs are or who put them up, and he said he would get back to me on if I can hunt it. He isn't sure if anyone is allowed to hunt it. I have not heard back from him. So I have decided until I get official permission, I will not go over there and hunt it (and it is a prime piece of hunting property - not just turkey, but deer too. I spoke to a CO about this property and he told me, "I know this property - we had problems years ago before it changed hands - if you can get permission to hunt it, then definitely do so, it is a great spot to hunt!"

So - in short, I'm trying to do the right thing and not hunt this property until I get legal permission to do so - meanwhile, guys have put up bogus no-trespass signs and are hunting it and I'm sure they haven't spoken to anyone in the company that owns the property. CO won't do anything until they hear from the company that owns it that it is illegally posted. But I can't get them to actually tell me if it is illegally posted or not.

Such is life for a law-abiding hunter.

[hunterbob1]

Can you locate where the hunter/Hunter's are parking/entering the property from?If so maybe a face to face talk may work out to something positive.Well love your adventure sharing Mazz.Hang in there,good luck!

[mazzgolf]

5 minutes ago, hunterbob1 said:

Can you locate where the hunter/Hunter's are parking/entering the property from?If so maybe a face to face talk may work out to something positive.

I *think* I might know where they enter - but only by looking at the map (seems there is only one way to get in there). I haven't actually gone over there.

But until I get official word and at least verbal (if not written) permission that I can hunt there, I'm not going to bother to make contact. The reason is - if it is illegal to hunt there and the owners don't want people to hunt there - those guys are trespassing (and might even have illegally posted the property), and I really don't want to associate with people like that anyway, because I don't know what other laws they find acceptable to skirt.

If/when I do get permission, it likely will be "publicly" accessible (there is DEP lands involved here, too - hard to explain, but suffice it to say, there is some DEP arrangement here, so if it is huntable, it will most likely be public access). If that is true, then those guys have just as much right to hunt it as I will, and so I will try to get in touch. But I'm not doing anything until I know for sure its legal to hunt there.

It's killing me I can't go over there too - I heard so many birds over there. And I've even seen a nice buck cross the creek here once. 

[hunterbob1]

Your doing the right thing.

[Stan Putz]

This is how it goes for most of us. The stuff you see on TV or The Truth videos where the birds come running in right off of the roost gobbling the whole time is mostly bunk (or 2 year-old toms that have never been hunted before). Yes, I've had it happen, but not often. Turkey hunting is often a game of inches, and birds are often unpredictable (I don't even think they have a plan from day to day, they do what the mood strikes them at the moment). The birds have to cross the creek sooner or later, you just have to be out there the day it happens. Good luck!

[Mountain Goat]

4 hours ago, Stan Putz said:

This is how it goes for most of us. The stuff you see on TV or The Truth videos where the birds come running in right off of the roost gobbling the whole time is mostly bunk (or 2 year-old toms that have never been hunted before). Yes, I've had it happen, but not often. Turkey hunting is often a game of inches, and birds are often unpredictable (I don't even think they have a plan from day to day, they do what the mood strikes them at the moment). The birds have to cross the creek sooner or later, you just have to be out there the day it happens. Good luck!

You  don't see too many turkey hunting shows on location in NJ or Pa or even NY.  Eastern birds are the toughest birds to harvest....period.

[mazzgolf]

My first live hunt since i got my smart phone. Momentus occasion. On the field where i saw birds Wednesday.

Update... It's raining. No gobbling.. i can barely see my phone screen with my contacts in.  I have a feeling I'll be watching the grass grow this morning. 

[mazzgolf]

Bird down zone 20!!! Will send pic and update later! I believe this is my first A week bird 😎