Help / advice

[upstatewoodie]

Ive hunted every morning weather has permitted and have only heard one bird gobble on opening morning. ive had this property for 9 years. here are some specs. 662 acres, about 25 acres of Pasture, the rest is Old open hardwoods, big planted pines, and hardwood bottoms. we have always had great hunts out here. Last year was a little slower then normal, but this year so far has been down right horrible. not even really seeing many signs when i scouted or so far this year.

THe property has about 300 acres that wraps around 3 sides that has been clear cut last feb by the timber company that owns that particular piece. would that have an effect?

any suggestions would be great.

[SCSwitchback]

Typically, birds love a new clearcut. Run some cameras and see what you get. My property is loaded with birds, but I've just figured out they're not using it until after lunch, opting to hang out in the swamp bottoms, tightlipped, all morning. The trail cameras don't lie. As a result, I know I need to be hunting this tract in the afternoons, as all of my pics of longbeards have been after lunch.

[Carolina Counsel]

That sounds like awesome property which, by its description, one would think would be loaded with birds. I think SCSwitchback has a great suggestion about trail cams.

[dixiedeerslaya]

back 6-7 years ago, there were a good many turkeys around my old house... the first two years i turkey hunted they were thick, and i would hear 4-5 birds most mornings.... then all of a sudden, three years in a row i didnt hear a turkey on the land.... the only thing i could attribute it to was the fact that one piece of property had the pines thinned, and the neighboring property was clear cut.

[dixiedeerslaya]

you could always do like some, buy you some white legged turkeys and turn them a loose. haha

[skrimp]

In my area, the birds are just starting to gobble. If I didn't know better, and Capt.Tom hadn't shown me, I would have thought there were no birds in the area.

[upstatewoodie]

switchback i agree but ive hunted all times of the day, and the clear cut is not my property and I spoke with the guys that hunt it this morning and they havent seen or heard a thing yet either so, i hope they are just that henned up right now.. and Dixie damn a white leg bird! hahaha

[ziggy]

these birds have been henned the hell up around my neck of the woods. i've been hearing 5-6 birds a morning on the roost but as soon as they get down, game over.

i was on one this morning that started going off at 6:20. double after double gobble. i set up, call to him, and can hear him gobbling as he walks parallel to me 150 yards out until he's out of hearing range. i've seen a few across our fields that have 10+ hens with them. there's just no competing with that. hopefully the hens will take to nest soooon.

[holdin down the fort]

Your neighbors are feeding them

[trentsmith]

Turkeys are very strange.

[Wad Shooter]

I have been hunting a small tract in Awendaw since the 18th (I killed a decent gobbler that first day). Until yesterday morning I had only heard 1 gobble (1 gobble, not 1 Gobbler) late one afternoon. I knew the birds are there as I have seen them on numerous occasions, but they sure as heck had lockjaw until yesterday. I was even thinking of taking my wife to the property in hopes it was contagious...

I figure there's only one explanation - Turkeys only gobble when they want to...

FWIW, this property was timbered withinthe last 2 years and the tract on one side was timbered in the last 2 months and the other side was recently thinned.