Hunters who have spent time scouting to determine the location of roost trees, feed areas and turkey travel routes will be best prepared to tag a Tom. Forest Service maps can also identify public lands open to hunting and preseason scouting should focus of finding roost trees, water and food sources. Being out early and listening for locator calls can also help hunters learn the habits of local flocks.
Additionally, My Country Club(WWW.mycountryclubinc.c om) offers membership hunting on nearly 50,000 acres that includes some of the best deer, turkey and quail habitat in Southern California.
Turkeys have incredible eyesight, so this is one reason hunters go to great lengths to wear good camouflage and find hunting stands that offer plenty of cover as well as visibility. If approaching flocks or a strutting Tom spots you, they will vanish. Turkey hunting is not like deer hunting. Don’t stalk them. You
can’t do it without being seen or heard and it’s a good way of chasing them out of an area completely. In areas with heavy hunting pressure, the well-hidden and patient hunter will often be the one tagging a bird because other hunters will be spooking the birds and they will be on the move.
Learning to call correctly is a critical element of successful turkey hunting. Most
LONGBEARD AND JAKES — Hunters who have done their early- season scouting will know where the roost trees are and might find scenes like this as the spring turkey hunt gets underway in March and April. hunters call too much, too loud and with no idea of what calls to use, or when. There are plenty of good online videos available that teach proper calling technique and different call types and when they should be used. In addition to calling, add blind location, decoys, cover and patience and you have the complete formula for success in turkey hunting.
Many hunters are in the field before dawn but abandon their blinds mid-morning when they have not seen birds. Veteran hunters will tell you that flocks are generally on the move all day, and unless disturbed they will often cover large areas. The patient hunter is just as likely to bring in birds at 2 p.m. if they keep still, call cautiously and be patient.
Turkey hunters in San Diego County have a lot to be excited about for the 2021 spring opener.
“It should be a great season,” Turigliatto concluded.
