OR you can position yourself against a tree that gives you good cover and a clear shooting lane, let your calling do the work, and wait for the bird to come to you. These elements, if not executed correctly, can hang a bird up or if you think on them for too long, have you busted by the approaching bird. Think to yourself, is it worth trying to make sure the decoys are at a safe but shootable distance away from me? Will my setup put me in the line of sight for the incoming bird? Are the decoys directly in front of me making me in the line of fire from a potential unknown hunter? Does my decoy setup enable me to easily move to my right or left side to adjust to the turkey’s position? There’s no need to get flustered, but it’s time to come up with a game plan. And don’t forget to follow decoy safety if you choose “to decoy.” Not to Decoy Good calling combined with a decoy setup that tells a believable story should help catch any gobbler’s attention early or late in the season. Gobbling intensity may not be as high as during other times of the season, but toms are responsive if you can catch their attention.” Michael Chamberlain told RealTree, “I personally have seen that mature birds are easier to call in when there’s competition to breed with the remaining hens, such as during laying and incubation periods. Some will pipe down from all of the hunting pressure they’ve endured, but others will still be reactive as they search for the last breedable hens. You may not hear much in the woods around this time, but it does not mean the turkeys have disappeared. During the late season, a majority of the hens have been bred and are no longer seeking male attention which can make for fierce competition amongst the mature longbeards.
“Towards the end of the season when they are tired and don’t want to fight, I might just put a hen out there,” said Hall.
Running an immature male with an adult female is a smart move and should have a tom or two strutting over to pay your jake decoy a visit. “At the beginning of the season when toms are hot and willing to fight I might have a jake out there with a hen,” said Amy Hall, Program Coordinator for Tennessee Wildlife Federation. In the earliest part of the season, you’ll see that most turkeys are still grouped-up and the gobblers are looking to establish dominance. If you know where the turkeys are located, the decoys could give you an advantage. A decision made on decoys can have personal preferences factored in but also depends on your answer to the second question. Turkeys will let you walk under them in the dark but once daylight starts to break, their 270-degree field of vision will pick up any out-of-the-ordinary movements like you struggling to carry your decoys, seat cushion, blind, firearm amongst all of the basic items in your turkey vest. However, you may regret your decision if you’re attempting to quietly sneak through the darkness with all of your gear and are in a foot race with the rising sun.
Some people say it’s better to be safe than sorry and pack some decoys just in case. If a flock of turkeys are roosting in the back corner of a wildlife management area (WMA), you may have to arrive earlier than expected to make the long trek to that nook of the land. This is important to keep in mind, especially when considering your answer to the third question. With decoys, you can optimize your setup and harvesting chances, by “putting them out in the pitch black dark way before daylight,” said Chris Hearn, West TN Field Representative for Tennessee Wildlife Federation.
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