Less is More in the Turkey Woods

By Coltin Gresser

Talking turkey is a skill that feels like it takes an eternity to get the hang of. I have been

hunting thunder chickens for 6 years now. Out of those six years, this past year I finally felt confident

with the diaphragm call. There are three main types of calls. A slate/pot call, box call, and a

mouth/diaphragm call. The easiest way to get the classic hen yelp is with a box call. A person

can pick up this kind of call and within ten minutes of playing around with it, you can start

producing calls that can bring in some birds. On the other hand, the mouth calls are tricky. You

must be able to move certain amounts of air between the reeds of the call and the top of your

mouth to produce certain sounds.

Now I could do a whole other article on when and where to use these calls. Or an article

or video on the pros and cons of each type. What we are here to talk about is focused on after you have the

basic calling down. Once you have the cluck, putt, and yelp down, then the game of calling has

truly started.

Don’t get me wrong when I am hearing these birds gobbling off the roost. It is hard not to

immediately answer back with a sequence of yelps. What you want to do is let them boys wake

up first. Get them going with a barred owl call or a crow call. This helps with getting to their

location if you didn’t roost them the night before.

So, let’s set the scene. You got two gobblers gobbling crazy on the limb. You have been

owl hooting and they are fired up. It’s been around 10 minutes since first light. Now this is when

I start throwing my hen calling sequences out there. If these birds fire off for the first few calls, I

make. I will then call two more times to really see how well these birds are aware of the “hen” I

am imitating. Between calls I will wait anywhere from 5-25 minutes. If I can hear these birds

making their way towards me, I will play hard to get.

When you are turkey hunting you are trying to reverse what nature intended. Usually, the

hens will call and hear the toms or jakes gobble and come to them. Now your goal is trying to get

the males to come to you. If you are calling like a hen that calls loud and constant. You have a

higher potential to hang up those birds you are wanting to come in. Especially older birds that

have been around for years. They will know exactly where you are in the woods. He knows if he

struts and gobbles in his same spot eventually, the hens will come.

However, if you play hard to get and you only call every two times, he will gobble and then

realize that he needs to come to her. Curiosity is also on your side at that time too. If he hears

you and suddenly you stop calling, he is going to come check it out and see what is going on.

Sometimes calling in increments and just sitting and listening to how these birds communicate

can really pay off in the end.

The only way you are going to shoot that old long beard is to get out there and put some

time in the spring woods. Two major things to remember! One, is sometimes it’s better to call a

little and then shut up and sit. Two, you can’t kill birds from the couch. Get out and hunt!