Confessions of an ex turkey killer

I will admit to an addiction. The sound of a goblble rocks me to my core. The days when they are so close that you can feel it in your chest are a total adrenaline rush. I chase that with a passion that has been costly both monetarily and in personal relationships.

Here is my confession: I cannot kill a turkey this year. My last poor year was 2018 and I killed 2 that year. Since then I normally kill a limit and when I don't, it is because I called in multiple birds that others killed. This year nothing. The turkeys no longer respond like years past. Gobbling has been minimal. Timber is being cut next door to my 2 best spots. Found footprints on my lease. Dogs have run off several gobblers I was working.

Fried turkey excuses are the only thing being served at the dinner table. The only dented primer was a coyote that thought turkey dinner was on the menu.

I have gone through my normal routine that has been proven. Changed calls, tempo, called very aggressively, called one cluck and one 3 note yelp in a 3 hour period. Have rustled enough leaves to fill a landfill. Have snuck in close in the dark. Backed way off. Moved and stayed still. Have hunted hard.

I am posting this public confession and admitting that all my prior success was simply luck. My arrogance is gone and this act of public contrition is affirmation of that. Let the Lord lift this turkey drought and let me once again fuel my addiction.

Couldn't have said it better myself

I have felt the same this year.
Crazy how one day it can be so easy, then reality kicks you in the nads and you wonder how you could ever kill one.

Dang Fishduck! Sounds like how my year has been. Extremely disappointing year for me.

Tom Kelly said to remember the good years because it all has to even out.

Mine gobbled good in Feb and early March but have only had 1
Morning since season opened that they have gobbled

It gets worse when there are no turkeys to hunt where you typically hunt them.

^^^

That sucs spec

Some of u guys sound like spots worse than mine

I learned this a long time ago on what i am about to say - you got to hav turkeys to kill them

Many - but not all of the last 20 years my spots hav sucked and really accelerated in sucking the past 4 years. I hav killed 3 this year and had good hunt w a buddy on his place once and he ended up killing. Other than those hunts - i worked a bird once (gobble 6 time - answer me twice - had hen - and that one of my top hunts 😆).. those are not good odds when work one 25% of time. I just counted the days i hav hunted this year - 20 - So i hav worked a bird 25% of the time. Not very good - but it was worse the prior 2 years. I hav been highly successful when given opportunity this year (very lucky) but the opportunities are few and far between. Aint worked one since the 11th - hope i aint on another stretch where i hunt 20-21 hunts straight and not hear a bird like each of the last 2 years n bama (thats 40 plus hunts w 0 gobble). Dont care what anybody says - thats brutal 🤣🤣

Blessed to b able to still go.

No gobbling r not working one get frustrating

Hear is something funny - to me anyway

I hav heard guys on hear say - 1 heard 4 this morning. I cant help but think - dang - u one short of all the birds i hav heard all season 🤣🤣🤣

I use to hav spots like that n bama in late 90s and early 2000s - lot of quick killing of birds too 😀

Find the birds without depending on gobbling. I feel kinda bad to stooping to actually scouting for turkeys, but that's what it's taking. The ages within flocks are so stretched out they're staying henned up all season as jennies come in. It's been like that for years now. I had one kee keeing to me yesterday. Gobbler was following her and gobbling quiet in his chest.

I tried the usuals that make a jenny veer, but as I found out later it was on a beeline to a feeder on a property line. I really hate corn slingers.

I feel this post. With the way things are going this year I'll be damn fortunate to kill one. When I think back on all my previous kills, three total, all were basically blind ass luck. Right place, right time, and a few decent calls. Nothing more. Ahhh turkey hunting....

We have all had those years. Fortunately, when I have set up on a good gobbling bird they have died this year. But, I am having a hard time setting up on birds this year.

I had a terrible year about 7-8 years ago. Nothing could go right and I even missed a bird that year. It was so bad I was coming back from Mobile to B'ham and decided to stop by the cemetery in Camden just to ask Mr. Kelly's buddy for some help from the other side. I finally did manage one bird that year but I would have tried anything that would not cost me my religion to get that monkey off my back that year. Whew...

I’m hunting 7 spots n Fayette n Lamar. Worked 3 birds. I am fortunate to hunt a lot. Shot the first, son missed the 2nd, and no good shot on 3rd. Have not heard a gobble n 8 days. I don’t hunt all day, but I hunt quite a bit n change it up. Last year my best two hunts, other than opening day were the last two. Seems to be less birds n sign, but 6 spots had gobblers before the season. Guess we shall see how it plays out. I feel some of your pain. At least we are playing the game…..Good luck!

Because of this confession, I now declare your Jinx to be broken. You may go kill a turkey tomorrow.

Hit me with one too Mr. Steve while you’re doing please sir. I’m killing them, but it’s been rough this year.

About wrapped my shotgun around tree this morning.Trying to get birds in front of my daughter and 78 yr old dad on public land is torture. I get one day a week to hunt solo and I know I shouldn’t be complaining. Spooked 3 rd bird in a row in shotgun range this morning without a shot fired.

Pretty sure turkeys can sense your emotions if you're not in tune with Nature. It really helps to get not worked up about whether you kill one or not. It's the being in tune just like everything else in the woods and making like a turkey that you want. If you know how to kill them it's going to happen if you stay at it. I guess most people don't believe in the magic of Nature like that, but if it's not magic then how does a bird get us so enthralled?

I sure don't get out of sorts over not killing when I'm calling for my wife or son. The number of birds I've put in front of them and they just never even shot at is astounding. The sandwich maker totally loses control of herself. At this point it's a surprise if a shot goes off. It's tons of fun, but it could be extremely frustrating if I let it be about whether there's a grip and grin at the end.

Took a pic of the boy and the tree he shot a couple years ago. I mean whatcha gonna do?! I had the gobbler at 20 yards and the boy and his gun pointed at it and me saying shoot, shooooot...shoooot the turkey..... over and over. He didn't unlock enough to shoot until the bird was at forty through some brush. Gosh lee. I laugh still. He groans. I laugh more.

It’ll be like that. One year I killed 7 in a season ( not all in Bama) Thought I had it all figured out. The next year I hunted hard as ever and got skunked.

They will dang sure humble you.

Sorry, if you are killing turkeys you ain't Jinxed. Nothing I can do.

Look preacher, I uh, didn’t want to say it out loud, but my last hunt resulted in a miss. There, I said it.

Thanks for the well wishes and understanding. Especially the jinx buster. Will try them again this weekend and hope for the best. Still a lot of sunrises before the season closes.

That doesn't mean a Jinx; you could have just made a bad shot. Kill the next one and you will know you are ok.

It been one crazy year for sure. The good lord has blessed me with 3 gobblers but its been a grind. I have heard and worked less birds this year since I started back in 1985! I have only gotten to work 6 birds. The rest have either gobbled on the roost then fly down and go quit or not gobble at all. I went 7 morings in a row and never heard a single gobble. Most years I will only go 2 or 3 mornings all season without at least hearing one bird, but not this year. I cant remember as many COLD, cloudy, windy or rainey morings during one turkey season. The birds are there, seen sign, got pics before season and saw several along the way. However, they did not want to gobble at all. If I had to hunt them like deer on greenfields I wouldnt hunt them. Its all about the gobble and the game.
TYLJ