This is my third year trying to call in a Turkey. Hopefully this year I can send some LongBeard XR down range and connect. I was wondering how long was it for you when you first started calling and hunting public land. I wish everyone a fun and safe season.

I think there are probably several on here like me and it isn't a fair comparison. I was raised on hunting turkeys, had hunted for about 10 years, and was experienced before I ever hunted public land. Also, I was a pretty avid trail runner/jogger at the time and knew where I wanted to be at daybreak on my first public land hunt.

I'd imagine trying to learn on your own how to turkey hunt on public is pretty tough. Good luck to you this year I'm sure you'll seal the deal soon.

I had hunted prob 20 years before I tackled public - starting out on it as a bigginer would b tuff

. Don't give up, keep persisting and know your woods thoroughly. Try to go during the week. Get very good at clucking with a diaphragm caller, I mean where you can make great clucks with the first, two or three sounds, not clucking until you have a good one. What you see on videos and on TV shows will probably not work for you. Keep persisting, know your woods thoroughly.( I can't stress this enough). You have to know where he wants to be during the middle of the day and toward evening. I know they gobble more in the morning, but a lot of killing happens after 11:00.

Pm sent

I killed my first bird on public land. Yeah, most of the time Public is just a more challenging game. You know, it could be just as easy though on some days. Persistence is key. Think outside the box.

Don't be intimidated by hunting public land. From MY experience, I have called up more gobblers to the gun on public land than private land. Not sure if it is just a mental thing and hunting the same turkeys over and over on private property or what.

I started turkey hunting Spring of 2013....to date I have 3 kills under my belt.

I hunted (almost exclusively on public land) for 6 long, miserable, frustratingly wonderful years and I finally killed my first 2 birds on the last 2 days of my 6th season (2018). I killed my 3rd bird at the end of the 7th season (2019). I should've killed 2 or 3 last year but didn't...I flipped the safety off on 2 different birds on the opening weekend and managed to not kill either one... This year is Season #9 and I'm just hoping to put one on the ground...more would just be icing on the cake.

So, if you're ever feeling exhausted or pissed off or frustrated or wondering why the hell you're still out there, just know there are others here that have "been there/done that". Honestly, you gotta be a little touched in the head to keep with it, particularly when you're hunting places with high pressure and/or low turkey density.

BUT...

when you do finally squeeze the trigger on one...and you feel that *thud* against your shoulder...and you see his head snap back like Babe Ruth just hit him in the head with a baseball bat...it is the MOST SATISFYING thing you will probably ever feel.

FIFY ... if your job won’t let you, get a new job; if your wife won’t let you, get a new wife ... some goals require tremendous sacrifices ... voodoo/witchcraft and/or a box call are good, too

I killed a bird on my first solo hunt on public land. That was in 2016 and I have not killed my second, yet. I've been close many times but haven't been able to close the deal again. Persistence is key and take any lesson or lessons you learn on each hunt and file them away. I'm a very stubborn person and love chasing them too much to quit.

In 2018 I started turkey hunting, on public to boot.

The first year I had absolutely no clue what I was doing, but stumbled into some birds and got them to respond, but since I was a novice I spooked them and learned what the "putt" was, never saw them. Second year I actually got into the game with them on 3 separate occasions on public and pulled the trigger on one, but missed (still scratching my head on that one). Third year got in the game 4 times, but no shot opportunities. This year will be my fourth year and I'm hoping to seal the deal. I hunt exclusively on public land (just can't afford a lease right now) and it is TOUGH as I'm sure everyone here knows. I'm bound and determined to kill my first bird on Alabama public, however.

One thing I know I'm lacking is having a turkey hunting mentor. It's the one thing I'd change. I didn't grow up here, so I don't have a whole lot of friends or peoples' brains to pick about turkey (my family didn't turkey hunt either) so I'm left to this website, books, trial and error, etc.

Hope you get one this year!

Great stories Gomer and 757 - I love seeing them flop and it don’t happen near as much as I want it to

I learned fair amount on my own - but I was able to go with several really good hunters over the years - going with really good hunter to me I think you can Learn years worth of hunting knowledge in a few hunts