Turkey Scouting
Turkey Hunting Tips: Turkey scouting is the art of locating areas that turkeys frequent and monitoring those areas for movement. Scouting does not start at the beginning of the hunting season nor does it end once the season starts. Effective scouting techniques require the hunter to pay attention to detailed turkey sign throughout the year, prior to the season, and during the season.
Unless the hunter has a perfect memory, it is suggested that a notebook be kept in order to maintain adequate record details. The use of topographic and aerial maps can also benefit a hunter. They provide an overview of the land to be hunted. There are plenty of websites online to aid in developing these maps. Or if one doesn’t wish to go the high tech route, simply draw the map by hand.
These notebooks should contain all aspects of the property. Fields, water ways, logging and walking trails, isolated patches of timber, under growth areas, heavy timbered areas and so forth. If its on the property, map it out. Pay close attention to obstacles or barriers that may prevent turkeys from crossing.
Assuming the area to be hunted has turkeys, there should be quite a bit of signs from their movements. While scouting, look for the most obvious signs such as turkey tracks, feathers, and droppings. Turkey scratchings should also be easy to locate, these will provide information on food source areas.
Scouting during different times of the day will provide a variety of turkey signs as well as reveal movement, watering, feeding, strutting, dusting, and roosting patterns. All of this information should be written down for future use. Pay attention to trails as to be able to move in and out of these areas undetected during the hunting season.
Many hunters spend most of their time searching for roosting areas. While this is certainly good information to have, other turkey movement details are just as important. If the hunter sets up near a roosting area during the season, but can not get the turkey to come in, the hunter then will have additional information to continue the hunt.
A suggested technique for preseason scouting is to break the day into sections. In the morning at daybreak, try to locate roosting areas by listening for gobbles or other turkey sounds. Also listen for wings flapping as turkeys move around in or fly down from the trees. Move into these areas after the turkeys have left and make notes of the findings. This way when the season starts, there will be a good set up location already mapped out.
During the morning and mid day, look for the direction of travel that the previously roosted turkeys are taking. Finding and monitoring their movements as the day goes by. Pay attention to the terrain and keep track of obstacles for both the turkey and the hunter. Feeding patterns and the other previously mentioned movement patterns should be detailed in writing.
If the hunter was unable to roost the turkeys during the morning. Use the evening hours for locating the roosting locations. Turkeys generally will return to these areas about an hour or so before sunset. If the hunter is able to see turkeys this late in the day, the roosting areas will be close by.
Using these turkey hunting tips for turkey scouting will provide the hunter with additional information for the hunting season. Just remember not to get too close to turkeys as to spook them away from the area.
