Question: Alex, let's say you're hunting a river-bottom swamp. You're on one side of a river, and the turkey's on the other side. You've called to that turkey, and he's answered. The river is too deep to wade, too wide and too cold to swim. There's no bridge close by that will allow you to reach the turkey. What will you do to get that turkey to fly across that river?
Rutledge: First, I'll find the most narrow place between me and the turkey where the turkey can fly across the river. Hopefully, I'll find a clean bank or a small opening where the gobbler can land. Next, I'll talk to the turkey with a box call, like the Beard Collector or the Ol' Mama Hen, or, I may even use an old tube call with lot of volume to get the gobbler excited.

Also, I'll use my Delta decoys. When that turkey walks up to his side of the river, I want him to be able to look across the river and see what he believes to be hens. Then I want to get that turkey emotionally excited by calling to him so aggressively and pleadingly that he'll double and triple gobble.

When I get that old gobbler as excited as I can, then I'll shut up and not say a word. I may stay silent for 30 minutes to 1 hour. As long as I can see the turkey, I'll just sit and wait on him and not say anything. When the hen that's been talking to that gobbler across the river stops talking, then the tom across the river thinks that perhaps another gobbler has stolen his date. The gobbler across the river can't stand for someone else to steal his girl, so he'll fly the creek to whip this other gobbler and knock his lung loose.

Question: Okay, Alex, with all this gobbling and yelping, what happens if hens come to the gobbler across the river?
Rutledge: Then I'm in trouble, because most of the time, when hens come to a gobbler, that's exactly what he wants to happen. There's no point in the turkey flying the river, if he's got a date on his side of the river. If there's more than one hen that comes to the gobbler, I'll completely quit talking to the gobbler and start talking to the hens.

I want to sound like a demanding old boss hen that intends to have that gobbler fly the river to come see her. Many times in this situation, the hens will start calling back to me aggressively. When the hens start calling to me, before they finish their conversations, I'll interrupt them with loud, aggressive cutting and cackling. I want those hens to think that what they've got to say isn't nearly as important as what I've got to say. When you do that, the hens become offended and mad. To really get those hens fired-up, I use the Little Deuce or the AlumiStrut friction calls. If I can get those hens to fly across the river, that gobbler won't stand on the bank by himself. He'll fly the river with the hens.