Late Season Gobblers - by Carl Drake

It’s usually this time of year that a turkey hunter is either totally satisfied with his season or he pretty much hates the thought of turkey hunting because it has become a real challenge to locate a turkey towards the end of season. But let me tell you, there are still some gobblers out there that are ready to play the game.

We as turkey hunters get used to the thought of this scenario: a bird gobbles on the roost, we yelp and cutt at him, the gobbler runs right into us and we shoot him, and then we’re off to have breakfast with our buddies. Not so much this time of the year. Birds are “hooking up” with these hens and going silent because they are off repopulating the earth with little turkeys and not making a peep all morning. But, this is when those lunch time and afternoon tactics come in to play.

Those girls that Toms have been chasing are now going off to lay and to sit on those eggs for the day, leaving ol’ lover boy alone and still feeling frisky. This is when I like to break out that box call for some long distance calling and try to locate a lonely bird to show him a little attention. This is also a good time to be glassing fields to see if you can find him out feeding and taking a break from making babies.  I also find this is when you will see birds pairing up together again, giving an opportunity at a double if your state allows.

So, don’t give up on your season quite yet. There’s still love in the air, you’ve just got to find it.

- Carl Drake