Unwritten rules

[mshunter77]

1) he is dead because I don't see a difference in that and calling him in shooting range on the ground. He is just trying to take the easy way out or is a really smart bird and playing it safe.

2) no problem ambushing a turkey. There is more to hunting than calling. Nothing wrong with killing a turkey that tou have spent the time to scout and nail down his patterns.

[camlock]

To each his own I guess. How he dies is more important than if he dies. Not fun to me if he doesn't gobble and play right.

+10100 great post, I agree with the way you put that...good stuff

[camlock]

Wouldn't shoot a turkey out of a tree...I'm gonna get him on his feet and in front of my gun before I shoot him one way or another...I just think it's unethical to shoot a gobbler from a limb regardless, I guess just ole traditional way of thinking

#2 I probably wouldn't shoot him, but if I were taking someone that hadn't killed many (which is a lot of the time) I would advocate them taking the shot if they wanted and it was clean open shot.

[Beaverslayer]

I was at my camp turkey hunting many years ago and had an unusual scenario occur. I was set up on the side of an oxbow lake several hundred yards from the property line when I hear some 4 wheelers off in the distance sounding like they are headed my way. I had seen two long beards here several times and was sitting calling lightly hoping to roost them. Well, the 4 wheelers are getting closer and closer. They come onto our property and are headed straight for me. I'm sitting still and have have turned facing them. I just sit still and am planning to bust them when they get on top of me. When they are about 75 yards out I hear something running and see the two long beards heading straight at me. I get the gun on them and fire just as one of em is passing by at about 5 yards. I nearly took his head off. The guys on the wheelers slam on the brakes and can see the turkey flopping and going crazy. I then stood up and headed to them. They were riding through some fairly thick woods and there was no way they could have left quick enough for me not to catch them. They didn't turkey hunt and was just joy riding. They said they didn't think about it being turkey season and apologized. I let them know I hunted there pretty regularly and politely asked them not to come back. They came over with me to check the turkey out and seemed to be amazed by it. That particular turkey didn't have any spurs which at the time I had never seen before. That's one of those hunts that sticks out in my mind to this day. At the time I wasn't too happy with the trespassers, but I will say, they helped make a memory. Even though I didn't call to that turkey, I didn't have any problem killing it.

[lilham]

Never pass up a legal kill on a legal bird and never pass on a bird today, that you would shoot the last day. Keep the Turkey Gods happy!

I killed two birds really quick one year and then passed on a third bird with a small beard(small but legal) because I wanted a bigger one. I never got my third bird that year and it took me most of the next season to kill my first. Messed up my mojo!

The largest bird I ever killed was in Ill. The first morning I found myself set up only about 40 yards from this bird on the roost. He gobbled and strutted all morning on the roost. He decided not to fly down until noon. When he flew down, he decide to glide what seemed like a couple miles away. After the hunt, I told the landowner about what the turkey had done. He informed me that after 7 am, it was legal in Ill to shoot a turkey in the tree. I thought he was crazy. There was no way I was going to shoot a turkey in the tree. Since the turkey was so large, I went back to the same spot to hunt this bird. The exact same thing happen that day and the next. On my fourth and final day, I shot the bird in the tree at 7:01. Never say Never!

[Hayes]

Not picking fun, but be careful when we say the old traditional way of doing things. You can bet your bottom dollar the original hunters that hunted as a way of life to live shot the turkeys off of the limb and probably shot the deer at night if given the opportunities. I can bout guarantee them traditional Indians did.

Just saying,

[three11]

Not picking fun, but be careful when we say the old traditional way of doing things. You can bet your bottom dollar the original hunters that hunted as a way of life to live shot the turkeys off of the limb and probably shot the deer at night if given the opportunities. I can bout guarantee them traditional Indians did.

Just saying,

Good point. Indians didn't have 12 gauges and box calls. They shot them with a sharp rock on the end of a stick the was propelled by a bent stick with a string.

[stang67]

fourth and final day, I shot the bird in the tree at 7:01. Never say Never!

Sounds like a hoot!

[JMitch]

there is a difference between and limb and the roost tree.

[camlock]

Not picking fun, but be careful when we say the old traditional way of doing things. You can bet your bottom dollar the original hunters that hunted as a way of life to live shot the turkeys off of the limb and probably shot the deer at night if given the opportunities. I can bout guarantee them traditional Indians did.

Just saying,

Good point. Indians didn't have 12 gauges and box calls. They shot them with a sharp rock on the end of a stick the was propelled by a bent stick with a string.

good point three11

tradition meaning, the traditions of our modern hunting styles....obviously not intended to compare sport hunting with food gathering traditions.

I personally don't see any thrill in killing very wary but overall not really intelligent stinking bird; if there isn't the pageantry of the spring time turkey courting involved. I just don't care enough to kill one that I wanna shoot him from a roost or on a flush; I do it so hear em gobble, watch them strut, see them do all their turkey things....

[bustercat64]

I don't hold turkeys in the same regard as most of you but I can see not shooting him on the roost but what is the difference in shooting a dove off of a limb. I think the addiction of turkey hunting is calling in your bird if it was about the kill then might as well shoot them in deer season.

[camlock]

I don't hold turkeys in the same regard as most of you but I can see not shooting him on the roost but what is the difference in shooting a dove off of a limb. I think the addiction of turkey hunting is calling in your bird if it was about the kill then might as well shoot them in deer season.

not trying to speak too broad, but here is my theory....there are many turkey hunters that came from a hunting tradition that was more about the hunt, the calling, the whatever and those guys are like myself and some others that are more into the hunt than the harvest....

speaking more of the last decade, the marketing of turkey hunting by the hunting industry has made the sport way more popular, and the key to that marketing is harvesting, and many hunters/outdoorsmen are brought into spring hunting as an opportunity to harvest and hunt as they would have in fall seasons and not into the spring time turkey hunting traditions spoke of previously....so you get more focus on the harvest than the hunt.

that's a broad generalization and to each his own within the bounds of good ethics...but I know from my position I've seen more deer hunters getting lured into turkey hunting over the past 5-10 years and the sales pitch is to shoot....they all wanna shoot a turkey, shoot a turkey...

[ScottyLee]

I love to turkey hunt, and for every turkey it leads to a different hunt. I'll crawl one, call one, wait one out, shoot him when his feet hit the ground, shoot him when he's going to roost... I live for the hunt, and no 2 stories usually work out the same, and I have ZERO problem using different tactics outside of the traditional call him in.

side note.... if I could set a trip wire in the morning and kill a certain one turkey that's causing me to loose sleep I would do it. he squats to pee in the ladies bathroom and doesn't speak turkeyneese.

[JMitch]

I love to turkey hunt, and for every turkey it leads to a different hunt. I'll crawl one, call one, wait one out, shoot him when his feet hit the ground, shoot him when he's going to roost... I live for the hunt, and no 2 stories usually work out the same, and I have ZERO problem using different tactics outside of the traditional call him in.

side note.... if I could set a trip wire in the morning and kill a certain one turkey that's causing me to loose sleep I would do it. he squats to pee in the ladies bathroom and doesn't speak turkeyneese.

Those turkeys like that its a special love/hate relationship. You grow to hate em and love to kill em.