ROAD HUNTER
In many regions throughout the West, hen turkeys move to higher elevations to nest, and rest assured, where hens go, toms won’t be far.
TIME TO DO YOUR TURKEY HOMEWORK
March offers Western hunters a great opportunity to scout out gobblers ahead of the spring season. STORY AND PHOTOS BY SCOTT HAUGEN
s it had done most days over the past two months, the lone tom strutted and gobbled its way along the ridge. This time was different, though, as it was opening day of spring turkey season. A logged unit separated me from the tom by 200 yards, and at the bottom of the cut, I had a pair of decoys in place: a strutting tom and an upright hen. Tucked into a briar patch 20 yards from the decoys, I let out a soft yelp on a
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diaphragm call, then watched as the tom quickly stacked its wings, sprung into the air and coasted downhill, sticking a landing right next to my decoys. In less than five minutes of hunting, my tag was filled. “That didn’t take long” was a comment that caught my attention on a social media post I’d made about the hunt. I smiled and thought, “If you only knew.” I first learned of that big tom four months prior, when I set up trail cameras on the ridge. I always run my trail cameras on video mode so I can see and hear what’s happening. By opening day, I had logged dozens of
hours scouting this bird, so to say my spring hunt “didn’t take long” couldn’t have been further from the truth. TURKEY FLOCK TRANSITIONS As a former biology teacher, I approach my hunting from a scientific angle. With turkeys, this means locating birds in large winter flocks and tracking their movements and behavioral shifts with each passing day. In March, turkey behavior is rapidly changing. Toms go from tolerating one another in bachelor flocks all winter, to establishing dominance through posturing, to fighting in an effort to americanshootingjournal.com 71
