John's Journal...


Lessons Turkeys Have Taught Me with Matt Morrett

Day 2: Locate Late Season Public Land Tom Turkeys with Matt Morrett

Editor’s Note: Mossy Oak Pro Matt Morrett works for Zink Calls (www.zinkcalls.com) and Avian X Decoys. Matt won the Junior and Senior Grand National Turkey Calling contests, and the World Friction Turkey Calling Championships five times. He was only 16-years old when he won his first World Turkey Calling Championship.

Click for Larger ViewClick for Larger ViewThe more you know about the average public-land turkey hunter, the better your odds are for bagging a gobbler on public lands. The average public-land turkey hunter is willing to get up before daylight, possibly for the first 2 weeks of turkey season, however, after that, whether he’s bagged a bird or not, he’s had enough of that getting up before daylight.

Later in the year, as the leaves come out on the trees, those leaves muffle the sound of a turkey’s gobble. Therefore, when I’m hunting in the late season, usually later in the morning if I hear a turkey gobble, I’ll sit down as quickly as I can. I don’t try to move closer to the gobbler, because I know he’s close enough to call, if I can hear him gobble through the foliage. Most of the time, if you try to close the distance and get near to the gobbler, you’ll find the gobbler is closer than you think, and you’ll spook him. As long as that turkey is gobbling to you when you call to him, and if there’s not a ditch, a creek or hens between you and the turkey, then more than likely, he’ll continue to come looking for you. Because you’re hunting later in the season, many if not most of the hens already will have gone to the nest or be on the way to their nests. So, the gobbler coming to you is less likely to find a hen before he comes to where you’re calling.

Click for Larger ViewClick for Larger ViewSince the leaves are out in the late season, and you can’t hear the turkey gobble at longer distances, remember that the turkey can’t hear you either, until you’re closer to him. I plan to go farther and call more in the late season than I do in the early season. However, if you find a turkey that will gobble later in the morning and later during the season than he has at the first of the season, your chances for taking that turkey then are much better than they are at the first of the season.

Hunters always talk about patience being one of the key attributes of a good turkey hunter. We usually are referring to having enough patience to wait for a turkey to gobble and then having enough patience to wait on that turkey to show-up. However, I think more patience is required to wait until 8:00 or 9:00 am to hunt turkeys, when all your buddies have been in the woods at daylight. You want to wait until your buddies have quit hunting turkeys, before you really start hunting hard.

To learn more about turkey hunting from the masters, get these Kindle eBooks by John E. Phillips, including: “The Turkey Hunter's Bible (available as an eBook or in paperback),” “PhD Gobblers: How to Hunt the Smartest Turkeys in the World,” “Turkey Hunting Tactics,” “How to Hunt Turkeys with World Champion Preston Pittman,” “The 10 Sins of Turkey Hunting with Preston Pittman,” and “Outdoor Life’s Complete Turkey Hunting.” Click on the links above, or go to http://www.amazon.com/kindle-ebooks, type in the names of the books, and download them to your Kindle, and/or download a Kindle app for your iPad, SmartPhone or computer. To get John’s newest book, “The Turkey Gobbler Getter Manual,” for free, go to www.johninthewild.com/free-books.

Share this page with a friend!

Check out our new website at www.johninthewild.com.

About the Author

John Phillips, winner of the 2012 Homer Circle Fishing Award for outstanding fishing writer by the American Sportfishing Association (ASA) and the Professional Outdoor Media Association (POMA), the 2008 Crossbow Communicator of the year and the 2007 Legendary Communicator chosen for induction into the National Fresh Water Hall of Fame, is a freelance writer (over 6,000 magazine articles for about 100 magazines and several thousand newspaper columns published), magazine editor, photographer for print media as well as industry catalogues (over 25,000 photos published), lecturer, outdoor consultant, marketing consultant, book author and daily internet content provider with an overview of the outdoors. Click here for more information and a list of all the books available from John E. Phillips.

Tomorrow: What Calls to Use to Call a Turkey Gobbler with Matt Morrett


Check back each day this week for more about Lessons Turkeys Have Taught Me with Matt Morrett

Day 1: Public Land’s High Pressured Turkeys with Matt Morrett
Day 2: Locate Late Season Public Land Tom Turkeys with Matt Morrett
Day 3: What Calls to Use to Call a Turkey Gobbler with Matt Morrett
Day 4: What to Do When the Gobbler Knows More about You Than You Do Him
Day 5: The Toughest Gobbler Matt Morrett Ever Tried to Take

ALL CONTENT PROTECTED UNDER THE DIGITAL MILLENIUM COPYRIGHT ACT. Content theft, either printed or electronic is a federal offense.

 

Entry 816, Day 2