Take common sense into the turkey woods tomorrow

Cathy Beutler with a nice gobbler she shot while hunting with me.

Turkey hunting mistakes and the shotguns we use don't necessarily go together, but in many cases, they may come together whether we like it or not. People with much better eyesight than me can get along just fine, thank you, with just the bead on the front end of a shotgun.

They believe there is no reason to trick out their shotgun. That doesn't work for me or my wife. I use a scope while she uses a Bushnell Holographic sight. Each one works well for us.

My 3-inch magnum 12 gauge shotgun wears a scope with crosshairs. It more than allows me to aim with confidence at an incoming gobbler. A well identified gobbler can be seen with the naked eye but the scope helps me pick a hole in the brush through which I can positively identify and shoot my bird. It helps reduce wounding of a turkey as well.

Hoping that today's weather holds for tomorrow's turkey opener.

Kay's Holographic sight has a red ring that can be placed on the gobbler's head and neck, and the brightness can be turned up or down to match her needs on a bright or very cloudy day.

They were both sighted in a month ago, and we'll add new batteries just before our second-season hunt begins. We are fine as long as we don't fall or bang the scope or sight off a tree limb or a big rock. I once fell while hunting in southwest Texas, and knocked my scope so far out of kilter that I couldn't have hit the inside of a barn if I'd been standing inside it.

Several states are under my belt when it comes to turkey hunting. And even though the Michigan turkey season will be opening tomorrow, anyone who ventures out for wild turkeys this spring  should have some type of checklist. It certainly will help prevent forgetting some key element that is needed. I made that mistake once, got into my position well before the dawn, and reached  for my shotgun shells and they weren't there.

I then remembered leaving them sitting on the table as my coffee was hurriedly quaffed. My hunting vest was pulled on, my empty and cased shotgun was picked up, and out the door I went. It was a wonderful morning, and two longbeards slipped in to within 35 yards even though I wasn't calling and there were no decoys set out.

I sat still, watched the birds without spooking them, and still had a wonderful time. But hunting is not quite the same without a bow or loaded shotgun in hand.

In the heat of the moment, it's easy to forget where items are or which pocket they were put in the turkey vest for safe keeping. I generally go through a mental or written checklist the day before a hunt, put everything in my car, and it stays there until I finish hunting that season.

A mistake made on opening day several years ago.

I write occasionally about turkey hunting mistakes. Here is one of mine. I took off one morning, drove to my hunting area, got there long before sun-up in preparation for a half-mile hike to my chosen hunting area, slipped on my turkey vest and reached for my shotgun. It wasn't there.

It had rained the previous day while hunting, and I took the shotgun in the house to dry it off, clean it up, and forgot to put it back in its case and in the car. So, by the time I drove home, the sun was well up and another great turkey-hunting opportunity had been wasted.

What should this turkey hunting checklist contain? Obviously, it should have everything you'll need for turkey hunting. Once pulled together, leave all gear locked in the vehicle to avoid a problem like mine.

We'll start with the bare essentials. This would include

• camouflage clothing
• face mask, boots
• camo cap
• gloves
• turkey vest
• bow or shotgun

Don't forget the shotgun shells and rain gear if needed. Of great importance is your spring turkey hunting license. It must be carried with you while hunting. Don't leave it in the car or truck.

Next comes the less obvious but very important items. Anyone who checks many places for bird sign, and has patterned turkeys in several areas, should have a map showing these locations along with details of where birds roost, travel at dawn, move during the day, and how they return to their roost site. A handheld GPS unit can store a bunch of turkey hotspots, and it doesn't take up much room.

Decoys have become an important part of a turkey hunter's gear, and don't forget them. Some people roll them up and stuff two hens and one jake decoy in the back of their hunting vest. I don't because if they stay folded for too long, it's a pain to heat them to pop the decoy back into its original shape.

Hen and jake decoys are important items for many hunters.

My old decoys have newspaper rolled up and stuffed inside the body and neck cavities. It makes them a bit slower to move on the stake during a breeze. A fast-moving decoy tends to scare approaching gobblers. I also cut several arrow shafts, glue in an insert and use a target point to stick it into the ground. The opposite end that goes through a decoy that has a washer that fits against the inside hole for the stake. Another target point and washer is placed at the top of the decoy, and the point is screwed into the insert. This allows the decoy to move. Paint these washers black. Just remember that a stiff breeze can still blow them around but there is a cure.

Two stakes are cut from old aluminum arrow shafts, and have a target point screwed in. These stakes are used to prevent a decoy from spinning completely around on a breezy day. It allow the decoy to swivel 12-14 inches in one direction and that much in the other direction, and this provides the best results for me. It provides some decoy movement that can help sell the deal.

Make certain any box calls are wrapped in an old dark-colored washcloth with one layer of cloth between the lid and box of the call to prevent unexpected squeaks. Keep all strikers for slate calls rubber-banded together to prevent them from clicking together in your vest. Know where each call is in your vest, and it doesn't hurt to bring a brown towel to lay on the ground. Place all calls to be used on the towel next to your leg for easy access when needed.

Common sense and hunter safety must be practised while turkey hunting.

A Hunter Orange cap or vest can be worn when walking into and out of the woods, especially in the predawn darkness. Once you get to the hunting area, take it off. It adds a wee bit of extra hunting safety to your day in the woods.

Touch up any shiny object with brown, black or green spray paint. Carry shotgun shells, one each in different pockets, to prevent them from clicking together and making an untimely noise.

Carry a cell phone but turn the thing off. Carry a topographical map of the area if one exists, but stow it somewhere so it doesn't crinkle and make noise as a gobbler approaches. A handheld GPS unit can mark your vehicle's location, the best place to set up, and tell you how to return to the vehicle when hunting strange land. A flashlight is always handy, as is a good compass.

A foam rubber camouflaged butt pad is a luxury, and I carry one in the back of my vest. The small foam pad that folds down to be used as a seat is left up and in place and used to cushion my bad back.

I'm still dithering about taking my Ten-Point crossbow or my shot. Bow hunting for turkeys is legal from a treestand, and I'm thinking of trying it tomorrow.

What else? Anything else that you may need. I carry a turkey wing to slap against a tree or pant legs to simulate the fly-down sound of a bird coming out of a roost tree at dawn. A candy bar, cookies or a sandwich, and a bottle of water, are handy on an all-day hunt but pack them so they make no noise.

The last two things a turkey hunter should take into the woods on opening day is a combination of common sense and optimism. Go forth with common sense telling you what to do or not do, and the optimistic thought that this is the day you'll take that husky longbeard. Think positively, and good things can happen.

Posted via email from Dave Richey Outdoors