Have you ever snuck up on a turkey while deer hunting?

Not sure who startled who, getting into tree stands early in the dark I've flushed a few that were roosting overhead in the trees.....they're not very graceful coming down out of their perch.

All the time, just wish I could do it during Turkey lol.

The other way around for me. Had a doe and fawn come up on a hen decoy last Spring turkey season. She was pawing and snorting and when she finally walked up and hit the decoy with her nose, she got a good four feet of air!

During bow season yes. And one ran away with $20 worth of arrow in his wing. Carbon arrow, broad head, lumenock. Never did find him. I figured I would see the lumenock since it was near dark but no luck.

They seem to adapt to an Urban environment, they roost in the trees bordering my sons house, at the gun club they forage around the pond in small flocks undisturbed by the gun fire.
Two decades or so ago there were no wild turkeys in Rhode Island now we have seasons for them.

Rembrandt said:

Not sure who startled who, getting into tree stands early in the dark I've flushed a few that were roosting overhead in the trees.....they're not very graceful coming down out of their perch.

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Grouse are the absolute worst things to deal with in the dark. Walking along in the dark on your way to your stand, kick one up that's practically under your feet....they take off so friggin loud. It's a good thing camo pants have alot of brown in them!

MidRoad said:

Grouse are the absolute worst things to deal with in the dark. Walking along in the dark on your way to your stand, kick one up that's practically under your feet....they take off so friggin loud. It's a good thing camo pants have alot of brown in them!

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I wish I could find grouse. Never seen any down here, either did my dad. I know the sound tho.

You should try to creep up on them with a strutter decoy in spring- that's an exciting way to hunt them!

Yes...and grouse and pheasants. Does it count as sneaking up on them if they see you first though? Nothing like a rocket propelled bird shooting out from underfoot to get your juices flowing, especially when you've been seeing cougar tracks in the woods lately.

Bounced a whole flock of turkeys once in the dark, at least 5000 of them I'd have to guess. It was too dark for them to see and they fluttered around in the Red Oak branches which still held all their leaves adding to the chaos, like a flock of giant bumblebees. They really are worse than grouse when you bounce them up close in the dark.

A rooster pheasant roosted literally in your deerstand that waits until you are halfway up the ladder to explode in a burst of wings and cackles is an experience every boy should have also.

troy fairweather said:

I wish I could find grouse. Never seen any down here, either did my dad. I know the sound tho.

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There are a ton of them up this way. When we were scouting the 34 acre plot a few weekends back my brother and I were walking down the log road towards my father. My father said we kicked up 4 grouse and they landed near him before taking back off again. Never even heard them, then again we weren't very quite that day on account of the large black bear tracks.we stumbled across on the way up the logging road.

On more than one occasion I have walked up on turkeys in a steady rain. The rain limits their hearing and in favorable terrain they can't see far. Often they seem intent on feeding on insects, worms, grubs, etc.

My sons and I had a flock of turkeys running between us for a while, we walked right up on them. One took off and my then ten-year-old younger son started to raise the 870 (With a scope and slug barrel on it!) up, but I grabbed the barrel and shoved it down.

One of my old hunting spots was a huge old dead oak, that was next to a big rock wall. There were many trials that funneled in from a few fields and woods. One morning about 6:30 before sun up, a good size black bear crawled out of the dead tree just on the other side from me. I was very awake that morning.

I put my brother in a stand overlooking a well traveled deer path. The deer went through every evening between 3 and 4 pm. I walked up the hill behind to try and push game to him, as I crested the hill there was a flock of turkeys. I watched them for 10 minutes. When I got back to my brother's stand I asked why he didn't shoot the 4 deer moving down the path right in front of him. He never saw them.

Well I sorta "encountered" them more than once. I was in a hedgerow, since I hunt from the ground with my flintlock. I looked to the East and a huge bird was gliding in toward the meadow that I was watching for deer. Biggest wingspan I'd seen, and I'd never seen a bald eagle up close, so the only thing I had to compare it to was a black vulture. I'd also never seen a wild turkey in flight up close, and she set down about 20 yards from me, and folded her wings, and I said out loud, "Hey that's a turkey"...the hen of course heard me and took off on foot.

About a month ago I was scouting an area to take my son hunting. I'd never been to the state forest, and didn't know the terrain. Here in Maryland we don't have much land where one is legally allowed to hunt with rifles, and my son announced he wanted to use the 6.5 Grendel rifle that he'd built for deer this year.

So it was a Monday at about 11, and I was driving my car along the dirt car path into one of the areas that I thought on my topo map looked promising. I had checked two spot already, and this was the last that looked good on the map.. The road went uphill and turned left at the crest, and as I crested, there were no less than a jake and three hens, in the road. They didn't zip off on foot, and acted as though I was annoying them, making them move off the roadway. I had brought my shotgun with full choke and #4 shot to bag a squirrel or two while scouting, but I hadn't even thought to check to see if fall turkey was in season. (Spring Turkey is the big turkey-season where I live). It was much fun to see them, and I'd bet the minute I stopped and got out they'd a scampered off into the woods, out of range.

So I figured since the early Muzzle Loader season had closed on Saturday, and it was Monday, if the turkeys were moving about where I saw them..., a "corner" of the state forest near private land..., then that might be an area where the game gets "pushed" when the season opens...since turkey and deer don't know which is being hunted by the humans...at least I think they don't.....

Thems my two turkey-up-close stories.

LD

Only heard wild turkeys off in the distance. Wild turkeys are very cautious and their eye sight is amazing. I have seen more wild turkeys at the range than anywhere else. The pictured flock, I was setting things up for a rifle match, early in the morning. They were on the 200 yard line and as long as I stayed within the vehicle and kept my distance they were OK. But they skedaddled once I got out of the vehicle.

In VA, during General Firearms season for deer, Thanksgiving Day is the only legal day to take a turkey. EVERY year, I carried a deer rifle, and a shotgun or small bore rifle, just in case. I would see turkeys every season, except for on the day I could take one. I got tired of carrying the extra weight, so, 2 years ago, I literally picked the shotgun up, and then put it back in the cabinet. That Thanksgiving Day, I was sitting in one of my favorite spots, not seeing much of anything, when I heard a couple of deer running full-bore behind me. I waited for them to pass me, then heard a "WHUMP", and then silence. The noise was 5 turkeys taking off, and flying 5 YARDS BESIDE MY HEAD, and landing 25 yards in front of me. I put the scope of the '-06 on the first one, and silently asked him to stop bobbing his head just once, but he wouldn't oblige. So, will go back to carrying the extra weight, I guess...

I have stumbled upon them while deer hunting and 2 months ago at the range. We were shooting crossbow and I needed to use the RR so I wandered about 50yards to the shotgun skeet house and look up and there is about 20 of them feeding 40yards away.

I first noticed there were turkeys on the land I hunt when I saw some during deer season. To balance it out, I saw a huge buck on the land - when it was turkey season.

Sitting up on a bluff south of Brownwood during deer season I saw the largest flock I have ever seen. I counted 35 and I wasn't a fourth of the way through. All hens. We could shoot hens in that county during deer season, but I have not had much luck recovering enough of one shot with a deer rifle. They fed across the field when all of a sudden every one of their heads went erect, and looked the same direction. Then I saw the coyote sneaking up on them. I would have shot him, but he was an easy 400 yds off and I wanted to see what would happen, and I would much rather take my toms in the spring. The turkeys all stared him down for 10 mins or so and he finally snuck off. Eventually they moved across the fence onto the neighbors place. If you would sit over a feeder all day it would be visited 3 to 5 times, but seldom early or late. In that part of Texas, if you have water year round you will have lots of turkeys.

Have you ever snuck up on a turkey while deer hunting?

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NO need to, more than likely those glorified buzzards will sneak up on me!! I HATE having them around!



DM