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Roost Hunting Birds

I have spent many years trying various techniques of hunting turkeys and from my personal experiences concluded the following to provide the most consistency in killing a "Dominant Tom":

1. Listen and Learn for common roost trees
2. Listen and if necessary sneak in to learn typical "fly down" zones
3. Locate a good spot with cover and the right approach angle that is about 20-40 yards from the Fly Down Zone
4. Night before the hunt try to Roost him in the tree to be sure he is there (although if he doesn't answer don't discredit your homework)
4. Night before the hunt get to bed early and set (3) alarms for (3) hours before light
5. Get up in the morning and clear bowels before you leave for the woods (coffee and/or snuff work best for me)
7. Travel to the location with the intentions of being in the woods and on your ass between 1 1/2 to 2 hours before it breaks light
8. When light starts to break scan the trees for the infamous (black dots) in the tree and readjust as necessary (this meaning early light not shooting light)
9. Let him fly down and give him the Hammer :smiley_cowboy:
10. Alternative: If he flys out of range use soft purrs and putts to lure him in. Being on his roost zone he will commit most regularly

Noticing this is probably not standard to how most hunt turkey I was just looking to see if anyone uses a similar tactic and their experiences to confirm my success. I have reasonably concluded that why this seems to be most effective is because in turkey hunting there are so many variables (location, calls, his patterns/priorities, other hens, other hunters, does he like decoys or doesn't he, him spotting you while calling, geography, and so many others) all of which you have (in some manner) reduced to just one in that if he follows his standard fly down pattern he is a dead bird.

This for me and my hunting buddy has produced 13 Toms in 4 years with (10+ beards, 1 1/4+ Spurs)
 

Jackalope

Dignitary Member
Staff member
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This is pretty much the tactic that Alex and I use and it's deadly effective. We don't get out there that early however. A good 30 minutes before the slightest hunt of daybreak will do. There's only been two times that we had to come back the next day for a bird we pre-scouted. In one spot we're something like 5 for 7 on birds per hunt, and one hunt was a pass as the only bird in that area was a Jake. so really we're 5 for 6. A couple of those birds were shot within seconds of their feet hitting the ground almost in our lap. We shot on a couple years ago that barely had time to land and turn around to face the deek. I bet his feet were on the ground for all of two seconds.

Our first scouting trip was last Saturday to an old faithful spot and listening produced two toms and a jake. We went to another spot this morning and located a tom and a Jake. The birds were in the same roost trees other birds have used for years. We'll keep hopping around and listening at spots until season gets here. a day or two before season we'll go back to our hottest bird and listen to him in the morning. Sometimes we'll get in full camo and go set up on him without calling. Just listen to what he does and where he goes on his own.

Another thing we do is hunt with minimal harassment. If a bird pitches away from us and heads the other direction without showing any commitment we have a couple options. Take a nap for a few hours and he'll come back once he's done with those hens. Go ahead and slip on out and come back tomorrow to setup in that direction. We usually prefer the latter. I'm not sitting around waiting on a bird to swing back hours later. Odds are they'll come in quiet and bust your ass anyway. Just head on out and drop him tomorrow.

We've only done the run and gun a couple times. We weren't chasing a bird but rather cold calling. We'll move 20 yards to a tree and call, wait 5, move to another tree 20 yards away and call. This produced a good Tom a couple years ago that didn't gobble until we were about 80 yards from him. We've also learned that Toms don't always give a shit. On one hunt we watched a tom walk by us about 60 yards away. Never looked over, never gave a crap about the calling, he just kept walking along. We passed through that area twice in the couple hours prior and that bird never gobbled. He had to hear us many times.
 

bowhunter1023

Owner/Operator
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48,879
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Appalachia
Ain't a turkey in the world that would get me out of bed 3 hours before daylight.

Here's what I do: Show up 30 minutes before light. Wander blindly in to the woods. Listen to birds gobble. Call one in. Miss. Take a nap. Go get lunch. :smiley_coolpeace:
 

yotehunter

Member
1,527
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spencerville oh
I've always said if you put them too bed. You can kill them pretty easy the next morning. My partner and I don't usually set up that close. I've bumped them off the roost and if that happens its hard to work them back after day light. We usually set up 50 to 60 yards from the roost. If I don't have a bird roosted the night before my confidence level goes way down.
 

Carpn

*Supporting Member*
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Wooster
When it goes as planned turkeys are really easy to kill . Generally they'll roost in the same area for generations and they'll usually pitch down the same way . Unless something crazy happens like logging or something . I've killed a few right off the bat in the morning when they haven't been on the ground a minute . I don't like being set up so close that I can hardly move tho ., while they're in the tree .
If you put in your time scouting , and have a few diff places to hunt ya can usually be pretty successful
 
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Gern186

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NW Ohio Tundra
Turkey hunting for me isn't about shooting them basically off the roost tree...which is what you are essentially doing IMO. To each their own I guess. I prefer to set up 100 or more yards away from a gobbler and not risk blowing them or other nearby roosted turkeys out of the trees before gobble time and flydown. The excitement for me is to hear them gobbling in the tree and work the bird after he flies down...and watch him come strutting in. I agree if they fly down and go the other way, which happens more times than not, being patient for an hour or 2 will pay off a lot of times because those toms will come back around eventually combing the area they are in.
 

Fullbore

Senior Member
6,439
126
South Eastern Ohio
R
Ain't a turkey in the world that would get me out of bed 3 hours before daylight.

Here's what I do: Show up 30 minutes before light. Wander blindly in to the woods. Listen to birds gobble. Call one in. Miss. Take a nap. Go get lunch. :smiley_coolpeace:
Lol! You and I have the same desire and technics!
 

Jackalope

Dignitary Member
Staff member
38,841
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Turkey hunting for me isn't about shooting them basically off the roost tree...which is what you are essentially doing IMO. To each their own I guess. I prefer to set up 100 or more yards away from a gobbler and not risk blowing them or other nearby roosted turkeys out of the trees before gobble time and flydown. The excitement for me is to hear them gobbling in the tree and work the bird after he flies down...and watch him come strutting in. I agree if they fly down and go the other way, which happens more times than not, being patient for an hour or 2 will pay off a lot of times because those toms will come back around eventually combing the area they are in.

Same deal. You just leave more to chance with the cooperation of a pea brained bird. We like to set up where we can see the tom in the tree. Typically within 50 yards of the tree. It's fun to watch a Roosted bird wake up and throw that first roost gobble. It's like the green flag at Daytona and we're at poll position watching the green flag fly.

They'll typically stretch a little and they always prune themselves to get ready for fly down. Start calling and watch his body reaction. It's still too early to fly down but his head will be in a swivel looking for that hen. Sometimes they don't care and just keep pruning. It's up to you to find that right call that gets his head in the game. You can watch them go from uninterested to flat out committed. Really you're trying to convince him to fly to you, and not where he wants to, or has been for many mornings.

Often the calling will piss off a boss hen. She'll open her whore mouth and try to bully you down. If you're lucky you can piss her off so bad she's seeing red. Now you're not calling to the tom but rather having a bitch fight with a hen. The whole while the tom is going nuts.

Fly down. You can see it coming. The tom will stand up and start looking around, he'll teeter totter like he's going to go but chicken out. He'll do this 2-5 times before actually pitching out. It's always a rush because each time you think "here he comes! here he comes!" NOPE! Lol.

Sometimes that bitchy hen will fly down right to you looking for a fight. She's looking for that slut that's been mouthy with her and hitting on her man. If that happens the tom is guaranteed to pitch your way. Most times you can bully her and she'll fly down and hush though, she doesn't want a fight with that foul mouthed hen. The Tom is still in the tree and about that time he spots the hen jake decoy set. OH HELLS NO! Here he comes. They typically land and pop a strut in an instant. If you want to watch then by all means. As for me he's getting a face full of shot soon as I have a clear angle.

You might call it roost shooting. But there's way more to it than that. I find it 10x more enjoyable than calling some pea brain through the woods only to get hung up on a downed log or a six inch ditch. Lol.
 

JD Boyd

*Supporting Member*
3,173
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Urbana
Same deal. You just leave more to chance with the cooperation of a pea brained bird. We like to set up where we can see the tom in the tree. Typically within 50 yards of the tree. It's fun to watch a Roosted bird wake up and throw that first roost gobble. It's like the green flag at Daytona and we're at poll position watching the green flag fly.

They'll typically stretch a little and they always prune themselves to get ready for fly down. Start calling and watch his body reaction. It's still too early to fly down but his head will be in a swivel looking for that hen. Sometimes they don't care and just keep pruning. It's up to you to find that right call that gets his head in the game. You can watch them go from uninterested to flat out committed. Really you're trying to convince him to fly to you, and not where he wants to, or has been for many mornings.

Often the calling will piss off a boss hen. She'll open her whore mouth and try to bully you down. If you're lucky you can piss her off so bad she's seeing red. Now you're not calling to the tom but rather having a bitch fight with a hen. The whole while the tom is going nuts.

Fly down. You can see it coming. The tom will stand up and start looking around, he'll teeter totter like he's going to go but chicken out. He'll do this 2-5 times before actually pitching out. It's always a rush because each time you think "here he comes! here he comes!" NOPE! Lol.

Sometimes that bitchy hen will fly down right to you looking for a fight. She's looking for that slut that's been mouthy with her and hitting on her man. If that happens the tom is guaranteed to pitch your way. Most times you can bully her and she'll fly down and hush though, she doesn't want a fight with that foul mouthed hen. The Tom is still in the tree and about that time he spots the hen jake decoy set. OH HELLS NO! Here he comes. They typically land and pop a strut in an instant. If you want to watch then by all means. As for me he's getting a face full of shot soon as I have a clear angle.

You might call it roost shooting. But there's way more to it than that. I find it 10x more enjoyable than calling some pea brain through the woods only to get hung up on a downed log or a six inch ditch. Lol.

Exactly
 
Turkey hunting for me isn't about shooting them basically off the roost tree...which is what you are essentially doing IMO. To each their own I guess. I prefer to set up 100 or more yards away from a gobbler and not risk blowing them or other nearby roosted turkeys out of the trees before gobble time and flydown. The excitement for me is to hear them gobbling in the tree and work the bird after he flies down...and watch him come strutting in. I agree if they fly down and go the other way, which happens more times than not, being patient for an hour or 2 will pay off a lot of times because those toms will come back around eventually combing the area they are in.

I would be apt to say that if you busting birds of the roost you are either A) Going in to late or B) Really fidgety while sitting........I don't want to say never but I have very rarely bumped birds of the roost to me that is part of the challenge in "roost hunting" is getting in close and keeping movement to a minimum. If you get in early enough it is so dark they just think you are a deer or something moving I have made all kinds of racket going in and an hour or two later come to find I sat right underneath a bird.

I am not sure if you have done it before but if not don't be to hasty to judge as it is a pretty impressive experience but to me the most enjoyable part of turkey hunting is being in there when they wake up watching them on the limb, being in the middle of the hens and toms listening to them talk, enjoying them in their natural setting, then trying to coarse the birds with light calling to come my way.

I have shot many birds on field edges where I called a lone (2) year old or even an entire flock of hens/gobblers in but most honest opinion is that does not compare anything near to catching a bird out of his front door....that first light when your looking the tree tops over wondering if that's a turkey or a squirrel nest....that moment when he lets out his first gobble and he is in a tree 15 yards from you.....the hens fly down 10 yds away.....then you watch him teeter on the limb.....a few minutes later finishing off an amazing mornings hunt.