Spring gobbler season is now on the horizon and felt it was time to touch on some important questions that are asked frequently by turkey hunters across the nation. I have enlisted the assistance of two my friends Sadler McGraw and Chris Kirby to aid in answering the questions. We will all shed different light with our opinions on these commonly inquired about topics.

Sadler McGraw has established himself as one of the most prolific competition callers in the last decade. He is a member of the Woodhaven Custom Calls Sting Team since it‘s inception five years ago. His list of accolades includes, 14 Alabama state titles, Yellville National and Southern Open Champion. As well he has been runner up at the World, Grand Nationals, US Open and Grand America calling competitions. He is also no stranger to friction divisions winning the 2008 World, 2008 Yellville National and 2007 US Open. He has won or placed in over 50 contests, including owl hooting divisions.

Chris Kirby is the president of Quaker Boy Game Calls. He has won or placed in over 75 turkey calling competitions, including winning the coveted World and the Grand Nationals. He has recorded multiple grand slams, hunting the wild turkey extensively all over the United States. He is with out a doubt one of the foremost experts in hunting and calling these majestic birds.

1. What do you do when a gobbler hangs up out of gun range?

If he has answered my calling in route to where I am set up and I am able to observe him where he is hung up at, I will increase my calling intensity and frequency to provoke several gobbles. Then I will go completely silent for an undetermined amount of time. There is no set limit, just what feels right. Some times it will take two or three times to make him break and close the distance those final crucial yards. If he won’t commit, let him drift off and try to relocate to a better set up. – Sadler McGraw

2. How often do you call when you have a gobbler answering you?

I will bombard a turkey with excited calling from the tree all the way to the gun if he wants to hear it. But, most times I test the water to see how fired up he is. I let him dictate how much I call. You do not want to exhaust your repertoire at the start of your engagement. If this occurs you wont have anything left that he hasn’t heard in the first five minutes of the hunt. – Sadler McGraw

The gobbler dictates to me how much I call. I like to get the conversation in my favor. I.E. I call, he answers, I call, he answers, I call, he doesn’t answer…. Not a good situation, he could be coming, going or staying put. I like to reverse that and answer him. He gobbles, I call, he gobbles, I call, he gobbles, I wait…… Put the onus of the search back in his court. Let him gobble 2 or 3 times and then answer, his desperation to breed will most likely bring him in. – Chris Kirby

The minimum it takes to lure him into gun or bow range. I only raise my frequency of calling when he has stopped his forward progression. I hunt many of the same WMA’s that you the readers hunt and I can speak for all of us when I say the more he gobbles the more hunters he will attract. – Scott Ellis

3. How much should I call to a gobbler on the roost?

When I set up on a roosted gobbler, I try to set up within 100 yards of his tree. As everything starts to wake up, I like to tree yelp until I receive a direct response from him. I will usually repeat this process a couple of times. If there are vocal hens roosted nearby, I do just a little more than what they are doing. Then you hope he flies down in your direction. – Sadler McGraw

I don’t like to “make” a turkey gobble a ton while he is still on the roost. All he is doing is calling in other hens. This happens naturally in the spring. You also Run the risk of attracting other hunters. I will call enough so he knows where I am at and wait until he gets his feet on the ground. That is when the game begins. – Chris Kirby

4. What is the best shotgun and load for turkey hunting?

The best shotgun is the one that you are most confident in. I have said before the reason that I shoot a 3.5” is that there is not a 4” magnum in production yet. But seriously, what ever gun ,shell and choke combination you choose, make sure that you know the guns limitations. – Sadler McGraw

With today’s shotguns, shells and chokes the turkey hunter is left with many options. Try as many loads and chokes with your gun as possible. Conduct a patterning session with your buddies with everyone, at a minimum, bringing different loads. This will enable you to experiment without as much of a financial burden. Choose the combination that performs the best in your gun. – Scott Ellis

5. What are the main calls(turkey vocabulary) I should learn to spring turkey hunt?

If I were told I could do only use one sound this year while hunting it would be the plain hen yelp. That is the sound that I hear most often from hens during the spring. It is a sound that gobblers respond to in almost every situation. It is easy to perform on any call, and with minimal practice you can gravitate from plain hen yelps into more aggressive calling if the hunt dictates it. – Sadler McGraw

During the spring, there are three basic sounds you need to employ. Yelping, cutting and clucks and purrs. Master these basic sounds and then add personality. Basic yelps are just that, add some speed and volume change and it will intensify the conversation. Mix in some excited yelps and cutting together to fire him up and then finish him off with the relaxing yet intense cluck and purr. – Chris Kirby

6. What key factors should be taken into consideration when I am setting up on a gobbling turkey.

Before I set up, I try to deduce what would be the gobbler’s path of least resistance in route to my position. I like to set up so that I can capitalize on natural and man made terrain features such as creeks, bluffs, thickets, ditches and roads that will funnel the turkey to me. If needed, I will then decide where I will position my decoys. – Sadler McGraw

The set up can make or break any spring hunting scenario. It is probably the most important aspect of the hunt. There are a couple of key thoughts to consider. Always be mindful of obstructions and barriers that could hinder a turkeys progression to your location. If hens enter the equation, place yourself in between the gobbler and his harem. When attempting to locate a gobbler(if your running and gunning) identify a suitable set up before you make a sound. This is why it is best to first locate a gobbler with a non-turkey sound. This will give you time to search for the best available position to begin your conversation with the gobbler. Lastly, always consider visibility. It is futile to attempt a set up when you do not have the ability to spot the gobbler as he approaches. – Scott Ellis

7. What is the best tactic to employ on pressured turkeys?

If I have a pressured turkey that I have not been able to do anything with in the morning, I will start out by leaving him alone in the morning and will hunt him in the afternoon. Here in my home state of Alabama, we are allowed to hunt in the afternoon, and it has allowed me to take a lot of long spurred gobblers that wanted no part of me during the morning. I don’t change my tactics, except pursuing him in the afternoon. Remember, turkeys don’t get call shy, they get people shy. – Sadler McGraw

First and foremost I will curtail any aggressive calling. Hunting public land my whole life I have learned that both hens and gobblers will become less vocal when pressured. I will imitate a lone hen in quest of company with soft three to four note yelps, mixed with purring and clucking. I have also found that setting up and blind calling in an area that you know occupies turkeys is more productive than, my favorite method of hunting, running and gunning. I will set up in areas that the hen’s are frequenting regularly. Whether it is due to a food source, water, or a roosting area. Remember where there are hens there are gobblers. – Scott Ellis

8. When a turkey gobbles but heads the opposite direction why, is he doing this and what should I do?

When you have a turkey that strikes out in the opposite direction you have to make a decision, “do I try to circle in front of him or do I go find a gobbler that is more cooperative?” If he is the only gobbler that you have to hunt, by all means get in front of him and try to figure out where he wants to go. If you have other turkeys located go after them and save this one for when he is ready. I always say a gobbler has five minutes every year that he will succumb to a call, you must decide if you are there for the right five minutes. – Sadler McGraw

More times than not a turkey that answers you, but is putting ground between himself and you is either following hens, call shy or has a predetermined destination. Before he gets completely out of earshot, I elect to call with as much excitement and lust as humanly possible. Over the years this tactic has sometimes yielded success. More times than not he continues on his wayward track. If this fails, reposition on him. Make a generous loop around him and in front of him. Ensure you provide yourself with a generous buffer between you and your quarry when making this move. Spooking him is a definite possibility. Set up and either make the decision to call or just have him walk by and perform an ambush. Sometimes a turkey hunt does not include pretty calling in a perfect situation. Remember we’re not turkey calling were turkey hunting. – Scott Ellis

9. What should I do if I hear hens yelping and cutting in the distance?

I will attempt to call any hen’s that are vocalizing during a spring gobbler hunt. Many times there is a gobbler either with them or in the vicinity. Sometimes you can call the whole flock to you with the gobbler in tow. Other times a gobbler may over hear all the sexy conversation and stop by to say hello. At worst you get to learn from the master herself the wild hen. – Scott Ellis

10. How long should I wait if I’m working a tom and he then goes silent?

The easy answer is 30 minutes longer than whatever you feel was a long enough wait. Patience probably harvests more turkeys than any other factor alone. Whether your set up blind calling or just waiting unwearyingly on a stubborn long beard to approach your calls, one key point to remember is how far was he from you when he last gobbled and was he moving toward you or away from you. Common sense will tell you if he was traveling away from you and goes silent it is time to change calling locations and attempt to relocate him. If he is advancing toward your position and then ceases gobbling, raise your level of awareness ten fold and do not move a muscle. Listen intently for soft foot steps, spitting and drumming. Search intently for that gorgeous red, white and blue neon bulb glowing in the spring woods. – Scott Ellis

11. When should I use a hen or gobbler decoy?

I let the terrain and timber type dictate my decoy set ups. If I am in an area where a gobbler can make eyesight with my decoys from a considerable distance, I like to employ a strutting decoy and a hen together. This is especially effective in fields or wide open hardwood swamps. I think when a gobbler can spot the strutting decoy from a distance; he will have confidence to approach. If he emerges from a more dense area and he is startled by the site of another strutting gobbler, he feels there could be confrontation and will sometimes decide to go else where. – Sadler McGraw

Being forthright, I am not an advocate of decoys. Since decoys were revolutionized back in the early 90’s I have deployed them in various situations and scenarios. I have had more turkeys shy away from decoys, than approach full bore, whether looking for a fight or looking for love. I believe in having a gobbler search for the hen he is hearing. This can be accomplished by proper set ups. Position yourself where you can see the gobbler, yet the hen is searching for could be hidden from view. Understandably this will not always occur, especially when setting up in hardwood bottoms and open timber. In that situation I will muffle my calling and call much more sparingly, especially when having made eye contact with him. Chances are if he advances close enough to verify that he cannot locate the hen he is hearing, he will be in gun range. – Scott Ellis

12. What is a good tactic to use on field gobblers?

The field gobbler is my favorite to hunt, just for the simple reason of being able to view him approach from a considerable distance. I am a huge fan of the strutting decoy for field gobblers. If I am in a situation where multiple gobblers are using the same field, I will deploy a strutting decoy and a single hen decoy for my setup. If the gobbler and I are on the same side of the field, I will try to place the decoy just past my set up in case he hangs up out of gun range. This will enable me to harvest the tom even if he does not make direct contact with decoy. Also, remember to have the strutting decoy facing you, frequently the gobbler will approach the decoy head on in an apparent confrontational scenario. If you position the decoy away from you and he approaches it face to face, it will hinder your ability to make the shot. – Sadler McGraw

13. Speaking for yourself, what one factor has harvested more gobblers than any other?

Patience and confidence in my calls and calling ability. You can’t expect every gobbler to come running in. When you are in the woods with a gobbler answering, at one point you are going to think you have to do something right now…. Change location, change you call, change your calling sequence, call softer, call louder….. This is a critical moment. Stop and do nothing for 10 minutes. The gobbler is not going to leave the country. Look at your watch and wait 10 minutes, it will feel like forever. However, it will give you a moment to adjust and think more clearly about your next move. You never know, the next time you here or see him, it could be right in your lap. – Chris Kirby

14. How does having better than average calling skills benefit the turkey hunter?

Having the ability to produce realistic turkey vernacular will ultimately increase your odds of harvesting that elusive long beard. Learning all of the wild turkeys extensive vocabulary, learning their meaning and being able to emulate those sounds will put you at an advantage over about 95% of your competition in the turkey woods. Finding a good call such as any of the Woodhaven Custom Calls line will also aid in reproducing better than average turkey sounds. Combine these skills and good woodsman ship ability, a successful turkey hunter will emerge. – Scott Ellis

15. What do you use to locate gobblers with?

The crow call is my preferred locator here in the Deep South. I use a “Real Crow” from Woodhaven Custom Calls. You hear crows from dawn to dusk every day, and very often when you start using the crow call, other crows will join in. This is what will trigger a gobble. Owl hooters are productive at daybreak, but I seldom elicit a shock gobble after the first hour of the day. A crow call will work any time, any where and on any sub species. – Sadler McGraw

Through the years I’ve probably used every loud, raucous, animal sound that occurs in the wild. High ball mallard calls, elk bugles, bellowing cattle, pileated woodpecker, etc. It is not logistically feasible to carry all of these types of calls as part of your turkey gear, but I will throw in a duck call or even a coyote howler for good measures. The obvious choices are crow, owl and hawk. I’ve had great success with all of them throughout the day. I feel geography plays a key role in what gobbler’s will respond with the most success. I feel whatever sound a turkey hears less of he will respond to with more frequency. Bear in mind a tom will gobble at a car horn or a clap of thunder. I’m not condoning the latter, but do not be afraid to utilize slightly unorthodox tactics to elicit a response. – Scott Ellis

Scott Ellis
Woodhaven Custom Calls Pro Staff
Tru Glo Fiber Optics
Thermacell Pro Staff
3 time Florida State Turkey Calling Champion
3 time Florida State Gobbling Division Champion
2006 Southern Open Turkey Calling Champion
2009 North Carolina Tarheel Open Champion
Member: Florida Outdoor Writer’s Association

I’d like to invite you to compete in the Upper Andro Two Fly Contest and Drift Boat Competition scheduled for June 12 and 13. This is the Upper Andro Anglers Alliance’s primary fund-raiser for the year. Our sponsors, Kittery Trading Post, L.L. Bean, the Orvis Company, Caddis and Cane, Sun Valley Sports, and Clackacraft have donated over $5,000 worth of prizes.

Information and registration is available on line at www.upperandro.com. The releases below give an overview of the events.

If you are a guide, invite two of your best sports to join you for the event and introduce them to the trout fishery on the Upper Andro. Did you know that Maine’s record rainbow trout was caught last June on the Upper Andro? If you are an avid angler but a mid-week 9 to 5’er, perhaps your employer would sponsor your team. We’d be happy to post any banners or posters from you company to give them recognition.

Many of our lodging members have special overnight rates. Just mention that you are competing in the Two Fly Contest to receive the rates. May we suggest The Bethel Inn-$133 per night for a double occupancy room including tax (800-654-0125) or The Bethel Hill B&B- $230 for 2 nights exclusive of tax or bring your friends and stay at the Village House sleeping 6 for $375 for 2 nights (207-824-2461). Information about other UAAA lodging and camping members is available at www.upperandro.com

The final day of registration is Wednesday, June 11 at Sun Valley Sports. Pick up your registration kit, rules, and barbecue coupon early so you can get out on the water at the crack of dawn. Any questions, give me a call at 207-824-7533.

Yours truly,

Rocky Freda
Sun Valley Sports
UAAA Director

Upper Andro Two Fly Contest

Set for June 12 and 13

The Upper Andro Anglers Alliance is sponsoring its Annual Two Fly Contest on June 12 and 13 in Bethel, Maine.

The Two Fly contest will test the skills of anglers to fly fish for the most and the largest of the three trout species, brown, rainbow and brook found in the Upper Androscoggin River from the New Hampshire border to Rumford.

Contestants may use only two flies during the event, which starts early Thursday morning and ends at noon on Friday. A fly is defined as made from natural or synthetic materials tied to a single pointed hook. No tandems or treble hooks are allowed. Teams of three including two anglers and a referee/oarsman must fish from an open boat-drift boat, row boat or raft. All fish must be released live.

Prizes include rods and fishing gear supplied by Kittery Trading Post, L.L. Bean, Caddis and Cane, Sun Valley Sports and the Orvis Company.

Official contest rules and a registration form are available on line at www.upperandro.com or by phoning 1-877-851-7533. The entry fee is $375 per team and includes an outdoor barbecue at the Bethel Inn. Proceeds from the event will benefit the Upper Andro Anglers Alliance.

Northeast Drift Boat Championship

The First Annual Northeast Drift Boat Championship will be held Friday afternoon, June 13 on the Upper Androscoggin River in Bethel Maine. Designed as a spectator event, the competition will test oarsmen’s skills at launching, navigating a course and rowing speed. Each drift boat must carry at least one angler, who must remain standing throughout the timed race. The launch will be from Bethel Outdoor Adventures on Route 2 and the finish line is at Davis Park in Bethel-a distance of a quarter mile.

Prizes include drift boat equipment provided by Clackacraft. A registration form is available on line at www.upperandro.com or by phoning 1-877-851-7533. The entry fee is $50 or is included in the Two-Fly Contest fee if the drift boat is competing in both events.

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I went out Friday afternoon at 4, only a 5minute walk behind the house. I was in the stand just long enough to get my gloves on and knock an arrow, when a doe shows up in the junipers under the power-lines. She made her way around behind me, into the woods, then to the base of my stick ladder. She sniffed up & down the ladder then proceeded to jump the fence into the pasture in front of and below me. Then she made her way across the pasture back into the woods where she had come from.

At about 5:55 or so, Big Ten shows up at the far corner, outside the pasture fence and just observes everything all the way back to the barn and paddock where my horse is feeding.

He works along the fence a bit, then turns to go around the thicket and onto the trail that will bring him close to under my stand. I check the pasture after a few minutes of watching him feed, to help calm me down, and I see the older much larger bodied buck out there feeding. This is only the second time I have seen the Gray Ghost, and he dwarfs the Big Ten in body size.

I notice that Big Ten is heading away so I tip the can call (bleat-n-heat) and he turns back towards my position again. At this point my heart gets into that slow, pounding rhythm as well as pressure filling my ears and I try to shake it by closing my eyes and taking deep breaths. Then I remember I’m 30 feet or so off the ground and realize closing my eyes is not a good idea!

At about 6:10 and after watching him for what seems like forever, I scan the area for the Ghost and notice he is off to my left, beyond the junipers at about 50 yards and feeding calmly. Then Big Ten noses up to the fence and hops over the five foot high obstruction like you of I would hop over a branch in the trail. Nose down and feeding on the clover, he is facing my stand and presents no shot. But I don’t have to wait long before he takes a few more steps and turns perfectly broadside. This is where hours of practice are supposed to pay off and the bow string draws like a low pressure bungee cord. I settle in, look through the peep and see the green twenty yard pin. Then I focus on the deer. I want to hit four inches down and four inches back from the centerline of the front leg which should give me a double lung kill. I hold on the spot and never felt the bow release! The sound is deafening . . . THWACK!

The arrow stops with half of its 30″ shaft sticking out at a 45 degree angle. The buck whirls around and bolts for the fence, almost taking it down on the way over, crosses the power-lines and vanishes into the woods. I listen intently for the crashing to stop (several minutes), make note in my head where the last sounds were, then climb down and head home for the wait. Remember it’s only a 5 minute walk and away from where the buck went.

One hour later my best friend, wife and daughter go in to drag the Big Ten out. At eleven PM, we all stumble home without him. We found lots of blood the first two hundred yards, then only drops. The next two hundred yards were torture, on hands and knees, spraying peroxide onto anything that could have been blood, feeling through the leaves following his unique tracks to a bed up on a side hill. We were all amazed this deer even went uphill as oftentimes they will run directly to water. This deer not only went uphill, but avoided water by circling and zigzagging around it.

In this bucks bed, there were only three spots of blood but one small spot seemed saturated deep into the dirt. I could see and feel where this bucks front knees pushed into the ground at one end of the bed. That was it, end of track! It was like this deer was sucked up into the sky. Saturday I called a few more friends to help comb the area, and most of us stayed out past noon. I even went back in until about five PM with no sign of blood, or stumbling tracks. Of course there were his and other deer’s tracks all through the area and we found lots of sign but this is where there deer live anyway.

I am not giving up on this deer as I believe he is dead from the wound inflicted by my arrow. Will the meat be any good? Probably not and the coyotes will have destroyed most of it. All I can do, as a hunter, is attempt to recover the rack & skull from this fine animal and give him a place of honor and remembrance on my wall. Between the coyotes and the crows, and hunting and trapping into the wind (smell), I am hoping to find this buck.
If I don’t, I still have a decent photograph and at least two hours of video of this magnificent animal.

Sometimes, even for a guide, LADY LUCK determines the final card.

Jack Duggins
Oct2006
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