Trying anything new/different this season?

Looking to liven up the Turkey hunting discussion... too damn dead in here for being just 41 days from the season opener.

Are you trying anything new or different this season?

A new piece of gear, a different tactic, another plot of land, a new hunting partner, a better good luck charm?

- I haven't made any effort to update gear this season, but i do have 3 new ammos to try out to see if i can stretch my 30 yd max out to 40-45 yds.

-May go back to the stock Weatherby choke tube also, as my Carlson "upgrade" is garbage.

-I've been having too much fun the last 3 seasons with running and gunning. I figure it's time for me to put in a bit more effort in sitting and calling for long stretches, scouting better and trying to get set up deeper in the woods to ambush the bigger toms on their mid-day routes.

-Considering trying to use my mountain bike for faster, quieter, farther travel. We have close to 900 acres to hunt and the birds are NEVER in the spot you'd expect them to be. Could be really handy to fly along the cow paths to get from point A to point Z in a just a few minutes.

No new gear for me. I just acquired permission on some new properties therefore it is time to do some scouting on foot in the next couple of weeks.

well, got a new ( new to me anyways) APA Suphan bow.. amazing bow, just love shooting this thing.. also have new lighted nocks, the nockturnals by rage ( i am using the S nock due to my arrows).. also trying the rage hypodermic 125 grain... in terms of trying new tactics, not sure yet.. i normally hunt inside the bush, but this new property we got it's pretty big and haven't really had a chance to get it figured out yet.. only hunted it one season.. so i guess the new tactic for me is to go old school.. hunt edge's of fields and main trails in bush and base my stand sites on any traffic i see.. have to do some more scouting, but will do a majority of it after turkey season so as not to put any undue pressure on our bush before the turkey season starts.. will keep my eyes open for deer activity while turkey hunting , then do some serious foot patrol and scout the bush/property with a "fine toothed comb" and get the bigger picture and go from there

I tagged out really early last year with two Toms over 22lbs, so I can not think of anything to change right now.

I will be laying new cedar and pine branches over my existing brush blinds for a little extra fresh cover.

And intense scouting the week before opener to figure out which property will provide the best opportunity at a good Tom.

Going to use the same old slate call and single hen decoy. If I am not successful after the first week, that's when its time to start trying something different.

I'm going to try a pop-up blind this year.
I will also try an old Remington 1100 that I bought last fall. It only shoots 2 3/4" shells, so I will have to pick up some new turkey loads and test them out.
I may go back to some public land that I used to hunt on in the past, but that I haven't used in the last several years.

That's an interesting idea with the mountain bike. It might be tricky in the dark though, unless you have a headlight.

thinking of getting a new call, other then that everything will be the same. got 3 decoys one of which is a big pretty male, got my 12 ga semi using number 5 shot winchester super x turkey loads. Got permission on one good farm, but the turkey population has been declining fast. Went hunting in October and saw two turkeys get eaten by coyotes ( looks like they were running away, and got caught in the fence ). I think there is only a few left on there, hopefully I can get one this spring. Good luck to all.

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Originally Posted by rf2

That's an interesting idea with the mountain bike. It might be tricky in the dark though, unless you have a headlight.

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lol I do have headlamps, but wouldn't use them. It's usually bright enough to see the paths on the fields, the tractor trails in the bush and the old railway, no problem.

I wouldn't be tearing through the thick bush in the pitch black.

This year I took the 20 guage plunge & just mounted a new Bushnell red-dot on it. I was thinking scope but the gun shop guy said give a red-dot a try. This makes sense to me becuase all of my shot's have been less than 20 yards & a scope is kind of overkill (no pun intended).

I bought some #4 Winchester EX turkey loads to see how they pattern. I sold my old 870 12guage so I will have to make the 20 guage work.

I may also try a few trips with the Excalibur Micro X-bow using the NAP FOC heads...

Good luck to all...

I may try and get one with the relic - single shot cooey 12 gauge. I think I have a box of 2 3/4 Turkey in the cabinet.

If I get a chance at a second bird it would be nice to get one with the bow. One of the properties I hunt is still no gun Sundays so it may provide a good opportunity for just that.

a few changes here.
1. trying a wingbone call i made over the holidays for kicks.
2. going with the 12 guage instead of the crossbow
3. using a pop up blind instead of the old fashioned find-a-tree-and-squat-er-down
4. if I shoot something, that`s a big change!
5. also considering picking up one either one of those wussy jake decoys or a hen decoy. not sure which one yet.