Turkey fanning?
#4
Join Date: Dec 2006
Posts: 2
RE: Turkey fanning?
In scouting for my first client to roll in for WI's spring opener last year I found myself in a unique situation that this wing-thing reminded me of. I had aquired 640a. lease just days earlier and I was scouting it a bit for later in the season. I walked into my first field at noon and pushed a decoy in the ground. I called once with my slate and was instantly greeted by a long beard just yard in the woods on the other side of the field. He came running as if he were the dumbest bird in the world. He circled the decoy for a long time before sneeking back down the hill. I was pumped as this was a 15 yard encounter after 5 mins on the property. I began to belly crawl to the decoy after the bird was out of sight. Then, the bird instantly popped back out and circled me as I lie face down holding the decoy in my hand. I began bouncing the decoy around as though it was a live bird and the tom walked within feet of me. As soon as he looked away, I stuffed the decoy under my arm which drove the Tom nuts. He went nuts when his girl was gone and started running around looking for her. It took me over an hour to get off that field. So, if your on private land and your not going to get shot...you may have something! For the record, that bird was shot minutes into the spring opener. 21#, 10.5" beard and 1.25" spurs. This was the first bird for a retired vet.
#7
Nontypical Buck
Thread Starter
Join Date: Nov 2006
Location: wisconsin
Posts: 1,061
RE: Turkey fanning?
Yea,I forgot to mention that they realy stressed the private land thing and make sure nobody else is hunting there.But arround here,ya realy never can be too sure?
ORIGINAL: maytom
Ditto!!
ORIGINAL: RayC
Sounds like an invitation to get shot at
Sounds like an invitation to get shot at
#8
Nontypical Buck
Join Date: Feb 2003
Location: NewLowell ,Ontario ,Canada
Posts: 2,765
RE: Turkey fanning?
Most of these great Bono ideas are something that just happened and at the time there was a camera rolling. On the top note if you were to try this at every location , most likely it would only work on a low and maybe even lowest percentage. It was like the old Fanned out gobbler decoy. They come running when they see that bad boy over the hen, Well they never came running when I ever added one to any of my setups.
As the others say, spend your energy on setups and working the birds as you have been taught and play it safe and don't get shot. Why make yourself a target to a trigger happy turkey hunter that knows he's got a fan in front of him....
As the others say, spend your energy on setups and working the birds as you have been taught and play it safe and don't get shot. Why make yourself a target to a trigger happy turkey hunter that knows he's got a fan in front of him....
#9
Nontypical Buck
Thread Starter
Join Date: Nov 2006
Location: wisconsin
Posts: 1,061
RE: Turkey fanning?
Turkey hunting is kinda new to me.Last year our tactics began calling arround fresh sign.That got boaring,so we started hearing toms in the woods going off.We got as close to them as we could ,(50yds) andstarted calling.Then they came in to get shot.When we called from a long ways away they would answer but they werent going to come in.We didnt have any decoys,and only a borrowed cutter.Were fanatics now.What a rush!
#10
RE: Turkey fanning?
I saw a turkey hunting show a couple years ago where they did this. I'm sure it could work under the right circumstances, but it has to be THE MOST DANGEROUS WAY TO HUNT! Its a good way to get a face full of #4's. Yeah, yeah, but if I'm on private land and nobody else is hunting there... Well, 2 years ago I was on private land that nobody else was supposed to be hunting on so I did what I consider dangerous if I was on public land. I broke out a gobbler shaker trying to get a tom to respond. Well, I didn't get a Tom to respond, but what I did get was someone walking the road cutting away on a box call trying to make me gobble again! You could bet that if I did or if a Tom did answer, whoever that was on the road would more likely than not have tried to work that bird, possibly even stalk it (which is illegal here, but the law doesn't mean squat to some people.) I have a turkey fan actually sitting on top of my computer monitor with a beard and legs just waiting for me to mount it, I could use it but would never ever consider holding it in front of my face while hunting. What I Might try sometime is this- mount the fan on a stake and put it in the ground. I never tried this, but I hear that a Tom will approach a fan decoy and continue circling it trying to go face to face with the intruder. Since the fan is just a fan on both sides, the turkey just keeps going around it in circles looking for the head. Anyone have any experience doing something like this?