To the surprise of most folks, scouting prior to the season actually makes up over 90 percent of that end result known as turkey hunting success. Even more surprising is the fact that turkey calling only accounts for five to 10 percent of the total turkey hunting package. After all, you can call all day long, but if you're where the turkeys aren't, your game tag will go unfilled at the end of the day.


With numbers like these, it's easy to see just how important and vital scouting is to a successful turkey hunting trip. The routinely successful turkey hunter knows that scouting is much more than just spending a few hours looking around out in the field the weekend before the annual spring opener. Like the hunt itself, scouting is an art that, when effectively applied, often results in greater consistency and success in the field.


Here are some basic scouting questions and answers that can provide valuable information for those hunters seeking an audience with his bearded majesty, the wild turkey gobbler.


When is a good time to start scouting for the spring season?
The answer is quite simple: Any time. In fact, turkey scouting actually has no beginning and no end; it's a year-round proposition. For example, the traditional big game and upland bird seasons in the fall are perfect times to scout turkeys. Foliage is at a minimum and, when coupled with a new snow, you can easily see turkeys at a distance. In the fall, turkeys tend to gather in age- and gender-specific flocks -- adult gobblers in one group, and adult hens with the spring's hatch of jakes and jennies in another. Shear numbers alone make the birds easier to see.


How do I begin scouting?
Most turkey scouting begins at home. Telephone calls to your local wildlife biologist or Department of Natural Resources can help point you in the right direction. Listen to local experts such as rural mail or newspaper carriers, delivery people, farmers, and other individuals whose course of business takes them throughout the countryside. Look at last year's turkey hunting statistics. These are usually available from the various state wildlife agencies, and numbers don't lie. It's easy to see which counties produce the greatest success. Knowing generally where you'll find turkey flocks reduces your search area significantly.


So I've made my telephone calls. What's next?
Nothing replaces actual in-the-field scouting. This means legwork. Once you've found a place that looks promising, contact the landowner and obtain permission to hunt turkey on the property. With permission granted, now's the time to walk the property to acquaint yourself with the resident turkey population and the lay of the land. Where are the open fields? Hen turkeys love open fields and the good crops of bugs that are typically found in such locations. Gobblers, too, like open fields because they provide an excellent strutting area. Look for sources of water. Locate roost trees. And identify the routes the turkeys will likely take to get there. Where are the property lines? These details can only be learned by spending the time in the field.


Should I go ahead and try my turkey calls while I'm scouting to see how many birds there are?
When you're turkey scouting, it's best to leave your turkey calls at home. There's no sense in educating the birds on the property before your hunt. A better plan is to use locator calls that mimic the sounds of other animals while you're scouting in order to get an idea of how many gobblers call a particular area home, and where those birds tend to be.


The hunter who is flexible, prepared and has done his or her scouting will often be the one wrapping a tag above the long spurs of a trophy longbeard.

Thanks to Jim White, and beOutdoors.com for their permission to reprint this article. Please bear in mind That beOutdoors.com has a copyright on this material.

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