Spring Turkey with a Pointed Stick

Spring turkey hunting with a bow! What a great way to break the winter blues and experience the birth of spring. These full dressed strutting toms make a very formidable quarry and with the right set-up and tools, we can sit back and let the turkeys hunt us.

Here is a short list of items that we need to get started. 1) A decoy 2) a good ground blind, 3) a turkey call and 4) a balanced bow, arrow and broadhead combination.

First, a decoy is really a must to call-in the aggressive spring strutting toms. Anything we can do to draw their attention away from the caller will give us an advantage over these keen sighted game birds. Any of the decoys on the market today are good and whether it is a lone jake, hen or a breeding decoy, it can be productive. Some of the more popular brands are Feather Flex, Delta and Flambeau.

Ground blinds are not an absolute necessity, but they will definitely increase your odds when bowhunting. One of the best blinds is the Double Bull. All Double Bull models are roomy and allow the best opportunity to draw your bow on an unsuspecting tom. Hunting without a blind will also work. If this is your situation, the set-up is extremely important. Care must be taken to be completely camouflaged and not to move when the bird is facing you. These sharp-eyed turkeys will pick-up the slightest moment or anything shiny. You can also hunt from a tree stand but here again the turkeys will often spot you. They have spent their entire lives looking up for hawks and eagles, so this makes it very difficult to draw on a wary tom.

When it comes to turkey calls, choosing a good one can be difficult. You will find numerous options including box calls, slate calls, diaphragms and push box calls. Ask around on what other hunters prefer and pick one you are comfortable with. There are many good manufacturers that will suit your needs. Some of the better known are Primos, Knight and Hale, Quaker Boy, Penn Woods and H.S. Strut. I use a Quaker Boy push box call and a H. S. Strut diaphragm. Many hunters also like to use a crow call for a locator, however most hunters are able to make the crow call with their voice so this may not be necessary. (I have also located roasted turkeys by slamming a pickup door, but this method is not really recommended.) Any loud noise to make a tom gobble and give you his location will do.

The set-up for a balanced bow, arrow and broadhead combo can vary as widely as lures in a tackle box. I use the same set-up that I hunt elk, deer and bear with only a change in the broadhead for turkeys. My bow is the Mathews Icon with a draw weight of 65 lbs. This flat shooting super smooth bow is matched with 5575 Gold Tip Pro Hunter arrows. For big game I use the Rocky Mountain Titanium 125 grain broadhead and change to the 100 grain Rocky Mountain Snyper expandable broadhead for turkeys.

If you have been one of us that have been reluctant to try expandable broadheads on big game, turkey hunting is the time to give them a try. Expandable broadheads give you the pinpoint accuracy that is needed with turkeys and their expansion capability gives you the ability to immobilize the bird quickly.

The Snyper broadhead that I shoot is designed to open as it enters the bird or game animal. Unlike other expanding broadheads that open after penetrating through the skin, the Snyper opens as its tip penetrates, creating a large entrance hole that most expandable do not offer. This 1 3/8