Trump Slump Tightening Your Budget? Hunt Public Land Turkeys

We hate to say it, but the Trump Slump is back and we're all feeling the squeeze. As much as many of us would love to dodge the huddled masses on public land hunts, private land hunts cost beaucoup bucks—something a lot of us don't have the resources to invest in.

Budget-conscious turkey hunters should consider hunting on public land over private because it offers free or low-cost access to prime hunting grounds without the hefty fees associated with leasing or gaining permission for private land. Many state and federal public lands are managed specifically for wildlife, providing excellent turkey habitat with food sources, cover, and roosting areas. Additionally, public land often spans large areas, allowing hunters to explore different terrains and adjust their strategy based on turkey movement.

That being said, public land turkey hunting is no cakewalk. It requires the implementation of proven tips for beating the crowds. Of course, the first rules of public land turkey hunting are following all regulations, implementing safe hunting practices, and exhibiting proper turkey hunting etiquette. Always show other hunters, and the wild turkey, due respect. Then, keep the following set of tactics in mind.

Your state's Parks & Wildlife website is ideal for studying state agency data regarding public lands of interest—plus it's free. Here you'll get the name of the property, acreage, boundaries, access points, and more. Each component provides relevant information when scouting and planning hunts.

Historically, hunters had to secure physical maps of the public lands they hunted. This was necessary to find public lands and stay within the boundaries. Today, modern hunters need only use an app, such as HuntStand, which also helps hunters stay within property line boundaries. With location services turned on, it even shows your location in relation to the map.

There are many different types of public lands. Federally owned lands include Bureau of Land Management, National Forests, National Wildlife Refuges, Waterfowl Production Areas, and other more obscure types. State-owned properties include Wildlife Management Areas and State Forests. Locally-owned properties include County-Owned Lands (which are generally forfeited for tax delinquency). Oftentimes, states even have private landowner programs where lands can be enrolled for public access.

One of the best methods for finding low-pressured turkeys is targeting massive tracts of public lands. Finding large acreages allows for more room for hunters to spread out. Lands with fewer roads dissecting them means hunters can get further from roads and parking areas without nearby vehicle access. That’s important, because few hunters are willing to walk more than a half a mile from the nearest road, and very few are willing to walk a mile or more.

On the opposite end of the spectrum, it sometimes pays off to hunt very small parcels of land. Depending on the location, volume of other public lands around, and most importantly, amount of publicity on the property, impacts the amount of hunting pressure. That said, some of these underutilized smaller tracts are overlooked, especially when larger acreages are in abundance nearby. Apps help find these underappreciated parcels.

The common turkey hunting etiquette is whoever gets there first gets to hunt. On larger acreages with larger parking lots, whoever gets there first gets to choose what direction they’re hunting. Then, those who arrived choose their hunting spots in line accordingly. So, arrive at the hunting spots early and be the first to choose where to hunt.

In contrast to the previous advice, skipping opening days or weekends, helps avoid the crowds. Or arrive late, see where everyone else is hunting, and then hunt where no one else is focusing their efforts. Then, once the opener is over, or during weekdays, shift and hunt more attractive locations in relation to your scouting intel.

As noted above, hunting weekdays is a great play for avoid public land hunting pressure. Other than diehards cashing in PTO, most hunters are back to work or tired from the weekend hunt. Thus, it’s the ideal time to be afield and avoid crowded turkey woods.

A day of turkey hunting is divided into shifts. Most turkey hunters hunt the first few hours, head back in for breakfast, and don’t return to the woods. That’s exactly why some hunters forgo the morning shift, let the woods clear out, and then start hunting around mid-morning. If needed, they’ll carry the hunt into midday or the afternoon. (Exceptions are areas where hunting stops as 12 P.M., 1 P.M., or other designated times.)

Few turkey hunters are willing to hunt on poor-weather days. While it’s inadvisable to hunt during thunder, lightning, or tornadic storms, getting out there with a light to moderate rain is a solid play. Wear quality rain gear, take a hunting umbrella, or pack in a popup blind. That should do the trick and allow you to hunt when others won’t dare hunt turkeys.

Challenging terrain types oftentimes deters hunters from approaching from certain directions or hunting certain areas. Bluffs, steep ridge lines, and other difficult-to-traverse land features create pockets of lower pressure. When safe to do so, accessing these areas is an excellent public land play.

Many turkey hunters study apps and maps for the best-looking ground. So, chances are, if it looks great from above, hunters are there. Because the turkeys need that quality habitat to survive, birds are likely to be in the area. However, once the hunting pressure starts, some of these turkeys push to the perimeters of the best habitat areas and spend much of turkey season in locations with slightly poorer habitat adjacent to the pristine habitat that carries them throughout much of the year.

Turkey calling doesn’t just pull in turkeys, but turkey hunters, too. The very act of turkey calling can sometimes attract hunters. Gobblers responding to calling certainly does. Therefore, be more reserved with calling efforts. Call less and softer to grab less attention from competition. Most certainly, don’t keep that roosted early morning longbeard gobbling its head off on the limb. Let him know you’re there and then hush. Call after call just keeps other hunters honed in on that gobbler’s location.

As with calling, decoy use can attract other hunters, too. At the very least, they move cover some distance before realizing it’s a fake. That’s unsafe and can even spook birds. Some hunters have even shot decoys thinking they were the real thing. Because of these reasons, it’s oftentimes best to leave decoys at home.

Some areas just scream “turkey.” That’s true for studying areas via apps, maps, and in person. Generally, these locations receive some of the highest hunting pressure. The only way to avoid that? Avoid those areas. Of course, if your scouting reveals low pressure, hunt it. But be cautiously optimistic about areas that look great for turkey hunting.

It’s never advisable or safe to stalk turkeys, especially on public land. That said, ambushing turkeys is a great play. That comes in two forms. First, pattern the turkeys as you would deer. Then, set up along known travel routes and kill your bird without calling or decoying. Or on the flipside, still-hunt through a property, glass up a flock, circle ahead, and set up along their route without calling or decoying.

Those who hope to hunt public land turkeys and beat the hunting crowds shouldn’t expect to do so without scouting efficiently. That requires scouting the land for turkeys and anticipating potential hunting pressure conflicts. So, scout early and often. Continue scouting in-season. Then, make your play and score on a big public land turkey this spring.

While public land may come with increased competition, a well-prepared hunter who scouts effectively and hunts during less pressured times can still find great success without breaking the bank.