gobble gobble

[chickendude1234]

My question now is what else do I need to get started?

Patience, Lots of it. This year was my first successful year hunting turkey, and when I finally got my bird I spent an hour and half calling and waiting for a bird that I estimate was only 60 Yds away when I first heard him. My first turkey hunt when I was younger was unsuccessful because I was calling too frequently and scaring off all my potential suitors.

On the list of equipment I'd say camo everything and learn how to sit really still. Turkeys are very weary and can see pretty dang good. Also if you're planning on hunting this next spring I'd pick up a call and start practicing now. The more practice you have the more likely you are to sound like a hen that'll put out [] . Get on the NWTF website, they have a lot of good info and also they've got recordings of actual turkeys that you can practice to sound like.

As far as where to go, there are turkeys all across the state. My fiance's brother got his bird this year pretty much in his backyard here in the Ogden Valley. I, on the other hand, drove 200 miles south to get mine. You just have to find the resident flock in whatever area you decide to hunt. You can start by making friends with someone who spends a lot of time in the forest like a Ranger who is frequently on patrol, or maybe one of your deer hunting friends. The birds wont be in the exact same spot from deer season to turkey season but they'll be fairly close (within2-3 miles)

That's all the advice I can think of right now. Hopefully someone else will chime in. Also there are a couple of really good turkey forums out there on the net that can offer some advice and also some inspiration. Just google "turkey hunting forums" and brace yourself for the wealth of information that you'll be about to recieve.
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