To take advantage of lonely toms, you need to find out where they hang out at midday. Try walking along the edges of plowed fields next to woods, where gobblers generally travel. The ground should be soft making tracks easy to spot. With a little practice, you’ll discover the trails the birds regularly use. Set a small blind, bucket and decoys along the most heavily trafficked field edge available. Move into it after the roost location has gone dead. I don’t recommend hiking aimlessly around in the woods; let the turkeys come to you.

Calling
The main purpose of calling is to let the birds know there are hens around. Real hens don’t cluck continuously and neither should you. A few seductive clucks every 10 minutes or so is enough, and once a tom shows up, let the decoys do the work. Usually, the big boy will walk right in, but if he hangs up outside of reasonable shot gun range, a very soft cluck or purr might get him coming again. Yes, you can overdo calling.

The Final Act
When you spot a gobbler headed your way, very slowly get the gun into shooting position. (This is where the little blind really pays off.) Then, freeze. Ideally, you should wait until the bird is within 35 yards, although I have rolled them over at 55.

The aim point is half way down their neck. Don’t shoot at a gobbler in strut. Wait until he straightens up and exposes his full neck. If he doesn’t want to come out of strut, hit him with a sharp cluck. That usually alerts him enough for an immediate shot.

One Last Tip
One of the lessons I have learned in 20 years of turkey hunting is to not leave the field too soon. Don’t unload that gun until shooting time is over. I believe patience has led to the downfall of more turkeys than any other tactic.

This method has worked for me for many years, and I suspect it is pretty much the same method the pros on television use. Locate routes the birds use, set up near one, and wait for a gobbler to come along. It is simple and very effective.

Illinois’ wild turkey spring hunt begins in early April in the southern zone and mid-April in the northern counties. The hunt is divided into five segments beginning with a five-day period and ending with a 10-day final segment in early May. Statistics tell us the first and fifth segments are the most productive. That makes sense because IDNR biologist Paul Shelton thinks the best time to hunt a turkey is mid-March when the toms are getting randy and the hens show no interest.

This is when the big boys are most susceptible to calling. During the first week of the season, toms are still ready to come to the call and by the fifth week, all the hens are nested, leaving their former boyfriends to fend for themselves. Apparently, loneliness can do strange things to a gobbler.

All Illinois hunters, with a few exceptions for active or retired military, are required to possess a current state hunting license, a habitat stamp, a valid Firearms Owners ID card and certification of completion of the Illinois Hunter Safety Course if born after Jan. 1, 1980. If you are a first-time hunter or plan to introduce a newcomer to turkey hunting, look into the recently implemented Illinois Apprentice Hunter Program. This option allows first-time-only hunters to purchase a license and hunt with an approved mentor for one season without completing the 10-hour Hunter Safety Course. After that, future licenses may be purchased only after completion of the course.

Turkey hunting is a great sport, and Illinois is great place to enjoy it. If you are a seasoned gobbler hunter, good luck in 2008. If you haven’t yet tried turkey hunting, what are you waiting for? If you make 2008 your first year in the turkey woods, I guarantee it won’t be your last.