Turkey

Because their great vision is their primary defense, turkeys feel very secure where they can see well and far. They frequently feed in pastures and meadows and gobblers love to strut their stuff out in the open.

On rainy days, turkeys prefer these open areas as well as clearcuts and can be seen walking along woods roads. These are all prime areas to look for fresh tracks, feathers and other sign.

If turkey season opened tomorrow, would you be ready?

There was a time when hunting blinds were a luxury. Making a blind was difficult work: building the framework, cutting foliage to match the area and securing the foliage to the frame — not to mention where the blind was built, is where it stayed. Today's blinds are a must have, and setting one up and using it is so simple even a beginner can do it and be successful hunting from it.

Many turkey hunters come home without a gobbler because of silly little mistakes like waiting until the bird was in full view before raising their gun. When the bird is approaching, get your gun up and poised long before you can see the gobble and never sit where a tree or brush in front of you is so close that it obstructs the swing of your gun.

Today's

It's a simple, stark truth.

Turkey hunting is one of the most exciting and fastest growing forms of hunting today. Wild turkeys are hunted in 49 States and four Canadian Provinces. Many of these places offer both a spring and fall hunting season.

A 12-gauge shotgun with a 3-inch chamber is probably the favorite of most turkey hunters but a 20-gauge will also do a
good job at reasonable ranges and its lighter weight and recoil make it better for women and young hunters.

While most hunters and shooters regularly sight in their rifles, shotguns are the Rodney Dangerfield of firearms "getting no respect" often sitting in a safe until season rolls around.