Scope Out Turkey Sites Now

If you’ve never hunted wild turkeys but are planning to do so this spring, we’ve got some advice for you.

Start looking for places to hunt now.

If you haven’t made arrangements to hunt on private land, you’re probably too late to get permission to hunt on land where most turkey flocks are thriving. So, spend your time looking for turkeys on land open to the public. Fortunately for you, scores of flocks are on public land.

Most veteran hunters have had permission to hunt private land for several months, some for nearly a year. They discovered long ago that they had to do their homework far in advance of a season.

Keep in mind that most landowners permit limited numbers of hunters on their land. They decide months in advance of the hunting seasons how many hunters they’ll allow on their land and once they fill their quotas, they turn away those who appear at their houses a week or so before opening day.

Of course, it’s possible, but not probable, that you may get lucky and find a landowner still willing to permit you to hunt on his land.

You should decide about where you would like to scout for turkeys and then buy some detailed maps. It’s necessary to have good maps because many state and federal lands aren’t clearly marked. Large scale maps can keep you from getting into trouble with private land owners.

Most of Eastern Washington’s turkey flocks are concentrated in Stevens, Lincoln, Garfield and Columbia counties, but there are numerous flocks in counties adjacent to those four. Biologists recently counted 200-300 turkeys in a few flocks in the four counties.

A couple of dozen men who said they planned to hunt turkeys for the first time this year called me after I wrote that I had seen as many as 500 turkeys during a day’s drive in prime turkey country. Nearly all wanted me to tell them where the turkeys were located. Unfortunately, I had promised the friend who guided me that I wouldn’t pinpoint the flocks.

I can say, though, that I’ve seen scores of turkeys on land adjacent to the Columbia and Kettle rivers and near Northport, Colville and Chewelah in the north and throughout Garfield and Columbia counties in the south. Many flocks are in the Colville and Umatilla national forests.

The Northwest Map Service at 525 W. Sprague Ave. is an excellent source for all types of maps. The firm sells large-scale county maps for $4.50, U.S. Geological Survey maps for $3.65 and Washington State Department of Natural Resource maps for $6.95.

If you decide to hunt either on Colville or Umatilla national forest land, you can buy maps at the Spokane Information Office at Room 112, U.S. Courthouse or at offices in Colville and Pomeroy. The large-scale maps cost $4 each.

For $4, the Spokane district office of Bureau of Land Management at 1103 N. Fancher sells excellent large-scale maps of Lincoln County’s scablands and the Colville and Chewelah areas in the north and the Garfield and Columbia county regions of the south.

Officials of the Washington Fish and Wildlife Department won’t pinpoint turkey flocks for you, but they’ll provide general information on where to look. Then it’s up to you to find a few turkey flocks. Visit the Spokane regional office on 8702 N. Division or call 456-4082. You may get some leads.

Before you scout potential hunting sites, buy a box or slate call and learn how to use it. Most sporting goods stores that sell turkey calls also sell instructional tapes. Also, buy an owl, hawk or dying rabbit call.

As you drive through an area where you believe there will be turkeys, stop periodically and use one of your calls. Gobblers are assembling their harems and they often answer a call. Sometimes, a predator call will startle a gobbler into gobbling.

Once you’ve located a flock, pinpoint it on one of your maps. If you’ve got a GPS (Global Positioning System) receiver, punch coordinates into the device.

If the turkeys are on private land, ask the landowner if he or she will give you permission to hunt. If it’s on public land, you are home free. But expect competition on opening day.

You can learn a lot about turkeys, where they are located, shotgun shells you’ll be using, calls and camouflage by stopping at the booth of the Inland Empire Chapter of the National Wild Turkey Foundation at the Big Horn Show Thursday through Sunday at the Spokane Fairgrounds.

Rich D. Reathaford, chapter president, said turkey hunters who will be at the booth will answer almost any questions you ask about turkey hunting. You’ll see a map with push pins that shows where the biggest concentrations of turkeys are in Eastern Washington. Just don’t expect the hunters, or anyone else, to lead you to flocks. You’ve got to do most of the homework yourself.