Expert Bowhunter's Guide to Turkey Hunting in the Fall

It’s often said that, if wild turkeys had a keen sense of smell, they would be impossible to pursue. The thought stems from the fact that these birds have a knack for avoiding danger, an impressive prowess attributed to their extraordinary sight and hearing, both as good or better than most other creatures inhabiting the woods are endowed with. Famously skittish and known to abruptly change course and make sudden moves, gobblers prompt most hunters to use a shotgun in order to gain a little wiggle room when they take their shot. But there’s a segment of the hunting public who’d rather up the ante, increasing the degree of difficulty by chasing turkeys with a bow and arrow instead.

This more primitive approach requires patience, persistence and precision, but the payoff comes in the form of adrenaline-filled close encounters, the kind that you don’t soon forget and that frequently turn a passion into an addiction. Most southern states offer fall hunting seasons for turkey, and many include an archery-only portion. As a bonus, fall regulations in some places allow harvesting birds of either sex. While most hunters focus their efforts on mature long beards, it’s important to recognize that harvesting any turkey with the stick and string is a notable accomplishment.

PATTERNS AND PLANS

In the fall, you typically find larger turkey flocks and they are primarily food driven. Sensing winter is not far off, the birds really turn their attention to foraging. Therefore, their behavior, movements and patterns directly revolve around available food sources, like acorns, nuts, berries, various seed bearing weeds, grasses and crops, and the areas with their greatest abundance.

When it comes to picking the ideal tract and most suitable terrain, turkey hunters should be mindful of the birds’ shift in focus—from breeding to feeding—in the fall. Instead of scouring the woods in hopes of striking up a hot gobbler with a call, intercepting the birds between their roosting sites and their daily feeding grounds is a more effective approach.

Knowing exactly where turkeys are roosting, where they are feeding, and what travel routes—including the specific corridors—the birds are taking to and from each is key. Armed with that knowledge, you just have to decide where to set up to get a shot opportunity. In a perfect world, once you’ve done enough scouting to learn the birds’ daily habits, you ought to have three options: You can set up near their roosts, along their daily travel path, or in or around their feeding areas. All of these options can be productive, so the choice usually comes down to personal preference.

Setting up to ambush the birds right after they leave their roost can make for an exciting and quick hunt. Nevertheless, success hinges on being able to slip into the area undetected and getting the turkeys to come your way once they fly down. When it works out, there’s nothing more thrilling. But there’s always the risk of the birds skirting around you and moving beyond your shooting range without affording you a chance.

Picking a setup spot somewhere along the turkeys’ travel routes or near their preferred food sources requires more patience, but it’s frequently the more successful approach. If you know the birds’ daily routines, you’ll have the confidence to wait until they eventually come your way.

CALLS AND DEEKS

Calling still has a place during autumn. In fact, it can be extremely effective when it’s coupled with the right tactics and employed in the right areas. It would be foolish, however, to think that an aggressive cadence of yelps and cuts will result in a mate-seeking tom covering a lot of ground in a hurry, gobbling his head off on his way to you. That’s something one would expect during springtime, not in the fall.

Assembly yelps are the most common calls heard during the fall. They come from adult hens trying to gather poults that have wandered off. Assembly yelps can be intense and sound long and drawn out. Oftentimes, they escalate in intensity throughout the duration of their cadence.

Employing assembly yelps in combination with more passive hen yelps, purrs, clucks, gobbler yelps and kee-kees is the smarter strategy. These are all sounds that a flock of turkeys will make while moving across the landscape in autumn. Rather than calling loudly or aggressively, hunters should focus on being subtle and sounding as realistic as possible. With practice, slate or pot calls can be used to imitate the majority of the aforementioned turkey sounds. A mouth call or diaphragm call can also work well, especially when imitating assembly yelps and kee-kees.

Getting in front of a flock of turkeys and then using tactful calling techniques to draw them into bow range is your best bet for scoring a bird with the stick and string in the fall.

Opting for the more lifelike decoys can prove quite helpful for drawing turkeys into bow range this time of year. That is especially true when hunting open areas where the birds can see well for long distances. Hen decoys in a feeding position are very effective, and so are jake deeks in a variety of poses or postures. Often, birds will see the decoys as intruders encroaching on their territory to steal their groceries, and they’ll promptly come rushing in to challenge them.

Lifelike decoys also hold the attention of approaching birds better. This makes it easier for hunters to get close enough for a high-percentage shot without worrying about spooking their target when sneaking into range or drawing back the bow. By the way, realistic decoys can help seal the deal on finishing birds, as well. They excel at drawing turkeys into bow range, and even to a specific spot for a clear shot.

GOING BLIND

When pursuing turkeys, bowhunters have to decide if they want to use a blind for concealment or don camouflage from head to toe instead. Obviously, a blind will hide your movements, but it can also hinder your mobility.

If you’re certain about what you observed while scouting and think there’s a high probability that the birds will frequent a specific area, opt for a blind. But if you aren’t too sure about their patterns and movements, it’s best to do without a blind, so you’ll have the freedom to reposition stealthily for a close encounter with your target, improving your odds of success in the process.

QUICK ON THE DRAW

Timing is everything when it comes to drawing a bow on a turkey, especially during the fall, when the birds move in flocks and there’s a higher probability that one or more members will detect your presence. The best time to do it is when the turkeys are facing away from you or distracted—either feeding or focused on the decoys.

Should you get busted drawing your bow by a bird, which happens at some point to every bowhunter who targets turkeys, it’s best to find your anchor point and steady your aim on the bird you plan to shoot. Even if the turkey is walking away, that is still a doable shot at close range. If you try to come out of draw, the movement—no matter how subtle—will usually spook the birds and ruin the prospect of another chance.

LINE UP YOUR SHOT

Since the vitals of a wild turkey are relatively small, I prefer to only take shots at 20 yards or less for better shot placement. Of course, the effective range may vary based on the hunter’s confidence and shooting skills. Just keep in mind that the heart and lungs on a turkey are slightly higher than the bird’s center of mass. For reference, the final wing joint, where the wing attaches to the body, will point to the heart when the bird is broadsided. That’s why bowhunters targeting wild turkeys often recall a popular adage when the topic of shot placement comes up: Hit him high, watch him lie. Hit him low, watch him go.

When the turkey is facing you directly, an arrow placed between the base of the beard and the base of the neck is ideal. Of course, anytime you sever or pierce its spine with a broadhead will result in a recovered bird. The same goes for a neck or head shot.

Where broadheads are concerned, mechanical or expandable options with large cutting diameters work best for turkeys because they cause tremendous damage and trauma upon impact (if they hit the right spot), also making for a short tracking job and an ethical harvest.

Wild turkeys are often called “thunder chickens” or “thunder of the woods.” If you hunt with a bow and arrow, chasing thunder this fall may just kick off a lifelong devotion to a challenging endeavor that rewards a hunter’s commitment and improving skills.

---

• This article was featured in the October 2025 issue of Game & Fish magazine. Click to subscribe.

---