Iowa Turkey Hunting
Obstacles
Recurring Success
This do it yourself turkey hunter, Chad, is pictured several times in the beginning of our turkey hunter success gallery posing with other hunters where both harvested birds together. Here he is pictured with more of his toms he harvested on MAHA lease land.
Chad probably is not anymore successful than any other member, he just sends in more photos of which we greatly appreciate. While we could show more of his turkey hunting success this is enough to demonstrate it is possible to have recurring success as a tradition within the Association every year for life.
Productive State Regions, Then The Right Habitat
The most common Iowa turkey habitat - the lightly wooded creek bottom, 320 acres, a 1/2 section or 1 by 1/2 mile.
This is the most common Iowa turkey habitat due to the area we lease land in southern Iowa is on the northern fringe of the Grand River watershed which is the second largest sub basin of the three that compose the overall lower Missouri River basin.
This watershed cuts across farm fields with uncountable number of dry and intermittent streams creating the ideal turkey holding cover surrounded by crop fields largely composed of corn and beans due to this regions good rainfall.
Small wood patches typically created by the same tributaries as above cutting into a hill side and rendering the ground unusable to the plow. This (below) is a 1/4 section, 160 acres or a 1/2 by 1/2 mile lease has been a turkey producer for several seasons.
Overall, Iowa wild turkey hunting is tougher than Kansas or Missouri turkey hunting simply dues to Iowa's smaller flocks and less turkey hunter friendly regulations.
Iowa has a split spring season, limited number of competitive draw tags, the tag costs are higher and overall the turkey population less as the habitat is thinner.
Just to illustrate this distinction amongst our three states as late as 2000, Iowa was trapping and relocating turkeys within the state. Far later than what occurred in Kansas or Missouri as the turkeys in those states expanded on their own at a far greater rate than what occurred in Iowa.
Advantages
For Association self guided wild turkey hunting members wanting to go Iowa they will find next to no pressure on our private leases in Iowa spring turkey zone 4. This will leave plenty of Iowa turkey hunting spots and a chance to break into some new potential deer land.
Another advantage to Association is the ability to cross from Iowa over into northern Missouri and easily hunt two states on one trip. Missouri, as in Kansas, the spring turkey tags are over the counter purchase with two per state available to every hunter.
While Iowa does not have many of the turkey hunting advantages as Kansas or Missouri the opportunity is there for each Association hunter to tag up to 5 toms on one spring season hunting trip. Iowa is also another option for a quick fly-out/rental car turkey hunt as opposed to staying home.
Iowa turkey hunting habitat while not that radically different from that of Kansas or Missouri is on agricultural land and far different from the big woods northern states.
Those from the north or south that take a ridge run, call and gun approach will not be as successful as the setup and decoy turkey hunting approach useful on our open ground.
All who are self guided turkey hunters must be be prepared to trust our recommendations of where to go Iowa turkey hunting. That confidence comes from the fact we are a business with a customer service attitude that strives for return hunter membership renewals. When it come to Iowa turkey hunting such recommendations will be based on our personal boots on the ground experience with that lease. And, all turkey hunting in Iowa, Kansas and Missouri is on wild birds without any manmade enhancements of feeders or cover.
Habitat
Iowa wild turkey hunting on largely open fields mostly in row crops of large grains that Iowa is well known for with very little in wheat, alfalfa or other hay.
What is a turkey detriment in Iowa and especially useful for wild spring season turkey hunting are patches of tall prairie grass or weed areas hens prefer for nesting.
Finding a wood patch isolated from the road and farm yard, by a pond, on a crop field, with a weed patch will give all the environmental limiting factors required to sustain a wild turkey flock and better turkey hunting more so than other areas. When one or more of these elements is missing the turkey hunting quality degrades. No surprises in this concept, just an illustrations of Iowa's limitations. It is far more likely in Iowa not to find that ideal spring season turkey hunting environment than elsewhere.
Those that do venture out for do it yourself spring or fall Iowa wild turkey hunting will find plenty of other game interest habitat and may very well return for a deer, quail or pheasant hunt. Those that do return for some upland bird hunts will find specified shooting hours from 8 to 430 and for deer hunts plenty of bow huntable ground. The upland habitat allows for much blue sky quail shooting compared to the more wooded areas of Missouri. And, the Iowa pheasants will be easily come by between the coveys.
The deer hunter will find habitat in this part of Iowa is highly canalizing for whitetail movement with highly defined loafing areas. The challenge when scouting these lightly wooded Iowa creeks and small wood patches is the amount of visibility the deer have over the very avenues the hunter will use to access his stand. That challenge alone has resulted in many racks seen bounding away and over a ridge.
For the most part the very same habitat that will produce the best Iowa turkey hunting holds the deer as well. Spending a week or so in pursuit of the spring turkeys and on a subsequent Iowa deer hunt in the same area that fall will allow for a greater understanding of all game movement. While the first season may be a learning experience, subsequent Iowa seasons, both deer and turkey, should be more productive.
Overall, a hunter may call us interested only in Iowa wild turkey hunting, however he is allocated a membership based on a primary and secondary interest. Those interests may be his focus at the initial part of his membership and after a few years we frequently see many hunters migrate into another hunting discipline either through pairing up on buddy hunts or simply being drawn to the variety of options our approach to paid hunts allow.
Those that seek trophy quality Iowa turkey and deer hunts may give a day on a buddy hunt after waterfowl or upland birds expanding out of Iowa into Kansas or Missouri. The amount of action within these two disciplines may become addictive to those more accustomed to the sedentary style of being on deer stand or down in a turkey blind.
The tranquility gained from sitting still turkey hunting and watching nature unravel around has the converse tranquil effect of moving over a varied amount of habitat watching bird dogs on point or duck flights that sometimes respond allowing for three or less flights for a limit or days when every duck seems to flair. While Iowa wild turkey hunting may be the initial concern it will not be long until the other opportunities become as desired.
2011 Iowa Turkey Hunting Land
Photo of a mid-March bachelor flock.
Four toms showing off for each other as the hens had moved off from the roost flydown area to graze off to the left.
A flock feeding as seen from the ridge looking across a large crop field. Not the type of country that suits the run & gun turkey hunter. This picture shows well how traveling hunters must adapt to the habitat/terrain as the turkeys will not adapt to run & gun techniques.
Pre-season turkey scouting may be deceptive, since the birds are in large flocks concentrated primarily in the river bottoms. Once the flocks break up, their patterns change drastically. We encourage our hunters to scout as close to the time they plan to turkey hunt as possible to increase their success rate. Narrow creek and timberlines feeding the river bottoms are areas the hens tend to frequent to nest and lay eggs especially with the buffer strip program leases.
Same turkey flock in the two pictures that took longer to move this short distance and continue on than we had willingness to stay put and watch. Difficult to maneuver in on a flock once out in the field. Better to connect the points between roost, flydown, feed, water, afternoon strutting and return to roost pattern then interdict that movement.
MAHA Do It Yourself Approach
In any case within our do it yourself approach to getting out in the field the hunter chooses his own methods and discipline. That includes those that may be initially seeking only an Iowa wild turkey hunting trip that once other options are made available within our system of one price for all that hunter may soon find more adventure than through any other pay to hunt organization. Come try our Iowa turkey hunting ground and then reschedule your vacation for a deer hunt.
This Iowa turkey hunting page is just the start and much more lies within the broader turkey hunting section of our web site. The hunter account immediately below is just one example.
The good...the bad...and the ugly...
The good...
opening day after roosting birds the night before found me set up within about 120 yards of a lone gobbler. I waited until the birds started gobbling on their own before tree yelping and catching his attention. He was roosted across the property fence and I could hear three gobbler flocks further away on the adjoining property gobbling with enthusiasm at every sound. Near what I assumed was fly-down time I yelped with a few mild cuts thrown in. He double-gobbled so I shut up and waited for fly-down. He flew down on the other side of the fence and gobbled when he hit the ground so I responded quickly with sharp cuts leading into excited yelps. He immediately double-gobbled again so I waited. He came right through the fence to the edge of the field and strutted and gobbled twice. I waited. As the light grew he noticed my hen and jake decoy in the corner, did a double-take, gobbled, and ran the 80 yards straight to the jake decoy. He went into a strut nose-to-nose to the decoy when I took the shot at 14 paces at 06:30. Nice way to start the season.
The bad...
opening day afternoon/evening I called in two gobblers from several hundred yards away. They walked into the field adjacent to my setup along a creek bed and straight across gobbling regularly. They walked right up to the creek bank and began making their way down into the creek bottom. At this point I had a 30 yard shot but since they were coming in so good I decided to wait for a better one. You know the rest of the story I'm sure. Both big gobblers dropped down into the creek bed out of my sight and I never saw them again. But I did hear them gobble some more. They had walked down stream along the dry creek bed before coming up on my side but way down (100 yards maybe?) only to make a big circle around my setup going to roost on the adjoining property.
The ugly...
a morning or two later and the wind has picked up considerably. Step out of the truck and hear a gobble some distance off but good enough to get a pretty good fix. I ease into the woods real quiet trying to get as close as I can to try and eliminate the stiff competition from hens. Get real close...60 yards...and I can see him up on his roost limb when he moves. He gobbles constantly and at everything. I sit still and wait until near fly down before offering up a very soft tree yelp. He spins around on the limb and gobbles hard so I wait. Start hearing hens working up the hollow towards him and begin calling to the hens but to no avail. As soon as they get under him he drops straight down and they begin to lead him away so I start calling aggressively to the hens. They turn around and come back to me...but too close. One comes to within 12 - 15 feet and gets nervous and starts putting. I begin purring and whining with soft clucks mixed in until she gets relaxed again and starts yelping. I can see the gobbler strutting about 80 yards behind her. Two hens now and they move off away from me and the gobbler follows. I can guess where they're going because of a slough and a hay field so I get up and move to cut them off along the edge of the field. When I get up to the field edge I stop and call...he gobblers about 100 - 120 yards off so I ease up to get near a cedar tree along the field edge. The gobbler and I run into each other at the cedar tree. He slides to a stop and his eyes get real big...I freeze, staring at each other for a heartbeat or two. In the time it takes me to suck in a breath, the gobbler spins and darts around the other side of the cedar. I drop my slate call from my left hand and sprint around the cedar tree hoping to get a shot but he's already disappeared.
Lessons learned for the umpteenth time...take the shot when the opportunity presents itself and practice patience...
Matt
