Let Turkeys Teach You How to Hunt Them with Eddie Salter
John E. Phillips 04.11.13
Author’s note: Eddie Salter of Greenville, Alabama has hunted turkeys for almost 50 years, hosts The Turkey Man on the Pursuit Channel, and is a Pro Staffer for the Down-n-Dirty Outdoors call company and Mossy Oak. This week, we’ve asked Salter to tell Outdoor Hub’s readers about some of the toughest turkeys he ever has tried to take.
I was hunting Merriam’s gobblers in the Black Hills of South Dakota and having a tough time. I would call to them, and they would gobble back. They would start coming to me. However, once they got within 100 to 150 yards of me, I would quit calling to let the birds come in to me on their own, just as I would in Alabama. But when I quit calling to these turkeys, they’d shut up. When they got to where I could see them, they would be walking away from me as if they’d lost interest in me. Finally, I decided to try and call those turkeys all the way in to my gun. I’d call the feathers off those turkeys if I had to do so.
Once I started calling and never stopped, I couldn’t believe it. Those gobblers would come in and almost gobble down my gun barrel. The moral of this story is, you have to pay attention to what the turkeys are telling you wherever you hunt. These Merriam’s gobblers wanted to hear those sweet hen calls.
On another trip, I was hunting in the Lincoln National Forest in New Mexico. There were plenty of turkeys gobbling everywhere, but I couldn’t call them with any of the turkey calls I used. In the national forest were plenty of good road systems, so you could drive the roads, use some locator calls and have the turkeys gobble. Then when we went to the turkeys and set up to call them, they’d shut up and vanish.
Finally, after five days of hunting these crazy birds, I decided to get up early and go to the places where I’d heard turkeys gobble. Instead of owl-hooting or crow-calling to locate the gobblers, I moved through the darkness and got on the back side of the hills where the turkeys had been gobbling. When daylight came, I started calling softly. I took a gobbler before 8:00 am. When I told my hunting buddies what I’d learned, they all tagged out in about two days.
Public land gobblers learn what a locator call is during the first weekend of turkey season. To take these turkeys, get on the backside of the roost tree, call softly, and watch what happens. Be sure you’re wearing your Mossy Oak camouflage, and you stay well hidden, because these public land gobblers know what a hunter looks like. Then let the turkeys teach you how to hunt.
John, the 2008 Crossbow Communicator of the year and the 2007 Legendary Communicator chosen for induction into the National Fresh Water Hall of Fame, is a freelance writer (over 6,000 magazine articles for about 100 magazines and several thousand newspaper columns published), magazine editor, photographer for print media as well as industry catalogues (over 25,000 photos published), lecturer, outdoor consultant, marketing consultant, book author and daily internet content provider with an overview of the outdoors.
Phillips has been a contributor to many national magazines, has been affiliated with 27 radio stations across Alabama serving as their outdoor editor and wrote for a weekly syndicated column, "Alabama Outdoors," for 38-Alabama newspapers for more than 13 years. Phillips was Outdoor Editor for the "Birmingham Post-Herald" for 24 years. Phillips was also the executive editor for "Great Days Outdoors" magazine for 3 years.
The author of almost 30 books on the outdoors, Phillips is a founding member of the Professional Outdoor Media Association (POMA) and an active member of the Southeastern Outdoors Press Association (SEOPA). Phillips also is the owner of Night Hawk Publications, a marketing and publishing firm, and president of Creative Concepts, an outdoor consulting group.
Phillips conducts seminars across the nation at colleges in freelance writing, photography and outdoor education besides teaching courses in how to sell what you write to writers' groups. Phillips received his photography training as a still-lab photo specialist for six years in the Air Force. He was the chief photographer for Mannequins, Inc., a Birmingham modeling agency, for 11 years.
While serving as 2nd Vice President of the Alabama Wildlife Federation, Phillips was in charge of all press releases for the organization as well as serving as Chairman of Alabama's Big Buck Contest, which he founded more than 30 years ago. He also was president of the Alabama Sportsman's Association for three years.
Phillips is the recipient of a Certificate of Merit from the Governor of Alabama and the Department of Conservation for his work in the outdoor field. Phillips is vitally interested in the outdoors and travels the nation collecting personalities, stories and how-to information for his articles and features.
EDUCATION: B.S. degree from the University of West Alabama with a physical education major and a history minor.
EXPERIENCE: 10 years parttime and fulltime physical director for YMCAs and 34 years as a freelance writer, photographer, editor, book author, lecturer and daily-content provider for websites. Currently, Phillips is a field editor for Game and Fish Publications; serves on the editorial board of Grandview Media; is a regular contributor to 12 internet magazines and a daily content provider for 8 websites.
WRITING AWARDS: Runnerup - Best Outdoor Magazine Feature - 1981 - SEOPA; Certificate of Merit - Awarded by Alabama's Governor for writings on conservation; Most Outstanding Sports Writer in Southeast - 1983 & 1984; Best Outdoor Feature in Alabama, 1987 - Alabama Sportswriters' Association 3rd Place; Best Book of the Year - 1989 - SEOPA; 2007 - inducted into the National Fresh Water Fishing Hall of Fame as a Legendary Communicator; 2008 - received award naming him 2008 Crossbow Communicator of the Year from the Crossbow Manufacturers' Association; 2009 - GAMMA Honorable Mention for Consumer/Paid Best Essay for July/August 2008 in "Southern Sporting Journal."
