Winchester celebrates the National Wild Turkey Federation’s 50th anniversary with the release of special commemorative ammunition. Choose your gauge and shell length, each featuring unique Original Bottomland camouflage packaging. This 12-gauge, 3", No.5 shot features NWTF, Winchester and Mossy Oak logos, along with a unique design to commemorate this milestone anniversary. An exclusive green hull and nickel-plated head provide an enhanced contrast between shotshell components providing added reliability when reloading. 

In iSportsman’s Master the Call Series, we’ll take a look at different calls of the wild turkey and discuss what the call is good for, when to use it and share with you from the web a good example of what it sounds like and how it to make the call. Today, we'll be explaining what the yelp call is, why it's used, and how to effectively use it to snag your next turkey.

Turkey hunting has many challenges but one that is often overlooked is proper target acquisition. That problem can be resolved by choosing the right turkey gun sights.

Unlike other sporting birds that are shot while flying, turkeys are taken most often as they feed on the forest floor. The favored target is the brain and neck vertebrae as the turkey sticks its head up to investigate their surroundings. However, getting a proper sight picture on a target that bobs and weaves like an arcade whack-a-mole game can be almost impossible.

Springtime; the weather is getting warmer, the birds are out, and for most outdoorsmen, you are back inside daydreaming of next fall. Some may see springtime as the time of year to hang up your hunting boots and practice your range shooting. However, that is not totally necessary. While springtime hunting takes some thinking outside of the buck, we’ve compiled five springtime hunting opportunities for you to pursue this “offseason.”

When Kim Bailey snagged what he considers the most photo-worthy turkey he has ever tagged, it was the second day of a spring hunt he enjoyed from the scenic pastures of the Kentucky horse farm near his home. The first day, the scenery was the only entertainment as the morning stood quiet and still without so much as a gobble.  

It happens every year. We hear tales of the new guy who stumbles into the woods for the first time, scratches out a few calls and nails a big gobbler before the sun clears the horizon. But what you don’t hear are stories about the film crew and hunting pro who spend a full week in prime turkey country but fail to fill a tag or footage. We also don’t hear about the well-seasoned hunter who ends the season empty handed. For every beginner’s success there are dozens of other hard-luck stories in which hunters spend day after day in the woods without connecting. No doubt wild turkeys can humble anyone.

A turkey gobbling his head off on the roost can excite a hunter like few other sights or sounds. The excitement can be short lived though if the old Tom has already made up his mind to fly down away from you. A fired up a gobbler in the midday is different. He’s likely without hens and looking for love. There’s a good chance he’ll aggressively close the distance to your calls.

As we progress later and later into turkey season, hunters should remember things grow a little more dangerous as undergrowth does likewise. Turkey hunting safety should be at the front of your mind when taking to the late-season woods.

As most turkey hunters know, a successful hunt is dependent largely on stealthy movement and realistic concealment. Designed for run-and-gun turkey hunting, the Nomad Leafy ¼ Zip pullover and Leafy Pants offer the lightweight coverage needed for those early spring hunts. 

It’s funny the things that sometimes remain in our minds. They don’t have to be life altering events or items of historical significance. Each year during our wild turkey hunting season I recall a seemingly insignificant incident that happened years back.

The first time I heard the phrase “I sat down wrong” was decades ago when my wild turkey hunting career was still young. Back then my attitude still brimmed with the brashness of youth. I was mired deeply with that know-it-all arrogance that comes from already having a half dozen kills under my belt.