Jumper Creekers......

[proturkeyhntr]

Hey guys, just my two cents here.....Having the luxury of running and gunning, striking a bird and setting up on him sounds like an option that your not going to have there. I have been there and done that on hard hunted public land myself. Especially this late in the season. If I were you I would get as far off the beaten path(as you all are doing) set up and just "blind call". Soft, soft yelps. Purring and clucking and scratching in the leaves, in probably 15 min intervals. No more. Look for the birds to come in silent. Keep your senses at a bionic level and your movement to almost nil. There are plenty of birds there but everywhere I have been hunting the last week, public and private land, they have been shutting down about 8:00am and I have heard no gobbling. At this point running and gunning is just not going to get it done. Your going to have to pull out your patience card and go "all in".

s.e.

[FlHunter23]

Hey, thanks for the advice. I will try it if I can make it out again. Last time I checked my patience card was expired though. guess its about time to renew.

If I can't get it done this spring, do you have any tips for fall hunting turkeys during archery on public land? I heard the kee kee run on a wingbone type call was good? are gobblers callable during the fall? I wouldn't mind taking a hen being that it is legal during archery,I believe, and I've never harvested a turkey. Thanks for the info man.

[palmettoswamp]

I would agree w/ Scott, but would not even yelp. I believe the dense jungle like woods in there, the birds really dont get very vocal due to predators, not to mention the constant airboat antics. Best bet will be to find where there are birds and sit all morning for the long haul. If you cut n' run this late in the season, all you are doing is chasing birds, not to mention you will probably bump tons of birds you never even know about due to the dense jungle woods. Tim D.

[proturkeyhntr]

notice I said soft soft yelping, turkeys will yelp no matter the conditions. It may only be heard a relatively short distance.

Running around trying to sneak through these woods and call is, as Tim stated, only going to bump birds you never knew were there....As boring as it is stationary calling is your best ticket. Also try to find a set up where you have some degree of visibility. Use cut palmettoes as a blind.....

Flhunter, I'll p.m. you my phone number and you can call me sometime we'll chat about fall hunting....

s.e.

[palmettoswamp]

Its not the most exciting form of hunting, but I personally like it when they sneak in all tight-lipped. One second your sitting there and the next second you got a limbhanger in your lap. I always try to listen for leaves crunching, light purring/clucking, spitt'n & drum'n and tree rats barking

[Chris Steffenhagen]

Anyone here hunt on the North End of Jumper Creek, if so has anyone had any desent results? Only thing i've seen out there lately is hens, no jakes or toms.

[TrophyTracker]

That area has been pounded by guys trying to take advantage of the feeder across the fence. Only one good longbeard was taken out of there last season, and these two guys from Inverness went in there and killed as many Jakes as they could.

[Forester]

Last Saturday my father and I came in from the river....or should I say rock filled muddy creek....

Anyways we had one bird gobbling at day break and we made are way to him and got setup about 100 yards from him. He did not gobble much after that and once he went silent I figured he was on the ground. I continued with some soft yelps and purrs just waiting for him to pop out in the cypress but about 8:30 am we heard wing flaps and saw him sailing through the trees going away from us.

There were several other guys hunting the river and none of them heard any gobbling. I'd usually would have my two birds by now but this year has been tough.

[palmettoswamp]

I hunted off the river side during the spring of 2007 w/ a mudbuddy motor/jon boat combo---no water and rocks & logs everywhere. This has been a tough season so far, wish the state would have opened it up 1 week earlier and all the cold weather has been crazy. 17 days left to make it happen

[FlHunter23]

Where are you hunting at off the river forester? Are you near kettle island? When i was down there Sunday I walked all the way to the river and walked along the bend for a little ways. Even seen a couple boats go by. I dont wanna walk into anyones setup. You guys are getting me pumped up to get out there again. I might have to put the house off for a day this weekend. Sounds like i may have been going about it all wrong last sunday, i was blasting away with the slate call and was only sitting for 10 15 minutes at a time.

I know a spot where my buddy had hens coming in on him the first couple weeks of this last archery season. he said they came in the same way every time, and busted him every time. I know there was at least 3 or 4 different times he said they came in. Also, its only about 200 yrds from where i kicked that gobbler up serveral times last year. I think we ran them off though, cause they eventually stopped coming around. Ill give it a try though if i can make it out sunday. Sit, dont move, call softly, if at all, gotcha. Game on, thanx.

[TrophyTracker]

That's the turkey hunter spirit! Never give up!!!

[palmettoswamp]

“Most of the important things in the world have been accomplished by people who have kept on trying when there seemed to be no hope at all.” -- Dale Carnegie

[TrophyTracker]

That rings true. I got into them today something fierce on my way out. I had a babysitter crisis, that forced me to leave at sun-up, but boy did I learn a thing or two. I'm ready for the final push now!

[palmettoswamp]

I put 5 hard days into this place this week and heard 3 gobbles and saw one gobbler that was out of range. Going back Mon-Fri for the final week of the season. Was covered up w/ deer on friday all morning.

[OsceolaChaser]

PalmettoSwamp,

Stick to it! A friend of mine killed two birds last week at Jumper Creek. I saw both the spurs and beards of both birds. They were really nice. There are gobblers to be had. I am going to try Three Lakes WMA next week.

[palmettoswamp]

Thanks Osceola. It aint over until its over on 4/26/09:cool:

[TrophyTracker]

O/C, who is your friend?

[FlHunter23]

He must have DL on where the turkeys are hiding. Sup guys? I havent made it out again yet. Just got to much to do and to little time. Hope you guys are doing well.

[palmettoswamp]

I hear ya Sam. Try not to schedule to much for next spring gobbler season, so you can get out more and hunt. All is okay, just trying to get the jump on ole' hook-daddy b4 4/26/09;)

I will have to get with you since you hunt in there during archery and I usually dont. I have been covered up in deer in this area I have been hunting for the past week. If it was archery season, we would have 6-8 deer in the freezer by now. Lot of good trees to hang stands also

[adamz]

Waddya you guys all live near each other?
I may have to make a jaunt down next year. My vacation will be the week of 4-19. Last week for gobblers in 2010 in FLA. I love late season hunting. I have the patience of moss on a turtle.

[palmettoswamp]

This seems to be the Quaker Boy Florida Forum....most of us live in Central Florida. A gentleman was down here last week from NY trying to bag a osceola to no avail. He probbaly got run off by the cottonmouths and bugs:D

[turkeyman]

Moss on a turtle now that is some serious patience!!!Jumper Creek seems like a bad@#% place to hunt sounds like a lot of pressure.Good luck dudes it`s almost over.S.C. has been kinda tough this year also,have managed to smack two of them and call one in for my son got one more weekend to go!

Mike Rayano
Quaker Boy Pro Staff
Mossy Oak Pro Staff
S.C.

[TrophyTracker]

Jumper Creek is a place that will leave you BEATDOWN, but yet, wanting more. You know that most likely you will get your behind handed to you by a bad-bird, that has had the gauntlet thrown at it by dozens of idiots, but that feeling that YOU will be the one to change destiny, is what keeps you setting that alarm for another go. In a way, you go there to see just how crazy and messed up a hunt can get.

You wonder "What will it be today, cottonmouths dropping from tree branches,dudes on mtn. bikes riding through my set-up, being surrounded by mystery growling beasts in the darkness(Palmettoswamp:eek:), or will a monster longbeard just pop up ready to die?" You just get in there, and find out what the swamp has to offer on this day.

[palmettoswamp]

There is something special, mystical, and down right creepy about that place. The birds are on red alert in there; called a jennie up this morning while I was sitting in a good palmetto brushed blind @ 15 yards and she turned around and ran about 50 yards and took flight. Tomorrow will be my last day of the season, so if its going to go down, hopefully it will be in the morning. We all made stories to tell until next gobbler season. I got to spend time w/ old friends and enjoyed this season very much.

[TrophyTracker]

Tim, right you are.It's a badge of honor just to dissappear into the darkness of that place.

Even if I get the permit to hunt Lake Pan. the last three days, I may just slip down to give my bird "Freddie Mercury" one last fit.;)

[Forester]

I still see old Spaniards on horse back when I'm in Jumper Creek and Swamp Ape runs by every once and a while.

Trophy I've been seeing birds everyday on Lake Pan right at the retition pond before you get to the truck stop. They are in the fenced in area but there is a huge gobbler in the bunch.

[adamz]

Sounds like a hoot, that Jumper Creek. I would like to be a hero and dump the biggun after so many have failed. It is , in fact, what keeps me setting the alarms. I'm am like Indiana Jones, though, when it comes to snakes. I forgot snakes eat the same food turkeys eat down there. So, have fun, I'm not adding chain mail to my already overloaded turkey huntin suit. Maybe someday though...

[TrophyTracker]

I've seen those birds at the retention pond! lol

Adam, you have to not look at it as a snake in the trail, but as an abandoned motorcycle tire and just walk by like it's a piece of junk:D

[FlHunter23]

I think you gotta bag your turkeys down there during archery, i didnt see squat during gun. But i might not have been looking in the right place. Their down there for sure, just all messed up by the time turkey gun rolls around. Im a little confused on the rules though. If i bag two turkeys during archery does that mean i cant get two more during gun?

[TrophyTracker]

Yes. You can kill a total of four birds in one licence year. Two in the Fall and two in the Spring.

[gobblerstopper]

This place sounds like taking a tour of Vietnam....You Fl. boys hunting this place again this year...I might have to drive down to see what all the talk is about. I have not hunted Fl. since 1998.