When the weather is bad for turkey hunting, many hunters stay in bed. They feel they don’t have a chance when rain is falling or the wind is howling or after the temperature has taken a sudden nosedive.



For sure, these conditions aren’t as good for hunting as that perfect warm, still, clear morning. But when the weather goes south, the turkeys don’t go anywhere. They’re still out there, and while they may not gobble as voraciously as on a “good” day, some lovesick toms may still respond to your calling and provide the cooperation necessary for an exciting hunt. In fact, some of my most memorable hunts have come on some of the worst days conditions-wise.

I once killed a gobbler after a fresh 2-inch snowfall. Despite the white ground covering, he gobbled repeatedly and came straight to my call.

Another gobbler “tore it up” during a thunderstorm, with heavy rainfall and loud booming thunder. Every time there was a thunderclap, he would sound off. A friend and I sat like drowned rats, trying to call him in through the downpour. He got very close, but he never came all the way. Still, it was an exciting hunt during most improbable conditions.

I bagged another gobbler that came in when the wind was blowing at gale force. I started not to go hunting that morning, but I had drawn a good area on a local military reservation. I decided to go ahead, and I drove to the area and slipped into the woods before dawn. As luck would have it, I sat down to listen for gobbling not 50 yards from a roosted tom. When daylight started breaking, I could barely hear him gobbling in the strong wind, but it was enough for me to know he was close and to find him with my eyes. When he started getting ready to fly down, I called loudly so he’d hear me, and he pitched down right in front of me. End of story.

Here’s my best advice: the only time you don’t have a chance of bagging a bird is when you’re not in the woods. If you have planned a day of hunting, go regardless of what the conditions are like.