Turkey Hunting With a Binocular
When most hunters think about binoculars, they’re usually concerned with big game. Makes sense, of course. Hunt out west without one, and you might as well be a blind man. Even in the deer woods east of the Mississippi a binocular is an important piece of equipment, especially at dusk and dawn. But if you stop and think about it, binoculars are used in all kinds of sporting events besides hunting. How many times have you been to a sports park and seen someone with a binocular?
Because we are hunters, we set out to create the best optics for the best price on today’s market. And because we are hunters, we like to get out in the turkey woods when the spring rolls around. It’s proved a fantastic tool to spot turkeys from a long ways off.
We had a customer recently report that he’d heard a bunch of turkeys gobbling and yelping on the roost just to the east of his house. As the eastern sky brightened, he was able to make out the turkeys’ silhouettes, but couldn’t see much detail. Luckily, his TEKOA 8x binocular was close by and he was able to pick out the hens and the one gobbler that continued to carry on.
“I was able to see the tom’s body shudder each time he gobbled,” said Steve M. “I wasn’t hunting that morning, but I’ll surely be taking my binocular when I do end up going. Plus, it shows how well they performed in a low-light situation.”
Often in the later season, turkeys become skittish and are hard to call. Some begin to bunch with others and tend to spend their days idly feeding in large fields where a sneak attack by any predator is near impossible. If this is the case in your area, head to the high ground with your binocular to scout. The more ground you can cover the better. If the area is large and flat, drive the roads to save time and spot as you go. Just don’t hunt from the truck!
A binocular is also super beneficial when hunting the dense timber. Say you’re easing along and through a stand of evergreens catch a flash of black. The binocular will reveal what the naked eye simply can’t. Or if you’re approaching a field, take the time to scan from deep in the woods for any sign of a turkey. For those of you who hunt turkeys with a bow, stealth is imminent and the inability to find every detail around you will only hurt your chances. Plus, the ultra-smooth focus knob allows you to adjust the binocular with just one hand while you’re holding your bow or call in the other.
There’s no reason not to have a binocular with you anytime you’re hunting, scouting or just taking a walk through the country. The spring is a time to find sheds, witness a great migration of birds heading back north, watch the dogwood’s bloom and of course witness the tom turkey go through his spring mating rituals.