Turkey hunting and just getting into hunting in general.

[Jonathan Waits]

So I am 29, never been hunting, but really want to start. I would like to start with turkey hunting coming this spring, as it seems the easiest for me to harvest and clean myself. Eventually I would like to get into deer hunting later on as well. I live in Edmond, my father in law has land up in cashion, I know deer are there and my brother in law has feeders spread throughout up there. However I am curious does turkey even go that far north, or any other type of game bird? Are my only options logging land down in SE oklahoma? Also, other than a shotgun, I don't have any equipment, I have no idea really where to start, I know I would need camo, and a game call and of course a license, but other than that, am totally clueless. Anyone have any resources to check out?

 

[dennishoddy]

Oklahoma has hunt able populations of turkey in every county.
The eastern 1/3 of the state has the eastern specie while the rest of the state is populated by the rio specie.

95% of Ok Is privately owned, so unless you can get permission to hunt private land, you'll be hunting public grounds.

The Oklahoma Department of wildlife web page gives a good list of the WMA's (wildlife management areas), as well as season dates , etc.
http://www.wildlifedepartment.com/


Probably the best resource for learning to turkey hunt is the National Wild turkey federation web page. If you browse around in it, you'll find how to call them, what calls to use, and a whole wealth of info.
http://www.nwtf.org/

This link is the tulsa district Corps of Engineers hunting area maps.
http://www.swt.usace.army.mil/Missions/Recreation/HuntingInformation.aspx

Or, we can sit on my deck with a cold beer and watch them

 

[Squid]

You have an AR don't you? All you need is an orange vest and hat and of course a license. Have you completed the hunters safety course? You really don't need much to bust a bunch of whitetail just patience and time in the woods. No fancy camo or scent killer required.
And a 5 round mag for your rifle.

 

[Jonathan Waits]

5 the max for use in hunting in OK? and is .223 hunting ammo strong enough?

 

[Squid]

5 round mag to hunt whitetail. Yep I've killed a pile of em. typically fall less than 30 yds of where you shot em. I bet Dennis has too. You must use 55 GR or higher bullet according to state law

 

[dennishoddy]

Oklahoma has a 7 round mag restriction although I use the 5 rounder. You can use a 20 round mag and put some dowel rods in it for spacers to limit mag capacity. I think Brownells makes a commercial mag spacer as well.

Killed around a dozen deer with an AR using Nosler .55 grain softpoints. Most have been under 200 yds. If I were planning on shooting one further, I'd probably look at a heavier bullet.

Legal Means of Taking:

Rifles: Centerfire rifles firing at least a 55-grain weight soft-nosed or hollow-point bullet and having an overall cartridge case length of 1 1/4 inches or longer (9mm rifles are not legal). Clips or magazines of all .22 caliber centerfire firearms may not be capable of holding more than seven (7) rounds of ammunition. ..."

Its a long story about why only the .22 cal is limited. You can use a 30 round mag in SK, AR-10 etc.

I can get into it if anybody is interested.

 

[scubor2]

As many times as I have read the rules I have never keyed in on the fact it was only .22 caliber that was restricted to rounds. My eyeballs were telling me it was all rifles.
Dennis now you just need to train the birds to pluck them selves and hop into the fryer. I see the stray in my yard from time to time, maybe I need a bird bath.

 

[dennishoddy]

Hell, they drink from the pool, the dog bowls, and anything else with water.

They roost about 200 yds from the house, so I get to watch them every evening fly up.