Bowhunt “Safari Style.” Bears, turkeys, hogs, coyotes AND DEER!

African safaris are very popular because they allow multiple species on a single hunt.  In the next few weeks, bowhunters will be spending more time on stand and in blinds than any time of the year so why not maximize your opportunity?  A turkey box caller is easy to use and takes very little space in your back.  Use your cell phone to call coyotes, bears, and other predators.  It’s as easy as “Hey Ceri” or “Hey Google, play a dieng rabbit squeal.”

Calling All Turkeys

Young turkeys, the kind often seen in flocks make a wide variety of sounds.  They are immature adults and like humans going through a voice-changing stage, they make all kinds of sounds.  Anything close to a turkey sound will work.  Also, a lost turkey makes lots of sounds so you can work the box caller repeatedly to attract the flock’s dominant hen or another turkey that has become separated.  Adult gobblers are more difficult to call, yet sometimes join flocks of young birds.  The Lynch World Champion Box Call shown above makes both hen and gobbler sounds and is my favorite.

Action Makes Time Seem to Go Faster

The more time on the stand, the luckier you become.  There is no bad time of day to hunt in November and you want to spend as much time as possible in likely deer spots.  That takes perseverance and if you have a turkey call or varmint caller in your pocket, the time will seem to go much faster.  Likewise, should you spot a coyote or a flock of turkeys, you can lure them to your stand without jeopardizing your deer hunt.  Turkeys make a lot of noise in the wild and your calls can help cover inadvertent sounds you make if nature calls or you need to climb from your stand.

Smart Phone- Smart Hunter

Smartphones have excellent acoustics and reproduce sounds with great authenticity.  To call a coyote or fox to your stand, type in “dying rabbit sound” and you’ll either get a squealing rabbit or a video containing that sound.  The same for coyotes.  If you want a territorial coyote howl, you don’t have to practice for hours on a caller, just let Google or your favorite search engine find one.

Be Legal and Ethical

Hunting multiple animals at the same time can have a downside.  Hunting deer over bait is legal in many states, but hunting wild turkeys over bait is considered unethical and is illegal in most states.  Also, electronic turkey callers are illegal in some states, but electronic predator callers are not.  Likewise with hunter orange.  A wild turkey can spot an orange hat a mile away so you won’t be calling them into bow range if you are required to wear orange.

Hunt Until Dark

Legal shooting light often ends when an archer can still see to shoot.  If it’s too late for deer, give your dieing rabbit caller a try.  Coyotes often come running to steal a meal from another predator and can be in front of you in a minute or less.  You don’t have to see antlers on a predator so as long as you can see clearly for a safe shot.  Personally, I rather kill a coyote than an average-sized buck any day.  By taking out a predator, who knows how many “deer lives” I have saved.

Black Bear Secret

Black bears react differently to calls than most predators.  With a fox or coyote, a brief series of calls will give it your location and it will come to investigate.  Bears are not as aggressive and you must continue your calling for 20 minutes or so.  When the calling stops, the bear stops.  Wayne Carlton known widely for his elk-calling prowess was also great at luring bears and this was his secret.  If you want a bruin to react, keep calling, and with your cell phone fully charged, doing so is no problem.  Good luck.