Another tactic to use to locate late season gobblers is to hunt hens. But you need to be discerning in how you interpret what is found.

"If I see small groups of hens feeding together, which indicates they have not been bred," Sullivan observed, "that's a good area to look for gobbler sign in because those hens should attract one. If I just see hens feeding singly, I may not spend much time there. Regardless, if I don't see gobblers or gobbler sign within a reasonable period of time I'm going to move on."

SPEAK SOFTLY
Once you find a tom, however, you still have to call him into shotgun range. Every bird is different, and there are no real rules in turkey hunting. But when it comes to the calling tactics that are most often successful during the late season, you can sum it up like this -- never get into a shouting match with a gobbler unless he starts the fight!

"My basic philosophy is to talk loud and hard during the early season," Sullivan offered, "and very softly during the late season. In many areas these birds have heard a lot of calling and they can get a little wary. Subtle is normally best, and I would not get aggressive with any bird unless he was really hammering me and coming on hard. But that doesn't happen that often during the late season."

How subtle is subtle? In some cases it may be as soft as a single cluck every 20 minutes. And when you get a response, the game can change even more!

"Late season birds can be very call-shy," Sullivan cautioned. "You really have to judge your bird by how he responds to you. Sometimes, that means less is best, mixed in with a little late season psychology.

"I had one bird last year that took an hour and 20 minutes to bring just 80 yards," he noted.

That bird had been called before and I knew the hunter who called him and how he called. I had hunted that bird for three days after that, and on the first two days he'd gobble once or twice and then shut up and not come in. On the third day, I psyched him. I knew he was the dominant bird, but I also knew that a younger bird was in the area, so I gave him one challenge gobble on my call to let him know the young bird was there, and then just soft clucks every 15 or 20 minutes to let him know that bird was with his hens.

"He finally came in, but it took a lot of coaxing. That was what he was telling me he wanted, and as long as it was working I was more than happy to listen to his advice.

"That's often how it is during the late season," Sullivan concluded. "It takes patience. You find the areas gobblers are using, you stay in the woods as late as the law allows, and when you get a bird to respond you take your time and let him dictate the pace of the conversation. It's not as fast-paced and frantic as the early season can be. But there is no reason why you can't experience success during the late season. You just have to do it a bit differently."

There is no real advantage to being late to the dance. But it's not such a bad thing if you show up late, as long as you change your dance steps to accommodate the rhythm and attract a few partners on the dance floor!