Chautauqua County, #1 for New York Turkeys

There are a lot of states that offer exceptional turkey hunting, and it would be hard for many hunters to choose their favorite. Sure, many will answer with their home state, either with a biased opinion, or because they haven’t hunted any other states for turkey.

But, the hunters that have had the opportunity to hunt away from their home state, and especially those that have been blessed with the chance to chase a big ol’ gobbler in New York already know of this hidden gem that many hunters overlook.

What lies inside this hidden gem for serious turkey hunters, is an even bigger reward in the form of Chautauqua County.

Chautauqua County is located in the southwestern corner of the Empire State, bordering Pennsylvania. Chautauqua county is the westernmost county in the state, far from the hustle and bustle of The Big Apple that a lot of people associate the state with.

Look past the breathtaking landscape of the rolling hills, tall trees and beautiful sunrises to start the day and equally beautiful sunsets to end the day, and you will find a turkey hunter’s dream just waiting to come true.

For ten years running, Chautauqua county has been in the top three counties in New York state for turkey harvest. That is a pretty good streak that doesn’t look to be broke any time soon. The spring turkey harvest for the county in 2017 was 713 birds (compared to 569 in 2016) making it the number 1 county in the entire state which has 56 counties open for spring turkey hunting.

If you are interested in a do-it-yourself type of hunt, it is possible to find private ground to hunt turkeys on within the county. But, if you don’t have time to knock on doors or make phone calls, public land hunting in the area is phenomenal.

With more than 20,000 acres of public land available for hunting, it is hard to narrow down a specific chunk of land to send a person. They all offer exceptional hunting opportunities. I can tell you though, that if you are limited on time, and want the best opportunity at filling your tag that Boutwell Hill State Forest, Mt. Pleasant State Forest, North Harmony State Forest and Panama State Forest all offer exceptional turkey hunting.  These are just a few possibilities to get you started. With further research, you might find other lands that might better suit your needs.

For the hunters with limited time, or new to turkey hunting, you might want to consider a guide service. Western New York Guide Service owned and operated by Craig Robbins is one of the best in the area. With more than 25 years of guiding experience and thousands of acres of managed land, he is likely to get you on a big boss gobbler in a hurry. Besides guiding for turkey, Craig also guides deer and waterfowl hunters, as well as fishermen and women.

In the last few years the state has seen a decline in the number of birds killed, but according to the New York Department of Environmental Conservation, there may be less hunters too.

The estimated harvest for spring 2017 was 17,492 birds. This is slightly below 2016 and below the five-year and ten-year average spring harvest (20,400 and 25,000 birds, respectively).

Much of the decline in harvest below the long-term average the last two years can be attributed to a decline in participation (about 80,000 hunters/year in 2016 and 2017 compared to 91,500 hunters/year, on average, over the previous five years). Wet weather in many regions in the first half of May in 2016 and in the latter half of May in 2017 may have kept hunters indoors.

When we control for hunting effort, we observe an 8% increase in take/100 days effort from 4.0 in spring 2016 to 4.3 in spring 2017. The 4.3 birds/100 days effort in spring 2017 was above the five-year and ten-year averages for this measure (3.7 and 4.1 birds/100 days effort, respectively). The increase in the take/100 days effort from 2016 to 2017 is likely due to above-average production in summer 2015, coupled with a mild winter in 2015-16. About 73% of the birds harvested in spring 2017 were toms, an increase from the previous season, which is an indication of good production in 2015.

Nonresident must purchase a $100-dollar hunting license and a $20 turkey permit. For $120, this is a bargain compared to a lot of states nonresident fees.

So, what do you do when you fill your turkey tag? The list of possibilities goes on and on in Chautauqua County.

Whether you enjoy hiking trails, taking in the splendor as you drive across the gorgeous countryside, throwing a fishing lure on one of the smaller lakes, chartering a boat on Lake Erie, visiting a winery or museum, exploring one of the craft breweries in the area, visiting a farmer’s market or just relaxing at one of the Bed and Breakfasts, campgrounds, hotels or cottages in the area, you will be glad you chose Chautauqua County, New York.

Check out Chautauqua County, New York this year. You might come for turkey hunting, but you will leave with memories that will last a lifetime.