Realtree Western Turkey Hunting

Realtree’s Turkey Hunting Forecast For The Western Region

In this day and age, scouting for a hunting trip usually starts online. With turkey hunting season getting going around America, Realtree’s Turkey Hunting Nation is a good place to start digitally preparing for your next bird-busting adventure. The interactive map is one of the most in-depth overviews of turkey hunting in America that you will find online. Realtree’s deep dive into turkey hunting information goes deeper than that though. Regional forecasts break down the details hunters need to know about what to expect in regard to this spring’s hunting conditions in whatever state they plan on trying to blast a long beard.  Outsider previously highlighted the Southeast and Midwest regions. Now that turkey tour rolls on through the wild-wild West.

Because of the vast swaths of public land and incredible and varied scenery and habitats throughout the Western region, hunting adventures in that part of the country are high on the bucket list for most outdoorsmen and women. While the big game hunting opportunities may be the first thing that comes to most people’s minds when they think about heading west for a hunt, the turkey hunting out that way is world-class too. Wild turkey experts expect 2023 to be another big year for smashing gobblers out west too. Let’s take a closer look at what they’re saying about each state.

Information for the state-by-state breakdowns below is pulled from the Realtree website. That is with the exception of the dates for turkey hunting seasons. That information was pulled from Outsider’s comprehensive spring turkey hunting calendar. Clicking on the name of the state below will navigate you to the Turkey Hunting Nation report. Those landing pages include more comprehensive info.

Arizona

Turkey hunting tags for both Gould’s, Rio Grande, and Merriam’s gobblers in Arizona are somewhat limited. But if you’re lucky enough to get a tag, then the hunting should be good. Though official estimates on overall harvest numbers aren’t readily available, reports indicate that success rates in the state are about 19% on average. That jumps to 25-30% in some of the more productive hunting units. If you have a turkey hunting tag in Arizona, then contact the state agency directly to determine when the season opens up for the unit and species you’ll be hunting.

Rick Langley, a game specialist with the Arizona Game and Fish Department has high hopes for turkey hunters this year. He said weather conditions have improved turkey habitat and helped keep populations strong. “But this past summer, we saw good monsoon moisture,” he said. “And we are currently above average for the winter of 2022-23, so that could help improve habitat conditions even more.”

California

Turkey hunting season in California is now open as of March 25th. Last spring, Golden State gobbler shooters shot about 20,795 birds. Rio Grandes are the most common subspecies in California. Merriam’s and Easterns inhabit northern portions of the state. All of those birds are now hybridizing throughout the state though.

Matt Meshriy is an environmental scientist with the California Department of Fish And Wildlife. He shared his thoughts about this spring’s forecast. “Spring 2023 should provide some excellent opportunities. “Flooding or mudslides could be an issue in some locations impacted by strong storms this winter, particularly in areas with burn scars from recent wildfires. Low-elevation national forests and areas along major rivers in the Central Valley have an abundance of turkeys.  The national forests in the Coastal Mountains, such as Los Padres, Mendocino and Shasta-Trinity, as well as most of the national forest in the Sierra and Cascade ranges, all have turkeys at lower elevations.”

Hawaii

Though the birds aren’t native to the Hawaiian islands, they have been introduced out there. Oftentimes the turkey hunters who make a trip to Hawaii are trying to check the state of their U.S. Slam bucket list. Kanalu Sprout is a biologist with the Hawaii Department of Land and Natural Resources. He said turkey hunting opportunities this year should be on par with years past. According to Sprout, private land on the big island is the best place to hunt gobblers in Hawaii. Last year about 330 hunters chased birds with 44 of them finding success. The season has been open since March 1st.

Idaho

The Idaho turkey hunting season starts up on April 15th. Hunters can expect another strong season too. Eastern, Merriam’s, and Rio Grande turkeys have been transplanted throughout the state, so it’s unlikely any pure subspecies exist there instead, biologists like Jeffrey Knetter with the Idaho Department of Fish and Game call their birds “Idaho mountain turkeys.” He jokes that “a hunter could get three-fourths of their Grand Slam with one Idaho mountain turkey.”

Since 2010, hunters have taken an average of almost 4,700 birds each spring. Hunters have about a 34% success rate each year, but that jumps to 40% in some of the more fruitful parts of Idaho.

Montana

The gobbler chasing officially gets going in Montana on April 15th this year. After extreme drought conditions scaled back bird numbers for a few years, populations have rebounded and the hunting should be solid. With an estimated 120,000 birds across both private and public land, there are plenty of hunting opportunities in Montana.

Justin Hughes, a habitat specialist with Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks talked about what hunters can expect this year. “The region received areas of fair to good moisture and produced good growing conditions in 2022, which greatly improved the quality and quantity of nesting cover on the landscape for the spring of 2023. These areas of highest quality habitat will be the best starting spots, as populations are currently rebounding and expanding back into the marginal habitat areas since the region began getting more normal precipitation levels.” 

Nevada

Turkey hunting season in Nevada kicked off on March 25th. Though there aren’t a whole lot of birds in the state, hunting should be okay where they are. It’s really just one of those states that people hunt when trying to shoot a bird in every state they can. The birds have a tough time surviving in the harsh desert conditions and only a few thousand of them call the state home.

Shawn Espinosa with the Nevada Department of Wildlife said turkey populations are somewhat stable but possibly decreasing. “During this winter, however, Nevada is experiencing well-above-average snowpack — more than 170% of average — which might affect winter survival, particularly for Merriam’s turkey populations or where Rios inhabit more mountainous terrain,” he said. “Western Nevada river-bottom Rio Grande populations should be able to take advantage of above-average moisture and plant growth, which should lead to greater productivity this spring and summer.”

New Mexico

Gobbler season gets rolling on April 15th in the Land of Enchantment this year. New Mexico’s turkey population includes Merriam’s, Rio Grande, and Gould’s. About 13,500 hunters go afield after long beards in the state each year with decent success rates.

However because of bad droughts, Casey Cardinal a biologist with the New Mexico Department of Game and Fish said success rates will probably be lower this year. “Drought was widespread across the state, so there are no areas that are particularly promising. Drought was a little less severe in the southwestern and very northern portions of the state, so reproduction may have been better there.”

Oregon

The forest for this spring’s turkey season in Oregon is excellent, according to Michael Cline. He’s an upland game bird coordinator for the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife. “Populations remain solid throughout the Blue Mountains, and the Umpqua, Rogue, and Willamette valleys,” he said. “Populations may be down somewhat in the Lower Deschutes area due to poor nesting outcomes in 2022.” The season opens up on April 15th. Back in 2021, hunters took about 6,277 birds.

Utah

Turkey season in Utah starts on either April 8th or May 1st depending on what part of the state you’re trying to hunt. Super harsh winters the last few years, unfortunately, mean that turkey populations in the state are trending downwards. Last year, just over 10,000 hunters shot almost 2,000 birds. Heather Talley, an upland game program coordinator with the Utah Division of Wildlife Resources, elaborated on what hunters can expect and why.

“The northern and southeastern regions might see a decline due to harsh winter conditions. Some areas of the southern region have seen an increase in poult production this summer, and biologists anticipate an influx of jakes this spring. Other areas in the southern region are still lower than in the last few years due to drought conditions. Very few turkey complaints have been reported in the Monroe or Fishlake areas, and biologists haven’t seen a significant population increase, either. This winter may be hard on turkeys because there’s more snowfall and colder temperatures than in recent years. The central region has also experienced heavy snowfall and cold temperatures, but there are also many south-facing slopes where the snow is burning off and allowing access to feed. We will likely see some loss of populations in the areas with consistent powdery snow and cold temperatures, but there are other areas that are inhabitable.”

Washington

April 15th is the opening day for turkey hunters in Washington state. It looks to be another good year for hunters there too. Hunting opportunities are somewhat limited, but there was a reported 48% success rate last year. Hunters dropped 7,411 birds last year. Sarah Garrison with the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife said “The northeastern part of the state consistently produces abundant turkey populations. Hunter’s success here was 60% in 2022.”

Wyoming

The season opens up in Wyoming on either April 1st or April 20th depending on the specific area. There aren’t a ton of turkey hunting opportunities in the state, but success rates are usually between 50 – 70% which makes it a very desirable hunting location.

Joe Sandrini is a senior biologist with the Wyoming Game and Fish Department. He said hunters in the state should hopefully expect to have another huge spring season. “Wyoming has had above-average poult production and survival the last three years, and there are good numbers of 2-year-old toms in many places, which are the birds the vast majority of spring wild turkey hunters harvest. Private lands in Sheridan, Johnson, Converse, and Natrona counties have substantial numbers of wild turkeys,” Sandrini said. “Look to hunt these on a Type 3 license, which can be purchased in addition to a general license after the license draw if any are unsold in the drawing.”