Indiana is a state that is often though tof as a white tail state. With some of the biggest bucks and awesome land to hunt, it comes as no surprise. However, there is another hunting seasons that shines in Indiana. That is Spring Turkey hunting season in Indiana.

Typically beginning in the late weeks of April and going through May. Hunters are given the right to take down one bearded turkey. To hunt this birds legally, one must have both a valid turkey hunting license and a “game bird habitat stamp”. Indiana is also home to lifetime licenses, which also qualify you for hunting turkeys.

You can go about hunting turkeys with multiple types of weapons. Those weapons being,

  • 10-, 12-, 16-, or 20-gauge shotguns
  • Muzzle loading shotguns of same size
  • bow and arrow
  • Crossbow

After successfully killing a turkey, it must be tagged and brought back to an official checkpoint. This is crucial in maintaining accurate data and information on the turkeys being hunted in Indiana. To see all aspects and a review of the regulation, visit the DNR online at www.wildlife.IN.gov.

Private vs Public Land

Like most of the hunting that is done in Indiana, turkey hunting is most commonly done on private land. Which to some people may sound off-putting, but Indiana is full of private access to land through services like Base Camp Leasing. Giving hunters the optimal chance to take down the turkey of their dreams.

If private land isn’t your thing and you are willing to put up with the competition of public ground. Indiana has hundreds of thousands of acres of public hunting land. In the southern part of Indiana is the Hoosier National Forest. Which contains over 200,00 acres of public hunting and that is full of turkeys ready to be taken down. Central Indiana is bare as far as public hunting land goes, so expect to go either south or up north. But fully expect to be competing with thousands of hunters over the big bearded birds.

Why Turkey Hunt in Indiana

Indiana does a particularity great job of keeping track of its turkey hunting. Through tags and data traking they have a really easy to use system that goes over turkey harvest information. From past to present, hunters can use this resource to get a good idea of where the turkeys are and how many are getting takin down. They even have an interactvie math going over all of the data by both county and as a whole!

Turkey hunting in Indiana is on the raise. With the most turkeys being harvested in 2020 than in any other year in the 5. The state does a great job of moderating its population and keeping accurate data. If you are looking for a place for your spring turkey hunt, check out Indiana!