Well, I am being outsmarted by this extremely smart old tom. I hunted him in the exact spot on this extremly steep mountain all last year and was unable to take him. On opening day I thought that I would give him a try again and low and behold he outsmarted me again. This is the situation: At first light he may gobble once or twice by himself, but normally I have to induce him to do so, normally by an owl hoot. he roosts in a ravine like hollow on a very steap mountain, way above me. After he hits the ground he shuts up completely and is never to be found. Last year I had him going really well but he must have had hens as to when hit the ground he didnt give me the time of day. My question to you guys is what do you think I should do. It would be extremely difficult to get close to this bird mainly because of where it roosts and how smart it is. SHould I be getting way above it and calling to it from the top? I have tried calling to it from the side, but had no luck. I am out of answers, please help me figure this boss out.

With the brain about the size of a pea, turkeys really ain't smart. Sounds like he is the dominant bird and has a pretty good harem. No need for him to gobble when he hits the ground for he has all he can handle. Hunt him harder up in the morning when the hens are leaving and especially late in the season when they are nesting. I love to chase these hard to kill gobblers.

Having somewhat of the same problem Jesse. Monday morning I had one gobbling up a ravine that had about a 70 degree slope on either side and he was 250 yards up there. I stayed at the bottom of the ravine where there was a flat spot, I called and he answered a bit but never showed up. I was later thinkin maybe I should have walked on top of the ridge to get above him but wasnt sure either.

Shopson is correct. Try him later in the am and in the season when the hens go to nest. Find out where his strut zone is and get there before him and wait him out. Call a bit to let him know you are there, after the hens leave he will show up.

You asked should I get above it? Answer- Yes! Harder for him to see whats above him.

Get above him. You'll have better luck later in the season. If he hangs up on you in the latter part of the season, and gobbles good, then shuts down, crow call him and see which direction he's leaving. Then after a couple of days you'll know where to "end run" him and whack him. Old gobblers are the most fun because of this obstinate trait they get of being smart.

It may be time for that old bird to find another roost site. That bird is obviously comfortable with where he has been roosting and it sounds like its pretty tough to get to him. I would try one of two things: 1) If you could roost him, what until it is good and dark and then walk right under him and flush him off his roost. Pay attention to the direction he flies and set up the next morning in between where you flushed him and where he went. He will be in new territory and doesn't want to be alone. 2) If you couldn't roost him in the evening, then flush him off the roost in the morning and set up like above. It may be a couple of hours before he would gobble again but I'd bet he would make his way back to you.

Thanks for all the replys guys. Yeah, I really want to kill this bird. If i knew where he was going in the morning I would definately set up there, but I have not been able to figure out where he heads to. The terrain he is on is like this.: He roosts in a ravine on a ridge that runs about 1/2 mile. On the other side of the mountaint where he roosts is a steep drop, I dont see him going this way. On top there is some really open woods, and off the one end it more gradually decreases in elevation. The other areas are almost like straight down. Do you think this is where he goes with his hens? If I got up above him early in the morning, what sequence of calls or events should I do when I am up there. Very soft calls or be aggressive. I think if i am not aggressive he may just blow me off. WHat should I do?

Where ever its greening up first is where I would predict. Southern exposure?

Soft calls. When you get a chance to listen to real hens, how often do you hear them agressively calling? I always start slow and soft. Actually, I'm only loud and agressive when I'm walking the ridges looking for a gobble.

This bird sounds worthy of a name. Go on and name him so his legend will grow.
I have one just like that - Bald Rocks. He's still out there roosting on a steep ridge side that is impossible to get close to while he's in the tree. Tried all last spring on him and he's still there.
I agree with the above - wait 'till later in teh spring when hens are on nest and maybe he'll be a little more loose with the gobbles after flydown.
BB
Get above him too...

The problem is is that college ends for me on april 29th, so I am headed back to PA then. I wont be able to hunt but in the next two weeks. Should I just simply set up in the dark as close as I can to him, or get up on top of him somewhere? What kind of decoy setup if any should i use. Thanks guys

I am heading out early tomorrow, what is the plan for me?

If you know which direction he is going then try to be there before he gets there. If not, then try to guess where he's headed.

Wind and water, or the sun and tide, or something like that wait for no man. Well, this gobbler's on his own schedule also. Persistence is the key. But later in the season may be when he makes a mistake. These guys, even when they're playin the game, usually hang up and demand that the hen closes that last 60 yds. If you bust him off the roost he'll probably fly down hill. If he comes of naturally he'll probably come off uphill. What you need to do is find out which way he goes after he comes off the roost naturally. I posted something about this using my crow call to keep him gobbling to see where he goes, hopefully to a strut zone. Once you figure this out you can camp out on this strut zone and he'll probably show up.