Almost every turkey hunter dreams of having available to them a large tract of land with exclusive hunting rights. This property would be expansive and hold a diversity of prime habitat. It would contain a good mix of hardwood forest, grassy areas, and maybe even some bottomland. This land would have water and food sources readily available for wildlife.

Realistically, and unfortunately, most of us don't have access to a spot like that. Obviously, much of the best turkey hunting occurs on private land; and those who are fortunate to own or have access to it are truly blessed. For the rest of the hunters out there without private land access, it means sharing time with other hunters on public access properties. Luckily, there are many public access sites across the state where Hoosiers can find great turkey hunting.

Our public lands here in Indiana are quite diverse and offer much for the turkey hunter. They range from small to large. These public lands are made up of fish and wildlife areas (FWAs), national forest, reservoir properties, are military installations and national wildlife refuges (NWR). Collectively these areas provide a huge amount of hunting land that is available for hunters seeking spring gobblers.

Of course, each of these properties is a little different and each offers varying opportunities. The good news is that most all of these properties have good populations of turkeys. Steve Backs is a wildlife research biologist who oversees turkey management for the Indiana Department of Natural Resources (DNR) Division of Fish and Wildlife (DFW).

"These public lands all have healthy populations of wild turkeys with the only real differences being the available public land base (acres or square miles). I think the choice comes down more to the individual hunter's desired travel distance and other accommodations, such as camping areas, campgrounds with open bathing facilities, fishing opportunities and boat rentals."

Although there are many properties in Indiana that offer public access turkey hunting, the opportunities and regulations for each are not uniform across the board. Some areas are open under statewide regulations and some are open only through a reserved hunt procedure that requires advance application and then being lucky enough to be drawn. Even though the deadline for applying for those hunts has already passed for this year, most of the reserved hunt properties also offer standby hunting to fill vacancies when drawn hunters do not show up on their assigned hunt day. The areas that do not have standby hunting include Fairbanks Landing, Chinook, and Hillenbrand FWAs, along with Roush, Mississinewa and Salamonie lakes.

Applying for reserved hunts is one of the best ways to get on these properties during the prime days of the season. The application is due in March, so mark your calendar early next year as a reminder to make the deadline. For those who didn't apply or were not drawn, here is a look at some of the great opportunities still available for this season.

BIG OAKS NATIONAL WILDLIFE REFUGE
The Big Oaks NWR is located in southeastern Indiana with the main entrance about five miles north of Madison. It spreads across portions of Jefferson, Ripley and Jennings counties and provides over 25,000 acres of available hunting land. The property can accommodate 210 turkey hunters per day, which translates to about 120 acres per hunter.