Another winter is behind us and it is time to enjoy the warming days of spring. What better way than hunting gobblers, and what better place to do it than on one of Pennsylvania's vast state forests. Somewhere on our 2.1 million acres of state forestlands, you will find a place to get away from the crowds of hunters and most other signs of civilization.

State forests amount to 12 percent of the forested area in Pennsylvania. It is true that the highest spring gobbler harvest rates do not take place on our state forests, but this does not mean there is a lack of turkeys. Most spring gobbler hunting is done close to home. Human populations are relatively sparse on and around most of the state forests.

Also, the hunting is more challenging on state forests. Locating gobblers takes much more effort in the big woods than it does on the typical patchy habitat that exists closer to human population centers, where all you have to do there is drive around and watch for them in fields. You will not often find gobblers that way on the state forests.

Scouting is a good excuse to visit a state forest before the spring gobbler season. Combine it with some fishing -- there are trout streams running through all of our state forests.

A big city with a great sporting tradition sends many gobbler hunters into the surrounding countryside. No matter what happens to gas prices, many hunters will be driving country roads in the area looking for turkeys. Any turkeys that show themselves will attract a crowd if there is access to the land.

FORBES STATE FOREST
You can get away from most of the overcrowding in the Pittsburgh area by hunting on Forbes State Forest.

At just over 50,000 acres, Forbes is one of our smaller state forests. It consists of more than 20 separate tracts scattered over Fayette, Somerset and Westmoreland counties. Most of it is along Laurel Ridge.

One good place to get away from the crowds with a reasonable chance of finding turkeys is at the Quebec Run Wild Area. This part of Forbes State Forest is along the eastern slope of Chestnut Ridge in Fayette County on the Maryland border south of Uniontown. Take U.S. Route 40 East from Uniontown, and then state Route 381 south at Farmington to the eastern edge of the wild area. A map from the Pennsylvania Bureau of Forestry will help locate side roads for a variety of access points.

If you are apprehensive about venturing too far into this wild area of more than 7,000 acres, try hunting along one of the trail sections. You can make short forays off the trails to find better calling locations. Old logging roads that crisscross the area make good setups for calling. You might have better luck locating gobblers by first calling from hilltops, especially at the ends of points or the heads of hollows.