Photo by D. Toby Thompson.

The outlook is a good one again as Keystone State hunters prepare for the 2007 fall turkey season.

Early this year, before the spring gobbler season, Mary Jo Casalena, the Pennsylvania Game Commission's chief wild turkey biologist, had this to say about last season's harvests -- and turkey hunting prospects for this year.

"The statewide (spring) harvest density was above average last year. In fact, it was the fourth-best on record. It followed sub-par hunting seasons in 2005 and 2004, which were the product of consecutive years of poor reproduction.

"Last year, hens came into breeding season in good physical condition -- the result of a less-demanding winter -- and consequently, sustained average to above-average recruitment.

"Those young turkeys were further supported by warm, dry weather and an abundance of food.

"In all, it was great medicine for the reproduction and recruitment woes that had caused backsliding in some local populations.

"Overall, there will be more jakes in the statewide population than last spring," added Casalena.

"There also will be more two-year-olds than last year, but not as many as in 2002-2004. There will be fewer 3- to four-year-olds than in the past few years."

According to the Pennsylvania Game Commission, the preliminary spring harvest for 2006 was about 42,652. (An additional 1,496 turkeys were taken with special spring turkey licenses that allowed the taking of a second gobbler.) This compares with a 2005 preliminary harvest of about 38,820 birds.

The 2006 harvest marks the first time in four consecutive years that the harvest has increased. The preliminary harvest in 2004 was 41,017 and in 2003, 43,900. In 2002, the preliminary spring harvest was 44,500. The preliminary spring turkey harvest has exceeded 35,000 since 1995.

The fall season, however, reflects a different picture. The preliminary 2006 fall turkey harvest was 21,500 birds. That compares with 23,321 in 2005, 25,868 in 2004 and 27,400 in 2003.

"Fall harvests haven't been as substantial as spring harvests, partly by management design and largely because fewer people are hunting in the fall," Casalena explained.

"In 2005 -- the latest year for which data is available -- turkey hunters recorded more hunter-days afield in spring, about 1,038,000, than in the fall (685,000). The number of turkey hunters afield in spring was about 20 percent higher than in the fall, which has seen a substantial slide in participation over the past decade."

This year, changes in the fall turkey season include extending the season in Wildlife Management Unit 4D by one week. The season in WMUs 2A and 2F were reduced by five days. The season will run from Oct. 27 through Nov. 12, which includes Veterans Day -- a Monday holiday that many sportsman have off.

One other item of importance to turkey hunters is the Game Commission's new wild turkey management plan, released earlier this year. This plan, a 71-page document, is posted on the commission's Web site.

"Our first turkey management plan, written in 1999, helped us focus on critical wild turkey issues and needs at that time, and helped us build partnerships with other groups, agencies and organizations," said Casalena, author of the plan. "This management plan identifies the strategic goals, objectives and strategies for guiding wild turkey management and research decisions through 2015."

The following is a look at 10 good public areas for fall turkey hunting this year. Remember that as with any hunting venture, the most successful hunters are ones who do their scouting prior to the season opener.

This is especially true when you're after wild turkeys. Spend some time studying the following areas prior to the opener to determine food sources, travel routes and roosting sites:

STATE GAME LANDS NO. 74
SGL 74 encompasses over 6,500 acres in both Clarion and Jefferson counties. This public area runs along Mill Creek valley, a corridor that starts near Corsica and ends where Mill Creek joins the Clarion River.

With the exception of a small, detached property in Eldred Township in Jefferson County, SGL 74 is a contiguous block. The tract varies in the distance it extends from the creek bottom. In some areas, the property is confined to the valley, while in other places hunters can look for turkeys beyond the ridges forming the valley.

Expect to find a variety of terrain and cover on this game lands. The Mill Creek valley is steep-sided, and the terrain flattens on the ridge tops. Along this valley are found many secondary hollows, adding to the contour of the place. Cover includes second growth mature hardwoods and extensive stands of hemlock.