New ideas and products that really work sometimes tip the odds in favor of bird hunters.

One new piece of equipment that makes you scratch your head and wonder why no one ever came up with it before is the Hunting Mirror by In-Sight Hunting Products.

The Hunting Mirror has been helping hunters defeat the age-old problem of having birds walk up behind them where they can't be seen. Turn your head to hear what snapped the twig and your bird slips away into the woods. The Hunting Mirror leaves your hands free and gives you a 360-degree view without having to turn your head.

For additional information, contact the Huron-Manistee National Forest supervisor's office in Cadillac at (800) 821-6263.

Gratiot-Saginaw WA
"We have turkeys everywhere," wildlife supervisor Dave Dominic said. "A couple of the best areas in south-central Michigan are the 16,000-acre Gratiot-Saginaw area in Gratiot and Saginaw counties and the Waterloo Recreation Area."

The flat to rolling topography of southern Michigan is evident here with typical hardwoods and field edges where toms are actively pursuing the hens. Calling in this terrain means you'll have to concentrate on camouflage, since a bird's sense of hearing and sight are much more fine-tuned than yours. These birds have seen plenty of hunters and are going to give anything that is out of place or making the slightest noise a wide berth.

The area offers good mixes of cropland, timber edge and heavy forest. Hunters will find that the many breaks in the timber create accessibility to fields where hens feed and the toms are strutting and bugging.

There are few spots on the area that are better than others. Look for sign and roosting areas and go from there.

For more information, contact the South Central Management Unit at (517) 641-4903.

Waterloo SRA
Dominic's second choice for good turkey shooting is in the Waterloo Recreation Area. This giant recreation area has many acres to hunt, modern campgrounds, rustic cabin rentals, lakes and other day-use facilities. Waterloo is the largest area of its kind in the L.P. at over 20,000 acres.

As far as turkey hunting goes, it's excellent. There's a good population of toms and ample turkey habitat to set up on. Doing a little scouting before going afield allows you to take into account the closed hunting areas, parking availability and some of the best turkey country in this part of the state. Showing up blind on Waterloo can mean wasting the better part of a day just finding a good spot to set up on. Have a couple of spots picked out, so that if your first pick already has someone on it, you'll have a backup in mind.