AHT 8 Questions: Eddie Salter

Waking up Spring mornings with the return call of a tom turkey is among the greatest thrills an outdoorsman gets to experience. And who knows how many pre-sunrise mornings were welcomed by that unforgettable sound for Eddie Salter. He’s called The Turkey Man, and the Evergreen, Ala., native is among the sport’s most recognizable when it comes to tackling turkeys.

We caught up with Eddie recently to talk a little gobble, deer hunting and to find out what he’s been working on recently. He was more than willing to share some of that with you, the AHT readers.

1) Where did the passion for hunting come from?
My passion came from my daddy and seeing and hearing turkeys in the pasture behind my house. I started hunting with small game squirrels and rabbits – then came turkeys around 9-years old.

2) Why did you start turkey calling competitions? And do you still compete at all?
I felt like all the practice for the competitions and just the being around other callers and picking up on different ways to call and tricks of the game would help me in the woods. I do not compete anymore and stopped around 10 years ago.

3) What has been one of the best things/products you’ve seen come to the market lately for turkey hunting?
One of best products lately has got to be the squealing hen call or The Haint Gobble Call from Down N Dirty Outdoors.

4) You’ve completed multiple Grand Slams – what’s your favorite bird to hunt? Why?
I’d have to say it’s the Eastern turkey, simply because it’s the hardest turkey to kill due to all the hunting pressure it gets.

5) What are some of the projects you’re working on right now? New shows?
Well, I’m working with a new job that I enjoy – designing and working on new products for Down N Dirty Outdoors. I’m also starting a new television show that will air soon on The Sportsman Channel called “The Turkey Man Series” which starts airing April 1 at 1:30 p.m. ET.

6) What’s your favorite hunt over the years, either hunting yourself or calling for someone else?

This is an easy one for me. Without question, it’s taking my daughter when she killed her first turkey. She was around 14 at the time. Another one that is special is when she called me in a Rio in Texas last year. She is now 28.

7) Let’s set up the situation. You aren’t allowed to call the turkey, who would you want working the calls when you HAVE to talk a bird in?
If I couldn’t work the call and had to have somebody else calling … For me, it would have to be my brother, Dewan Salter.

8) We know you’re a successful deer hunter too. Ok, if the whitetail rut (and the deer season) happened during Spring turkey season, how would you be spending your days?
Another easy one. I would pick turkey hunting 10 to 1 over deer hunting any day!

Cat Tales: We got a chance to check out The Haint Gobble call in action when we met up with Eddie. What a neat call! Definitely worth learning more about.