The only public hunting opportunities for Wayne County turkey callers are found within the 6,138-acre Lakeshore Marshes Wildlife Management Area.

Lakeshore Marshes consists of seven separate parcels scattered from Sodus Bay to Black Creek, which lie south of Lake Ontario. At first glance, these units may appear better suited for ducks and geese than turkeys, but if you look beyond the cattails and weedy fields, you'll see wood lots, gullies and overgrown orchards where you can set up for gobblers.

Of the seven "units" or contiguous blocks of land within the WMA, two that merit extra attention from turkey hunters are the Beaver Creek and Black Creek units.

Beaver Creek is west of Port Bay. It's bounded by Wright Road on the northwest and Richardson Road and Port Bay Road on the south. The wooded ridge visible from the intersection of Richardson and Clapper roads is one good place to scout for gobblers.

The Black Creek Unit of the WMA is about 2.5 miles north of the village of Red Creek and is bisected by Kakat and Younglove roads. Hill Road, off Kakat Road, leads to a couple of old orchards and woods that are frequented by turkeys.

Another unit worth prospecting with an owl hooter is a section that wraps around the south end of Sodus Bay. On the east side of the Sodus Bay Unit, county Route 245 borders a large, gently sloping wood lot.

One caveat is in order with regard to Lakeshore Marshes WMA. Last year, many of its trees toppled or lost limbs during a major ice storm, and the fallen timber will likely limit hunter visibility and mobility this spring. Take that into account when you plan your trip.

The DEC's Region 8 office in Avon, mentioned above, offers a brochure on the Lakeview Marshes WMA. For directions to nearby accommodations, contact the Wayne County Tourism office at (800) 527-6510.

Undoubtedly, the county's numbers would be even more impressive if it could offer more public hunting grounds to visiting sportsmen. Fewer than 9,000 acres of state-owned land is available. Fortunately, some of that property affords excellent opportunities for taking a spring gobbler.

Perhaps the best of the Tioga County state holdings, from a turkey hunter's perspective, is 1,349-acre Michigan Hill Forest, which is along Route 38 and Michigan Hill Road north of Richford. It abuts the Griggs Hill Forest, a 2,343-acre forest that stretches south across the Cortland-Tioga counties' border. It is characterized by the kind of moderately steep, wooded terrain that turkeys love.

Other good prospects in the county include the 1,768-acre Robinson Hollow Forest off Route 79 in the town of Caroline; Jenksville State Forest, a 1,349-acre parcel along Shirley Road north of Newark Valley; the aptly-named Turkey Hill Forest, which consists of 1,118 acres off Turkey Hill Road and Tubbs Hill Road in the towns of Richford and Berkshire; and Shindagin Hollow Forest, which is north of Candor off Honeypot Road. At 5,265 acres, the Hollow would be Tioga County's biggest public hunting grounds by far, except that about four-fifths of it lies on the other side of the Tompkins County border.

Maps of the state forests in Tioga County are included in a very useful atlas called Region 7 State Forests and Wildlife Management Areas, which is available free from the Cortland DEC office at (607) 753-3095.

For help finding accommodations near these hunting spots, contact the Tioga County Tourism office at (800) 671-7772.

Last May, when turkey kills dropped in most parts of the state, the tally rose slightly in Broome County to a total of 157 birds. The county's spring kill peaked at 248 in 1995, and since then, hunters have harvested an average of 170 per season.

Most of those roasters were undoubtedly taken on private lands, but Broome County does have some worthwhile public hunting grounds, particularly the Whitney Point Wildlife Management Area, which spreads across 4,645 acres along the Otselic River at the north end of Whitney Point Reservoir. In fact, about half of the WMA is in Broome County and about half in neighboring Cortland County. It has a wildlife-conducive mix of overgrown fields, wooded hills and brushy bottoms, and supports a thriving flock of turkeys.

If you go, pay special attention to those subtle junctions where woods blend into fields. That transition cover is often used by randy toms for both mating displays and travel to and from favorite feeding areas.

To find Whitney Point WMA, take Interstate 81 south from Syracuse or north from the Binghamton area to the Whitney Point exit. From the village of Whitney Point, go north on Route 26 to Upper Lisle, where you'll begin to see WMA signs along the left side of the road.

Broome County also has several state forests that are hospitable to turkeys. There are some good calling locations in the 1,987-acre Melondy Hill Forest, which is in the southeast corner of the county, north of the hamlet of North Sanford along either side of Melondy Hill Road. Another likely location is the 812-acre Whittacker Swamp Forest south of Deposit off Oquaga Lake Road. Both areas are clearly mapped in the Region 7 State Forests and Wildlife Management Areas book previously mentioned.

Readers needing advice on lodging and other amenities in Broome County may contact the county's Convention and Visitors Bureau, at (800) 836-6740.

The best public turkey-hunting opportunities in the capital county are on the Partridge Run Wildlife Management Area, which spans approximately 5,000 acres in the town of Berne. To find it, follow Route 85 north from Rensselaerville and then take a left onto Route 6, which bisects the WMA. There are also several local roads abutting the property

Partridge Run, which holds plenty of ruffed grouse as well as turkeys, features many gently rolling, wooded hills with some steeper slopes along its east and west ends. The cover consists mainly of northern hardwoods, but there are also a couple of substantial pine plantations and several open fields. It's a good all-round habitat mix for ground-feeding game birds, and the DEC has helped to maintain the WMA's biodiversity by conducting periodic timber sales. The small clearcuts that result from those transactions are good places to start looking for dusting areas, wing feather tips and other turkey sign.

A brochure on Partridge Run, including a sketchy map, is available at no cost from the DEC Region 4 office in Stamford at (607) 652-7367. The Albany County Convention and Visitors Bureau at (518) 434-1217 is a logical source for nearby lodging advice.