Hi. I'm new (again) to hunting. I grew up deer hunting with my dad, but it's been a good 20 years since I've been out and I finally remedied that this year. Our turkey season starts May 1st, and I'm having a hard time finding good info on turkey hunting on public land in NY state. I have a place not far from me that I'm going to visit in a few hours and set up a game camera at Pochuck State Forest.
This place doesn't seem to be too well traveled this time of year except for some local dog walkers, cottontail rabbits and deer. The terrain is brutal once you're off the old logging roads, and I'm hoping to set up a camera near a clearing. Should I be worried about thieves ripping my camera off a tree? Also, are there any experienced turkey hunters here in southern New York? I searched to no avail.

Thanks. Pic for attention. Late 70s Mossberg 500ATP with a new production 24" vent rib, ported, full choke barrel.

there's fucking cat hair on everything I own, even a brand new shotgun bbl.

I am from Sussex county, NJ which is not far at all from where you will be hunting. It is excellent turkey hunting in the tri state area. I would recommend that you skip the game camera and just go start scouting on foot now. Try to find areas where the turkey are going to roost. This can sometimes be easier said than done. Try going out in the late afternoons and "put the turkey to bed" by calling. This is how you will find out where they will be going to roost. They likely won't change this much in the next couple of weeks unless they get disturbed by something and must roost somewhere else. Try to stay on top of their location and setup near them on opening day. You can also try an owl hoot before dawn and that will generally get them gobbling as well. Turkey hunting is all about scouting. They are exponentially more difficult to get if you don't do your homework before hand.

Just a little history, after the great depression all the way to the 1970's, the turkey was extinct in northern NJ and southern NY. This was a result of a lack of control of hunting during the depression. My grandfather worked for the NJ fish and game as a wildlife biologist at the time so he had the job to reintroduce the turkey to NJ. They first tried raising the birds in captivity, but that failed. They eventually tried a bold plan to trap flocks in northern NY and relocate them to NJ. They did this by launching large nets over flocks using rockets (sounds crazy I know). Since the turkeys were wild in the north, they took hold in NJ and are now everywhere. Each of those turkeys originally were from upstate NY.