Goose Hunting

[5 stand]

That's just brutal, did you ever triple ?

Thanks, spinner... Enjoyed that...

[SpinnerMan]

:lol:

That's just brutal, did you ever triple ?

Thanks, spinner... Enjoyed that...

I did get a double once. Happy every time I get a single.

It's not as hard as it looks or it's nearly impossible. If you just relax focus on the bird and let your body do the rest, you will do pretty well. Get in your head and start thinking, you aren't going to hit a thing.

It's actually much harder trying to finish off a cripple on a rough day like that. It's like an evil carnival game. You're bobbing. The targets bobbing.

[5 stand]

I was just trying to be funny with the triple comment (congrats on the double)...

When I was watching that video I was thinking of trying to keep my head down on the gun with a low flying bird 3 ft off the water...
If you could get them to flare and shoot them up higher wouldn't be as bad ?

I would never turn down a layout boat hunt because of normal conditions... Think I would enjoy the challenge and figure out how to put dead birds on the water ?

I have layout boat hunting opportunities right here at the house, just not very feasible with my dog, and if I can't hunt with my dogs it takes the wind out of my sails...

The panel blind and rock pile comment was meant to be humorous also (kinda sorta) the girls have to figure out how to hunt out of layout blinds someday ?
Think I would enjoy that challenge also ?
I have a bad back, so not sure how long I could stay hooked, in either a layout boat or a layout blind...

[5 stand]

:lol:

That's just brutal, did you ever triple ?

Thanks, spinner... Enjoyed that...

It's like an evil carnival game. You're bobbing. The targets bobbing.

[PorkChop]

Probably like shooting from a boat, not only no, but heck no...

You need to go on a layout boat hunt. It makes layout blinds look easy.

Been there done that. Grew up shooting seaducks in the northeast. My first duck was an Eider.

[PorkChop]

Good luck tomorrow, if y'all try those cranes...

Get up early...

Been watching several fields of cranes for the last week. This morning did a quick drive through the area and everything was as it should be. Tonight got to our A field and nothing out there. Go to the B field. Nothing there. There was a crop duster flying around And not sure if that spooked them or what. Anyways, we’re still gonna give it a whirl but not as excited as we were.

In the afternoon, Natalina and I will go duck and goose hunting.

[5 stand]

Good luck tomorrow, if y'all try those cranes...

Get up early...

Been watching several fields of cranes for the last week. This morning did a quick drive through the area and everything was as it should be. Tonight got to our A field and nothing out there. Go to the B field. Nothing there. There was a crop duster flying around And not sure if that spooked them or what. Anyways, we’re still gonna give it a whirl but not as excited as we were.

In the afternoon, Natalina and I will go duck and goose hunting.

Good, hopefully empty fields scared off your competitors ?
Doubt, always makes a good hunt, feel better...

Heard this on here and I like it,. Sic'em...

[PorkChop]

Not too much to report. Did a few goose hunts this week. Cranes seem to have disappeared and most of the ducks have gone nocturnal. Supposed to be 90° tomorrow and then we start cooling down pretty good. We’ve been pecking away at the Honkers and with the current weather conditions, I will take the results we’ve been getting.

3 bird day

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6 bird day

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2 bird day

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8 bird day

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We’ve been eating a lot of birds! I tell you this make amazing hamburgers! We’ve been mixing them 50-50 with beef just so they’ll stay together. Everybody thinks they are pretty amazing!

[PorkChop]

Looking forward to the change!

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[PorkChop]

I haven’t made the time to post, but last Wednesday we went out goose hunting. Had a field with a couple hundred birds in it. They’ve been in there for well over a week and we were pretty excited. There was also maybe 70 or 80 ducks in the field coming in small bunches so we set up the lucky ducks as well.

About three minutes after legal shooting time started four birds dumped right in. At first, I thought they were ducks, but quickly realized they were Specklebelly‘s. Landed right down in the Decoys. Vincenzia was outside of her blind by me. Natalina was in her blind. I hadn’t loaded up yet, but I was able to get my gun loaded. I had Natalina sit up. I called the shot and let her shoot vfirst. I was dumbfounded that nothing fell on her first shot. She got another shot off and nothing. I start shooting and long story short, Six shots and four Specklebelly‘s fly off into the sunrise. I still can’t believe it and in hindsight, I wish I would’ve just handed my gun to Vincenzia so she could’ve shot. Maybe it was a lesson in not being so greedy.

Next, we had a group of four honkers come right in. We dropped all four of them, but one magically got up and barely flew away. If I had to guess he is not alive today.

Then, after that flock after flock came and didn’t want anything to do with us. We were maybe 150 yards off the X and that’s where they wanted to go. I am a firm believer of letting decoys decoy and calls Call the birds, but for some reason this year, if you are not right where they were the night before it just ain’t happening. we managed seven birds. Definitely was not pretty, but we still had a great time!

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Today we had a field with about 70 birds in it. They flew late and all of them came at one time. They were cupped up and I thought they were going to dump right in but they kept on going and once again landed about 200 yards away. Reaper and I Went up wind and tried to circle around to kick them up in hopes they would go to the girls but they flew a different direction. Wasn’t able to scout last night so we kind of set up blind.

Starting to see Specklebelly’s high up in the sky flying south. Also seeing a few snows and swans as well. Pretty early for the swans.

[PorkChop]

I will also add it seems like we keep on having 6 to 9 bird days. Pretty much the only way you can tell they are different pictures is by my face and how my beard is growing. I don’t think we’ve had a double digit day yet, but definitely not complaining as we are working hard for our birds and it’s a lot more rewarding that way.

[PorkChop]

Some of the birds on the ShotKam

[Duck Engr]

Nothing wrong with that! It’ll keep ya coming back.

I thought swans were usually on the tail end of the migration. That’s interesting.

[PorkChop]

Yup they usually signal the end is near. Not seeing crazy numbers so guessing it’s a water issue

[PorkChop]

Snows are arriving in good numbers! Although I’m not seeing a ton on the ground I know there has to be a good bunches of Specklebelly‘s around. Also saw a pretty big mass of ducks spinning a field yesterday but couldn’t pin them down. Pretty foggy this morning so probably won’t find them for a few days as the kids have basketball tournaments this weekend.

[Duck Engr]

Finally!

[Rick]

That's a good body of birds.

[PorkChop]

That's a good body of birds.

Numbers have almost tripled since yesterday when I took this video.

[Rick]

Has me wondering if ND is part of their traditional staging grounds after coming off their Arctic Circle nesting grounds and before making their push to the nearly literal Gulf Coast, with but a single Swan Lake area rest or part of their now route with numerous stops to refuel on grains along the way, circa '60s and prior?

Traditionally, they wintered on marsh grasses without apparently knowing about the rice just a relative hop north of them. But by the time I migrated to the rice edge of the coastal marsh our fields and skies flat filled with them. And now they're stopping farther north and almost rare here.

[PorkChop]

It all depends on who you ask. From what I understand back in the 80s if you shot a Canada Goose here, you would make the paper. Specklebelly‘s and snows were very common. I think what really messed things up in this area was when Canada made the boundary and Raffurty dams. I know boundary cools a plant down so it stays open all year long. Imagine a lake in Canada not freezing. That and the amount of grain on the ground the birds don’t have to move. I’m guessing the dry conditions is what has them here. I arrived here in 2004 and this area use to be pretty stacked, but I think I’m seeing more snow geese now than I’ve ever seen in my life. Also, the last three or four years we’ve had a pretty good freeze in mid October. That also pushed the birds west to the Missouri river and to southern parts of the state. Just don’t have the time anymore to travel three hours one way to hunt.

Finally got permission on a field that I’ve been trying now for over a week. Not glamorous but tomorrow morning we’re gonna have to settle for trying to pass shoot just because my personal truck is still giving me problems. Won’t start anymore. Going to have to have it towed to the garage on Thursday. Unfortunately, it is right in front of my big trailer. Four of us tried moving it tonight but it wasn’t budging. I guess I have too many decoys in there. Anyways, tomorrow will have to unload it all and then move it. Wednesday afternoon right now the plan is for a good old fashion decoy hunt.

[PorkChop]

Well, for all you Specklebelly hunters I sure hope all the birds we have been seeing make it down your way! I’ve never seen so many in my life. Neither while I was living up in Alaska or here in ND! I think if they make their way down that far, you guys will be very pleased!

Haven’t been taking much time to post as the Snowgeese are still here which hasn’t happened in the last five or six years. Huge numbers of them and we’ve been making the most out of the opportunities we have! I am exhausted!! no real barnburners for us, but we have been killing them just about every hunt. Lots of young birds. Definitely appears to be a fantastic hatch!

Back to the Specklebelly‘s. Although there has been tons here, they have not been very friendly in the way of decoying. Usually they’re pretty stupid up here and come right into a snow goose spread. For whatever reason they 99% of the time don’t like us. I know it must be something we are doing wrong as I’ve seen multiple pictures with plenty of dead specks. all that being said, vincenzia was able to finally scratch out her first Specklebelly limit. Only one good looking one. She got the two plain bellies with one shot, and then the nice one came in as a single. The girl has been on fire this season and has gotten multiple two with one shot or as some people call them scotch doubles. Couldn’t be prouder of her as the season it feels like it’s all coming together for her. I’ve been purposely leaving her in the decoys by herself just to increase her confidence. Nothing better than being off in the distance and seeing her dropping birds!

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This one is from yesterday morning. First four or five flocks dumped right in but then after that the flocks we shot went to a different field, and the rest of the birds played follow the Leader. The last bird of the day dumped in while the truck and trailer was parked there, and we were picking up Decoys.

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[Rick]

Like to eat them, but there are more light geese in that pic than I'd want to breast and pull legs on. When our limit on them first went up to 20, I went out and pass-shot it one super windy morning that had them low - one of the dumbest hunting tricks I've pulled on myself.

Re: specks, some are integrationist that hang with light geese, and others are segregationists that will share a field but want to be with their on kind outside the body of light geese. When I was white-spreading, I'd put satellite groups of speck decoys outside the whites on either side of the main spread to give them reason to cross it. Albeit, generally with the aid of some calling to make them think one group of specks might be more desirable than the other.

[Deltaman]

Great reports dad, and Vinnie Quack's smile says it all!!!!!

[DComeaux]

Awesome.

[Ducaholic]

You doing something right

[PorkChop]

Like to eat them, but there are more light geese in that pic than I'd want to breast and pull legs on. When our limit on them first went up to 20, I went out and pass-shot it one super windy morning that had them low - one of the dumbest hunting tricks I've pulled on myself.

Re: specks, some are integrationist that hang with light geese, and others are segregationists that will share a field but want to be with their on kind outside the body of light geese. When I was white-spreading, I'd put satellite groups of speck decoys outside the whites on either side of the main spread to give them reason to cross it. Albeit, generally with the aid of some calling to make them think one group of specks might be more desirable than the other.

It doesn’t take long for us to eat them up. It can be a fight over the legs. Kids love them for some reason.

Thanks for the speck tips. I only have a dozen decoys for them. I think most of them have now left my area making their way down to you guys

[Rick]

It can be a fight over the legs. Kids love them for some reason.

Pr'olly 'cause they're the best part.

[PorkChop]

From today. Still a lot of snows and specks around. I think the Widgeon was sick. No fat and very little breast meat. Vincenzia was able to walk right up to it.

[Rick]

Your posts beg the question, "Who's cleaning all that?"

[PorkChop]

Your posts beg the question, "Who's cleaning all that?"

Vincenzia does. I pay her two dollars a goose and $1.50 a duck. I think the cheapest thing I pay her is for Doves and Partridge which are a quarter apiece. I know those rates are low but she also gets free ammo and transportation to go hunting.