2021 Waterfowl Thread
- Thread starter the spank
- Start date
Went out for opening day this AM before Work, Was lucky and got 2 Drake woodies with 1 shot! First time getting a double for me, shooting 20 Ga Winchester blindside, worked well, that was the only Shot I got before I had to Hussle to work. Seen 9 woodies, 3 mallards total, just locals.
Cheers,
Cheers,
fingers284
CGN Ultra frequent flyer
- Location
- Alberta Cowboy Ranges
Your post sure does bring home to me the privilege's I enjoyed growing up in a duck flyway in central Ab. We wouldn't even set the alarm for 500 birds feeding in a field let alone go out before work and be happy seeing a dozen ducks...500 birds in afield might get a look in the afternoon shoot but we sure wouldn't put ourselves out to get under them. 1000 to 5000 birds on a field was almost a daily opportunity in the 70-80's within 10 miles of my house.
Local geese were a different story back then not many geese used this westerly flyway and 6 geese in afield would attract a dozen hunters the next morning...4 decoys between us and all digging coffin sized holes just hoping to get one shot.
The flyway has changed for some reason in the last 30 yrs, ducks are probably down to 1/4 what they were and geese are plentiful now.
the spank
CGN Ultra frequent flyer
- Location
- Planet Earth Wearing My Tinfoil Hat
Runningfool;[URL="tel:18312918" said:18312918[/URL]]I got out a couple of times this week and really had fun. Birds decoyed nicely and even managed to turn a few flocks...I still have lots to learn but after several years at this I’m finally starting to feel like my success isn’t all just dumb luck
Nice pic and nicely done!
Two more shifts to go and I'll be flying home for days off and getting after them!!
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the spank
CGN Ultra frequent flyer
- Location
- Planet Earth Wearing My Tinfoil Hat
We arrived home yesterday from turnaround and within an hour were out scouting to try to find a morning hunt. A buddy of mine flew in from Ontario, his flight arriving in Edmonton within ten minutes of our flight. After picking up our car we headed back to the airport to pick him up then it was off to Cabela's to get him his licenses and ammunition, grabbed a few more full body Specklebelly decoys then hit the road for home. Within an hour of scouting we had two hunts locked down and decided on the one with a good 2000 ducks mixed with about 1000 Canada and Specklebelly geese.
As we sat talking and watching the birds for the evening we had an unexpected guest. I happened to turn and look out my side window and to my surprise there was a bull moose standing beside us 10 yards away staring at us in the truck. With the window closed we hadn't heard him cross the gravel road from the bush behind us on the other side of the road and step into the lease access we were parked in. By the time I grabbed my phone and got my window opened he was starting to move and I was able to get a short video of him walking off followed by a few pics at about 50 yards after Hubert stopped him with a short cow call.
We arrived at the field about 5:15 am and set out 4.5 dozen full body Canada and Speck decoys, a half dozen full body mallards, two lucky duck spinner decoys and the blind with the 25km/hWNW winds on our backs. After that we hid the trucks and settled in for what we hoped would be a barrel melter of a shoot.
Almost at legal shooting time a few mallards buzzed the spread in circles and after they departed we loaded up and readied for the morning flight.
As is typical for Specks birds started coming in right at legal shooting time but for whatever reason would not commit and decided to go to the other end of the field. Twice I left the blind to chase them off the field before they drew everything coming in away from us. The Canada's showed a few minutes later 'en masse and made a wide circle before coming in led by a group of 5 that came right into the pocket perfectly. We decided a few in hand beat none and opted to take a shot at the 5 in the pocket so we stood, our 20 gauge shotguns barked and all 5 folded clean falling dead in the decoys. A small flock of Specks came in after things settled from the shooting and once again the 20 gauges barked and 5 Specks tumbled earthward dead.
After that things looked dim as birds traded across the sky for what seemed an hour though was probably 15 minutes before the first flock of ducks appeared. A quick flick of the switch on the remote and the spinners went into action sucking the ducks in. Over the next hour flock after flock of ducks would appear on the horizon in flocks of 25-100 and line up on the spinners. We would wait until they lined up in a way all three of us could take advantage of the opportunity presented and then stand and shoot. We took a three man limit of ducks to finish off the morning.
I had cut and bagged extra grass to refurbish the blind throughout the season so before heading out in the morning I brought the bag with us and after packing up at hunt's end we did a fix up to add some top cover to the blind, then cleaned our birds after loading the decoys and blind in my truck and headed home.
It sure felt good to sit and watch a sunrise after being in camp two weeks and rarely seeing the sunlight as the job keeps me indoors all day long.
Though the geese weren't very co-operative this morning the ducks sure were. Hopefully we can find some decoy friendly geese the next couple days. We have two more days to hunt before my buddy heads back to Ontario on Sunday so stay tuned and hopefully we can post a few more hunts.
As we sat talking and watching the birds for the evening we had an unexpected guest. I happened to turn and look out my side window and to my surprise there was a bull moose standing beside us 10 yards away staring at us in the truck. With the window closed we hadn't heard him cross the gravel road from the bush behind us on the other side of the road and step into the lease access we were parked in. By the time I grabbed my phone and got my window opened he was starting to move and I was able to get a short video of him walking off followed by a few pics at about 50 yards after Hubert stopped him with a short cow call.
We arrived at the field about 5:15 am and set out 4.5 dozen full body Canada and Speck decoys, a half dozen full body mallards, two lucky duck spinner decoys and the blind with the 25km/hWNW winds on our backs. After that we hid the trucks and settled in for what we hoped would be a barrel melter of a shoot.
Almost at legal shooting time a few mallards buzzed the spread in circles and after they departed we loaded up and readied for the morning flight.
As is typical for Specks birds started coming in right at legal shooting time but for whatever reason would not commit and decided to go to the other end of the field. Twice I left the blind to chase them off the field before they drew everything coming in away from us. The Canada's showed a few minutes later 'en masse and made a wide circle before coming in led by a group of 5 that came right into the pocket perfectly. We decided a few in hand beat none and opted to take a shot at the 5 in the pocket so we stood, our 20 gauge shotguns barked and all 5 folded clean falling dead in the decoys. A small flock of Specks came in after things settled from the shooting and once again the 20 gauges barked and 5 Specks tumbled earthward dead.
After that things looked dim as birds traded across the sky for what seemed an hour though was probably 15 minutes before the first flock of ducks appeared. A quick flick of the switch on the remote and the spinners went into action sucking the ducks in. Over the next hour flock after flock of ducks would appear on the horizon in flocks of 25-100 and line up on the spinners. We would wait until they lined up in a way all three of us could take advantage of the opportunity presented and then stand and shoot. We took a three man limit of ducks to finish off the morning.
I had cut and bagged extra grass to refurbish the blind throughout the season so before heading out in the morning I brought the bag with us and after packing up at hunt's end we did a fix up to add some top cover to the blind, then cleaned our birds after loading the decoys and blind in my truck and headed home.
It sure felt good to sit and watch a sunrise after being in camp two weeks and rarely seeing the sunlight as the job keeps me indoors all day long.
Though the geese weren't very co-operative this morning the ducks sure were. Hopefully we can find some decoy friendly geese the next couple days. We have two more days to hunt before my buddy heads back to Ontario on Sunday so stay tuned and hopefully we can post a few more hunts.
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First bird of the season always tastes the best.
Wow that looks good!
How did you cook it?
jlovie
CGN Ultra frequent flyer
Plenty of flocks flying over the farm tonight with nowhere to land but the municipal lagoon on the property over. With all the rain we've had here, they might not have a bare field to light in for a while.
Honey garlic type marinade/glaze (honey, garlic, brown sugar, soy sauce, ginger) for 48 hours. Started at 425F for 15min, then 350 for about 40min. Took out when meat was 140F internal temp and let it sit covered for a bit before carving.
Opener today. We got 5 man limit of ducks in first 30minutes. Then switched to geese and we got 3 man limit. Nice day, was suppost to rain though, should have seen more birds. Defintely didn't shoot it up too bad, hoping to hunt it again in couple days.
Opener today. We got 5 man limit of ducks in first 30minutes. Then switched to geese and we got 3 man limit. Nice day, was suppost to rain though, should have seen more birds. Defintely didn't shoot it up too bad, hoping to hunt it again in couple days.
Very nice, congrats
1963beretta
CGN Ultra frequent flyer
- Location
- Vaughan, Ontario
Good to see you guys are smashing it!!
The opener was good to me. Lots of guys out on the lake making hell. Looks like all the fields around the lake have been combined and it had the birds moving to and from the lake. One nearby field had a substantial flood and it was holding thousands of birds. I saw geese, blacks, mallards and woodies in there. Would have been a great hunt for anyone with permission
I had an interesting experience...early in the morning I dropped a goose that swamp into the swamp before I had a chance to get to it with the boat. I looked for it for a while but considered it a lost bird and returned to my blind. A couple hours later I heard a goose calling me from behind. It kept returning its call while looking skyward but could get eyes on it. This game was going on for about 15 mins. The other hunters on the opposite side of the swamp were also calling which didn’t help the situation. Eventually, I saw something move to my left. Sure enough, it was the goose that I winged earlier. It slowly made its way back out the swamp and came out right in from of my blind. Once it was in the clear of my brush, I jumped out and made the tackle. The bugger also had a broke leg which made it easier for me to grab it, but tough as nails getting away from me after initially shooting it.
The opener was good to me. Lots of guys out on the lake making hell. Looks like all the fields around the lake have been combined and it had the birds moving to and from the lake. One nearby field had a substantial flood and it was holding thousands of birds. I saw geese, blacks, mallards and woodies in there. Would have been a great hunt for anyone with permission
I had an interesting experience...early in the morning I dropped a goose that swamp into the swamp before I had a chance to get to it with the boat. I looked for it for a while but considered it a lost bird and returned to my blind. A couple hours later I heard a goose calling me from behind. It kept returning its call while looking skyward but could get eyes on it. This game was going on for about 15 mins. The other hunters on the opposite side of the swamp were also calling which didn’t help the situation. Eventually, I saw something move to my left. Sure enough, it was the goose that I winged earlier. It slowly made its way back out the swamp and came out right in from of my blind. Once it was in the clear of my brush, I jumped out and made the tackle. The bugger also had a broke leg which made it easier for me to grab it, but tough as nails getting away from me after initially shooting it.
jlovie
CGN Ultra frequent flyer
Great to hear you recovered the bird.
There was 17 geese sitting on the peak of the barn roof this morning. I've seen a few ducks do it but never geese. Crazy birds.
the spank
CGN Ultra frequent flyer
- Location
- Planet Earth Wearing My Tinfoil Hat
Bigbubba;[URL="tel:18335435" said:
Sure are. We had two that are the biggest I've ever had in hand. I shot one years ago that weighed 14-6 on my digital fish scale and my buddy handed me one saturday morning and said look at the size of this bird and feel the weight of it. I could not believe the weight of it when I took it from him. It was the heaviest bird I've ever hoisted and the neck was like grabbing a baseball bat from the top end. The one I'm holding in the pic was the smaller of the two. The other one had a deeper and wider chest at the neckline by at least 2" both ways. I wish I'd had my digital scale to weigh them. My buddy says "those birds must be 20lbs!" I said "no they are nowhere near 20lbs and I've never heard of a confirmed 20lb Canada Goose but I am sure they would pull the scale close to 15 or maybe a bit more but we won't know for sure unless we take them home whole to weigh them with the Berkley Lip Grip in my tackle box". I didn't want to clean birds at home so we'll never know what the actual weight was but they were the biggest pair I've ever seen knocked down in my blind. The Specklebelly in my left hand was a fully mature older bird and probably weighed around 7lbs as that's about what older mature Specks seem to average and you can see it's pretty much dwarfed by the Canada in my right hand.
jlovie
CGN Ultra frequent flyer
36ish if you swing by and pick me up "on the way".
