Duck Guides near Oakes North Dakota?

[Ufatz]

Are there any experienced waterfowl guide in the Oakes ND area. Might be some guys wanting to put together a hunt latter part of October for three days.

[Maxxed Out]

You don't need a guide in that area.

[rattlem'up]

There is no need for a guide at all! Just head out there scout and ask permission for the first day and hammer'em the 2nd and third day. Just do what i said and you will look back when you were thinking about getting a guide and say to yourself man i'm stupid what was i thinking!!! Just trying to save you money bud!

[marine_man]

I would also agree... getting access to hunt Ducks usually is not an issue.

marine_man

[Ufatz]

Yah fellas, I'm asking because there are some old guys live down the lake, all around 70 or so, and they aren't up to lugging in decoys to the pothole or field anymore I guess and they wondered if a person could set up a hunt out there. I told 'em I'd check around.

From the Alexandria area they can easily drive out there and rent a house for a few days or even get a motel I guess.

Thanks.

[Musky Buck]

Sad to think when I was a kid it was hard to beat the Alexandria area for duck hunting. My Oakes ND info, dairy queen, pizza ranch, Phil Hanson (Buffalo Bills) and I put up a boat load of irrigation systems for Valley Irrigation and there's monster sized mosquito's in that area. GL finding a guide, you'll find 1.

[WallyGader]

Sad to think when I was a kid it was hard to beat the Alexandria area for duck hunting. My Oakes ND info, dairy queen, pizza ranch, Phil Hanson (Buffalo Bills) and I put up a boat load of irrigation systems for Valley Irrigation and there's monster sized mosquito's in that area. GL finding a guide, you'll find 1.

There is no more dairy queen and they shut down the pizza ranch last year, the buffet there was great after a long day of hunting to. Now there is just the c-store in town for food.

I still don think you need a guide. It dont take much to do it on your own. 12 decoys and maybe 2 spinners dont weigh much, and you could find alot of spots where you dont have to walk far to a pothole to hunt. If you do decide to go with a guide GL..

[Quackaddict9]

There are many different issues for each 70+ year olds so some help may be a big help to them, some may not need help at all. So I just guess it depends on how much they can move and etc.

If they do not have much issues, they will be ok on their own and wouldn't need many decoys like stated above. Hope they have a good time!

[Maxxed Out]

That makes sense on why you are looking for one. I know www.goosehogoutdoors.com does sprint snow geese. He's a friend of a friend who I have never met but we almost used him on our spring snow goose hunt.

It would require very little work to set up out there in a field with about a dozen duck decoys and two mojos and you would hammer them. Could probably even easily find a fence row to set up near.

[brittman]

Maxxed. Some days when the field is right, the birds thick, and competition missing - it takes a few decoys, some calling and maybe a spinner - for limits to come easy.

That said. Throwing a dozen decoys and a pair of spinners in a field along a fenceline is often viewed by a ND residents as a "sota" spread and is rarely effective in killing more than a few pre-sunsise ducks.

ND can be easy, easy, easy to shoot limits of ducks - especially early season or if you are visiting when a flight hits your area. 6 ducks each can come quickly especially if you do not care what you shoot.

Now to kill 5 drake mallards each - often takes lots and I mean 100s of miles per evening - scouting. Guides, residents, visiting nonresidents - don't matter you need to drive and glass to find them. Nasty weather will keep them flying longer during the day...

It may also mean when visiting the Dakotas (and your vacation days are set) that you may need to relocate to find birds.

Last fall a couple of counties in SD were estimated at holding 25% or more of the mid-continent mallard population. Move one county over and you had some mallards, move two or three counties away and you saw very little. Some had utterly fantastic shooting, while others had little. Same week, same state, same weather.

[brittman]

To answer the original post ... Oaks area may have a local guide or two, but does not have one of the larger ND guide / outfitters in that area.

I am not in the habit of supporting G/Os via naming them, but I will tell you that you need to go further west across ND .... there are a few in South Central ND.

[Maxxed Out]

Well I guess I didn't take into factor the competition, I was assuming there would be little in that area. One of my good friends still heads out there and he said that's what they do is a dozen FB mallards a couple spinners and then a dozen or so FB geese decs and it's a done deal.

[rattlem'up]

ufatz shoot me an email and i'm sure i'll be able to help the guys out! breakdown55336 at hotmail dot com

[Ufatz]

Will try the email.

[brittman]

Maxxed: Oh it can be that easy. But it is not a given. Experience, location, timing, competition ... all play a role. Access can also play a critical role in success ...

Here one day, gone the next, next bunch in a week later. Educated ducks are never easy.