Canadian Waterfowl hunt

[Schwanny]

Since the duck hunting is getting worse every year (in our area anyway) I was thinking about taking a trip to Canada for a waterfowl hunt in a couple of years. Does anybody have any suggestions as to where to go?

[dukhnt]

Never been. But I had my best ever season last year in MN. Good luck in Canada.

[Maxxed Out]

You don't need to head to Canada to have a good duck hunt. Just head to western MN.

[Huntin&Fishin]

I went to Sk, and it was the best goose hunting ive ever had, Went around the Melfort area and was never denied acsess to hunt. We didn't come across any other hunters in 3 days of hunting. Just had to drive and scout, find the birds in a field, gain acsess then hunt it the next morning.

[Todd Caswell]

By far the best hunts I have ever had have been in Canada, not for the number of birds killed but for the number of birds in the decoys, many many oportunities for young dogs, morning/evening sky's filled with birds and unmatched photo oportunities. If you do your homework and go to "fringe" areas you will have the place to yourself. Wev'e had many weeks of limits while never hearing another shot.. Good luck in your search.. I'll give you one hint Manitoba is a fun place to be, If I gave you an exact spot to go I would feel I would be cheating you of the real experience of finding your own area and finding your own birds. Study topo maps, look for areas with big roosting water, and plenty of grain fields. It will probably take 2/3 years befor you will have it figured out but when you do you'll be glad you put in the hard work and time. Good luck....

[CANOPY SAM]

Todd nailed it on the head! Let's just say "the middle" of Manitoba is a waterfowl hunter's paradise right now!

I'll tell you though, North Dakota can be nearly as good, if you're looking for great duck hunting. With very limited water in Northwestern Minnesota this fall, I'd anticipate absolutely stupid numbers of ducks in North Dakota with this migration.

I'm really hoping to squeeze in an early November hunt in central North Dakota. The late flight of mallards, bluebills, snows and blues, and greater Canadians is absolutely epic, and quite a bit more affordable than Manitoba at $4.00 per gallon!

[Scott M]

Saskatchewan or Manitoba. I'm amazed at the people that say why leave MN...one hunt in SK or MB and you'll understand.

You'll do just fine with a willingness to knock on doors and some courtesy. Good luck.

It will probably take 2/3 years befor you will have it figured out but when you do you'll be glad you put in the hard work and time.

I don't wanna put words in Todd's mouth, but when he says 'figured out' I imagine he means you'll have a milk run of fields, ponds, or farmers to talk to. I wouldn't let it discourage me; you should be able to do awesome in your first year out there, again, by knocking on doors and being courteous.

[Todd Caswell]

It will probably take 2/3 years befor you will have it figured out but when you do you'll be glad you put in the hard work and time.

Crops change from year to year, best Mallard shoot we had was in an oats field that had been hunted for 6 straight days by two different groups. I would hate to try put a figure on the number of green heads that were shot out of that field that week. Next year it was a Hemp field. What i meant by figureing it out was, you may tweek your base camp by a few miles or towns, your time frame ( depending on location) and your general approach to a succesfull trip by your own standards. I never measure success by numbers but by the quality of the hunts and by what I learned during the week up there... Iv'e hunted ND alot MN alot but none of those hunts have ever come close to a Manitoba sunrise with birds in the air every direction you look, and most importanly never hearing another shot ALL morning....

[fishuhalik]

Best goose hunting I ever had was outside the Oak Hammock. Unreal amount of birds. First and only time I've had a flock of 20,000? birds try to land on top of me in one flock.. Im not sure of the exact number, but it was just incredible. And yes, NoDak is just unreal this year. I'm in the Williston area and there is PLENTY of water and the birds are everywhere. Never seen anything like it. Even with all these birds, a buddy of mine was out opening morning and heard 3 shots all morning. All of northern NoDak is like that, I drive back and forth through the entire state every 3 weeks and they're everywhere.

[Scott M]

I never measure success by numbers but by the quality of the hunts and by what I learned during the week up there... Iv'e hunted ND alot MN alot but none of those hunts have ever come close to a Manitoba sunrise with birds in the air every direction you look, and most importanly never hearing another shot ALL morning....

I think that's what everybody here has in mind when you talk about Canada and to a lesser extent, parts of North Dakota. The quality of the hunt. I too could care less about shooting the birds, but seeing these giant flocks come in is just unbelievable. Sometimes you just put the guns down and take in the show.

I posted this last year, but if you are completely new to an area, you can check and see what was planted since certain small grains can really attract waterfowl, or you might have a proclivity to corn fields. Won't help you in Canada as it's a USDA product, but it helps for SD, ND, MN, etc. It doesn't have 2012, but you can figure out the crop rotation.

CropScape Thread

[Gordie]

A trip to NoDak and you may not want to go on that trip to Canada,

Cheaper, just as many ducks at times of the year, more time hunting,less hassels at the boarder, and did I mention cheaper

[Schwanny]

Thanks guys! I really appreciate the replies! I have alot of my own equipment/decoys, so I probably would just take a week off & drive until I found something that looked good. I might try North Dakota first before Canada, but I would really like to experience a Canadian trip also. Is it worth looking for an outfitter? I seen the cost of a guided trip. OH MY! I better start saving my pennies if I go that route.

[nobody05]

I tell you what I did it last fall. No plans whatsoever. Just picked a place on the map with 6 otherguys. 2 pickups and lots or door knocking and scouting. Came away with over 500 birds in 6 hunts. We had one guy pay for everything and split 7 ways and came out to 600 bucks apiece. Best hunts in my livetime.

[brittman]

You are also forgetting South Dakota which may actually be a better place than NoDak if you plan ahead and get drawn for a license. SoDak hunting can be very good into late November even after MN deer season ends.

That said, not much compares to Canada whether it is MB, SK, or for those willing to drive a little further Eastern Alberta. Little hunting pressure and high bird densities mean quality hunts.

Even Canada is not fool proof ... you have to find the birds they are not evenly distributed and if you set up too quickly into an area your hunts will not be much different than anywhere else. Rainfall, crop planting / harvest can also play into your waterfowl hunt success rate.

For those that hunt out of a boat, well many a man was heading to MB even 50 years ago. The reason then is the same as it is now.

[Todd Caswell]

A trip to NoDak and you may not want to go on that trip to Canada,

Cheaper, just as many ducks at times of the year, more time hunting,less hassels at the boarder, and did I mention cheaper

Gordie,

I know you like ND and I do to, I had many good hunts in ND but I have never had a trip to ND that compared to a trip to Canada, never had a hassel at the border and for the most part I have always spent alot less money in gas on a Canada trip because of less miles spent scounting. I know you like or choose to hunt over water, I have never hunted over water in Manitoba, I mlike to have my feet dry and have never brought a pair of waders on any trip. A few years ago we did come across a small lake in the Strathclair area ( theres my one and only hint) in the middle of no where that had 5,000 plus bluebills on it, it was a deep clear lake and we never hunted it but I know it would have been fun. Like i said I like Manitoba fringe areas because of the lack of competition, and the adventure, I would much rather pay a few extra bucks to have that than fight with the crowds or hunt out of a boat on Devils lake, I can do that in MN.....