early duck opener?

[Finfinder]

Anyone know if the 9am duck opener is for real? I haven't heard for sure yet. Thanx for any info.

[Tour. Pro 175]

It's a no go for this season, I hope next year our politicians can get it done. I'm all for it!

[Mark Christianson]

Why not sunrise like every other state.
Oh well, I'll take 9am if it ever gets through the tangled web of politics.

[can it be luck?]

Does Mn. have a noon-opener? I hunt Wi., and the opener is always at noon. Sure makes for a very looong morning! Could never understand the reasoning behind this? can it be luck?

[Tour. Pro 175]

Yes we do, and yes it is! Every year we end up leaving a half hour earlier than the year before just to try and beat the next guy to the best spots. Before we know it we'll be on the water before it gets light, so much for hunting public land.

[can it be luck?]

BiglakeBass is right, same people, different day. I hunt public lands on openers, after the barrage of fire on openers a lot of ducks and hunters bug out of there. I figure most guys do a little pre-season scouting and check thier blinds and mark them, I do. If the late start is to accomidate the "last minute guys" then something's wrong here. Other than the hoards of hunters, public land offers some outstanding shooting. Also bring your umbrellas to avoid the raining pellets.

[honker23]

I agree the noon opener is stupid. I have been getting out there at 3:00 am to get my spot on a public slough. If everyone is already out there let us shoot at sunrise. Most years the Sun morning is the best shoot anyways, why not make it Sat morning.

[big_fish_guy]

we always got out there in the morning at dawn and used the time to cut cattails and repair any ice damage to our blinds. But we hunt private lake, so we have the luxury to take our time. To me, that's some of the best times, building/re-building blinds. Every year we get more and more elaborate.

[Riverratpete]

here, here for the 9am opener, never did get the whole noon opener deal,all it does for me gets me out to the bow stand later(haha)

[Guest]

You'll always have people setting up on top of one another no matter what unless we all start to hunt responsibly and teach others to do the same.
I'd love to try to educate the idiots and morons on my favorite waters, but it's a lost cause, like trying to teach a pile of do-do to speak...lol
If they would just realize that by crowding in on someone, by driving around the lake in search of a spot to hunt during shooting hours, overcalling, skybusting, and everything else that you can think of that is just plain stupid, that they are not only hurting and ruining everyone else's hunt, but theirs as well.

ok, enough of my rant....lol

[Mark Christianson]

Totally with ya on that one Hermy.
I gave up on hunting on public land several years ago. It was more frustrating than enjoyable.
The skybusting is what really chaps my behind, especially when birds are working your spread.

I guess we got off topic on this thread.
Bottom line, I cannot wait to crawl in the blind!
Remember, early goose season, you can hunt over open water in most of the state now. YEEEHAAAA.

[can it be luck?]

When birds are working your spreads, You're holding your breath hoping that nobody takes a poke at em, but as they approach certain blinds.....up goes the guns...and away fly your birds. What really gets me is after openers. There may only be a few guys out on the marsh or lake, and everyone knows where everyone else is. A lot of times it is very obvious which spread the birds are working. At this time hunters should sit back and watch the show, not takeing "pot-shots" at birds. Skybusting conditions the birds to swing wide and avoid comeing in to the decoys. Shoot the birds and they wont have a chance to become conditioned to skybusting, especially geese. reduce the number of crips too.

[RiverRunner]

BiglakeBa$$

Theirs a reason why Minnesota doesn't have a sunrise opener. Could you imagine at Swan Lake in Niccolet how busy the access would be and how much boat traffic would be on the lake at one time. Not to mention how many more people would be setting up on others peoples laps,because they couldn't see the other people. If they ever had a Sunrise opener in Minnesota count me out for hunting public land. 9a.m would be almost ideal though, hopefully they'll pass it next year.

[Mark Christianson]

It opens at sunrise on Sunday. What happens at the launches on that day?
Gotta be the same people there on Sunday, that would be there Saturday.

Can't see that Sunday on opening weekend sees a big cut back in pressure on public lakes.

[BLACKJACK]

I think the noon opener is meant to save ducks, give them a 'heads up' and rude education for one day. It does get to be a long morning when you have to stake out your spot on public morning. Then it never fails, you've been sitting there since 8 AM and some dowdow comes motoring across the lake at 11:45!! If it wasn't for the fact that I've been to every duck opener since I got out of the Navy 25 years ago, it would be easy to say to heck with Sat and wait for the Sunday morning shoot, which is really the best time!! But that anticipation when you load your gun at 11:58 is great too!!

Now that I think about it, I did miss one opener, my wife decided to run Twins Cities Marathon - one of those bite the bullet choices!

I'm getting excited about the opener just sitting here writing about it!

[myzee13]

biglakeba$$.
what do you know about the water regs on early goose...I haven't heard anything yet. I've been hoping pretty hard though!
Does it include the S.Central and S.Western portions of MN?

[Finlander]

Check this out! It will answer your question!

http://files.dnr.state.mn.us/rlp/regulations/hunting/waterfowl.pdf

[dkhntr]

I think it is a mohre historically noon opener. They (waterfowl biologists) say most of the birds in a season are taken opening weekend, and the noon opener makes sure the local birds are out feeding then.

BUT, in the new regs it says noon this year and 9 am next year!!

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Lawn sprinklers save your grass...
Fire sprinklers save your A$$

[Mark Christianson]

In the MN regs it says 9am for next years opener?

[Riverratpete]

yea, bro, farley!

[Farley]

I don't even hunt the Saturday opener anymore. Not because of the crowds, the dummys or the raining pellets, it's because it seems like it's always 90 degrees and never cloudy that particular Saturday. My bloods too thick for this kind of nonsense. Give me some wind, snow/rain and cold enough temps to make your whole wet hand numb. You don't see too many dummys out there in that kind of weather, exept for one, ME!!