2014 NoDak Waterfowl Reports

[fishuhalik]

Tyler, we appreciate your reports a lot. Theyre very detailed & you usually include everything I would ask. With that said, I have a confirmation on a pretty legit push. My dad is in nd right now & is crushing mallards. They're northern birds, no doubt about it. They're big, fully plumed & dumb as gads. He's seeing mallards, both big & small groups, in most every pond they drive by. They're hunting smaller ponds with a few hundred birds. They could hunt the bigger groups but he's found those smaller groups usually decoy better. North Central part of the state

[TylerS]

Tyler, we appreciate your reports a lot. Theyre very detailed & you usually include everything I would ask. With that said, I have a confirmation on a pretty legit push. My dad is in nd right now & is crushing mallards. They're northern birds, no doubt about it. They're big, fully plumed & dumb as gads. He's seeing mallards, both big & small groups, in most every pond they drive by. They're hunting smaller ponds with a few hundred birds. They could hunt the bigger groups but he's found those smaller groups usually decoy better. North Central part of the state

I believe you. Things changed in a hurry today. Cloudy, temps dropped, wind picked up. There's been chatter from a few reliable sources that birds are on the move, particularly in the northern parts. Still haven't heard much around here in the SE corner, but I'm sure it's just a matter of time.

Get out and smash 'em!

[fishuhalik]

Oh, and to answer a question presented earlier, I trust the reports on here a lot more than du. I know a few of the guys on here. I've hunted with a few of you & have a "forum friendship" with several of you. I trust y'all's word a lot more than some random dude I don't know from Adam

[walleyeking19]

Heading up to ND right now! I'll report my findings (and maybe pics) once we get up there! Can't wait!

[fivebucks]

Just got back from hunting central part of state. Friday-Monday only one big group of mallards around but all feeding on posted land used by a guide. We had no field hunts until Monday evening when we found a new group of birds on a field we could hunt. There was steady action for the last hour of the day and they decoyed good. Must have seen a thousand mallards and pintails. Got to hunt a different field Tuesday near the guide land and we saw another thousand ducks but these birds were definitely decoy shy and nervous. We had to adapt mid hunt and that enabled us to get some birds. Some new birds did move in on Monday but not that many.

On a different note the pheasants were tough to come by with all the corn still in and the beans were just starting to come off. There were even a handful of wheat fields still not picked. The mid sixty and 70 degree afternoons made for very little pheasant hunting as just too hot for the dogs. This was the fewest birds, both ducks and pheasants, in the last 5 years for us but still a great hunt. I will say that the Monday field hunt was one of my best ever and that made the trip.

[Bryce]

Just pulled into camp. Looks like the earlier arrivals had some action by the looks of the hanging rack. Knowing the skill level of the participants leads me to believe it could get real dirty in a few hours. Hope to give the internet cops a bigger challenge than chasing shadows.

[Bryce]

This was not a drill. In an area that we run into many Fargo hunters trying to get onto the land. Must have found an "isolated pocket".

[ghuntofish]

Report just west of jamestown: ducks are scattered and few mallards. You will see ducks in high numbers on certain ponds. The birds do not decoy well. Hoping for a northern push

[Bryce]

Moved 5-6 miles north. This "isolated pocket" didn't have as many real ducks. Could have fillled the truck and a trailer with grays. Debating tomorrow on a promising spot futher north or getting dirty on spot 1 with the more favorable south wind. Breakfast, lunch, and dinner menus set.

[Bryce]

Birds are thinning out some. 2nd nodak woodie in over 15 years. Pintail may go on the wall. Best widgeon season ever. Had many mounters but all shot up too bad. Saw less than a handful of teal but north end of Sand Lake is loaded with gwt. Save your money on the pheasant license. Very little crowing and all coming from the corn. Reports are the corn will come out slowly due to moisture.

[CANOPY SAM]

Beautiful Sprig, Bryce! I've had years in central NoDak when almost all we see are Gadwall. Thanks for the reports.

[fish_hunt_guy]

Nice work bryce! You decoying these birds over water or jump shooting??

[Todd Caswell]

Birds are thinning out some. 2nd nodak woodie in over 15 years. Pintail may go on the wall. Best widgeon season ever. Had many mounters but all shot up too bad. Saw less than a handful of teal but north end of Sand Lake is loaded with gwt. Save your money on the pheasant license. Very little crowing and all coming from the corn. Reports are the corn will come out slowly due to moisture.

Widgeon are neat birds, most years we would shoot a hand full of them and wood ducks dry land field hunting in Manitoba, but not this year..

[Bryce]

Jump shooting not my game. Potholes and decoys. Very rare that I have to hike gear more than 100 feet from where the truck can get to. Also have a basic field spread if needed. No feeds found scouting this trip. Saw a bunch of hunters putting in way more effort than needed.

[Todd Caswell]

Jump shooting not my game. Potholes and decoys. Very rare that I have to hike gear more than 100 feet from where the truck can get to. Also have a basic field spread if needed. No feeds found scouting this trip. Saw a bunch of hunters putting in way more effort than needed.

The days of belly crawling have been over for many years for me as well, if they don't have there wings cupped and feet down they get a free pass, I think most of this come with age

[fish_hunt_guy]

I agree Todd. Jump shooting is not nearly the rush of hearing the wings cutting the air and locking up into the spread. Nothing compares IMO.

[Todd Caswell]

I agree Todd. Jump shooting is not nearly the rush of hearing the wings cutting the air and locking up into the spread. Nothing compares IMO.

But I can't judge because I belly crawled many miles back in the day. 20 plus years ago....

[fishuhalik]

I won't put myself above sneaking em. Obviously I prefer shooting em cupped up, but sometimes desperate times call for desperate measures!! Except snows. I'll try to sneak those guys any chance I get

[Proskier2038]

My dad and a buddy were both up in zone 1 the past few days and it sounds like things were pretty good last Thursday/ Friday, but by Sunday there wasn't much around and what they did see wasn't having anything to do with their spreads. Dad and his friends did best on small potholes with small spreads on widgeon and gadwall -while my buddy did best in the fields on green heads about 30 miles away. - looks like a small cool down next week so hopefully their will be some nw winds pushing down some new birds / I head up in a week !

[NAMASafetyDirector]

Hunted around Devils Lake Sat. and Sun. Same as the other reports, there were some birds around but most of them knew the deal already so were very reluctant to get to finish in the decoys, that is if we could even get them to take a look. Ended up with 36 birds for the two mornings and 1 Greater who's curiosity put him in a position he couldnt get out of yesterday morning. All mallards otherwise, no pintails around to speak of. Seemed like in the smaller groups that would come in to the decoys, there was always 2-4 hens and 1 drake with. So as the mornings went on we really had to start paying attention and pick em out. Overall, great weekend though!

[Bryce]

Final morning. Refuge pothole between 3 publics and an outfitters home ground. Passed on a lot of gray to realize the real ducks had earned a PhD over the weekend.

Went 6 shots for 6 ducks. Would seriously have to consider a knitting class if I was desperate enough to put my belly in the mud when I couldn't get a decoyed limit when the grays are still around. Could have been done in 30 minutes or less every day this trip in 3 different locations.

[Bryce]

Sorry about the quality of my old flip phone picture. Typical nodak spread I use. Small bag of non descript dekes and a remote controlled spinner. Pothole probably right about an acre here. First timers don't get too enthusiastic. Getting on land can be tough. Not as frustrating as MN but don't expext a yellow brick road leading to instant limits as some may infer.

[fishuhalik]

I don't care what anyone says. Gray ducks taste great, decoy awesome & are beautiful. They can absolutely save a hunt!!

[Bryce]

Forgot to add that spoonies showed up overnight. Talk about saving a hunt. Make the grays look like rocket surgeons.

[Scott M]

Thanks for the reports and pictures guys. I'm living vicariously through this thread. Been a few years since I made it to NoDak. Hope to return next year.

We always said "when life hands you gadwalls, make gadwallinade." Gray ducks eat good, look good, and shoot good. They've rounded out many a bag for us.

Keep up the good work!