Trying to get into waterfowling

[Siwulat]

Bump. Still hoping to find someone willing to show me the ropes. 

[Neighbor_guy]

Have you tried any of you local Duck Unlimited or Delta Waterfowl chapter meetings? How about sportmans clubs???

 

 

[fishuhalik]

If ya wanna drive down to Texas I'll take ya out any time for some of the best diver & pintail hunting in the country

Seriously though, I'm just gonna go ahead & recommend North Dakota to get you started. It's as expensive or as cheap as you want it to be. Go around opener and shoot resident gads, widgeon, teal & mallards til your heart is content. No boat needed, just a set of chest waders & a dozen or two decoys. Pm me & I'll put you on more brown ducks than you know what to do with  It's a Brown Duck Beatdown!!! 

Edited September 19, 2015 by fishuhalik

[jparrucci]

Later in the year I am probably available.  I have a canoe, 2 dogs, and 3 dozen dekes. I call mallards pretty well, geese not so much.

Best I can recommend is getting further away from the Twin Cities than Lonsdale.  I'm in Lakeville and have scouted everywhere imaginable in this area.  Some areas hold a few ducks, but are usually very pressured.  I have had a few decent hunts around here, but many many more bad ones.  Get an hour plus wes or southwest of here. While you may not be able to scout as much, I  find the birds more cooperative and the pressure lower.

Canoes can be had for cheap.  Being able to access all bodies of water helps, as does being able to retrieve the ducks you hit. Tossing a big Rapala at a duck 50 yards away isn't ideal, but I have done it.

[MN BassFisher]

I am hoping to get more into waterfowl hunting soon as well. I don't have much of the equipment yet and doubt I'll get out this year but hopefully next year! There has been some great information in this thread!

[MJ1657]

I am hoping to get more into waterfowl hunting soon as well. I don't have much of the equipment yet and doubt I'll get out this year but hopefully next year! There has been some great information in this thread!

flea markets and antique stores are a great resource for equipment. Lots of useable decoys to be found at bargain prices. 

[MN BassFisher]

flea markets and antique stores are a great resource for equipment. Lots of useable decoys to be found at bargain prices. 

Thanks for the tip!

[Siwulat]

jparruci- let me know if you ever need/have room for a +1.

MN_bassfisher, I found a lot of my stuff on sale. Just wait until the big stores have a nice sale and pick up the basics. I also frequent the classifieds. 

[HugoBox]

Siwulat -

Dumb (or maybe not so dumb) I'm fine taking new guys out but have you gone through firearms safety training?  Besides waterfowling what is your hunting background?  Not trying to put you on the spot but hunting is a bit different that fishing when it comes to taking someone out you don't really know.  For me safety is hands down THE MOST IMPORTANT part of hunting.  Then seeing birds (if they aint in the air they can't come into your blocks).  Finally shooting something here are there helps make the effort worth while.

I pretty much just hunt the metro from here on out so I wouldn't expect any great shoots but we've done okay a few times late in the season.  Not sure what your availability is but I'm booked up this weekend. November is fairly open. 

As far as experience I've hunted pretty much every huntable weekend since 1991 with a few exceptions when I was chasing muskies.  I can guarantee I'm safe and can surely give you some advice on what NOT to do as I've made tons of mistakes during my time in the blind.

PM if you want to hook up.

Erik

Edited October 27, 2015 by HugoBox
spelling

[Siwulat]

Hugo -

Perfectly acceptable questions. Yes, I have taken hunter's safety. I am born after 1979, so am required to have taken it.

I started hunting when I was 12 with my Dad in Michigan. We bowhunted deer and chased small game. Began gun deer when I was 14 and continued to bowhunt and gun hunt through high school. I got away from bowhunting while I was in college, but picked it back up when I was living in Texas. I moved to Minnesota a few years ago and have continued to bow and gun deer and small game. The majority of my hunting is on public land, and almost exclusively alone (including all my MN hunting). I have also begun to dabble in western states and am starting with pronghorn. My dream is to eventually take a muley with my bow. I currently support Whitetails Unlimited and am a member of the National Deer Alliance.

Last year I got this wild hair to try waterfowling. I ended up trying for the bulk of the season with little success. I am happy to report that I took my first two ducks ever this year on opening weekend. A pair of public land woodies (pics in the Waterfowl 2015 post). I guess what I am looking for is someone who can mentor me in waterfowling. Someone who is safe, reliable, and willing to teach.

Thanks for the offer. PM forthcoming.

[HugoBox]

Hello

I hope you saw my PM back.  Maybe we can put something together next weekend (already booked this weekend).  

Let's  just hope the ducks start to move!!

erik

[BoxMN]

PS - Erik is my brother, and a horrible hunter  J/K. I will be deer hunting for a couple weekends but then probably back shooting ducks with him. He is perfect guy to learn from, and we have about every setup you could imagine, except layout hunting. Little boats, big boats, divers, puddlers, field. We just need somebody who can hit ducks - we can't, haha!

Hope you can hook up, or maybe after duck season I can meet up too.

[monstermoose78]

I can take ya out next year early for ducks, but I am a little ways north of you.