Snow goose spreads

[jblabsnduck]

I am not try to brag by any means since my spread is not what I would call huge but I was wondering what kind of spread you guys put out.

I put out- 600 texas rags,2 dozen wind socks, 2 dozen silos, 4 magnets, 18 snow full bodies(12 of them being goose gloves over canadians), 15 canadian full bodies, 3 dozen canadian shells, 18 canadian floaters with removeable keels for field hunting, 1 e-caller, mouth call and a flag.

All the canadians are set of to the side of the spread of snows.

We just wear white and lay in the decoys

[Eric Wettschreck]

JB, from what you are describing you are wrong, sir, when you say you're spread isn't huge. You gots a lotta decoys out there man!!!

[IceHawk]

Here is what My group of 4 sets out for a typical snow goose set. We are adding more to our arsenal each year.

350-Northwind wind socks with heads

90- snow goose shells

3 doz blue shells

4 doz silos snow blue mix

4 snow magnets

100-texas snow rags

50 -texas blue rags

5 doz farm form snows

3- E-callers

2-final approach eliminators

2-fred zink finishers

4 -snow goose chairs if we set up in a area with little cover.

I will add that there are alot of times I do not set the texas rags. I feel that on real windy days the rags rattle alarming the geese, just my opinion. For the Northwinds I have some painted as blues and juvy's. I am a firm believer in that you need a equal amount of mix of blues and snows. If you look at a flock there are alot of blues mixed in the flocks.

[MattKeller]

All though we have the decoys to run 1000+ in the field, our best shoots have been over 3 dz floaters...

[jblabsnduck]

Dang, look at Icehawk!!!!!!!!!

That boy has got some stuff.

I am always adding stuff to my spread every year. My problem is that I am the only one buying the stuff. My buddies just come along and help put them out. It is OK with me, that way I know I will always have my stuff at my place and can use it whenever I want to.

[IceBuzzard]

Ice Hawk, your forgetting some things in your list, 1 - Heavy Equipment decoy hole digger (me)!

[IceHawk]

Ice- Buzzard you better hit the weight room and sharpen the decoy punch In a couple weeks were gone!!!!

In all fairness a big thank you to my little brother!!! He usally get's the job of punching holes( For decoy stakes) in the frozen ground. Not a fun job but a job that allows me to set wind-socks alot faster. When setting this many decoys time is of real value!!!

[JerknPerchSD]

the group that I hunt with runs quite a few dekes:

1,250 Custom painted Northwinds wit Aluminum stakes & heads

250 Snow floaters

400 texas rags (rarly see use)

100 FB snows & blues (hopefully more for this season)

4 e-callers

I was really busy last season so I didn't get to hunt them much but my group had a day when over 300 of the little devils hit the dirt.

Andy

[MattKeller]

Andy. Do you know where Doland is? Not too far from you. We've got some good friends out there. Used to hunt alot of snows there. It was really good.

[IceBuzzard]

300 in one day is alot of geese to fall. That would be alot of fun! What do you guys do with 300 snow geese? Do you really eat that many? Is there a recipe that you use? We met an old guy from SD in a restaurant who told us that they just "Can" them. I asked "Can them?" He said "Yep, we open the lid of the garbage can and throw them in!" I thought it was very funny!

[MattKeller]

I love snow goose. If you guys ever need someone to help eat em, let me know... BUT, I best eat all mine first.

[JerknPerchSD]

The geese usually go to a packing plant to be mage into sticks or jerky. It is tasty stuff!

[riverrat56]

sorry IceBuzzard but i dont see the humor in that, why would you waste money, time, and effory just to throw geese away. If i remeber right its illegal and also very un sportsman like, that is just as bad as shooting a deer and just kicking off the antlers, or shooting a pheasant and leaving it sit because you are to lazy to go pick it up. I have a respect for the game i hunt whether or not they are over populated or not, think about, humans are over populated in some areas but u dont just throw them into the trash, why would u shoot something and then just waste it?

[IceBuzzard]

River Rat, I did not say that is what I do with what I shoot. I guess the humor I am talking about lies in an old timer from SD who could not understand how we hunt something and eat it, when HE views them as flying carp. I guess you would have had to been there. Sorry if you do not see the humor in it, it was not my intentions to give you the belief that I throw away my kill, because I certainly do not do that. Also, please do not question my respect for the game I hunt, when you do not know me. I was just commenting on the salt of the land so to speak, the culture of an old timer from SD who has experienced and seen alot. Things that are just as important for me to experience on a hunting trip with friends and family as hunting what what we are there for. Do you ever just go into town on a hunting trip and chat with the local people about there views, opinions? They have these for a reason, because there just that, opinions. If you have not done it, please try it, it makes for interesting conversations.

[riverrat56]

Didnt mean to jump on u like that i guess i read into it to much, and belive me i have talked to plenty of old timers and locals, i have made it my life goal to become a good ol'timer when my time comes. Also i wasnt trying to question your morals or sportsman ship but i was trying to get at the point that if that is what you do then you are just fueling the fire for the the Anti's. Now knowing that you are a respectable sportsman with basically the same veiws on this topic as me i dont have a problem with you in the least, sorry if i sounded mad the night before but that is one of the things that really bothers me is game hogs that shoot more than they can eat or that shoot and leave lay.

RR56

[outdoormaster]

Hey is there any good books about how to set up decoy's when ever I set'em up the dont look to good so any references will be appriciated

[Sartell Angler]

Outdoormaster- Ducks Unlimited has a book titled "Decoys" or something similar to that...I read through it a few years ago and it is a pretty good place for the beginner to start. Try running a search on it on a bookstore HSOforum.

SA/wdw

[catchnmall]

What are you using to punch holes in the ground. We could use some ideas.

[Sartell Angler]

I've never done it myself, but have seen numerous hunting shows where a guy walks around with a makeshift hole puncher...Just weld a big ol' nail on the end of a 5ft metal pole, and then weld some kind of a bar up the pole about 1 foot from the nail to push down on with your foot for added power...

hope this gives you somewhere to start.

S.A/wdw

[IceHawk]

I welded a punch its basically similar as to what sartell angler described. It basically is a long piece of flat steel with a T handle on top, made of round steel. It has a big pointed spike on the bottom, with two flat rods welded on the side to push in the ground. We also have used cordless drills and long bits when the ground is really frozen.

[2 DA GILLS]

While hunting the Dakotas one year, I saw another technique. There was a group using cordless drills to drill holes to set their decoys. It worked well, but you had better have good batteries and some back-ups if setting large spreads.