Decoy formations?

[shae1986]

I am an avid goose hunter, I like to think i know a lot but latley i found myself using the same decoy formation i used 5 to 6 years ago. It produces geese but i was wondering if you guys had any better formations to use when setting up field decoys. I have about 6-7 dozen decoys and was wondering what is the best way to set them up. My maid formation is the V or the U setup, with the blinds off too both sides. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated. Good Luck this hunting season

Andrew

[mwktrapper]

It's a good idea to learn as many spreads as possible. Especially if you're hunting the same field several times...keep mixing it up. Be real creative when setting up. A couple more to throw in your pocket of tricks would be the X and the J.

For the X, set up your decoys in family groups in an X formation. Then fill in 3 of the gaps in the X with more family groups, leaving one open for the pocket.

For the J, it's just that...a big J. Run a long line of dekes that lead down into a little hook that creates your pocket. This is a really visible spread. It's basically a field longline.

Early season, keep your decoys in little family groups. As season moves on, begin to bunch them up into flocks, more so than family groups. When it's cold and the snow is on the ground, bunch them real tight as if they're warming up. Basically just watch what the birds are doing.

[eyefishing]

I would suggest to use the "X" pattern! Last year me and my buddies had the best luck with that pattern. We would have 5 groups of 5-6 shells and we would take a 1/2 dozen bigfoots facing into the wind about 15 yards away. Every little family that came in right in between the bigfoots and the shells.

[snowgoose]

I like to use the X pattern when there is little to no wind. That way the birds have the ability to land where they want to. You can move your blinds once you see a pattern that hey are coming in on.

On windy days I like to set up family groups all facing into the wind. I set the blinds in the front middle of the spread with 15 to 20 decoys around the blinds to help conceal them. I find that most geese are searching for the call or the loud goose on the ground that is talking to them.

Only one week to go!

Best of luck this fall to all!

Todd