Birds did not want in - Need expert advice.

[Meeka]

The warden shared with me that everybody else limited. That was the last thing I wanted to hear.

I was alone and got 3 drakes. Yes, it was a quality hunt, time well spent, beats the heck out of work, etc.

As usual, I passed on all woodies. Since I was alone, I was very passive early on, not wanting to get back to the truck to soon. Turns out it wound up being 11:00.

So I was one mallard short. Still it is bugging the heck out of me cause I couldn't figure it out.

I was in a depression in the woods Sunday morning. It runs East and west. Cypress trees in the middle where it is waist deep. Most of the place is knee deep. Wind out of West and I set up facing east with trees behind me. No electric duck but about 18 dekes. Jerk chord wasn't even necessary early cause of the 15 knot wind. This place was dry this summer so it had PLENTY of food. Have had GOOD hunts there previously.

Saw lots of birds and 90% flat out ignored me. 9% looked once and left. It got so frustrating, I sacked up and left with birds flying. I just couldn't do anything with them. Meeka was on the bank; was still and hid. I was snuggling an old short stubby bare cypress tree. My dekes were kinda spread out and in groups of 2-6. I had on a breakup hat and mask and my new shadow grass coat santa brought. Of course, gloves were on.

I'm not satisfied with sometimes you get them, sometimes you don't. I can understand if I see few birds or they are all high. What gives? Any suggestions?

[Doc & Nash]

I always like to use the excuse that they were locals who do not decoy or work to calls. And what do you mean you passed all woodies, They are by far the best for the table.

[no angel]

we had several groups work perfect and some never looked. i don't have many answers but this year has been so confusing nothing amazes me. could be new ducks looking for large concetrations of birds?

[jamiebrown33]

meeka this sounds like a place that ive been before any chance.

[Meeka]

Yeah, so you know they do like to dive in there on occasion. A lot were going down to the north about 1/4 to 1/2 mile away. That is to your left if you are at the big cypress with the cot Lerch installed.

Afterwards, feeling a little frisky due to the light load (only 3 ducks), I unloaded and drove back up the road a bit and walked in. and walked and walked. I never found any ducks or even ducky places. It was a bunch of them though. Maybe they went to Zombie island and Scooby and Shaggy got them all! I have one more idea - straight in from where we saw nothing that time preseason and turned around.

Did I mention a guy came in alone, late, and set up on the other end with a mojo. I'm not sure he even had any dekes. He had no luck for the longest but he had a lot of lookers. He or I could have either one taken marginal shots but neither did. As I was walking out, I stopped in the woods and watched a minute. He got 3 to really commit and got all three! He left right after I did.

I'm gonna go to the old standby this weekend. What's up with you, youngster?

[ January 08, 2002: Message edited by: Meeka ]

[H2OFowl]

How were they reacting to your calls? I ran into a weird deal earlier this season. We setup in a field between two cypress brakes. We got quite a few lookers, but they would work for a few passes then move on. We finally got bored and started getting real wild (and loud) on the calls. They started really focusing on the spread. we threw a mix of everything we had in our calling arsonal. Feed chuckle, lonesome suzie, comeback, hail, drake on a 5 n 1 whistle, and even mixed in some pintail. All as loud as we could get it. I couldn't believe how well it worked. After a few "trial passes" we figured out they would take it right up to the point before they fully committed, which was all we needed. One other thing, and this probably goes without saying, but you did ask. You gotta be careful setting up with the sun to your face on a bluebird day. i.e. look for shadows. Santa musta ran across a special on shadowgrass this year, I got one too!

post back and let me know if you have any luck.

[ January 08, 2002: Message edited by: H2OFowl ]

[captain duck]

Not that I have any expert advice but 40 years of seeing most every condition I contend Sunday was very difficult conditions to be in any timber or woods. Behind a front in 20 knot winds the trees are swirling and the ducks struggle in their landing just as a small airplane does in a strong wind trying to land. In Sunday's conditions the birds want wide open spaces and long runways to manuver. Birds were working rice fields well next to me and I was in the timber like yourself having similar difficuties.

[GulfCoast]

Meeka: In order to give you my wise and sage observations, I would need to be there in person! [img]images/smiles/icon_biggrin.gif[/img]

[Meeka]

GC, what do I have to do, send roses . . . a singing telegram? I already sent directions.

H2OFOWL, I tried all types calling; I had that many birds. I tried aggressive a few times,lots of soft soft, even no calling, just lonesome hen, quacks, chuckles, etc. I did not call the all out blitz you describe, but it wouldn't have hurt. I do not have a drake or 5n1, but that is next on my list.

The sun was no problem cause it was not out, as Capn Duck relates. There was not any cover around the tree I was hugging. I can usually get away with that hunting by myself. Some birds did flare, but I didn't think thy saw me. others just flew over and ignored me like I was an ex-spouse.

Cap'n Duck - I picked that direction cause it was so open for the birds to come right in into the wind. Yes, I was surrounded by woods, but the spot is pretty wide open. You could well be right, nonetheless. I considered that aspect before going in and remembered we have had some pretty fair hunts on overcast days there. Once when it was raining.

I have done better at times in the woods on cloudy days and better, at times, in fields on sunny days, so I don't ascribe so much to the theory that says sunny days automatically equals a good woods hunt and vice-versa. But, you may be right, the combo of clouds and WIND may dictate field hunting. The people in the field did wear them out.

I was curious as to whether anyone would suggest a can of brown spray paint.

[ January 08, 2002: Message edited by: Meeka ]

[mallardhunter]

Here's my two cents worth. What you may have learned is to not hunt that hole on a screaming (15 mph) west wind. Some holes are hot on one wind or several, and cold on another. You mentioned you had trees to your back you were facing east and stated the dekes were "spread out". Did you leave a continuous, decoy-free hole for the ducks to work into, with the wind in their face? If you blocked off the hole with decoys, perhaps those that looked saw it was going to be too difficult to get in there with that stiff wind.

As to the 90% that ignored your call, a great caller and duck hunter once advised me on calling, to call loud enough to "affect" the ducks. If you don't "affect" the ducks with your call, perhaps they didn't hear it! A 15 mph wind carries that call sound downwind well, but not upwind at all, and the trees muffle the sound a bit. Call loud enough to scare 'em if you have to; then you know the volume necessary to "affect" those ducks. Next mission is to find out which sound they wanna hear that day. Waaaay too many hunters call so softly the ducks never hear 'em. By this I don't mean to imply that you are one of those callers.

And, like GulfCoast said, I could research this better in person!

[GulfCoast]

LOL, you still da man, Dave!

[Meeka]

MallardHunter, that's some pretty good info. I guess your saying leave a wide open runway. Yeah, they could glide in real good there, but I do recall there was a good size cypress log lying crossways in the zone.

As to calling loud enough to "effect" them, I'm gonna have to give that some thought. Most of the birds were first seen downwind or overhead. The calling louder idea on that windy day may have helped.?

[GulfCoast]

Or you could tune for/call with a higher pitch to carry farther in the wind. However, you can go overboard with the real high pitch, there is a guy in our marsh down here we nicknamed the "memorex glass shatterer." [img]images/smiles/icon_biggrin.gif[/img]

[ January 08, 2002: Message edited by: GulfCoast ]

[Meeka]

I've been trying a Southern Game call and have been able to frequently get that high pitch, but mostly accidently - "whoops". That call sounded better at Mossy Oak. It does have a whole lotta range and has been effective at times, you just gotta be careful.

I'm just an average, at best caller. Lately I have learned to call at dif. pitches though.

GC, did you get those roses?