Why all the bitchin ??

[limit6]

I just took a moment to check out some of the field reports on waterfowler.com from LA, AR, and MS and i didn't find any reports just a bunch of disgruntled hunters complaining about all DU has done to destroy the duck migration. I'll have to say I have also read some of the same complaints on this board.

I don't know what DU has or hasn't done and I'm not a member. I do know that I am spending $150 this weekend to have the opportunity to travel to the Delta and possibly see some mallards, pintail, widgeon, etc. and if lucky some of them will fall into our spread and we will get the chance at a harvest.

In south MS, our duck hunting consist of lining up along a slough and hopefully get a few passing shots at some woodies. Complaining ?? Not at all, my choice to live where I do. Point being, I can't understand why people living in the delta, in the middle of the MS Flyway, complain because they don't see 1000's of ducks everyday.

I would like to believe if I lived there, I would be thankful to know I could be at home, drive a short distance and be sitting in my blind or against a big cypress tree waiting to see what the new morning will bring.

When I hunt ducks here, I know what I'm going to get, 2 woodies. Is living in the Delta with endless hope and possibilities for success not enough to be thankful for?? Would you like to have a passion for waterfowling only to wake and hunt each time knowing your 2 woodies is all it will ever be??

Appreciate where you are and what you have at your fingertips rather than looking to blame whatever for a sub-par season. Some are good and some bad, life as we know it in all aspects.

All the turkeys I call don't come running and there are plenty of mornings a solo gobble can't be found. Is it the NWTF's fault, hardly. However, I cherish each day I can walk out the backdoor of the camp and strain to hear that gobble, whether I do or not. Maybe you should to.

[Newtduck]

Amen!!!

[HattiesburgStockBroker]

Amen, although Iwould love to have a limit by8:30 inthe morning thats not the reason I'm gonna drive 3 & 1/2 hours to freaze my but off. I'm going for the food, friends, and fellowship. there is no place I'd rather be at daylight on a cold january morning than siting in blind wih my buds whether I'm in Lamar County shooting woodys or Greenwood chasing big ducks. Either way it doesn't take seeing thousnds of ducks to make the hunt successful. I'm just proud to have an oppurtunity to enjoy such a wonderful sport in some of the most beautiful places on earth. As for as the turkeys go My brother heard one gobble 8 times Tuesday am. I'm just glad that Turkeys don't migrate .

[River Hunter]

Limit6 i'll tell you when you are used to seeing the ducks we used to see (late 80's thru mid 90's and earlier) around the delta area you could better understand the complaints. Me myself am just happy to be able to hunt and very much enjoy a day on the river even if i dont fire a shot, yet it seems a bit strange to go from seeing literally 10's of thousands of ducks to just this few we are seeing now

[limit6]

RiverHunter,

You're point is well taken and it is strange why the numbers are down but I also appreciate your attitude about hunting.

Hope you have another hunt tomorrow like you did a few days ago on the Ark. River.

[torch]

Moma said DU is the debol!!

[CBU93]

Well, Im new to the forum and relatively new to duck hunting, but I'll throw out my take on it for all to see

I can say this, the last two years have been nothing comapared to the first few years I duck hunted. I can understand to a point lower duck numbers, more water, higher pressure, etc. But when you look to the northern skies and see absolutely NO ducks...something is wrong somewhere. A lot of people want to say that it has not gotten cold enough up north to drive them down, then I can understand how some BIG numbers of ducks are not being seen. But think of this as well, animals are habitual. Instinct alone should be driving more ducks south than what there has been the last few years IMO.

[drakes4fun]

Hey HattiesburgStockBroker (Mick) stop posting messages and go sell some stocks.

[TheDuckSlayer@AU]

i began hunting ducks in the Mississippi delta during the 97-98 season. the first 4 years i saw tons of ducks and got at least a few every time out. this year and last year combined i have killed i think maybe 10 ducks in 20 days of hunting. there were a couple mornings where we saw NOTHING. no snow geese, no ducks.

i have seen the govt. dump corn on Wheeler Refuge in Alabama and a buddy sent me a picture of a refuge from Illinois where the Canadian geese were trying to land in the dump truck as it was pouring corn.

i don't know who or what is to blame, but hunting in the MS Delta the past 2 years has not been what it is cracked up to be. maybe next year i guess.

[gator]

while i was on sabitical in canada, nodak, iowa, illinois, and missouri i continuously kept seeing grain trucks that had DU stickers on em...i guess it's really true....bwahahahahaahahahaha

[gator]

come on...land in da truck?

[Delta Duck]

I can't say much about Ark, but I do think the reason we don't think we see the number of ducks in the North Delta of Ms is because of all the flooding and amount of water in the Delta. It has been alot more water than normal the last few years.

For the 30 and 3 folks I don't know what to say, Have ya'll lost your mind!
I don't care about a 3 duck limit, what I do want is a long season. If ya'll think their are to many ducks harvested then ya'll should be true conservationist and practice VR on the season lenght and limits on your on.

Anyday in the blind is better than anyday at work

[NOHERE]

LOCATION,LOCATION,LOCATION

DUCK HUNTING IS JUST LIKE A BUSINESS, THE RIGHT SPOT WILL GET YOU EVERYTHING.

IVE TALKED WITH 3 CLUBS IN ARKANSAS, 2 HAVENT DONE A THING ALL YEAR WHILE THE OTHER HAS HAD A VERY GOOD YEAR. THE OTHER 2 IN YEARS PAST HAVE HAMMERED THE BIRDS FOR YEARS.

SAME THING DOWN AROUND FALCON MS, THERE HAVE BEEN AN ARE THOUSANDS UPON THOUSANDS OF DUCKS THERE NOW, AT ONE TIME YESTERDAY WE HAD AT LEAST 500 WORKING OUR SPOT. TO DAY WE HAVE SEVERAL THOUSAND WORKING A BLIND THAT IS FROZE SOLID AND EVERN MORE SITTING ON THE ICE.

MOST OF THE BIRDS ARE LOCATED IN CERTAIN AREAS AROUND THE DELTA, THE BAD PART IS THEY AREN'T MOVING ABOUT MUCH.

UTILL LAST WEEK , THERE WERE PLENTY OF DUCKS STILL UP IN MINN AND N.DAKOTA AREA, WE JUST NOW ARE GETTING WINTER WEATHER ACROSS THE NORTH. THE BIRDS THAT ARE HERE NOW HAVE GOT TO BE NEW BIRDS, THEY ARE WORKING FAR TO EASY THAN THEY HAVE ALL YEAR.

DONT SELL YOUR GUNS JUST YET, THE NUMBERS WILL GET BACK UP. WE BEST KEEP OUR MONEY GOING TO DU/DW.

[Gann]

I've been hunting for 28 years now and average hunting 45 days of a 50 day season. I have logged every hunt including what we killed what time of day and the weather conditions. The best seasons are ALWAYS the years that the frost line came down below Kentucky. You see, it doesn't matter what DU does or doesn't do. It doesn't matter that people are putting out corn at their golf pond or private refuge. If a ducks food source gets covered with snow the duck WILL migrate. We have not had hardly any snow the last two years all the way up to Canada. Check it out for yourself. Cold weather alone is not enough to move a mallard. They'll dry feed in fields but if the fields are snow covered get ready!!! Before we go and crucify the organizations that helps us get the facts straight. I pay annual dues to every Duck, Deer, Turkey and Elk organization I can because we need lobbyist to keep our seasons long. I lived through 30 day seasons with three duck limits and everyone saying we were going to lose duck season all together! '88,'89. Then all the sudden we had more ducks than ever in the early nineties. So everyone take a deep breath and relax! We got hosed by mother nature, two years in a row..

[Model12]

Like NOHERE said...Location...With the exception of a few days, (about 4) this season we have hammered the ducks. Our group of 2-6 guys, depending on who is there at the time, have killed over 550 ducks with one week to go. And anyone who didn't see ducks yesterday, needs to move to another spot. We worked hundreds of mallards, wigeon, pintails, etc. yesterday, (Sunday). THIS should be a very good closing week...good luck to all....