Chesapeake/ Eastern Shore waterfowling

[JDgator]

Hi all,

My brother and I are thinking of changing things up and trying some waterfowling on the Atlantic Flyway this year. We were thinking of hunting on the Chesapeake and Eastern Shore of Maryland for ducks and Canada geese.Do they get mallards out there? Maybe guided hunts out of Easton Maryland. We may not get numbers but we want the experience of gunning in a historic hunting area. Anybody been out that way before? Any thoughts, or experiences, or must-dos?

[Double R 2]

Eastern Shore. A lot of the Chesapeake Bay is a shot-out piece of history, the glory aya long since over. I've shot eastern shore for ducks and geese and it can be quite good. Have shot black ducks and lots of mallards. One morning shot 3 bands. All were "Dupont ducks" hahaha, that had mixed in with wild flocks and were actually pretty hard to call in. Hunted over some old wooden blocks one time and that got me in to carving corks for awhile. Another time I shot over stuffed mallards. Both of those time, incidentally, I was guided by a song writer and his one-eyed lab, Jake. The guide had written Feed Jake, and he was a fine old retriever. I've got some personal contacts that operate day hunts I'll be happy to pass on their contact info.

[gamehog]

Eastern Shore. A lot of the Chesapeake Bay is a shot-out piece of history, the glory aya long since over.

Couldn't agree more. Starting in my youth and up to about 10 yrs ago I hunted the Susquehanna, tidal Potomac, eastern shore of VA, and was a member of a small club not far from Blackwater NWR on the eastern shore of MD. Urbanization has really negatively impacted the area.

You can get into the birds there occasionally, but all things considered I think you'll be disappointed in the hunting itself. If you want to go just to say you've done it and visit the area, that's understandable and I'm not saying you still won't enjoy yourself. If it were me I'd spend my money to go someplace other than the atlantic flyway.

[JDgator]

Thanks for the input. Maybe it should wait until we are up there for another reason like a business meeting or family vacation, with duck hunting being the added bonus.

[yankee]

I gotta agree--the time to go to the shore is before the season. See the sights, smell the history and the sea, but then go someplace else to shoot ducks. That part of the world is neat, and historical, but the hunting is gone for most folks. There are still some clubs that supplement with banded ducks--but it isn't the same.

[mottlet]

We still get into some when all the stars line up and the wind blows hard enough. But there's no way I'd spend money on a guide knowing that I was tied to one day and it'll probably be the day that the golf course mallards fly the other way.

[mottlet]

Something I just thought of...

You could always come up, do the Eastern shore thing looking at corn fields or whatever else you want to see over there, and then do a sea duck hunt. Sea ducks are infinitely more predictable and are almost always around by December.

[GAHEEL83]

Jason

Rather than going all the way to Maryland, I would suggest looking into hunting eastern NC and the Outer Banks. When I was up that way in college, the duck hunting around the Lake Mattamuskeet area was very good. It's probably not as far from Statesboro either.

When are you headed to TLH? There are lots of bullnecks around if you have access to something holding water and they are wearing the divers out down at the coast this year.

[duckhnter]

I live in eastern Va.....But was born in Miss.....trust me dont come up here.....duck hunting SUCKS here is Va...We do kill a few geese but trust me there are much better places to go then The Atantic fly way...
trying to save you a LONG trip...