Preseason 2016...

[Rick]

Me and Dad had a blind on the Lyon's farm...

Had a lot of fun on that farm for a few seasons beginning in the mid '80s.

oh I bet so---especially when there were actually consistent bodies of blues and when rag spreads came into play

Had some white spread hunts there that were about as good as they could be in the 5-7 blue days. But we also ran some big speck shell spreads there when the first, now long gone, camp I worked for would combine everyone that wanted to afternoon hunt for them into one big party. And thinking on that, it was also the farm where I learned that a 400 speck Texas windsock spread was a whole lot of work just to watch specks haul tail feathers.

[Ericdc]

Can't say the idea of doing a big spread goose hunt excites me much unless I'm up in Missouri on a guided trip.


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[Rick]

A report from our marsh Sunday says we still have lots of bluewing teal, and the greys are starting to show up.

I can't say I saw much, if anything new yesterday, but a friend who manages the camp next door said they've had a couple hundred ringnecks show.

[Rick]

Can't say the idea of doing a big spread goose hunt excites me much unless I'm up in Missouri on a guided trip.

Only way to make it work here in recent years is to hit them in a place they've had the run of for a while, which isn't going to happen on any of our leases. Or catch the right fog in the right place. And I'm convinced less is more in that situation these days.

[Rick]

By "right fog" I meant real high altitude fog, as opposed to ground fog.

The last really good blue hunt I made was on the third morning of such on a piece next to an unhunted farm the birds were using. The first of those mornings our guys put out a big white spread and killed 30-some. They did the same again on the second and still killed 20-some. I went on the third morning, and we put out a very small handful of white shells so far down flight that we could barely see them from the levee we hid on. Voice called until birds were getting close, then shut up and let them come. Spooky boogers would stall when they saw the decoys to inspect them, which wasn't so wise with us right underneath them. We killed 53 and would have made a serious mess with a more experienced party.

As an aside, we used my little Brittany that morning, and when I met one of the hunter's brothers at a retriever test that spring, he told me how neat his brother thought it was to see bird dog retrieve "70-some" geese. Could be that by this time the story is that the little dog retrieved 170. In truth, of course, we picked up most of what fell close, and Kie mostly handled the fly-offs. Which was right handy with so much poor shooting and fog, and he did work enough that I had to lift him into the truck.

[Rick]

Kie---Meyer's dog

Lawrence Molezun had some good hunts near there too

No, I've hunted with James' Kie, but was speaking of my now gone Brittany/"spotted Lab," Dash of Cayenne, AKA: Kie. (Spelled that way, because it was a favorite Ohio Valley partner's name.)

The twins, Lawrence and Lee, guided for Doug's when they were still in college until he got after them for hunting spots on their own without asking, whereupon they talked to their dad and uncle Emory Lyons and rented that farm from under him. No hard feelings on my part, btw, other than the loss of some good hunting. (Have never hunted the Marceaux farm they bought a couple years ago, but it's reputed to be one of the very best.) Tim Lytle(sp?) recently bought the south-of-14 end of the Lyons farm to go with what they called "Uncle Herman's" (who only farmed and hunted it) on its west "to have 1,000 acres of speck hunting with just one blind". When you got it...

[Rick]

Don't think you can blame more hunters than land on the Internet. Big change was folks discovering geese during the 3 and 30 duck years. Until then, the marsh was where everyone wanted to be hunting ducks, and Doug's ag land camp slept just eleven hunters. But come the duck crunch everyone and his three cousins became a goose hunter, and we found ourselves running 33 guides on a busy Sat or Sunday, because our mostly so-so duck leases were strong for geese. Got to where we had thirty-some thousand acres with fifty-five spots the camp, itself, hunted - before the bidding war for ag land went nuts. Can only dream of such opportunity now, but it was a hoot for a while.

[Rick]

Been in the marsh the past couple mornings, and the only new birds I can report with certainty are coots.

Can also report that the fourchettes are starting to bloom, so my annual battle began this morning. They thrive on flotant, and getting after them is a reminder of just how badly the dog's job sucks.

[Ericdc]

It's going to be 87 degrees this Saturday for my deer season opening day


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[Rick]

That's how it was for the beginning of ours. Shot a little buck at first light in a place I knew held does but found it too hot to try waiting for one before getting him on ice. And don'tcha know the mosquitoes were carving me up while I dressed and drug another shot late in the day. Naturally, when the weather finally decided to cooperate, the deer didn't...

[Ducaholic]

DC you can't have it dry and cold or even consistently cool. It's never worked that way.

[Ericdc]

I can have it cooler than 87 haha.


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[Ericdc]

15 degrees above average high. Gross.

Hopefully it'll be more seasonal next Saturday for geese.


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[Ducaholic]

15 degrees above average high. Gross.

Hopefully it'll be more seasonal next Saturday for geese.


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I know welcome to weak La Niña poo poo but I think you will be in luck on the 5th!

[Ericdc]

By having water our odds are definitely better


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[Ducaholic]

By having water our odds are definitely better


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For the short term. Warm and dry will not sustain consistent success or anything close to it when there are not an appreciable amount of waterfowl in the area. The specs will help but duck hunting will fall off quickly.

[Rick]

It'll go how it goes. Just have to make as much as we can of it.

[Ericdc]

I try to pick the best 25-30 days to hunt each year and work the rest.


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[Ericdc]

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[Ericdc]

Guess it depends on who you believe

http://weatherdecoded.com/2016-2017-winter-forecast/


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[Ericdc]

I hope winter sets in about the week of Christmas. I would take earlier of course, but at least give us something by Christmas week.


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[Rick]

I try to pick the best 25-30 days to hunt each year and work the rest.

I'm glad I work them all, because my weather based flight guessing record sucks.