i want to get started.
10-13-2008, 03:24 PM
#2
Nontypical Buck
Join Date: Jul 2007
Location: down in a hole
Posts: 1,441
RE: i want to get started.
Wow... one could right a book on what you could do to get started. The first thing I would do is find someone who has been waterfowl hunting for along time and become hunting partners, or find another person to get started with.Get some waders; some that are most convenient and comfortable for your environment. Scout out some spots: what I do is look at maps such as Google Earth. I'll find small streams and swamps, boat ramps, things like that. Then you need to make a run to that spot and spend a while scouting it out.
As for dekes, I'm assuming you'll be hunting mallards.Just get yourself about a dozen cheap mallard decoys, such as the "Hot Buy" mallard dekes.
Get a mallard call and practice with it. Get a good double reed and master that, and then get yourself a good single reed. Find a call that best fits you... ask around.
One thing that you need is waterproof clothing. Drake Waterfowl Systems are the most comfortable things that I've ever worn, and you will stay %100 dry.
I'm not an expert at this... I just started waterfowl last year. But since then I've been sleeping breathing and eating waterfowl. I've almost completely stopped all other hunting just so i can get ready for the seasons. This is the way I started. I met friends of friends who have done this all of their life, and they'll teach you everything they know, and maybe even show you some of their honey-holes!
As for dekes, I'm assuming you'll be hunting mallards.Just get yourself about a dozen cheap mallard decoys, such as the "Hot Buy" mallard dekes.
Get a mallard call and practice with it. Get a good double reed and master that, and then get yourself a good single reed. Find a call that best fits you... ask around.
One thing that you need is waterproof clothing. Drake Waterfowl Systems are the most comfortable things that I've ever worn, and you will stay %100 dry.
I'm not an expert at this... I just started waterfowl last year. But since then I've been sleeping breathing and eating waterfowl. I've almost completely stopped all other hunting just so i can get ready for the seasons. This is the way I started. I met friends of friends who have done this all of their life, and they'll teach you everything they know, and maybe even show you some of their honey-holes!
10-14-2008, 12:14 PM
#3
Giant Nontypical
Join Date: Jul 2004
Location:
Posts: 6,357
RE: i want to get started.
The best advice is to start small and simple.
You'll need a shotgun. Be aware that your shotgun is going to get abused -- probably some water will splash on it, you might drop it in the water, you mighttrip and jam your barrel down into the mud. This is just by way of warning that you might not want to borrow your dad's or your neighbor's beautiful wood stocked skeet/trap gun to do this. If you can afford it, buy a cheap synthetic stocked shotgun, for example a Remington 870. I bought mine for about $280 some three years ago. Similar deals can be had by watching the ads from the sporting goods stores. Take care of your gun by cleaning it and drying it as needed after every hunt. If you take care of it, you will be amazed at how much use you will get from it. Be aware that older shotguns may have barrels that can be damaged by shooting modern waterfowl shotgun shells. The issue is that lead shot used to be used in all shotgun shells but was outlawed for use hunting waterfowl. The thought was, reasonable enough and probably confirmed by study, that the lead shot settled to the bottom of ponds, ducks ingested lead while eating roots and tubers of water plants on the bottom of ponds, and the ducks were lead poisoned. Most of the approved lead shot replacements are very hard metals that can damage the older barrels. Make sure your shotgun barrel is suitable for waterfowl loads. Any new shotgun will be OK. If you are buying a shotgun, a 12 gauge is the standard for duck and goose hunting. You can find different chamberings 2 3/4", 3", and 3 1/2". You can probably do OK with any of these. At the same time, if you get a 3 1/2" chambering you can shoot all of these alternatives. You can find shotguns in pump, semi-automatic, and double guns. Pump and semi-automatics are preferred for duck hunting because you can and will use three shots. I shot a double on duck last year, for example, 2 ducks during one shooting encounter -- 1 shot on duck #1 and 2 shots on duck #2, three shots. A double gun only gives you two shots. A good semi-automatic shotgun is pretty expensive. A cheap semi-automatic shotgun is probably unreliable. Semi-automatic shotguns are mechanically complicated, which leads to the expense. Pump shotguns can be very cheap and very reliable. You will want some replaceable chokes for your shotgun. Modern shotguns typically have screw in chokes versus older shotguns that had fixed chokes. Get a "modified" choke and an "improved cylinder" choke. These control the width of the shot pattern. The improved cylinder spreads a very wide pattern making it easier to hit a flying bird; the modified choke spreads a narrower pattern making it harder to hit a flying bird, but concentrating the pattern so you can hit a bird with more pellets further away. When you become more proficient you may wish to have yet tighter chokes for hitting yet more distant birds, but you will want to select these chokes carefully to avoid damage to your gun when shooting various sized shotgun pellets. For ducks close in over decoys, try shooting #4 steel shot -- 2 3/4" shell. For more distant ducks you might try shooting #2 steel shot -- maybe in a 3" shell.
Find someone who will take you out duck hunting. They will tell you what else you need to have to get started. If you hunt from a blind accessed from a boat, you won't need waders. If you walk into a slough you may need waders. There is so much to learn, it is best to get out with someone who is an experienced duck hunter. Be aware that different hunters will know different things. One guy might know a lot about decoys but not be able to operate a duck call worth a damn. Another may call well, but not manage decoys well. Another might call well and manage decoys but have some other mistake that he makes. Learn from each of these guys whatever they have to teach you. Don't be afraid to distrust what they tell you if it goes against your instincts or thinking. On the other hand, don't insult them by calling them a lier or ignorant to their face!
You will need a valid hunting license, a federal migratory bird stamp (duck stamp), possibly a state migratory bird stamp (state duck stamp), and a harvest information permit (HIP -- maybe I have acronymized this in error). You should try to learn to identify ducks that are common in your area, as your limits will likely specify how many of each type of ducks you are allowed to take in a day. You might learn this from a library book or maybe from some other source of identification information.
Ducks are social creatures. They want to be with other ducks. Sometimes a duck will get separated from other ducks, then it wants to join up with other ducks. Ducks will congregate with ducksof different species. Ducks are migratory birds. Typically they are born and grow in northern areas and migrate south during the winter months. Ducks and geese get pushed down by weather, such as storms. They may travel a way south, find a place that pleases them, and stay there until the progress of the season again pushes them to migrate further south. Ducks like to sit out in the middle of the water rather than on the edge of the water where coyote can attack and eat them. They are also vulnerable to attack from hawks. This is a prey species, and as such they are pretty wary. You will hunt them from concealment and try to not alert them with undue motion or reflections of sunlight. The reason why decoys are important is because ducks are social and want to be with other ducks. In the best of circumstances, four or six ducks will all descend down to your spread of decoys to dine with their duck bretheren, but you will be waiting in the perfect position to blast them as they are frozen stationary in the air, just before they drop onto the water. Ducks tend to like to land facing into the wind. Your decoys should be anchored with lines and weightsto keep them from drifting off the pond, into the weeds at the edge of the pond. Real ducks don't dwell on the edge of ponds, hence decoys at the edge of ponds don't look reaslistic to ducks. In many situations, 12 or fewer decoys are plenty of decoys. On large open water, such as lakes or in the sea, larger decoy spreads are needed. Because ducks are prey species and wary, they tend to be most active at first light and last light. Thus, hunt from first legal shooting light until maybe 8 AM or 9 AM and from about 3:30 PM to last legal shooting light. You won't see amny ducks flying around from 10 AM to 3 PM, in most circumstances. There are exceptions. Aim for the head of the duck. Swing your shotgun and don't stop swinging. Lead the ducks more the further out they are. If you can, get some practice on skeep or trap shooting. Be careful and always mindful of where your shooting partners are.
If you are going to be needing waders, get the cheapest pair of chest waders you can get. These will last awhile, not very long, but long enough to determine if you like duck hunting and want to continue. If you can get a year out of these waders be happy. If you can get two years out of these cheap waders ,you are an exception. If you wear out your waders and you like duck hunting, then buy the best pair of waders you can get. I have and like the Cabelas Supermag waders. These have 5 mm neoprene material that is very warm even in the coldest conditions. I expect these waders to last about as long as any quality pair of waders will last -- but that is NOT forever, maybe 5 years? You will benefit from the extra money you pay for these high quality waders in extended, troublefree use, and additionally you will benefit from the intangible benefits of high quality -- greater comfort, more serviceability in hunting, ect.
Dress warmly. Often times you stand or sit still while waiting for ducks to come in. If you are cold, you will be miserable. Be mindful that much heat is lost from the head and have either a hooded parka or a ski cap or both for your head. Have gloves. If you can have gloves that shed water or are waterproof (neoprene gloves?) this would be good. When you go stomping around in the water to recover downed ducks you will then heat up considerably. Don't be afraid to unzip coats then or remove coats. Otherwise you will get very hot. I wear glasses and sometimes get so hot that perspiration steaming off my face fogs my glasses and I can't see to shoot. Better to shed a coat at the right time than to have fogged glasses.
With time you will want to get some duck calls. Don't over do it. Buy one or two plastic calls and focus on calling well rather than buying many calls or expensive calls. While hunting, note the cadence and timing of the calls of real ducks. It is important to immitate this cadence, maybe even more important than the exact tone of the calls. Be aware that you can over call. Some ducks just aren't going to come to you, so don't overdo calling in hopes of pulling them in. Watch how the ducks respond to your calling and adjust accordingly. Calling is a sophisticated and advanced skill. Don't fret about this early, just be aware that this is an art that as you progress you will want to study more profoundly.
With time, you will want to get some decoys. Start with a dozen standard sized mixed mallard drakes and hens. Get anchors and anchor lines and a decoy bag to carry these on your back. You'll find all this stuff sold by hunting retailers -- Wal-Mart, Cabelas, Bass Pro-Shops. To start, buy cheap decoys. If you like duck hunting, next time buy better decoys -- they will last longer probably. Be ready to have substantial difficulties keeping the anchor lines untangled. That's life. I am using a system now that I hope resolves this problem, sort of a bungee chord deal that allows my to hook my anchors on the keel of the decoy and not come untangled in my decoy bag. It seems to have worked the one or two times I used it at the end of last season, after struggling with tangles lines for about two seasons. Over time you might collect other decoys, such as some teal decoys. You don't have to have every possible species of decoy. Most puddle ducks will come in to mallard decoys.
As with all hunting, knowledge is your most powerful tool. At first the key activity you will benefit from the most is observing. So pay attention and watch. You learn from everything at the start. Just watching the birds and what they do is knowledge for the newcomer that is critical. What do they do, when do they do it. Oh look there, that damn bird is turning his head to eyeball us!!! No joke, I better keep still and hidden and take advantage of camoflage because SURE those birds are looking down here and they can SURE see me!!!
Good luck. By the way, don't be afraid to BOLDLY ask duck hunters to take you out and to plainly state you are a new comer wanting to learn the sport. I think very many duck hunters welcome others into the sport and know how much they owe to others who introduced them and taught them the sport. On the other hand, do not be disappointed if and when you are turned down. Many take duck hunting seriously and don't want to share or diminish their pleasure taking out a greenhorn who is going to spook ducks, shoot to early, and have other problems that impact their hunt. There are different levels of charitability and selfless generosity in all of us.
Also, don't get distracted by accumulating equipment and gear at the start. Insist on a minimal investment to get started -- a shotgun and if needed cheap waders. Ride on this alone until you have to replace the waders or other things force you to add gear. This way you learn if you like duck hunting and also what you really need. The risk is that you will be persauded through ignorance that you have to buy tons of equipment, merely lining the pockets of the hunting equipment retailers while perhaps not materially increasing your hunting success. People got by for years without tons of fancy duck hunting equipment. Ease into the equipment accumulation slowly.
You'll need a shotgun. Be aware that your shotgun is going to get abused -- probably some water will splash on it, you might drop it in the water, you mighttrip and jam your barrel down into the mud. This is just by way of warning that you might not want to borrow your dad's or your neighbor's beautiful wood stocked skeet/trap gun to do this. If you can afford it, buy a cheap synthetic stocked shotgun, for example a Remington 870. I bought mine for about $280 some three years ago. Similar deals can be had by watching the ads from the sporting goods stores. Take care of your gun by cleaning it and drying it as needed after every hunt. If you take care of it, you will be amazed at how much use you will get from it. Be aware that older shotguns may have barrels that can be damaged by shooting modern waterfowl shotgun shells. The issue is that lead shot used to be used in all shotgun shells but was outlawed for use hunting waterfowl. The thought was, reasonable enough and probably confirmed by study, that the lead shot settled to the bottom of ponds, ducks ingested lead while eating roots and tubers of water plants on the bottom of ponds, and the ducks were lead poisoned. Most of the approved lead shot replacements are very hard metals that can damage the older barrels. Make sure your shotgun barrel is suitable for waterfowl loads. Any new shotgun will be OK. If you are buying a shotgun, a 12 gauge is the standard for duck and goose hunting. You can find different chamberings 2 3/4", 3", and 3 1/2". You can probably do OK with any of these. At the same time, if you get a 3 1/2" chambering you can shoot all of these alternatives. You can find shotguns in pump, semi-automatic, and double guns. Pump and semi-automatics are preferred for duck hunting because you can and will use three shots. I shot a double on duck last year, for example, 2 ducks during one shooting encounter -- 1 shot on duck #1 and 2 shots on duck #2, three shots. A double gun only gives you two shots. A good semi-automatic shotgun is pretty expensive. A cheap semi-automatic shotgun is probably unreliable. Semi-automatic shotguns are mechanically complicated, which leads to the expense. Pump shotguns can be very cheap and very reliable. You will want some replaceable chokes for your shotgun. Modern shotguns typically have screw in chokes versus older shotguns that had fixed chokes. Get a "modified" choke and an "improved cylinder" choke. These control the width of the shot pattern. The improved cylinder spreads a very wide pattern making it easier to hit a flying bird; the modified choke spreads a narrower pattern making it harder to hit a flying bird, but concentrating the pattern so you can hit a bird with more pellets further away. When you become more proficient you may wish to have yet tighter chokes for hitting yet more distant birds, but you will want to select these chokes carefully to avoid damage to your gun when shooting various sized shotgun pellets. For ducks close in over decoys, try shooting #4 steel shot -- 2 3/4" shell. For more distant ducks you might try shooting #2 steel shot -- maybe in a 3" shell.
Find someone who will take you out duck hunting. They will tell you what else you need to have to get started. If you hunt from a blind accessed from a boat, you won't need waders. If you walk into a slough you may need waders. There is so much to learn, it is best to get out with someone who is an experienced duck hunter. Be aware that different hunters will know different things. One guy might know a lot about decoys but not be able to operate a duck call worth a damn. Another may call well, but not manage decoys well. Another might call well and manage decoys but have some other mistake that he makes. Learn from each of these guys whatever they have to teach you. Don't be afraid to distrust what they tell you if it goes against your instincts or thinking. On the other hand, don't insult them by calling them a lier or ignorant to their face!
You will need a valid hunting license, a federal migratory bird stamp (duck stamp), possibly a state migratory bird stamp (state duck stamp), and a harvest information permit (HIP -- maybe I have acronymized this in error). You should try to learn to identify ducks that are common in your area, as your limits will likely specify how many of each type of ducks you are allowed to take in a day. You might learn this from a library book or maybe from some other source of identification information.
Ducks are social creatures. They want to be with other ducks. Sometimes a duck will get separated from other ducks, then it wants to join up with other ducks. Ducks will congregate with ducksof different species. Ducks are migratory birds. Typically they are born and grow in northern areas and migrate south during the winter months. Ducks and geese get pushed down by weather, such as storms. They may travel a way south, find a place that pleases them, and stay there until the progress of the season again pushes them to migrate further south. Ducks like to sit out in the middle of the water rather than on the edge of the water where coyote can attack and eat them. They are also vulnerable to attack from hawks. This is a prey species, and as such they are pretty wary. You will hunt them from concealment and try to not alert them with undue motion or reflections of sunlight. The reason why decoys are important is because ducks are social and want to be with other ducks. In the best of circumstances, four or six ducks will all descend down to your spread of decoys to dine with their duck bretheren, but you will be waiting in the perfect position to blast them as they are frozen stationary in the air, just before they drop onto the water. Ducks tend to like to land facing into the wind. Your decoys should be anchored with lines and weightsto keep them from drifting off the pond, into the weeds at the edge of the pond. Real ducks don't dwell on the edge of ponds, hence decoys at the edge of ponds don't look reaslistic to ducks. In many situations, 12 or fewer decoys are plenty of decoys. On large open water, such as lakes or in the sea, larger decoy spreads are needed. Because ducks are prey species and wary, they tend to be most active at first light and last light. Thus, hunt from first legal shooting light until maybe 8 AM or 9 AM and from about 3:30 PM to last legal shooting light. You won't see amny ducks flying around from 10 AM to 3 PM, in most circumstances. There are exceptions. Aim for the head of the duck. Swing your shotgun and don't stop swinging. Lead the ducks more the further out they are. If you can, get some practice on skeep or trap shooting. Be careful and always mindful of where your shooting partners are.
If you are going to be needing waders, get the cheapest pair of chest waders you can get. These will last awhile, not very long, but long enough to determine if you like duck hunting and want to continue. If you can get a year out of these waders be happy. If you can get two years out of these cheap waders ,you are an exception. If you wear out your waders and you like duck hunting, then buy the best pair of waders you can get. I have and like the Cabelas Supermag waders. These have 5 mm neoprene material that is very warm even in the coldest conditions. I expect these waders to last about as long as any quality pair of waders will last -- but that is NOT forever, maybe 5 years? You will benefit from the extra money you pay for these high quality waders in extended, troublefree use, and additionally you will benefit from the intangible benefits of high quality -- greater comfort, more serviceability in hunting, ect.
Dress warmly. Often times you stand or sit still while waiting for ducks to come in. If you are cold, you will be miserable. Be mindful that much heat is lost from the head and have either a hooded parka or a ski cap or both for your head. Have gloves. If you can have gloves that shed water or are waterproof (neoprene gloves?) this would be good. When you go stomping around in the water to recover downed ducks you will then heat up considerably. Don't be afraid to unzip coats then or remove coats. Otherwise you will get very hot. I wear glasses and sometimes get so hot that perspiration steaming off my face fogs my glasses and I can't see to shoot. Better to shed a coat at the right time than to have fogged glasses.
With time you will want to get some duck calls. Don't over do it. Buy one or two plastic calls and focus on calling well rather than buying many calls or expensive calls. While hunting, note the cadence and timing of the calls of real ducks. It is important to immitate this cadence, maybe even more important than the exact tone of the calls. Be aware that you can over call. Some ducks just aren't going to come to you, so don't overdo calling in hopes of pulling them in. Watch how the ducks respond to your calling and adjust accordingly. Calling is a sophisticated and advanced skill. Don't fret about this early, just be aware that this is an art that as you progress you will want to study more profoundly.
With time, you will want to get some decoys. Start with a dozen standard sized mixed mallard drakes and hens. Get anchors and anchor lines and a decoy bag to carry these on your back. You'll find all this stuff sold by hunting retailers -- Wal-Mart, Cabelas, Bass Pro-Shops. To start, buy cheap decoys. If you like duck hunting, next time buy better decoys -- they will last longer probably. Be ready to have substantial difficulties keeping the anchor lines untangled. That's life. I am using a system now that I hope resolves this problem, sort of a bungee chord deal that allows my to hook my anchors on the keel of the decoy and not come untangled in my decoy bag. It seems to have worked the one or two times I used it at the end of last season, after struggling with tangles lines for about two seasons. Over time you might collect other decoys, such as some teal decoys. You don't have to have every possible species of decoy. Most puddle ducks will come in to mallard decoys.
As with all hunting, knowledge is your most powerful tool. At first the key activity you will benefit from the most is observing. So pay attention and watch. You learn from everything at the start. Just watching the birds and what they do is knowledge for the newcomer that is critical. What do they do, when do they do it. Oh look there, that damn bird is turning his head to eyeball us!!! No joke, I better keep still and hidden and take advantage of camoflage because SURE those birds are looking down here and they can SURE see me!!!
Good luck. By the way, don't be afraid to BOLDLY ask duck hunters to take you out and to plainly state you are a new comer wanting to learn the sport. I think very many duck hunters welcome others into the sport and know how much they owe to others who introduced them and taught them the sport. On the other hand, do not be disappointed if and when you are turned down. Many take duck hunting seriously and don't want to share or diminish their pleasure taking out a greenhorn who is going to spook ducks, shoot to early, and have other problems that impact their hunt. There are different levels of charitability and selfless generosity in all of us.
Also, don't get distracted by accumulating equipment and gear at the start. Insist on a minimal investment to get started -- a shotgun and if needed cheap waders. Ride on this alone until you have to replace the waders or other things force you to add gear. This way you learn if you like duck hunting and also what you really need. The risk is that you will be persauded through ignorance that you have to buy tons of equipment, merely lining the pockets of the hunting equipment retailers while perhaps not materially increasing your hunting success. People got by for years without tons of fancy duck hunting equipment. Ease into the equipment accumulation slowly.
10-18-2008, 09:51 AM
#8
Join Date: Oct 2008
Posts: 2
RE: i want to get started.
Great posts already. I would only add the following because I am also brand new to duck hunting.
A buddy got me into it and now I call him my crack dealer. He isn't a pro either so we just go out and see what happens. We have learned alot from just going out. We have gone to the same marsh a few times and from that we learned where the ducks like to go on the marsh and the time of day they prefer. We have learned that a large number of woodies use a certain spot to roost and fly in from some flooded timber a little ways away. We didn't get many birds during the early Teal season, I didn't get any, but we learned alot and feel like we are ready for the opener next weekend.
I would also recommend joining your local DU chapter. That way you will meet fellow hunters that may invite you to head out with them. I have been invited to go out twice with the local president but scheduling has always interfered.
Good luck.
A buddy got me into it and now I call him my crack dealer. He isn't a pro either so we just go out and see what happens. We have learned alot from just going out. We have gone to the same marsh a few times and from that we learned where the ducks like to go on the marsh and the time of day they prefer. We have learned that a large number of woodies use a certain spot to roost and fly in from some flooded timber a little ways away. We didn't get many birds during the early Teal season, I didn't get any, but we learned alot and feel like we are ready for the opener next weekend.
I would also recommend joining your local DU chapter. That way you will meet fellow hunters that may invite you to head out with them. I have been invited to go out twice with the local president but scheduling has always interfered.
Good luck.
