need help on dove hunting
07-10-2004, 08:28 PM
#11
Spike
Join Date: Feb 2003
Location: Hawthorne CA
Posts: 41
RE: need help on dove hunting
Hey guys,
Seems like the common thread (no pun intended) in this forum is 'find a flyway, roost, water & feed, and then park your @$$ right there!'
There's a reason why Sept. 1 sees more hunters afield than any other day of the year. It's a time to gather, reflect, tell stories, lie a little bit, get up just a wee bit earlier than we'd like, and relish it all as the first gray rocket blows by us in the dawn's early light.
Man, I love it when my buddies light up the fields, signaling the first flight. And it kills me when the stroke of 'shootin' time' comes, and I don't hear a single burp of lead. Either way, it's opening day, and I'm just happy to be afield. Some years I walk with a limit of dove and I've barely broken a sweat from the San Juaquin Valley's blazing sunrise. Others, I'm parched and pissed and have maybe three birds in the bag. Doesn't matter, it's opening day, and I'm just happy to be afield.
Me and my buddies, we're just like y'all, bustin' one another's chops about easy shots at 20 yards and unbelievable drops at 50+. But one thing's for sure, we're out there flingin' lead at blue sky and thankin' our Armed Forces for once again for givin' us the chance to pursue our passion!
You see, take-em, it's not any different from any other hunt you experience every year. You've gotta scout your area, prepare yourself and your gear, and then shoot well when the time arrives. Heck, don't need wetlands, miles of backdrop to absorb an errant shot, and stealth isn't really an issue. Just gotta get your @$$ up early, make sure your buddies are up too, and get out there before that sun gets up and rears its head on ya.
Oh yeah, one more thing:
Wrap those breasts in peppered bacon when you BBQ 'em, they're that much more delicious!
Good shootin' to ya!
d
Seems like the common thread (no pun intended) in this forum is 'find a flyway, roost, water & feed, and then park your @$$ right there!'
There's a reason why Sept. 1 sees more hunters afield than any other day of the year. It's a time to gather, reflect, tell stories, lie a little bit, get up just a wee bit earlier than we'd like, and relish it all as the first gray rocket blows by us in the dawn's early light.
Man, I love it when my buddies light up the fields, signaling the first flight. And it kills me when the stroke of 'shootin' time' comes, and I don't hear a single burp of lead. Either way, it's opening day, and I'm just happy to be afield. Some years I walk with a limit of dove and I've barely broken a sweat from the San Juaquin Valley's blazing sunrise. Others, I'm parched and pissed and have maybe three birds in the bag. Doesn't matter, it's opening day, and I'm just happy to be afield.
Me and my buddies, we're just like y'all, bustin' one another's chops about easy shots at 20 yards and unbelievable drops at 50+. But one thing's for sure, we're out there flingin' lead at blue sky and thankin' our Armed Forces for once again for givin' us the chance to pursue our passion!
You see, take-em, it's not any different from any other hunt you experience every year. You've gotta scout your area, prepare yourself and your gear, and then shoot well when the time arrives. Heck, don't need wetlands, miles of backdrop to absorb an errant shot, and stealth isn't really an issue. Just gotta get your @$$ up early, make sure your buddies are up too, and get out there before that sun gets up and rears its head on ya.
Oh yeah, one more thing:
Wrap those breasts in peppered bacon when you BBQ 'em, they're that much more delicious!
Good shootin' to ya!
d
07-20-2004, 02:35 PM
#12
Join Date: Jul 2004
Location: NE Indiana
Posts: 18
RE: need help on dove hunting
YEP,YEP and Yep
sunflowers,water,LOTS OF LEAD
We plant our own dove strips in the fields in areas that don't really grow anything else
but sunflowers and some weeds. Hit the area with a gravel rake and a couple handfuls of seed drag a log chain over the top and wait till DOVE season!! I have also heard that some use decoys they usually put them in an old artificial christmas tree or on a piece of rope tied between two trees and set back under the limbs!! GOOD LUCK
sunflowers,water,LOTS OF LEAD
We plant our own dove strips in the fields in areas that don't really grow anything else
but sunflowers and some weeds. Hit the area with a gravel rake and a couple handfuls of seed drag a log chain over the top and wait till DOVE season!! I have also heard that some use decoys they usually put them in an old artificial christmas tree or on a piece of rope tied between two trees and set back under the limbs!! GOOD LUCK
08-10-2004, 08:13 AM
#14
Join Date: Aug 2004
Location:
Posts: 49
RE: need help on dove hunting
One thing that hasn't really been emphasized yet...SCOUT YOUR AREAS.
You've been told all the things to look for, when to get out of bed, how many shells to take (remember the national average is 8.3 shells per bird), what kind of gun & choke to use, etc. No matter how well you do all that stuff, if there are no nirds around it was all for nothing. (Ok, easy now...I know, it's better than a day at work or mowing the yard)
Just use the week or so before opening day to take some early morning drives to check your areas for birds. And if you don't plan on hunting at first light, then make some checks at noon when many seasons open on the first day.
Most of all, have fun, be safe and watch for other peoples' dogs. It's easy too shot at everything and not realize another guy has a dog retrieving birds. Nothing caps my @ss more than having someone shoot 6 feet over my dog's head.
You've been told all the things to look for, when to get out of bed, how many shells to take (remember the national average is 8.3 shells per bird), what kind of gun & choke to use, etc. No matter how well you do all that stuff, if there are no nirds around it was all for nothing. (Ok, easy now...I know, it's better than a day at work or mowing the yard)
Just use the week or so before opening day to take some early morning drives to check your areas for birds. And if you don't plan on hunting at first light, then make some checks at noon when many seasons open on the first day.
Most of all, have fun, be safe and watch for other peoples' dogs. It's easy too shot at everything and not realize another guy has a dog retrieving birds. Nothing caps my @ss more than having someone shoot 6 feet over my dog's head.
08-10-2004, 11:31 PM
#15
Typical Buck
Join Date: Dec 2003
Location: central Ky
Posts: 601
RE: need help on dove hunting
Dove shoots are a big deal here in Ky too. We hunt over sunflowers and there are a couple of gravel roads that run between the sunflower fields. I shoot a Red Label 20ga loaded with # 7's high-brass with a modified and a full choke.(full for when I miss on the first shot)lol Like others have said, get a comfy chair, take plenty of shells, wear camo and have a cooler for the birds that you didn't miss.hehe
08-11-2004, 09:08 AM
#17
Join Date: May 2004
Location:
Posts: 429
RE: need help on dove hunting
I don't know where you are but in Northeast Oklahoma corn fields are by far the best. The corn needs to be cut. Leaving strips or clumps uncut is great for cover. Uncut fields are difficult to hunt. If you can burn part of it a week or so prior, so much the better. They love toasted grain. (Burnt alfalfa ought to be good also).
You need to be scouting prior to opening day. And I mean right up until the day before. Dove have a tendency to be there one day and gone the next. Very sensitive to weather changes. When you find a hot field pay close attention to which direction they are coming from and what landmarks or terrain features they travel on. They really relate to flyways like treelines or fencelines. And be there to scout before daylight. Your first half hour will most likely be the best. Hunt your fields in the morning and water in afternoon or evening.
With a name like "take-em" you are no stranger to wingshooting and probably have a dog. This is an excellent first season outing for your dog, too.
You also need enough guys in the field to keep them stirred up. On a hot field you need guys spread around the perimeter and if you have the room, you need some in the middle. 20 guys in 40 acres is not too many. And believe me, when the dove are using a field heavily it will sound like a war zone and they will keep coming.
Good Luck!
You need to be scouting prior to opening day. And I mean right up until the day before. Dove have a tendency to be there one day and gone the next. Very sensitive to weather changes. When you find a hot field pay close attention to which direction they are coming from and what landmarks or terrain features they travel on. They really relate to flyways like treelines or fencelines. And be there to scout before daylight. Your first half hour will most likely be the best. Hunt your fields in the morning and water in afternoon or evening.
With a name like "take-em" you are no stranger to wingshooting and probably have a dog. This is an excellent first season outing for your dog, too.
You also need enough guys in the field to keep them stirred up. On a hot field you need guys spread around the perimeter and if you have the room, you need some in the middle. 20 guys in 40 acres is not too many. And believe me, when the dove are using a field heavily it will sound like a war zone and they will keep coming.
Good Luck!
12-10-2010, 08:16 AM
#19
Spike
Join Date: Dec 2010
Posts: 3
I've been working for a farmer the last two weeks. He has 200 acres of sweet corn that has been being decimated by the starlings. He hired me to eradicate them (like that will actually ever happen). Anyhow, I've been shooting between 500 and 1,000 shells a day for just over two weeks now. The starlings here are the same size roughly as the doves. #8 works in close range with less than 5 mph wind. Anything over 5 mph of wind and outside of 20 yards range I'm stepping up to larger size shot. The largest I went to as of yet was BBB Black Cloud 3". It worked well, but was windy then and still a bit excessive.
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