Goose/duck field spread
#1
Thread Starter
Join Date: Oct 2007
Posts: 7
Goose/duck field spread
Was wondering what the best way to setup goose and duck decoys in a field spread is. I have 8 dozen GHG goosedecoys and 2 dozen GHG mallard decoys. I know that they need to be seperated but is it best to keep the ducks in towards the blinds or farther away.
#2
Join Date: Oct 2007
Posts: 29
RE: Goose/duck field spread
the location of your spread is going to depend first of all on what kind of blind your hunting from. if your hunting from a fenceline, thats going to limit you significantly. however, i assume your probably hunting from a layout blind, cause it seems like no field hunter goes without them these days. the most important aspect of decoy placement is proper scouting. successful field hunting results from successful scouting the day before. Geese and ducks tend to work a field in a pattern. Once discovering the field, they might work one corner, and then move around a little every day after that until the field has been pretty much cleared out or they lose interest. Remember when scouting the rule: scout 2 days before hand and the birds could be anywhere. Scout the night before, and you'll have a pretty good idea of where they are going to be in the morning. when scouting, observe the behavior of the ducks coming in to land with the geese. when hunting a field, i like to divide my mallard shells into smaller groups of 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, decoys and put a couple of those groups right in with the geese, and a couple of them on the outside of my goose spread. this looks really natural, as ducks will often focus in on the general area of a goose flock, but will tend to do their own thing and land just a few yards outside of the geese. Make sure you stay flexible out in the field. Nothing beats experimentation. If birds aren't coming to you the way you want them to, move them around until you get the right results.