Home Forums Hunting & Shooting General Big Game Spring snow geese hunt wanted

Anybody out Mississippi or Northward got any lines on these babies?

Got a couple of buddies that want to go whack and stack a couple truckloads of them.

Mike

Tony Dean, who hosts his own outdoor tv program, should be able to recommend some outfitters in the Dakotas.
www.tonydean.com

Thanks Norske! I'll check it out.


Anybody else?

Mike

If you want to go to southern missouri you can try mo ducks or flyin h outfitters.

we have went a few times with an outfitter in missouri and i will have too look for his name. but he only charged 85/day/man and we were responsible for our own lodging and bird care and liscenses etc.

I would bet ya anything if you did a small amount of research you could/would find an area in one of the Dakotas that had issues and opportunities.

I'd be for checking it out and then putting some $ to adds in some small town papers out there. I think it would work out just fine.

You could also if you narrowed the areas down do a net search for motels in the area and then e-mail them and see what there take is.

Good luck

Mark D

Already did a google search and saw some interesting places, but they were all in North and South Dakota. i would prefer to catch them further South if possible..To limit the amount of driving necessary.

I believe most of Mississippi is leased up..


I was hoping to hear some hunters experiences with operations as well.

Mike

Mike- I live here in North Dakota, and will give you my impression of the spring hunt here. First, though, I will qualify my statements as being my experiences, others my have differing results. Nor do I have any experience hunting in the southern states.

In my opinion, the spring hunt in North Dakota is more of a opportunistic endeavor, with timing being critical. By the time the geese reach ND, they are seriously chasing the snowline north, and aren't really interested in much more than a quick rest stop for a bite to eat and quick drink, then on Northward. It is very difficult to scout them out, as there is no pattern to their progress- basically they are where they are on that given day, and they'll be gone the next. One day, a certain field will be hotter than a urinary infection, the next day it'll colder than...well, you get the picture. The migration is usually over rather quickly, and you must be willing to travel with it if you want success.
Generally, the roads are pretty crappy in the spring- sloppy, muddy and traipsing up and down them in your truck just makes them worse. The fields aren't any better. We have been having some squabbles here in the press in regards to out-of-state hunters, and a lot of landowners have begun posting their property as a result (unfortunately). On the bright side, most farmers are pretty decent and polite, and usually will grant access if you ask.

If you do venture up this far north, I'd start in the Oakes ND region, venturing as far west as Jamestown. It seems that most of the migration seems to pass through that region, on up towards Devils Lake.

Here is a link to the ND Game and Fish Dept's website, regarding the spring season. As the season nears, they will usually have a link you can access for migration progress reports:

http://gf.nd.gov/hunting/waterfowl.html

The Kaiser

That's the kind of info I was looking for, thanks!

I've heard about the need to be ready to load and go when the birds arrive in the South as well, there just isn't enough food to hold that many birds very long..

Mike

I grew up in the Oakes area, and the migratory flights were one of our yardsticks that spring was actually going to come soon. When it'd peak, you'd see flights overhead nearly all day long. Once they start to head north, they aren't going to linger around so you can find the field they're feeding in. You HAVE to be mobile, along with them or they're going to leave you behind in the mud.

Have you been over to Duckhunter.net? I'm sure you could find loads more info there, than I could ever give you.

The Kaiser

Kaiser, I like your signature line.
I worked with a guy in the BLM years ago, his motto was : If it ain't broke, fix it until it is!
Kid

Check out HuntTheNorth.com and go to the Spring Snow Goose section. There are a few outfitters that chase the flocks from Nebraska and Missouri all the way up to the Canadian border. Spring snow goose hunting can be very hit or miss. Everyone wants to be where the bulk of the migration is, but truth be told, the best hunting is usually a week or two after the big flocks are gone and the straggling flocks of juviniles start to move through. It's alot harder to get a flock of 10,000 adults to come to your 500 decoys than it is a small flock of juvies. Be realistic too. While there certainly are 100 bird days, they are rare, and be wary of an outfitter that tells you to expect to shoot that many. For a group of 4 guys, 25-30 birds would usually be considered a pretty good day. The area around Squaw Creek refuge in Missouri is usually the first big hotspot for the spring flight, with the outfitters in that area starting up sometime around mid Feb.