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Started By
Message
Lets have a discussion about marsh hunting
Posted on 11/10/15 at 8:30 am
Posted on 11/10/15 at 8:30 am
Just trying to drum up some discussion that's not about banning motors or complaining about openers, splits, etc.
How do you primarily hunt? Boat blind, ground blind, etc?
Are you hunting big bodies of water or smaller ponds?
How many decoys are you using and in what orientation?
What do you think is the key to your success if you have any?
Any other tips, concerns, or questions are welcome. I figured we could get a good conversation going about hunting the marsh since it varies from place to place and is easily the most challenging of all forms in LA.
How do you primarily hunt? Boat blind, ground blind, etc?
Are you hunting big bodies of water or smaller ponds?
How many decoys are you using and in what orientation?
What do you think is the key to your success if you have any?
Any other tips, concerns, or questions are welcome. I figured we could get a good conversation going about hunting the marsh since it varies from place to place and is easily the most challenging of all forms in LA.
This post was edited on 11/10/15 at 8:40 am
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Posted on 11/10/15 at 8:46 am to PapaPogey
good topic and questions.
I hunt mainly out of a boat and use the natural cane and willows to build a blind around the boat.
we hunt some open water and some small ponds, this past weekend it was a shallow pond they were holding in and well we didn't even use a call but it all depends on where they wanna be at.
decoys is different depending on pond size to me. we used 4 dozen Saturday, 2 dozen gads, 2 dozen teal, and a couple pintail. smaller ponds ill use less decoys. we also had 2 mojos which I wont use much after the first of the season.
Saturday success was waiting and not calling much. we called early and they didn't want to come in. teal came in regardless but the grays wanted no calling, you just have to see what they want.
main thing I will say is scout, don't just go to your go to spot and say we killed em here last week. yea they may be there but birds change in the marsh. plus I hunt public so pressure is more then private.
I hunt mainly out of a boat and use the natural cane and willows to build a blind around the boat.
we hunt some open water and some small ponds, this past weekend it was a shallow pond they were holding in and well we didn't even use a call but it all depends on where they wanna be at.
decoys is different depending on pond size to me. we used 4 dozen Saturday, 2 dozen gads, 2 dozen teal, and a couple pintail. smaller ponds ill use less decoys. we also had 2 mojos which I wont use much after the first of the season.
Saturday success was waiting and not calling much. we called early and they didn't want to come in. teal came in regardless but the grays wanted no calling, you just have to see what they want.
main thing I will say is scout, don't just go to your go to spot and say we killed em here last week. yea they may be there but birds change in the marsh. plus I hunt public so pressure is more then private.
Posted on 11/10/15 at 8:49 am to PapaPogey
I haven't duck hunted in a few years, but it was typically in the marsh. Usually either took a flat boat in and then switched to a pee-rawg when it got tight. When hunting flooded timber, it was either a long tail or a pee-rawg.
Some of these guys with surface drives have big parties where they just go tear up shite
Some of these guys with surface drives have big parties where they just go tear up shite
Posted on 11/10/15 at 8:49 am to PapaPogey
I feel like posting this pic I took Saturday morning.
Check out the gator that looks like it's waiting for my Mojo to land
We built a blind on our lease. It's more marsh than ag field, but i don't consider it true marsh either.
Check out the gator that looks like it's waiting for my Mojo to land
We built a blind on our lease. It's more marsh than ag field, but i don't consider it true marsh either.
Posted on 11/10/15 at 8:59 am to WHODAT514
quote:
I hunt mainly out of a boat and use the natural cane and willows to build a blind around the boat.
We don't have the big patches of roseau cane where I'm at, just short and thick marsh grass so it's difficult to hide a boat if I decide to go that route. I've been parking the boat and taking to the pirogue to the blind, where you really have to be as low as possible in order to still look somewhat natural to the birds.
quote:
main thing I will say is scout, don't just go to your go to spot and say we killed em here last week. yea they may be there but birds change in the marsh. plus I hunt public so pressure is more then private.
I'm at least hunting blind on Saturday mornings because I don't really have time to scout on Fridays so that's that.
Posted on 11/10/15 at 9:35 am to PapaPogey
yea the way you are doing it sounds best, some guys by us hunted from pirogues and stood in the cane. they limited in 30 mins with 4 man limit..so a pirogue will work if that's the easiest to cover
yea I mean you hunt private so you can hunt and then scout after really. I am looking forward to this season. I found many good spots I can hunt from a pirogue if I cant get access to a mud boat.
yea I mean you hunt private so you can hunt and then scout after really. I am looking forward to this season. I found many good spots I can hunt from a pirogue if I cant get access to a mud boat.
Posted on 11/10/15 at 9:43 am to PapaPogey
First season at my new lease.
Small pond biggest is about 2 acres but most are around 150x100 pot holes.
Two free standing platform blinds. Rest of the ponds require a boat blind. (about 6 huntable ponds)
Using 18-24 decoys right now. (actually left them out this past weekend)
If i find success i will post about it
Small pond biggest is about 2 acres but most are around 150x100 pot holes.
Two free standing platform blinds. Rest of the ponds require a boat blind. (about 6 huntable ponds)
Using 18-24 decoys right now. (actually left them out this past weekend)
If i find success i will post about it
Posted on 11/10/15 at 9:45 am to PapaPogey
when we hunt the marsh, we take in a pirogue, ram it into the short cane and cover up best we can. Use only a few decoys and leave the mojos at home. South of dulac, the birds fly late, so you can sleep in. it's weird and I'm learning it still.
Posted on 11/10/15 at 9:52 am to WHODAT514
We hunt public and it all depends on where we are going. If there is a lot of cane and we can hide the profile, we hunt out of the boat. It has a blind on it and we just make sure to add a bit of the surroundings to blend. We also have a large sheet of cane/grass that we can cover the boat with an get out if the surroundings are too low. We have also parked the boat about 100 yards from the blind and walked to our spot. We usually carry about 5 dozen deeks and use what the area will hold.
Posted on 11/10/15 at 9:54 am to Motorboat
Since the marsh is pretty hard, I've been considering using some layout blinds to stay low and pretty easily hidden. Another advantage would be the ease of transport if I needed to move. I've got 3k acres to move around on depending on where some of the other guys are hunting.
Posted on 11/10/15 at 9:57 am to PapaPogey
We always just kneeled down
Posted on 11/10/15 at 9:59 am to PapaPogey
1. I hunt in a boat blind on a 5 or 6 acre pond.
2. We usually use 3-5 dozen decoys as we are trying to imitate larger rafts of ducks
3. we usually kill our limit, passing on divers and killing teal and greys. However, when it is slow, we aren't picky.
4. many decoys seems to be crucial as 1 or 2 dozen in a large are looks unnatural.
5. Most Summer mallards and real mallards I Kill in a ground blind overlooking small potholes.
2. We usually use 3-5 dozen decoys as we are trying to imitate larger rafts of ducks
3. we usually kill our limit, passing on divers and killing teal and greys. However, when it is slow, we aren't picky.
4. many decoys seems to be crucial as 1 or 2 dozen in a large are looks unnatural.
5. Most Summer mallards and real mallards I Kill in a ground blind overlooking small potholes.
Posted on 11/10/15 at 10:00 am to Hammertime
Yeah I mean we ended up just sitting on our asses for the last hour of the hunt, but when it gets cold and I'm wet/muddy I want to be somewhat comfortable if I'm waiting out the birds for a few hours.
Posted on 11/10/15 at 10:13 am to PapaPogey
quote:
How do you primarily hunt? Boat blind, ground blind, etc?
Usually Indian hunt it standing/sitting on marsh stools in or behind roseau's. All depends on water level, wind, and scouting reports.
quote:
Are you hunting big bodies of water or smaller ponds?
Will do both, early season usually big bodies before the ducks get shy
quote:
How many decoys are you using and in what orientation?
2 dozen this weekend, I usually don't go overboard since I'm about 215 lbs and it can get pretty soft out there
quote:
What do you think is the key to your success if you have any?
migration patterns, I doubt it has much to do with our setup being better than others. It's just easier to shoot em when you have more ducks
Posted on 11/10/15 at 10:23 am to PapaPogey
quote:
How do you primarily hunt? Boat blind, ground blind, etc
pop up in lake boeuf, or open water.
in the marsh I hunt from a pirogue
quote:
Are you hunting big bodies of water or smaller ponds
later in the season, big bodies. early potholes because its primarily teal.
as far as orientation, if we have lots of dekes, we leave a few landing holes
I usually hunt with like a dozen max, so a J hook where they land into the wind.
This post was edited on 11/10/15 at 10:24 am
Posted on 11/10/15 at 10:26 am to PapaPogey
I've hunted from boat blinds, marsh stools in small blinds and sitting in the grass. It has all depended on where I hunted.
Most marsh I've been in around the Atchaflaya requires a boat blind because of the mud. In open water we've used boat blinds with tons of added brush and also small blinds where we sat on marsh stools. Later in the season, we go smaller.
On the east side of the state the grass is thick and rooted enough that you can get in it and blend in really well.
All depends on the places you hunt. Not having a dog makes open water a pita. The wind, current and tide require you to haul arse after a down bird before it disappears.
Open water also provides a lot more canvasbacks and redheads if you're into that.
As far as decoys go, in the marsh we usually do 2-4 dozen mixed decoys. Open water I've done as much as 10 dozen. Putting species together seems to help more than a complete mix.
Also. Pay attention to the tides. I can't speak for everywhere but in Atchaflaya delta it can quickly leave you stranded.
Most marsh I've been in around the Atchaflaya requires a boat blind because of the mud. In open water we've used boat blinds with tons of added brush and also small blinds where we sat on marsh stools. Later in the season, we go smaller.
On the east side of the state the grass is thick and rooted enough that you can get in it and blend in really well.
All depends on the places you hunt. Not having a dog makes open water a pita. The wind, current and tide require you to haul arse after a down bird before it disappears.
Open water also provides a lot more canvasbacks and redheads if you're into that.
As far as decoys go, in the marsh we usually do 2-4 dozen mixed decoys. Open water I've done as much as 10 dozen. Putting species together seems to help more than a complete mix.
Also. Pay attention to the tides. I can't speak for everywhere but in Atchaflaya delta it can quickly leave you stranded.
This post was edited on 11/10/15 at 10:30 am
Posted on 11/10/15 at 10:31 am to Redfish2010
So you going to take me out on that new boat when I get back state side?
See if your decoy spread game has improved.
See if your decoy spread game has improved.
Posted on 11/10/15 at 10:37 am to GREENHEAD22
Begs for hunt. Criticizes host.
Posted on 11/10/15 at 10:44 am to Redfish2010
quote:
Atchaflaya delta it can quickly leave you stranded.
Saw three boats within 300 yds of each other leaning on side on the mud flat sunday....40-50' away from the channel. No way I could've helped them.
Posted on 11/10/15 at 10:52 am to CootDisCootDat
I believe it.
You gonna be down there this weekend?
You gonna be down there this weekend?
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