All I am going to say is that if youre boat is brushed in well enough that it could be mistaken for an island out there it will work.
Wide Open Water Hunting
Every year on my drive home from hunting I follow the same road home that follows the river. I always see ducks hanging around the really wide areas of the river here around dubuque. It is just big wide open water out there with no cover, not one thing to hide in!
I am always use to hunting little potholes or flooded brush/timber areas with weeds everywhere.
Has anyone tried to take there boat with a blind on it and sit out in the middle of these wide open areas with dekes and get a shot.
I know people do this with lay out boats and those things look good out there, but a 4 ft tall blind out there, on a boat!???
I'm just curious to see if anyone else has tried with a boat blind in open water scenarios and had success?
Most of the time they are divers out there, but sometimes I'll see flocks of a hundred mallards land in the middle. Its just eating away at me that they are there every year and never bothered.
I am always use to hunting little potholes or flooded brush/timber areas with weeds everywhere.
Has anyone tried to take there boat with a blind on it and sit out in the middle of these wide open areas with dekes and get a shot.
I know people do this with lay out boats and those things look good out there, but a 4 ft tall blind out there, on a boat!???
I'm just curious to see if anyone else has tried with a boat blind in open water scenarios and had success?
Most of the time they are divers out there, but sometimes I'll see flocks of a hundred mallards land in the middle. Its just eating away at me that they are there every year and never bothered.
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There is always shit floating down the river so it really doesn't look that out of place. Try a cigar shaped spread on the leeward side of the boat. Be careful and remember that youre hunting a RIVER.
We actually thought the same thing the past couple years so last year we took an open boat and just ancored it out in the middle of open water. We sat on the floor of the boat and put divers all around us and supprisenly it worked great.. Helps with lots of wind and big waves though...Only thing we could think of was that them divers fly so low to the water its hard for them to make out the boat in the waves???? Dunno if it would work on mallards as they tend to fly higher...
Well I fish this part of the river for catfish every year. What do you mean by a cigar shape spread?? And Leeward side??
Don't I just play the wind like any other time?? Make sure it is at my back?
My blind is brushed good, but I don't know I still think it will look out of place. I only get to hunt on saturdays so I definitley don't want to waist a day, thats the only reason I ask.
Don't I just play the wind like any other time?? Make sure it is at my back?
My blind is brushed good, but I don't know I still think it will look out of place. I only get to hunt on saturdays so I definitley don't want to waist a day, thats the only reason I ask.
Are you trying to target the divers more or the mallards?? They work into a spread completly different
Dude I'm just sick of seeing at least a thousand ducks out there later in the year every day. I'll take whatever comes by. I would have to say mallards because I think the divers are a lot less smart and seem to come into any spread.
If you got any ideas for mallards I'd love to hear them.
If you got any ideas for mallards I'd love to hear them.
I present to you the cigar shaped spread! You should really invest in Field and Stream its not that expensive and great toilet reads!
I hear ya there lol Not too sure on the mallards as we usually get them on the marsh and in the field never had luck on the big water but diver wise get ya some white decoys and put em in a couple different lines and leave a big space in the middle and park your boat right there theyll come right to that opening no matter which way the wind blows... This has worked great for us anyways.....Dude I'm just sick of seeing at least a thousand ducks out there later in the year every day. I'll take whatever comes by. I would have to say mallards because I think the divers are a lot less smart and seem to come into any spread.
If you got any ideas for mallards I'd love to hear them.
So you are saying to parallel lines and sit in the middle?
I would have to say the thing that I am the worst at is spreads. Everything else I am pretty good at. I just do alot of scouting so I am always in the right spot, so I'd have to say that my spreads are never the reason as to why I kill ducks.
How far apart would you put the two lines.
Everytime I put a spread out they land on the outside edge and it is always to far to shoot it seems! If I move the spread closer they won't come in then. Just can't win! This is divers I'm talking about too though.
I would have to say the thing that I am the worst at is spreads. Everything else I am pretty good at. I just do alot of scouting so I am always in the right spot, so I'd have to say that my spreads are never the reason as to why I kill ducks.
How far apart would you put the two lines.
Everytime I put a spread out they land on the outside edge and it is always to far to shoot it seems! If I move the spread closer they won't come in then. Just can't win! This is divers I'm talking about too though.
Ya the easiest way is throw 8-12 on a gang line and throw one up river and park the boat at the end and throw another gang line starting at the back of your boat that way if they do land on the end theyre still in range you dont need a ton of deeks to pull in divers just see where the big concentration of em are and go there and kick em out, set up and pick off singles and doubles as they come back... maybe park the boat 10 yards back of em
Yeah I get what your saying.
Guess I'm just going to have to try.
If I get burnt though, never again.
Guess I'm just going to have to try.
If I get burnt though, never again.
My dad has told me stories of hunting down at redrock 20 years ago and them tying two or three boats together way out in the middle late season to make an island and they said it worked really well.
Yeah that sounds like a good idea, a lot of fun too!
The other thing just thought of, what if the dog does not get one, I'll be chasing ducks all the way down the river with the current that is out there.
That will suck too, but nothing you can do about that. I don't even know if the dog would go get anymore after three or four in that current. The current is not that bad late in the year but idano.
The other thing just thought of, what if the dog does not get one, I'll be chasing ducks all the way down the river with the current that is out there.
That will suck too, but nothing you can do about that. I don't even know if the dog would go get anymore after three or four in that current. The current is not that bad late in the year but idano.
If thats the case wait til later part of november thats when the big wads of divers start to show and go on a 15mph wind or more... The bigger the waves the better.....Yeah I get what your saying.
Guess I'm just going to have to try.
If I get burnt though, never again.
Ya we dont bring the dog at all on diver hunts too much to worry about because as soon as you knock one down you gotta be after it ESCPECIALLY if its a cripple
Why would you think the bigger the waves the better.
On real windy days we will see divers out on our farm ponds. I always figured they get off the river when it is really bad and thats why they are out there?
I was already thinking if it is windy I'll try to get to a spot that has the least amount of wind.
On real windy days we will see divers out on our farm ponds. I always figured they get off the river when it is really bad and thats why they are out there?
I was already thinking if it is windy I'll try to get to a spot that has the least amount of wind.
The wind seems to keep em up and moving around plus IMO they typically fly so low to the water i think the waves help to hide the boat.....Calm days we never do as good as when its blowing 20 mph
I have done it once in a boat with a hard sided blind and had mallards come it. I think it works with new ducks that do not know there should not be a giant weed in the middle of the lake/river
Don't take the dog. Attach a camo bouy to your anchor line with a quick connect clip on the end of the line. That way if you have to chase down a cripple it makes it easy to just unclip the boat and drop the line in the water. You can then come back to it, and it's right where you left it. Do you want a picture?The other thing just thought of, what if the dog does not get one, I'll be chasing ducks all the way down the river with the current that is out there.
We have been using that cigar shaped spread for years, and it works. Good luck. I am exactly the opposite of you though. My calling needs a lot of work, but I can set a decoy spread well enough that most of the time I don't need to call. This is an excellent time to use a floating spinning wing decoy too. Divers LOVE those things.1 - 20 of 25 Posts
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