Allowing hunts in Sanctuaries !?!?!

[Stringerless!]

Two days a week the Dnr is going to allow 2 blinds of hunters in 2 areas of Carlos Avery. Lottery drawing. I guess I do not see the logic. Is this going to become commonplace at more sanctuaries. Hunter recruitemant? That is what youth day is for. Any opinions ?

[jparrucci]

About time. We should be hunting birds on Calhoun, Prior, Minnetonka, wherever. Ducks have become more than accustomed to safe areas. I bet the metro holds more mallards than anywhere in the state, yet not one of them is ever harvested in this state. We block off most of the Mississippi and Minnesota Rivers, from the cities and south. Only a few areas allow hunting where our highest concentration of birds are. The birds then leave Minnesota, and get slaughtered throughout the rest of the flyway. It seems the DNR is doing everything it can to discourage bagging ducks, between spinning wing, 9am start time on opener, 4 mallard limit, 2 wood duck limit, and not allowing hunting on so much of our best duck habitat. Yet we continue to spend millions on land that is horrible cattail swamps that hold and produce very few ducks. Meanwhile, the ducks laugh as they fly down the Mississippi on the best duck habitat in the state, never so much as hearing a shot.

This is my first year I've decided to go to North Dakota. I also plan on taking a couple of trips to South Dakota for ducks and pheasants as well. I think this is probably my last year buying Minnesota liscenses, as with the amount of time spent scouting, driving and walking, I am pretty sure I am still going to be money and birds ahead headed out of state. Unless you have private land, it is becoming not worth the effort.

[Stringerless!]

I have to agree with you on a lot of your points. I bet it is safe to say that the DNR listens to us about as well as the fools at the monkey house in D.C. I would love to see the results of that online poll about waterfowling they did. There is no way the majority of hunters wanted the 9am opener. I also agree that our rampant liberalism is saving ducks for every other state in the flyway to shoot. However as a guy that does not have any private land to hunt I am reduced to hunting near these refuges. After the ducks have eaten all the rice the ONLY thing that keeps them from moving is the safe haven. They get nocturnal because of early and late shooters but they will stay longer because of the safe roost. The only chance I may get is under adverse conditions some flocks will make mistakes. And I am happy with that. Now we are going into the refuge and start blasting it up . Personally I think it is wrong

[jparrucci]

I am not a fan of shooting the ducks off the roost either, but sometimes if that is your only option, you chose it. We have so much public land in this state that is off-limits to hunting, especially around the rivers. If you hunt these places, maybe the ducks will actually end up on a cattail pothole. I agree there should be a few resting areas, but when huge swaths of land are off limits, the ducks have more options than we do. Minnesota needs to either sway the rest of the states in the flyway to adopt our more restrictive rules, or we better get into step with the rest of them. Minnesota still does produce some ducks. It takes much more and better habitat, and predator control to breed ducks than it does to winter them. It is sad that our own DNR limits our opportunites for our local birds, only for them to fly south where anything goes.

[Feathers Rainin]

I see where you are coming from because our hunting shack is located next to the Rice Lake Refuge. I've hunted WMA's surrounding the refuge and watched thousands of ducks poor into the refuge that had been feeding all night on public waters. Fact is we need those resting areas for birds. If you opened up all of Carlos Avery or other refuges to hunting I would be willing to bet the protected areas would be close to void just like most areas after the first two weekends. The ducks would just head south if they got shot at everywhere they went.

If I hunted the metro area I would be sitting just outside the protected area that day and take advantage of it. As for killing ducks on Prior or Calhoun. Would you really want to shoot city ducks? Judging by the green ponds they spend a lot of time on I don't think they would taste the best.

Hunting is getting tough in MN but there is still ducks to be had. Last season was probably the best yet for me but we put on more miles and spent more hours scouting than any other seasons. Shot lots of birds and only one hunt was on private land. I go to the dakotas every year but there is plenty to be had in MN just gotta work harder than the other guy.

Good luck this season...two weeks to early goose and it can't come fast enough!

[mwal]

Hey Jim

PM If you want to talk Sd hunting

MWal

[Roosterslayer05]

I like the 9am opener. It makes hunting on the second day, when you can shoot in the morning allot better. Plus there are so many guys out that the ducks get pushed around anyways. Come 9 oclock I usually see hundreds of birds in the air. If you could hunt in the sanctuaries there wouldent be many birds in those areas. Just like the areas you can hunt now. They would leave. Im happy to hunt the edge of refuges, when new birds migrate, they dont know where the edge is right away. Birds that have been around for awhile will leave the refuge and feed. Iv had great hunts at carlos during the doldrums from birds leaving the refuge...you just have to figure it out.

[Stringerless!]

I am just concerned that this will be the beginning of something that could be coming to a refuge near all of us. Certainly I am worried because Carlos is where I hunt. It is 3 miles out the back door. I have had good hunts there and there are many days when I don't see a duck. I am just curious why? I could see if it was for handicapped people or vets or something but just to allow hunting in safe havens? Why could'nt they do it in a refuge where you can't hunt waterfowl. Looks like the Minnesota Waterfowl Association has something to do with it. Anybody a member of that know what the reason is ?