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Waterfowl Reports


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Drove around aimlessly this morning listening to Glenn Beck gloat about the EPIC win of 2010.

In the process I saw a duck or two here and there.

Did notice that the Mallards are stacking up in a private slough I have permission to hunt.

They were coming back after feeding this morning at about 10am.

I may go try to kill a limit of green in the morning.

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Lots of new birds around saturday, 2 man limit of mallards and gadwall by 8:30. Lots of snow geese in the area too. Sunday was a little tougher ended up with 10 birds mix of spoonies mallards and gadwall.

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Hunted a small lake near rogers. Greenhead and a can hen. Only chance we had . Lots of geese flying after sunset. Did not see many ducks at all. Working in Maple Grove I saw hundreds of geese and mallards in city limits. It does not take them long to figure out where they are safe.

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Hunted this morning near Victoria. Ended up with 3 mallards. Saw quite a few mallards and goldeneye. Picking up decoys in the canoe once the wind got going was not easy.

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saw a few bills at a distance this morning, nothing committed.

had a large flock of ringers circle for what seemed like eternity but would not committe.few cans very few greenheads or any other ducks for that matter buffies produced the only shooting of the day.

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went out near eden prairie last night, the only place we could set up was on the wrong side of the marsh for the wind. Not many birds until 5 minutes after shooting closed, when it seemed like every duck in the world wanted to land in the decoys I was taking in. Ended up getting a few teal amongst our group and missed a group of mallards that buzzed us low. Not sure any northerns are down yet, think most of them were locals....

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Different part of Carlos Avery this morning. Saw about 20 mallards but nothing came near. 3 other parties in pool. No coots. Heard a few geese but never saw them. No shooting by anyone. Wrapped it as fast as I could at 9:30 cause my son called and said he found a field full of geese and mallards. Set up there for a while and did not see anything. Gonna give her hell in the morning.

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Son and I got 2 honkers. Did not see any ducks. Also had a pair of blue geese check us out ! Shot late cause we were not sure what they were till they had passed in the sun. First blue geese I have ever seen in MN. I have seen snows migrating overhead before but never any blues. We were only about 10 miles from Wisconsin border.

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Yest was good. Got 7 total including 2 Pintails, in MN believe it or not! 1st time we have shot pintail in years. Had a flock of pintails come in but we shot late thinking they were mergansers. Then another small flock came in we dropped 1. Later we had 3 pintail come in and we dropped 2 but only found 1 frown Should have had our limit of mallards on sat but weren't shooting very straight. Lost one pintail and one mallard so we dropped a total of 9.

Today was pretty slow. No pintails to be seen. Had 2 flocks of mallards come in, which we dropped 3. Had a few singles/small flocks of mallards buzz us and one group landed on the wrong side of the decoys. All northern ducks but not alot of them yet. A lot of the corn fields were already plowed in the area so when they do come down I'm not sure they will stick around with few fields to pick from....

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I went out Sunday morning NE of Mahtomedi. Lots of geese flying between fields and water, none came by me, I was only set up for ducks. Had two groups circle close at first light, wouldn't commit. Saw lots passing by, finally had two come over me, a bit high but I dropped one and had to chase with the canoe. Only mallards flying, didn't see anything else. Over in WI in Polk County while deer hunting there were still some wood ducks there on the river I was next to.

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Lac qui parle had around 20,000 geese show up last Wed (30K on refuge) Still large amounts of mallards (10-15K) that have been very friendly. With the mild weather geese have been flying way off the refuge to go feed and have been very skiddish. Any NW wind should bring in birds from here on in at this point in the season.

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went for geese down by Rochester yesterday morning, set up in a chisel-plowed field that had a thousand or so in it the night before...didn't have anything come within a mile of us, very little flying in general. The guys I was with said it has been that way down there all season.

Went for pheasants in the afternoon and jumped a pair of woodies out of a creek, dropped them both, the drake was banded and the color on both was unreal. Feel bad about not eating them, but they are going to look really good on my wall (first ducks ever mounted for me).

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On the way home from deer hunting noticed a flooded corn feild full of ducks and I think that I'll have to knock on that farmers door in the next day or two to get permission

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It was pretty crazy around Woodbury (I know Woodbury right?!), we saw a field with at least 500-1000 geese in it. The farmers are getting them all down and the geese are loving it. Plus there were many more flocks that were coming into the field as we parked and took a look.

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Hunted west metro today, the two of us only got off seven shots, and didn't hit a thing. The guys 500 yrds north where blasting away and got eight. Funny, how much a difference 500 yrds. can make.

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It was pretty crazy around Woodbury (I know Woodbury right?!), we saw a field with at least 500-1000 geese in it.

Sounds like the athletic fields at the National Sports Center in Blaine right now.

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More birds have shown up in the OT County area. Been seeing increased #'s of Canadians and Mallards using the larger lakes. Seem's to be a light migration with birds settling widely distributed. Still a few ringbills around too. A few guys out for geese but otherwise almost zero pressure.

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Pretty darn slow out near Mahtomedi this morning, heard a few ducks go past around first light but couldn't see them. Geese were active after sunrise, but just going past, none shootable. Almost no ducks after sunrise. Nothing wanted to come to my calling and/or decoys all morning. smirk

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Lac qui parle had around 20,000 geese show up last Wed (30K on refuge) Still large amounts of mallards (10-15K) that have been very friendly. With the mild weather geese have been flying way off the refuge to go feed and have been very skiddish. Any NW wind should bring in birds from here on in at this point in the season.

Yep, birds were flying up from the refuge over my deer stand on saturday morning..22 miles off the refuge. saw a pretty big feed of geese and mallards setup, but farmer wouldn't let us hunt on sunday because it was too close to his deer stand.

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My scout two weekends ago followed geese off the refuge flying to swift county and feeding. That's insane.

like i said...22 miles wink

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Was at Pelican Lake (wright Co.) --don't waste your time--no ducks there--I counted 3 around me 100yds and maybe 4 about 1/2 mile out. Only a few shots out there this morning between 4 rigs. I did not fire and I was one of the 4.

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Finally found someone to hunt with in Itasca County this morning. We each got a pair of bluebills and a ringer, so a pretty good hunt. smile

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another push coming down today...expect good bird movement all weekend. still hearing birds flying over tonight every time i step outside.

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Ditto to that...just got back inside and heard snows flying south. Snow flurries forecast for saturday morning and colder temps will have them moving this weeking. Gotta get well the gettins good, also last weekend to chase ducks before the real deer season opens compared to all you mn boys smile

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Ditto to that...just got back inside and heard snows flying south. Snow flurries forecast for saturday morning and colder temps will have them moving this weeking. Gotta get well the gettins good, also last weekend to chase ducks before the real deer season opens compared to all you mn boys smile

buddies are out watching an influx of new snows right now. the roost of 4-5 thousand this morning has been steadily increasing all morning. it's killing me sitting at work getting pictures emailed constantly of the feeds of snows and mallards they are watching. headed out at 2 to go see for myself!

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Went to a field where I have permission and a guy was getting out of his truck to deer hunt across the street. Talked to him and he was waiting for a few buddies so I told him I would wait and not hunt geese across from his stand. Their season closes Sunday I think.

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Yep! I'd say they'll coming down in good numbers overnight tonight, and throughout the weekend. Seeing a lot of skim ice up here every morning now. They're running out of time.

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  • Your Responses - Share & Have Fun :)

    • Kettle
      Walked today and yesterday, flushed 9, shot at two and got two. Hopefully next year I'll have a dog to hunt with. Still warm up here, skim of ice on ponds. Weather has been nice. Hopefully walk a bit more the next few weeks. Been pretty cautious walking for birds to not interfere with deer hunters. There sure are not the deer hunters there used to be 
    • LakeofthewoodsMN
      On the South Shore...  The focus for many this week is the ongoing deer hunting season which is a big tradition in these parts, even for avid walleye anglers.  There were some that either already harvested their deer or are more into catching fall walleyes than hunting.     Those that are fishing are taking advantage of the unseasonably warm weather and excellent walleye and sauger bite that is happening across the lake.  Cold weather is in the forecast in the upcoming days and weeks so that is also getting many excited. The best depths on the south end of LOW are 22-28 feet of water.     Vertical jigging with frozen emerald shiners is catching most of the walleyes, saugers and jumbo perch.  Depending upon where on the lake you are fishing, some slots and big trophies are in the mix as well, but most reports are talking about good numbers of eaters.    Jumbo perch are coming in good numbers this fall which will serve ice anglers well.  Watch out for an occasional pike or even lake sturgeon mixed in with the walleyes.      There are good numbers of walleyes and saugers across the south shore which is setting up nicely for early ice.   On the Rainy River...  There continues to be good numbers of shiners in the river, and consequently, there are good walleyes in the river as well.     Walleyes along with saugers, pike and some sturgeon are coming in up and down the river.  Most walleyes are being caught in 10-25 feet of water in various stretches of the river.   Jigging with live or frozen emerald shiners is the key. Some anglers are also still slow trolling crankbaits upstream to cover more ground and find fish. Both methods are producing solid results. Sturgeon fishing remains strong.  The catch-and-release sturgeon fishing is open into the spring when it changes to the "keep season" on April 24th. Up at the NW Angle...  As temps are getting colder, most are in the woods hunting and not fall fishing, however, for those who bundle up, fishing continues to be excellent.     A nice mixed bag with walleyes, saugers, perch, pike and crappies being caught. Very good muskie fishing with the colder water temps and shorter days.  Some big fish and some good numbers are being caught amongst the islands.  Both casting and trolling is getting it done.  
    • gimruis
      I hunt in the rifle zone so I don't have a need to use a shotgun to hunt deer, but I would be looking at this if there was ever a need to.   There could be state legislation introduced next summer that eliminates the shotgun zone completely.  It has bipartisan support.  Wisconsin removed theirs years ago and MN is usually later to follow.  They've tried to pass it more than once and it came up just short both times.  Probably just a matter of time.
    • Wanderer
      Oh, h e l l no! 
    • leech~~
      Screw that, here's whatch need!  😆   Power-Shok Rifled Slug 10 Gauge 766 Grain Grain Weight: 766 Shotshell Length: 3-1/2in / 89mm Muzzle Velocity: 1280
    • Wanderer
      20 ga has become a real popular deer round in the last 5 or so years.  The rifled barrels are zinging those sabot slugs with rifle like accuracy out to 100 yards easily.  Some go so far as dialing in for a 200 yard shot but really, by 150 they’re falling off pretty low.   I have a single shot Ultraslug in 20 ga that shoots really well at 100 yards.  Most everyone I know that has bought a slug gun lately has gotten the Savage 220 in 20ga.  Problem can be finding the shells you want.
    • leech~~
      My son always bugs me about getting a nice light over-under 20ga for grouse hunting.  I say Heck no, I'm getting a 3 1/2" 10ga so I can put as much lead in the air that I can!!     So, I'm keeping my 12ga.  
    • 11-87
      That’s almost exactly what I was thinking.  Have slug barrels for both   One for turkey and one for deer.      I have a 20ga mosseberg as well. (Combo came with the scope but never used.   I always liked the 12 better
    • leech~~
      Wanderer is right on the money and covered it well.  I was wondering too if you had a slug barrel for one of your guns?  If so you could make that your slug gun with a scope, and the other your turkey gun with the Red dot.  As you can afford it. 
    • Wanderer
      Kinda depends on if you want magnification or quick target acquisition.   More magnification options and better accuracy with a scope.  You get what you pay for too so get comfortable with a budget for one.  Tasco and Bushnell work but I find they lose their zero easier, have low contrast and don’t gather light well in low light conditions.  That said, I’m still using one I haven’t replaced yet.  Vortex has been the hot brand for the past several years for bang for the buck.  Good products.  Nothing beats Swarovski though.  Huge dough for those.  Burris is another decent option.   There are some specific models for shotgun/slug hunting in the economy brands and bullet drop compensation (BDC) reticles.  Based on experience I’d recommend not falling for that marketing ploy.   Red dots are usually lower magnification and easier to get on target.  Reasonably accurate but don’t do well with definition, like searching the brush for your target.  I put a HAWKE red dot on a .22 for squirrels and it’s been good.  For turkey, that’s probably the route I’d go.     If your slug shots are normally not too far and too brushy, I’d think a red dot could work there too if you’re only buying 1 scope.  You’ll be better off dimming the reticle to the lowest setting you can easily use to not over shine the target and get a finer aim point.   If you don’t have a slug barrel, you might appreciate one of those.  I had a browning with a smoothbore slug barrel that shot Brenneke 2-3/4 inch well.  The 11-87 would well fitted with a cantelever rifled barrel. 
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