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Posted

Bird numbers look to me to be about average here in Jackson county maybe down slightly from last year. But... the corn harvest is way behind and the bean harvest is even farther behind. A lot of farmers started taking out corn before beans due to concerns of stalk rot from very wet fields and very few good days of drying. A few fields do have corn that has fallen over and is going to take extra time to harvest. With rain expected today(Monday) and tomorrow and cool cloudy conditions for most of the week not much more corn is getting combined. From what I have seen in Jackson and Cottonwood counties I would guess less than 20% of crops have been harvested.

 If your planning on hunting this area it would be a good idea to bring at least knee high water proof boots and even hip boots in places just to get to the drier areas. There is a lot of standing water in fields and grasslands that are usually dry. If you hunted places last year that had ankle deep water be prepared for almost knee deep water in some of those places this year. Some of the management areas have some high ground that a canoe or small boat could save a lot of walking to get to some better habitat. The weather report is saying Saturday morning will start in the high 30's and get up to 51 for a high. if you stay dry those temps are great, but if your wet it can make for a miserable hunt. 

Since the duck season reopens Saturday you could be in for a mixed bag hunt if your legal for ducks.. A lot of wood ducks and mallards are sitting in the flooded  grass and fields. Should be an interesting opener.

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Posted

Update on weather forecast.. Mostly cloudy and breezy for Thursday and Friday and should be mostly sunny on Saturday. Sunday the clouds return with a chance of light rain/showers later in the day.

Just a reminder to try and let the farmers do their work. Please don't park on field approaches(That's the driveway from the road to the field.) or on the side of the township roads. The ground under the narrower gravel roads is saturated and the weight of a combine or tractor trying to get around a parked vehicle could collapse the shoulder. 

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Posted

Star Tribune has reported that only 15% of the corn harvest is completed and only 37% of the bean harvest is done.  With the wet weather this week, they aint making any progress either.

Posted

Yesterday, Saturday, started out overcast and breezy. the sun came out right around 9:00 am.  The high temperature hit 57. The weather forecast for today was a slight chance of rain and cooler. It's just after 4:00 am right now and I have over an inch of snow on my deck and it is still snowing. Never have I seen this on pheasant opener weekend, little to no harvest and snow on the ground. Weather is supposed to warm up Monday through Friday, but... 

Posted

a lot of corn going out fast around here. we sitting at a parking lot for some state land yesterday waiting for 9:00 and watching a combine with several rosters flying. Not a signal bird came to visit us. We didn't get any rosters up just hens. Came across 3 pheasants that were so young that they could hardly fly. they got up about 3 feet just over the top of the bush they were hiding in and only to fly about ten feet. I had a hard time keeping the dogs off them.

  • Official Fishing Report Team - MN
Posted

Hunted last night on a WIA central mn shot one mature rooster and saw a couple late brooded hens. As stated they could barely fly. Quite a few crops up a fair amount of water standing in beans my predicition the late season will be  the ticket this year. .

Posted

We saw some late birds today also in west central MN.  The beans looked horrible and most corn was still in.  In 2 hours of driving I only saw three corn fields being combined each way.

 

We saw birds and got some roosters.  About 30% mature to 70% juveniles, not counting those late birds that didn’t fly well.  Birds seemed really jumpy today - odd for opener.  Flushing wild like late season.

 

Man, my pheasant legs ain’t what they used ta be! ?

Posted (edited)

Yesterday and today the combines got back to work. Hunted a management area next to a fresh picked corn field. Got a couple nice roosters which both flushed at about 15-20 yards. Saw several others that flushed way out in front of me. Not many other hunters out there yet.

 Drove past several fields that were just combined today and there were a few places that had some really deep ruts from either combines or the tractors pulling wagons. Didn't see any of the big combines unloading directly into semi's so the ground must still be pretty soft if their not driving the trucks into the fields. About half the combines were in corn and the others getting after beans.

 Weather this weekend should a little breezy and cool for Saturday with a high in the low 40's. There's a 30% chance of precipitation for Saturday. Should warm up a bit on Sunday.

Edited by mechanictim
  • 2 weeks later...
  • 'we have more fun' FishingMN Builders
Posted

Anyone finding any?

  • Official Fishing Report Team - MN
Posted

 Crunched my 2   again this morning. Saw a total of 7 roosters and 15 hens all on public land by 11.00 am great scenting conditions my lab worked to perfection. A little quiet and still birds were jumpy. Cant stress how important it is to not slam doors make a lot of racket and having good dog control without yelling is the key ?

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  • 1 month later...
Posted

Anyone else still bird hunting?  I am.

Dec roosters B.jpg

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  • Your Responses - Share & Have Fun :)

    • SkunkedAgain
      If you fished with me more often, you'd never have to make this statement...   38" of ice - love it. I'm really going to have to dig around for my auger extension. I don't think that I've needed it in over a decade.   Too bad nobody has a locomotive chugging across the ice to do some logging, like the good old days.
    • LakeofthewoodsMN
      On the South Shore...  Ice fishing remains strong across the south shore of Lake of the Woods out on Big Traverse Bay.  Resorts and outfitters on some parts of the lake have ice roads extending over 16 miles staying on nice schools of walleyes and saugers.  Many fish houses are over deep mud.  Some are on structure.  It is always fishing of course, but overall, February has been very productive for most anglers.   Extensions are being used on ice augers as the ice continues to thicken.  The thick ice this year will be good for the extended ice fishing season Lake of the Woods enjoys with fish houses out through March 31st, walleyes and saugers open through April 14th and a pike season that never closes. Most fishing activity is taking place in 26-32 feet of water.  Anglers are finding a healthy mix of walleyes and saugers, with a good number of jumbo perch in the mix this year.  Some big eelpout are also showing up.  Anglers are reporting plenty of fish for fresh fish frys and usually extra fish to bring home.   The one-two punch of a jigging line and deadstick is the way to go.  On the jigging line, jigging spoons with rattles tipped with a minnow head have been consistent.  Lipless crankbaits and jigging rap style lures also doing well.     Lures with a light have been working well in the stained water.  Please remember, in MN, lures with a light or water activated light can be used as long as the battery is mercury free and the hook is attached directly to the lure and not as a dropper line.     On the deadstick, a plain hook or a small jig with a live minnow 6 inches to a foot off of the bottom.    Some days, mornings are better, other days, it's the afternoons.  There is no distinct pattern, they could come through at any time. On the Rainy River...  The start of the day and end of the day have been best for those targeting walleyes on the river. A jig and minnow or a jigging spoon tipped with a minnow head is also producing some fish. Some big sturgeon being iced by ice anglers targeting them.  It is a catch-and-release sturgeon season currently.   Although ice conditions on the river are good, they can vary significantly due to the current, so anglers should always consult local resorts or outfitters for the most up-to-date safety information and fishing advice. Up at the NW Angle...  Ice fishing has been strong in the islands area of Lake of the Woods. Resorts continue to move their fish houses around, staying on the best schools of walleyes.     Anglers are catching a nice mix of walleyes, saugers, and jumbo perch with an occasional pike or tullibee as well.     Big crappies are still being caught just over the border.  Fish houses are available, check with a NW Angle resort for info on crappie fishing.   Lake of the Woods enjoys an extended ice fishing season with fish houses on the ice through March 31st and walleye and sauger seasons open through April 14th. Perch, crappie, and pike seasons remain open year-round.    
    • leech~~
      Maybe you should put rattle wheels down, if your going to sleep for 6hrs! 🤭 😆
    • JerkinLips
      Monday was my worst day of winter fishing on Vermilion in the last 4 years.  Caught only one 14" walleye in nearly 8 hours of fishing.  Missed two other bites and was marking very few fish.  Maybe the fish were taking Monday off after a big weekend.   No more water came up on the ice under my house.  Think it was because I haven't banked snow around it for a couple of weeks so the bare ice around the house is getting very thick.  I measured 38" of ice under my house and the Ion barely made it through even with the extension installed.  Needless to say I banked around the house this time.  Another lesson I learned today is don't drill holes if ice is frozen on your blades.  I did that on one hole and it didn't center properly and drilled at an angle on the edge of the opening.  Hope I can correct the location and angle on my next trip up.   Not much change in the surface lake surface conditions.  The drifts may be a little higher and are definitely harder.  There are still a few bare ice spots on the lake.  Very little activity on the lake today.  There are about 3 dozen houses from McKinley Park out to Birch Island.  Another person pulled there house off today, and I am sure many more will pull theirs off this coming weekend.  Only 13 days left of walleye season.    
    • leech~~
      A good start for never picking up a bow!   IMG_1910.mp4
    • leech~~
      Um, #metoo   leech~~ Author 'we have more fun' FishingMN Builders Posted January 26 My whole goal for the rest of this season.  Is to watch KC lose and Taylor cry!  🥳
    • smurfy
    • Wanderer
      Smurfy is happy.
    • Dash 1
      Great looking food. So far not much of a game and I thought the halftime show was worse I've seen. 
    • leech~~
      Oh is there a Superbowl game? 😋😋
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