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The Library => Haley Center Basement => Topic started by: Townhallsavoy on December 27, 2012, 03:55:23 PM

Title: Duck Hunting
Post by: Townhallsavoy on December 27, 2012, 03:55:23 PM
For some reason, I'm interested in bird hunting.

Any advice?  Type of shotgun?  Areas to duck hunt?  Training/license required? 
Title: Re: Duck Hunting
Post by: Token on December 27, 2012, 04:06:21 PM
Everyone has their own preference when it comes to shotguns, but I like the remington 887 12 gauge.  It's a great all purpose gun.
Title: Re: Duck Hunting
Post by: Buzz Killington on December 27, 2012, 04:12:37 PM
I hear the hunting is exceptionally good in Arkansas.  At least that's what my old friend Tommy used to tell me.
Title: Re: Duck Hunting
Post by: dallaswareagle on December 27, 2012, 04:29:10 PM
For some reason, I'm interested in bird hunting.

Any advice?  Type of shotgun?  Areas to duck hunt?  Training/license required?

Wabbit Season

(http://i713.photobucket.com/albums/ww131/Yellowcake_bucket/wabbit_season.gif)
Title: Re: Duck Hunting
Post by: GH2001 on December 27, 2012, 07:51:44 PM
For some reason, I'm interested in bird hunting.

Any advice?  Type of shotgun?  Areas to duck hunt?  Training/license required?
token is right....12 ga is best but a 20 CAN be used if you get the right shells and are a pretty good aim. Good news is most shotguns arent as pricey as fancy deer rifles or high end handguns. You could get a name brand pump 12/20 for a couple of hundred bucks. 

do you have a dog?
Title: Re: Duck Hunting
Post by: WiregrassTiger on December 27, 2012, 08:00:25 PM
do you have a dog?
I do.
Title: Re: Duck Hunting
Post by: GH2001 on December 27, 2012, 08:15:33 PM
I do.

that is not a water retreiver

but it is ugly enough to perhaps scare some fowl your way
Title: Re: Duck Hunting
Post by: Townhallsavoy on December 27, 2012, 08:16:29 PM
token is right....12 ga is best but a 20 CAN be used if you get the right shells and are a pretty good aim. Good news is most shotguns arent as pricey as fancy deer rifles or high end handguns. You could get a name brand pump 12/20 for a couple of hundred bucks. 

do you have a dog?
Do I need one? 

I mean, I do.  But it ain't going after a duck. 
Title: Re: Duck Hunting
Post by: WiregrassTiger on December 27, 2012, 08:17:05 PM
that is not a water retreiver

but it is ugly enough to perhaps scare some fowl your way
No, he's my pointer. Here is my retreiver, Flash.
Title: Re: Duck Hunting
Post by: GH2001 on December 27, 2012, 08:23:19 PM
No, he's my pointer. Here is my retreiver, Flash.
good lookin dog...looks like a winner
Title: Re: Duck Hunting
Post by: GH2001 on December 27, 2012, 08:27:02 PM
Do I need one? 

I mean, I do.  But it ain't going after a duck.

since most ducks are around water/marshes id say its a good idea unless you have stumbled upon a group of ducks on dry land or something. A lab is pretty standard protocol for water fowl.
Title: Re: Duck Hunting
Post by: Token on December 27, 2012, 08:58:40 PM
since most ducks are around water/marshes id say its a good idea unless you have stumbled upon a group of ducks on dry land or something. A lab is pretty standard protocol for water fowl.

The best thing is to find a cheap ass golf course, one not so cheap that it does have a few ponds, and slide the shotgun in with the woods.  A good way to gauge this is, if you can play a round of golf for less than $15 with cart included, chances are you could blast a few geese and still get to finish your round. 

Happy hunting.
Title: Re: Duck Hunting
Post by: CCTAU on December 28, 2012, 01:52:15 AM
Duck hunting! Cold. Water. Dangerous.

Had a friend stop duck hunting. He fell in and almost drowned. His dog swam by and he grabbed the tail to get him back to shore. Sold all of his duck hunting gear!

Hypothermia is a killer.

Find a guide (or friend) and go a few times. A little pricey, but good training.
Title: Re: Duck Hunting
Post by: Saniflush on December 28, 2012, 07:08:37 AM
One of my brothers and I shoot ducks.  I rather shoot ducks any day of the week than to sit in a tree waiting on a deer.  Duck hunting is fast and furious for about 15-30 minutes in the morning or afternoon and then it's done. 

We don't travel to the any of the flyovers to shoot.  We just stay around Alabama and shoot wood ducks and drakes. 

Oh and don't give ducks unlimited one red cent.  They spend all that money on the large flyovers in Arkansas and Louisiana.
Title: Re: Duck Hunting
Post by: Snaggletiger on December 28, 2012, 10:44:23 AM
I've never duck hunted, but have wanted to try it.  My buddy has two daughters at AU and they're home for Christmas break.  He took them skeet shooting Moday, which was their first time ever to shoot a gun of any kind.  Yesterday, they went to Lake Seminole (Should be called Lake Gatorwillbiteyoass) about 50 miles from here in SW Georgia.  Hired a guide and they shot 6 quackers.  Don't know if that's good, bad or average for a duck hunt, but they had a blast. 
Title: Re: Duck Hunting
Post by: djsimp on December 28, 2012, 10:53:11 AM
THS, you should try Lake Eufaula. Suppose to be some of the best duck hunting. Not sure about the guide part but I'm sure you could find out at the Lakepoint info center. Oh, if you take a dog, keep him close or might become a meal.
Title: Re: Duck Hunting
Post by: Snaggletiger on December 28, 2012, 10:56:13 AM
THS, you should try Lake Eufaula. Suppose to be some of the best duck hunting. Not sure about the guide part but I'm sure you could find out at the Lakepoint info center. Oh, if you take a dog, keep him close or might become a meal.

This.  There do be a gator or 50,000 in that pond.
Title: Re: Duck Hunting
Post by: Saniflush on December 28, 2012, 11:13:48 AM
This.  There do be a gator or 50,000 in that pond.

The normal duck hole that we shoot on our property had two gators in it last year.  They had to be relocated. to some batter and hot grease
Title: Re: Duck Hunting
Post by: djsimp on December 28, 2012, 11:18:35 AM
The normal duck hole that we shoot on our property had two gators in it last year.  They had to be relocated. to some batter and hot grease

I've never had any gator but its been said they taste like chicken.....the dark greasy parts.
Title: Re: Duck Hunting
Post by: Snaggletiger on December 28, 2012, 11:21:04 AM
The normal duck hole that we shoot on our property had two gators in it last year.  They had to be relocated. to some batter and hot grease

I had some relocated gator this past summer. 
Title: Re: Duck Hunting
Post by: Saniflush on December 28, 2012, 11:32:16 AM
I've never had any gator but its been said they taste like chicken.....the dark greasy parts.


I would actually compare it closer to fried calamari.
Title: Re: Duck Hunting
Post by: Snaggletiger on December 28, 2012, 11:34:23 AM

I would actually compare it closer to fried calamari.

Good comparison.   
Title: Re: Duck Hunting
Post by: DnATL on December 28, 2012, 09:08:39 PM
I've never duck hunted, but have wanted to try it.  My buddy has two daughters at AU and they're home for Christmas break.  He took them skeet shooting Moday, which was their first time ever to shoot a gun of any kind.  Yesterday, they went to Lake Seminole (Should be called Lake Gatorwillbiteyoass) about 50 miles from here in SW Georgia.  Hired a guide and they shot 6 quackers.  Don't know if that's good, bad or average for a duck hunt, but they had a blast.
skeet skeet skeet
:muttley:
Title: Re: Duck Hunting
Post by: JR4AU on December 29, 2012, 10:01:46 AM
THS,

Duck Hunting is very fun IMHO.  You don't need a dog if you go to a guided duck camp.  Great fun if you get a group of guys up to go.  Great food, and all evening to drink and tell lies.  Hunts are not outrageously priced depending on the level of comfort and amenities you require. 

Although Ark. is known as the duck hunting capital, Louisiana is a close second, if it hasn't surpassed Ark.  My bud is there now duck hunting.  I've been to Ark. duck hunting once, and always said if I could afford to do it a few times a year, I'd give up deer hunting.  It was that fun to me.  Couple of ways to do it too.  You can do it in flooded timber, or in a blind beside water/river on a flyway.    Also, I know there's some duck hunting in N. AL along the TN River, but have never looked in to that. 

As GH said, you can get a serviceable shotgun for a few hundred bucks, or you can spend big bucks on a very specialized duck gun, but IMHO, there's no need.  JMO, Id get a semi-auto, and a 12ga that handles 3" shells...which I think they all do now these days.  Remington is never a bad choice in shotguns or rifles.   And you have to hunt ducks with steel shot only.

IIRC you're in or near the B'ham area, and I'd suggest a trip to Mark's to ask some questions.  Don't let them talk you in to buying all the most expensive of everything.  At a minimum you need  a gun, thin, light, layers of clothing that you can layer depending on weather, and amount of work/walking to get to your hunting spot, hip or chest waders depending on hunting situation.  Get chest waders initially, and you'll always be ready.   You need a hunting license for the state you're hunting in, a migratory bird stamp, and a duck stamp.   Mark's can tell you all that too.

If you have nothing of the above at this point, the initial cost is going to run a couple to a few grand, depending on how bare bones you go or not.  If you happen to know someone that has a place to go locally, you can get by with a lot less assuming you can find someone with a dog to go with.  Primary duck you'll see here in the woods are Wood Ducks, and in places like LA and Ark, these are considered trash ducks, but they are very pretty, though not the best eating.  When I lived in Helena 15 years ago, I had a little water hole in the woods about 200yds behind my house where I shot woodies.  They drop from the sky like a rock, through heavy timber, and are hard as hell to hit. 

Good Luck.
Title: Re: Duck Hunting
Post by: Townhallsavoy on December 29, 2012, 10:25:10 AM
Excellent, JR.  I really appreciate it.
Title: Re: Duck Hunting
Post by: JR4AU on December 29, 2012, 10:50:31 AM
THS,

Google Ark. Duck Hunting and Louisiana Duck Hunting and you'll come up with lots of websites for guided hunts.  A quick look showed one guided hunt starting at $225.  Didn't look to see what it included. 

Duck seasons end around the end of Jan.  Probably too late to get all you need, including hunter safety course, and get a hunt in this year.  Leaves you plenty of time to find the best deals on what you need, which you can at the end of hunting seasons when they put the last season's shit on sale.  Plenty of time to research guided hunts, and get a group of guys up to go.  One fun thing about duck hunting is you don't have to sit motionless and quiet the entire time.  You can bullshit with your buds in the blind or while standing next to a nearby tree in the woods while the guide calls, then when he tells you they're circling, you get ready to do some shooting.

It really is a shit load of fun. 

PM me if you go check some shit out, and have any questions.