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any hunters in NC or Southern Virginia???

1K views 6 replies 3 participants last post by  NCduckSlayer 
#1 ·
does anyone do any diver huntin in NC or southern Virginia? also need help on my diver spread. how many dekes should i use for a smaller lake thats about 800 acres? There is a lot of hunting pressure on the lake also (city regulates the hunting on it) :thumbsdown: but theres a few bluebills, very few redheads but a few killed each year, and every now and then a canvasback but can't get any to come in. i use 4 doz ghg bluebills, 1 doz ringneck ghg, few mallards and 1 doz geese, also thinking about getting 1 doz canvasbacks and 1 doz redheads from herters, any suggestions on which brand i should get???
 
#2 ·
I don't hunt down there often, but I have hit up Lake Gaston a few times. However I do hunt the Potomac River and get into the divers up there. I would say you have plenty of dekes for such a small body of water, but what do the other people on the lake have? Bigger, smaller? The ringnecks and bluebills tend to feel secure in bigger rafts, so if there are guys with bigger spreads they might be pulling ducks away from you. If there is no real population of cans that stop on this lake, it might be pointless to buy can dekes. But if you have redheads on the lake then grabbing a dozen of them wouldn't hurt.

I am in midst of painting some old puddle ducks into redheads to add some variety in our spread. Plus it saves some extra cash. If the redheads start piling in when you buy a dozen dekes, then maybe think about adding more.

I would buy ghg for now. It could be a waste of money if nothing new comes in! But if they start looking your way, save some $$$ this off season and buy the ultimate herters. They are the bomb!
 
#3 ·
Thanks bluebill buster. I have heard of people going fishing on Gaston but not hunting but ill definitely look into it. I have seen all kinds of spreads that people use out on this lake we hunt. I have seen some use 300 dekes and i have seen people use 1 doz. and both kill the same amount of ducks. on average i would say most use 3-4 doz mixed with ringnecks and mallards with maybe a few redheads, bluebills, and cans in the mix also. Im not sure if I should raft them up or split them into groups or lines or J's or what. Lately we have been rafting them up and haven't had a single bird decoy. 3 weeks ago some other hunters had the same blind we had and killed redheads and canvasbacks and widgeons so when we got back to the ramp we looked at their dekes and they were using all herters with redhead, canvasbacks, mallards, ringnecks, bluebills, merganzers, coot, geese, and black ducks. He only had a few of each, maybe like 4 of each kind. what do you think i should try?
 
#5 ·
I can tell you only what I have had experience with... when we are out on the mighty Potomac, we split our groups up. We always have the puddle ducks placed separately from the divers. Puddles seem to flare or pay us no attention when they are all grouped together. We will put our diver decoys together, but leave two large holes for incoming birds to land in. A spot about 20x20. You might want to give that a try.

Divers don't land as well as a puddle, so they need a little more room. I honestly do not think it matters what kind of decoys you have, in brands that is. But, and this is a big but... the herters will last you decades if you take care of them. The ghg are just not going to stand up to that kind of abuse. I will agree herters ride better in the water, but sometimes I think us hunters get a little to crazy in what looks good to us. Truly no one knows what a duck is thinking. I have had teal and gadwall land in the dekes when I am out picking up the dekes after an AM hunt and also when I am picking up dead birds. I mean land 5 feet from me! If they want to go into a spot, you are not going to change their mind with a $1 decoys or $250 hand carved decoys!

FYI... Lake Gaston is a funky place to hunt. Lots of blinds out there, and it can be a shooting gallery at times. I would recommend doing some heavy scouting. But this is all on the VA side too. I have heard the hunting is not as heavy on the NC side though, which baffles me a little. Its such a long body of water I wouldn't think it would matter, but that could be because of all the houses too.
 
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