In praise of Fall

[Fsbirdhouse]

There's always been a ton of geese in Eastern Montana. They sit on the Yellowstone and hop into the fields. I think there's 40+ miles of the river you can't hunt and that keeps the birds around. Over that way field hunting is the name of the game. I'll be headed that way the 16th-21st. I have a couple invites so far, but for the most part since it's my first trip it'll be a learning experience. Ordered 3 dozen more Divebomb silos to go with the dozen I already have and am taking my 3 dozen full body geese and my 5 dozen White Rock wind socks. Will have my snow cover for the layout blind delivered next week along with a new Avery Finisher panel blind. Going to take a page out of Jim's book and start being more comfortable in the field.

Started off in the snow, then melted off by the afternoon, but ground still frozen.
We had a decent hunt today, and I was comfortable in the big blinds along with friends. But me and dog are so tired, I could just tip out of chair.

[speczilla]

There's always been a ton of geese in Eastern Montana. They sit on the Yellowstone and hop into the fields. I think there's 40+ miles of the river you can't hunt and that keeps the birds around. Over that way field hunting is the name of the game. I'll be headed that way the 16th-21st. I have a couple invites so far, but for the most part since it's my first trip it'll be a learning experience. Ordered 3 dozen more Divebomb silos to go with the dozen I already have and am taking my 3 dozen full body geese and my 5 dozen White Rock wind socks. Will have my snow cover for the layout blind delivered next week along with a new Avery Finisher panel blind. Going to take a page out of Jim's book and start being more comfortable in the field.

Gene you need to go full FS and do the big blind with a heater. I've done too many layout hunts at Klamath in the single digits and teens to want to do that again. Laying out on frozen ground in sub-freezing temps waiting for geese who may or may not show up (lately, more likely not show) is the pits. Spend the extra dough and make yourself comfortable while you wait them out.

[Mean Gene]

Gene you need to go full FS and do the big blind with a heater. I've done too many layout hunts at Klamath in the single digits and teens to want to do that again. Laying out on frozen ground in sub-freezing temps waiting for geese who may or may not show up (lately, more likely not show) is the pits. Spend the extra dough and make yourself comfortable while you wait them out.

I'll have the one panel blind show up Tuesday or Wednesday, and that will be fine for just me, but if it works out well I'll end up getting another one so I can put them back to back. That would give plenty of room for 2 guys, a dog and a heater. If it's just me I can wrap that panel blind in a circle. I think I'll enjoy sitting on a stool instead of laying on the ground. Field hunting will be a new thing for me so it'll take some time, money and effort to get into the swing of it, but from what little I've done I sure enjoy being able to drive into the field, set up, go park the rig and walk back to the blind and not worry about ankle+ deep sticky mud and water. I'm also hooked on goose hunting. Don't get me wrong, I love ducks, but there's nothing like those big birds gliding into the spread.

[Fsbirdhouse]

Gene,
Duck or goose, either one, there's nothing quite like seeing a barely visible group of birds dropping down out of a misty, snowy sky over the corn. It's always just picture post-card perfect!

[HaydenHunter]

Last year I bought a Tanglefree panel blind with the blind tops and the snow cover. I just bought a second one. While we still have to use layout blinds for field hunting geese we have primarily used the Tanglefree blinds for lake and river side hunting this year. There is absolutely no comparison in the comfort of sitting upright in a chair vs laying on your back. We bring the cordless hedge trimmer with us on hunts and grass up with surrounding vegetation. Those things flat out disappear when properly grassed!

[Fsbirdhouse]

HydenHunter,
You don't have to leave your panel blind home when hunting the fields for geese.
I gave/offered some of the guys I regularly hunt with a roll of 'Reed Fencing' each, and suggested they pre-grass enough of it to wrap around their panel blinds when cut down to the desired height.
The Reed Fencing can then be rolled up for travel in the bed of a truck and two or three Zip Ties will then secure it to the blind.
I have yet to find a situation that it is NOT effective even with the huge blinds I hunt out of.
Bare dirt/just sprouting Winter Wheat fields

Four to six inches of snow (No white added to blind at all)

Or at the water's edge

I have yet to place one isolated and way out on a bare gravel bar, but I cannot imagine ANYTHING that would be more convenient, to pack in by hand or in a boat.
This, cut to your taste, will make you want to throw rocks at those lay-out blinds.

[HaydenHunter]

Fs, that grass looks good. We grass our Tanglefree panel blinds and keep the grass on them when they are folded. Very easy to just set up and hunt. When the grass needs touching up, we just cut more and add. When we put the blinds in an area with different colored vegetation, we add in some of that over the grass. We carry my cordless hedge trimmer for this purpose. It's a fast way to harvest a lot of vegetation.

I am glad that you can hunt in a field using your big blind. In the fields we hunt, you just about have to be dug in and low profile for the geese to buy your hide. We can't dig into the dirt but we do dig in when snow is on the ground and we are using our snow covers. The geese are just not used to seeing a large object in the field, including a big blind, and we hunt in the middle of fields, not along fence, grass or tree lines.

[Fsbirdhouse]

I NEVER hunt edges, always the centers or where I see birds using a section of the field.
Only a water hunt could be called an edge, and the bank is the bank.

Sounds like you have a good plan for your panel blinds.
Friends like the separate fencing because it conforms to uneven terrain nicely.
I know the panels are very popular!

[Mean Gene]

You should try those panel blinds in the field Gil, I think you'd be surprised.

[Terrapin]

I NEVER hunt edges, always the centers or where I see birds using a section of the field.
Only a water hunt could be called an edge, and the bank is the bank.

Sounds like you have a good plan for your panel blinds.
Friends like the separate fencing because it conforms to uneven terrain nicely.
I know the panels are very popular!

Haydenhunter and I hunt the same general area (although we don’t know each other). We have had the same experience with the geese up here. They will shy away from anything above ground level. I’ve tried panel blinds, A-Frames, and everything else. Dug in layouts or better yet, just a blanket flush with the dirt are the only things I have confidence in. Don’t know why... they work fine in Oregon, Montana, S Idaho, and N Dakota.


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[Mean Gene]

Haydenhunter and I hunt the same general area (although we don’t know each other). We have had the same experience with the geese up here. They will shy away from anything above ground level. I’ve tried panel blinds, A-Frames, and everything else. Dug in layouts or better yet, just a blanket flush with the dirt are the only things I have confidence in. Don’t know why... they work fine in Oregon, Montana, S Idaho, and N Dakota.


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Well that is interesting indeed. Seems odd, but it is what it is I suppose.

[HaydenHunter]

Well that is interesting indeed. Seems odd, but it is what it is I suppose.

We hunt fields that are on the path to where the birds really want to be. Fields that we do not have permission to hunt or that cannot be hunted because they are within city limits. So we run traffic in fields along the way. We are not the only guys to have permission, so the fields can receive a lot of days of hunting pressure. Guys get out and take hail Mary pass shots (skybusting) where as we prefer to shoot 'em close or feet down. The birds we hunt have food sources other than what they get in the fields. The water they roost on is loaded with milfoil and other aquatic plants. They will generally come to the fields when the weather gets really cold. These are birds that short stop in this area and tend to hang around, so as they get shot at more and more they get all the more wary.

I'd give up my front seat in hell to be able to use my tanglefree blinds and hunt sitting up but it just won't work in this instance.

[Mean Gene]

Fun hunt this morning with dead honkers now in my garage. We were not on the X, but it worked out. We set up today where the geese were yesterday, and today they wanted to land 150 yards in front of us. They did end up walking up to within 35 yards of us, and were coming closer, but a flapping snow cover alerted them and it was shoot or watch them leave, so we shot. I downed 2 while my buddy's first trigger pull went CLICK! LOL! Was very interesting watching them feed their way to us though. Have another hunt tomorrow and may be back in today's field on Friday.

We spent the first part of today being cow dogs until we could herd the cattle away toward the other side of the field. Not every day you do that.

[Fsbirdhouse]

It's over for this season...the last hunt.
Man, I'm tired.

[Mean Gene]

Headed to the east side of the state Saturday to chase geese for a few days so not quite over for me.

[HaydenHunter]

Pretty dismal here. The only birds (very few of them) are quite stale. I haven't even bothered to hunt the last 6 days. Scout, yes (disappointing), hunt no.

[speczilla]

It's over for this season...the last hunt.
Man, I'm tired.

Well it sounds like you had a good hunt! I hope you did.

The birds are pretty thick here in CA right now. They gang up and move about as a bunch for the most part. Had a nice hunt yesterday with a friend and shot three green heads, a chocolate head, three wigeon and six specs myself and my friend had a similar strap.

I hope all of you guys have a great finish to your season.

[Fsbirdhouse]

Once every three years or so I'll butt up all three blinds together. It being the last hunt, I wanted to get all the usual suspects out together, so I did seat 8 guns.

Already starting to think about fishing, and...planning more spots to hunt next year.

[Mean Gene]

Finished my prototype removable cover for my panel blind. I'll see how it goes and refine the materials between now and next year. Goal is to eventually have covers I can change according to color/situational needs. If nothing else it keeps me out of my wife's hair.