10 Helpful Hints for SNOW GOOSE Conservation Season
1. DECOYS
For the past couple years during conservation season our group uses 600 Headless All Wind (snow) decoys, 5 dozen All Wind decoys (2-snow, 1-Canada, 2-Blue), 6 Goose Magnet decoys (5 snow, 1 blue), one Wing Waver (snow), 1 dozen Canada goose shells, 3 dozen Snow goose shells, 2 snow, 2 blue and 2 Canada goose full-body decoys, one Wave Magnet String decoys (snow) on two each 10-foot poles and six AirGoose Balloon decoys (snow -secured to the Wave Magnet decoys). The balloons float up-down-side-to-side and move the Wave Magnet decoys to add movement Three Farm Form Kite decoys (2 snow and 1 blue) when the wind is10 mph +. On still days we incorporate two Mr. Lucky Battery Operated Spinning Wing decoys (painted to resemble snow geese) in the spread to give flash and movement.
Two electric callers with Kirk snow with Canada cassette tapes. Two CD players with the Texas Hunting Products Snow CD.
TIP: In some states battery operated spinning wing decoys are outlawed. It is our understanding that the wind powered spinning wing is legal. Air Lucky is a full body decoy with hard plastic wings that spin in light wind. To reduce required wind a squirt of Slick 50 at the joint of the body and wing and the wing spins easily. Unfortunately Air Lucky decoys are sold out for this season. Purchase 2 to 4, paint to match snow and blue for the 2007-2008 duck/goose season.
A Headless All Wind spread works when snows have no apparent reason to use the field. Last year our group had very good luck each hunt on a field that snows were NOT using to feed. The field was a rice field that has been ploughed and flooded for duck hunting, and then drained after the duck season. The appearance was a dark brown muddy mess. We used low profile Lewis Flip Top Blinds along the edge of the field set in high weeds rather than dress in white and hunt from the spread.
2. SPREADS
Like all spreads we put out, it resembles a field of feeding/resting geese that were observed the day before. If you didn’t scout the day before and you want to put out a spread. Remember to start with hunter placement and the wind at the hunter’s backs If that faces the hunters looking into the sun, then place the hunters where the wind is at a side). If hunting from layout blinds, we offer the Blanket Blind – lightweight, comfortable, easy to transport, set up and store (after the season). Place the hunters 10 yards apart (side-by-side) and in a straight line, NEVER have one hunter behind another hunter – always side by side.
The next order of business is the “Landing Zone;” it should be as wide as the width of the hunters (outside shoulder of the far left hunter across the spread to the outside shoulder of the hunter on the right) and 1-1/2 times as deep as the width (or deeper). Example 6 hunters (10 yards apart) as 50 yards wide, add 5 yards on each side and the Landing Zone is 60 yards wide, the dept should be 90 plus yards deep, normally 1-1/2 times the width. If you are hunting from layout blinds in the spread the Landing Zone is directly behind the hunters. If you are hunting from a blind, the Landing Zone is directly in front of the blinds.
Use the Headless All Wind snows and blues as the base decoy, place them 10 to 12 feet apart. This gives greater area covered with less decoys. On the downwind side of the spread place the All Wind decoys. The All Wind decoys with heads are the first decoy the circling snows will see. The Wave Magnet string decoys with AirGoose snow balloon decoys should be placed upwind at the end of the spread. Place the shells with the Wing Waver in the Landing Zone, about 5 yards apart. Place the CD players under a couple of Texas Rag decoys, place the Wing Waver in the middle of the shell decoys. When spinning wing decoys are used place them on the sides, further back than the Goose Magnets. The spinning wing decoys appear to be geese hopping over geese to get to food first.
Place the Goose Magnet landing decoys in the spread in a triangle about 5 to 8 yards apart in the sides of the spread to give the appearance of geese landing among the spread decoys.
This decoy spread has worked so well that geese passing within a mile on any side will turn, fly over and as they arrive over the spread stop like seeing a red light and start to circle down. Not all flights but easily 7 out of 10 flights. On one occasion last year a flight of 7 specs landed and spent almost 10 minutes walking around in the spread. They left when a large flight of specs flew over and called them up.
Place a dozen or more dark rags through out the spread and a dozen Canada All Wind (or shell) decoys in a loose circle at one end of the snow spread. The Kirk tape doesn’t sound like a thousand birds but like a couple hundred with occasional Canada honk mixed in.
3. SHOTGUNS
A 12 gauge (or 10 gauge) 3-1/2-inch is a must, next would be the 12 gauge 3-inch and last 12 gauge 2-3/4-inch. Extensions are available for the Benelli semi auto that allows to blast away with 1/3 box of shells per loading. It surprises me that shell manufacturers don’t get a list of Benelli owners and send each an extension - free. Several other shotguns have shell magazine extensions available. Contact your gunsmith and see if an extension is available for your shotgun. If it is order it and have the gunsmith install – now.
There is and always will be a dispute on chokes. Some gun writers feel that modified chokes are best. I have found in my Benelli a better pattern “in my shotgun” with Briley’s improved cylinder screw in choke and Patternmaster. Steel pellets appear to stay together better in the more open chokes. The pellets don’t mash together like lead and don’t bounce apart as much as in tighter chokes. The Patternmaster with BB & BBB, the IC with 2,4 & 6s.
4. SHELLS
There might be better steel shells for duck hunting or decoying geese, but I’ve found the Winchester Supreme 3-1/2” BBB shot is the very best snow goose steel shell. In tests this writer conducted over the summer, the shell we call “Black Death” had deeper shot penetration in pine 1 x 6s at 50 and 60 yards than similar steel loads by Remington, Federal, Kent, etc. But always shoot the shell you feel is the best, wing shooting is one area that positive confidence is essential to a good harvest.
The Supreme BBB pattern at 40 yards was similar to the pattern of several of the other 3-1/2” BBB shells, with enough pellets in the 30-inch pattern to kill any snow goose. The big difference is penetration.
In conservation season, more so than during regular season. Shots are taken at 50 and 60 yards. With unplugged guns there are 4 to 8 shots available that aren’t normally legal to the hunters during waterfowl seasons.
The non-toxic type shells are considered. The cost is such that most snow goose hunters take way too many shots to afford the cost of these shells. My hunting partners and I harvest 500 to 600 snows over several weekends – and at times considerably more. If every shot brought down a goose the synthetic shells could put a hunter in more financial trouble than a lost or stolen credit card. And, we aren’t even that good.
Note: Winchester Supreme 3-1/2” No. BBB are $ 160.00 per case (25 shells per box & 10 boxes per case = 250 shots), Hevi Shot Nitro Magnum High Velocity Waterfowl Loads 3-1/2” No 2 are 250 shells per case, Dead Coyote Goose Loads 3-1/2” No. T $ 206.90 a case (10 boxes of 10 shells per box = 100 shots), Bismuth 3-1/2” No. BB are $ 219.90 per case (10 shells per box & 10 boxes per carton = 100 shells). The non-toxic shells are over $ 2.00 per shell and the Supreme are around $ 0.64 per shot.
In all fairness to the type shell needed to bring down snow geese dead, might vary with each shotgun. Get a handful of shells of each of the fast BBB shells from the different manufacturers and see which patterns better at 40 and 50 yards.
5. CALLERS & TAPES & CASSETTS
Electric Callers - There are several electric callers on the market. HS carries the Stewart callers and Cabela’s carries the Cabela’s electric caller. Either one will work; our recommendation includes only a couple of conditions. 1st – The caller should be waterproof. 2nd – The caller should automatically change the cassette tape from sides A to B and vice versa – you don’t want to be up changing the tape side when geese appear. 3rd – Keep and transport the tape player, charger and snow goose tapes in a case. We use a plastic tub from Wal Mart, Target, etc. – inexpensive, stackable, lightweight and waterproof.
Also, it is a good idea to have two callers. Place one at one end of the spread and the other at the other end of the spread. It doesn’t take much wind to reduce the distance that most sounds can be heard. Any type sound booster is also a nice extra. In the second caller should diffidently use the Kirk Snows with Canada tape, place the speaker near a group of Canada decoys next to the main Snow spread.
This past year we added a couple of inexpensive CD players (less than $ 30.00 each at Wal Mart). We placed the each under a snow goose Texas Rag near the center of the spread.
Snow Goose Tapes & CDs - There are only two tapes that we have used over the past four years that seem to work everyday. The Texas Hunting Products Snow Goose Tape (available on CD also) that we with a large spread (1,200 + decoys). The Kirk Snow Goose with Canada cassette tape. That we use when the spread is less than 1,000 decoys.
Duckngoose.com offers 2 CD’s for Snow goose conservation season. Along with 3 cassette tapes. Each of these reproduces work. A couple of cassette players, with a couple of CD players and a half dozen tapes and CDs will make a big difference. More sounds means more pounds of harvest.
TIP: We use the Lewis Flip Top Blind built for two hunters. The booklet on instructions (with diagrams) to build the blind is available. However, some hunters want a portable blind. The Strong Built Ground Blind is a one-man blind that is easily folded up to transport and unfolded to hunt.
6. ATTRACTING
You are hunting in the flyway but not in a feeding field. You must get the passing flights attention. It can be done with a couple types of decoys and flagging.
There are several flags available. For me the Flagman Flags are the best, or should be since the Flagman is credited as the creator of flags and was the first to use “flagging.”
Flagging is the best way to get the attention of passing snow geese.
There are a couple of proven methods of flagging. Hold the flag over your head and wave it up and down (or shake it up and down). After the geese turn and head toward the decoys, gently wave the flag and lower it to the ground to resemble a goose landing.
The Wave Magnet and snow goose balloon decoys on zero to light wind and the same Wave Magnet and balloon decoys couple with 1 or 2 or 3 kites. The movement by goose looking decoys will get the attention at miles to the side. A big spread is also necessary.
The snow goose Wing Waver is another excellent “Flagging” decoy. The wings moving up and down as the string run to the hunter is pulled and released really looks good. Idea from a pit or low profile blind.
The spinning wing battery operated decoys. Especially the Mr. Lucky decoys that are painted to resemble a snow goose work extremely well. Just move off a mile away and you can see the flash of the wings. We have had snows and small Canada geese land next to the spinning wing decoy and walk all around the decoy for several minutes before flying off.
8. BLINDS
We have found that low profile duck type box blinds placed to in natural vegetation along the side of a field doesn’t cause snows to avoid the field. Sitting in a chair with a rigid floor is far more comfortable than lying in a muddy field – even using sleds and back rests or low profile blinds – and much cleaner. The Lewis Flip Top Blind is the perfect fit for a 2 man blind - if there is a place to hide in plane site. If a one man blind is your choice, the Strong Built Ground Blind is lightweight, relatively small and works extremely well.
A sled is important for those fields where the ground is potted with water or just plain muddy.
The Blanket Blind is our choice for a layout blind during this late snow goose season. It is very lightweight, extremely quick to set up (and take down), inexpensive, requires very little space to transport and store. If you are hunting any field that the snow geese are resting or feeding this is the ideal blind for you.
9. HANDS & FEET
There have been quite a few improvements made in gloves over the past five years.
The requirements that all snow goose hunters want in gloves - waterproof, insulated, light and ease of shooting. Unfortunately this seems to be very hard combination to find, in fact it seems impossible. During the regular season the ability to use a hand call makes this even harder.
The use of electric callers makes the use of a hand call really unnecessary, but I’ve found that the best method to keep hands warm is with a waterproof muff and chemical hand warmers. Strap a camo muff around your waste and place two – yes two – chemical hand warmers in the muff. As your hands get cold open one hand warmer. If the hunt last more than the time frame of the first hand warmer. Open the second handwarmer.
Insulated boots are necessary, but to complement these can be boots, use the right socks. Polypropylene liner socks, with a chemical toe heater stuck to the toe area of sock and a wader wool sock pulled on over the inner sock. The liner sock wicks away built-up moisture and the heater and wool keep the feet warm.
10. HEAD & FACE
In conservation season like most hunts for waterfowl the head and face needs to the covered, camo is best and there are a multitude of options, but “face cover” is a must.
The Avery line of head and face gear or an equal is good; the Fleece Turthehead, or the Fleece Yukon Hood, or the Fleece Neck Gaiter, or the Neoprene Caller’s Mask or the Fleece Caller’s Mask are normally all that is needed. On warm days the net turkey mask is the one to use.
But, in very cold climates there is no option, the PolarWrap Exchanger in a camo pattern. Eliminates 40 percent of the heat loss through the face head area. Researchers report over 705 of the heat loss occurs. TIP: Walking in a muddy field, especially fields that the hunter sinks up to his ankles in sticky mud can pull off the normal waders or hip boots. Obtain a pair of shoeless camo waders, the inexpensive waders and an inexpensive pair of wader shoes. Lace the shoes tight and walking through the mud and putting out decoys in a muddy field is far easier and less time consuming. Obtain a bootjack. When you get back to the auto (if you have no water or there is no ditch around to wash off the mud. Loose the laces, pull off the boots with the jack and place the boots in a trash bag for the ride home. DO NOT FORGET to wash them when you get to an outside water hose. The camo waders, if muddy, can be rolled up and placed in the trash bag as well. Last year I was able to get both for under $ 30.00 total. Look for sales. |
