Waterfowl tips

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Waterfowl hunting tips:

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USGS Waterfowl ID link

Ducks Unlimited Migration Map site

Ducks Unlimited species id link

Gear

Do not be afraid to use brightly colored hunting supplies and gear as long as you stow them properly. It is near impossible to locate a camouflaged item if accidentally dropped. (And, why would you ever need a camouflaged wallet?) HWS staff
Use a discarded 5 gallon pickle bucket as a makeshift blind seat. You can stow extra shells, food, and whatever else in this completely waterproof seat. HWS staff
Go to an outdoor store such as REI and purchase an LED mountain climber’s headlamp. These will keep your hands free when setting up decoy spreads, getting to your gear, and the like. The “climber” grade headlamps are designed to be used in cold brutal environments. It does not matter that they are not camouflaged, you don’t need camouflage when it’s dark. HWS staff
Bring back-up flashlights, odds are that your flashlight will go dead right in the middle of trying to find your blind or setting decoys. HWS staff
Purchase a wader belt. Most of them have a built in bandolier to carry an additional box of shells. This wader belt will help keep water out of the lower portion of your waders in case you fall in. HWS staff
Bring an inexpensive digital camera with you. The pictures will prevent your hunting buddies from lying or for them thinking you are a liar. Hint: (You can use photo editing software later to either add or subtract details from your hunting pictures.) HWS staff
Purchase a hunting muff. You can jam thick dry gloves and heating pads into it. Then you can hunt in cold weather with gloveless hands. HWS staff
Purchase gallon Ziploc bags and put all of your hunting gear (pocket knives, hunting regs, food, extra gloves, et cetera) in the bags so they can all stay extra dry. HWS staff
Purchase a long wooden handle from the hardware store. Screw a rubber coated hook into the end of it. Use this hook to pull decoys out of the water, rather than using your hands. HWS staff
Before the first freeze, mosquitoes will be all over Eastern Washington. Bring bug spray! HWS staff
Use earthy shades of spray paint on everything. Paddles, motors, gas tanks, chairs, and the like all stick out if not painted.
Use drilled out railroad spikes for very cheap anchor weights. (Use only when weight isn't an issue) HWS staff
Fill dixie sized cups with concrete and add a copper or brass hook imbedded in it. Very inexpensive but heavy decoy weight (courtesy Jeff L.)
Spray your waders with Armor All to help prevent them from drying out. Hang the waders upside down in a cool dry place (garage) to extend the life of this important and expensive piece of equipment. (courtesy Todd G.)
Look into purchasing the new waders with the waterproof zipper. The extra money spent is well worth it when you no longer have to strip down to do nature's business. (courtesy Todd G)

Blind/Setup

Be careful with your body movement in the blind. Ducks will flare if they see your movement. HWS staff
Pay attention to the back of your blind. Ducks will see you from 360 degrees. It is not enough concealment if you are only covered up in the front. HWS staff
Resist the urge to follow and watch ducks as they are checking out your spread. Unless your face is completely camouflaged, your skin stands out and will easily flare interested ducks. HWS staff
Make a laminated check list for your hunting gear and use it. There is nothing worse than forgetting an important hunting item (like a shotgun or license). HWS staff
Buy a pair of heavy duty pruning shears and bring them with you. The shears will make quick work of gathering blind material or sprucing up a natural blind. HWS staff
Never set up decoys and blind with the wind in your face. Ducks land into the wind and almost always from a direction where there is water. HWS staff
For decoys set on water always set up in the lee side of a peninsula or pond. Real ducks move towards calmer water. HWS staff
Dozens of decoys on absolutely calm water does not look natural to real ducks. Create movement in the water (toss pebbles, rock your boat, kick your foot back and forth in the water). HWS staff
On windless days you can add movement to your spread. Join 3 or 4 decoys together in a line, by using the weight end of your decoy string. Take the first decoy weight and run it out to the furthest point of your spread. Then attach a line from the nearest decoy and bring it back to the blind as a quick and handy jerk string. The movement of a few decoys will liven up your spread and make it more appealing to decoy shy ducks. HWS staff
When hunting heavily hunted land, leave your duck call back in the truck. Ducks get readily accustomed to duck calls of hunters. HWS staff
When hunting the North Puget Sound, do not be afraid to add a few snow geese decoys to your spread. Snow geese and Swans are numerous in the area. It is not uncommon to see these big white birds intermixed with other species. HWS staff
When hunting water which varies in depth, attach a single brass hook to the keel portion of your decoys. You can easily modify your decoy anchor depth by tying off your desired decoy cord to the length you need. These hooks make for quicker pulling in of your decoys. HWS staff
Use lots of decoys in the beginning of the season when local ducks are not yet decoy shy. (10 dozen decoys at minimum) Once the shooting starts, ducks tend to try to find the areas where big flocks of ducks have moved to. HWS staff
When hunting decoy shy ducks, use only a half dozen or so decoys. HWS staff
Use lots of decoys when it is apparent that the new migrant ducks have flown in. They will feel more comfortable coming in to a large flock, rather than a few dozen sitting on the water. HWS staff
Don’t be too disturbed by the hunters setting up across the lake from you, as long as they are well outside the range of your shotgun. Their decoys will keep real ducks more interested in the body of water you are hunting. The other group of hunters will also keep real ducks from just sitting on the water in their area. We have also found that other groups who are in the same area who are shooting will scare up ducks in the area and sometimes push ducks into looking at your spread. HWS staff
Keep your decoys painted and touched up. Nasty looking decoys do not look natural to real ducks. Use the whitest white, the orangest orange, the blackest black all in satin or flat finishes. This is what real ducks look like. Avoid glossy looks, real ducks do not shine in the sun. HWS staff
Use other species of decoys other than just mallards in your spread. Congregate your “other” species together a bit away from the concentration of mallards. This scenario looks very attractive to real ducks. HWS staff
You do not have to have all of the hunters in your party hunt from the same exact blind. Individual smaller blinds provide greater elbow room from which to hunt. HWS staff
Lengths of PVC pipe can make for very inexpensive, long lasting, and light blind posts. HWS staff
Use an 8 foot section of 3 to 4 foot tall horse fence as a quick and inexpensive base in which to build your blind. Use metal barbed wire stakes to firmly attach the fencing material into the ground. From there, weave blind material into the fence. This provides for a windproof solid blind from which to hunt out of.
Do not crowd your duck decoys. Real ducks move closer together when they are nervous. If in doubt about the spacing of your decoys… add another 2 feet to the spacing. This increased spacing also helps when errant winds blow decoys in different directions. Decoys should never touch! HWS staff
Creating a “J” pattern in your decoy set is a tried and true method to effectively bring in ducks. Place the low end of the J in front of your blind no closer than 15 yards. HWS staff
Placing your decoys into two distinct groups set apart from each other is an effective way to bring in ducks. Hunt the space between these two groups. HWS staff
Do not scare off undesired ducks or coots which have landed in your decoy spread. These birds will add significant realism to your spread. HWS staff
Use confidence decoys such as herons, crows, or even seagulls to make your decoy spread look realistic. HWS staff
A really good trick when hunting small ponds or rivers is to put decoys in areas that you don’t want live ducks to land. Live ducks will not land really close to ducks on the water. HWS staff

Shooting

First rule! Know what you are shooting at !!! There is no excuse for accidentally shooting something you did not intend to. HWS staff
Work on shooting from a sitting position. Sometimes in the process of jumping up, hunters can easily flare interested ducks. Shooting from your chair or seat allows you to better set up your shot. HWS staff
Keep your gun clean and well lubricated, nothing will spoil your waterfowling more than a gun that won’t work. HWS staff
When shooting steel duck loads, keep a few more-expensive tungsten goose loads in an easy to reach location. When you notice geese coming in, you should be able to have enough time to change out your shells. HWS staff
When moving in your boat, ensure that all of the guns are unloaded. Keep the breaches open so that anyone handling the weapons can easily see that they are unloaded. It is illegal in Washington State to hunt and shoot from a moving boat. HWS staff
When using makeshift blinds, check and verify your shooting lanes with your other hunting buddies with unloaded guns. Agree beforehand of who gets the shots and where. There is no excuse or anything more terrible than shooting your hunting buddy. Blind safety is not optional. HWS staff
Shot shell size is a personal choice and considerations. Use a size and shell appropriate to the type of hunting you do and the type of hunter you are. #8 shot will not perform very well at longer distances and #2 shot will vaporize a teal at close range. Experiment with different shot sizes and shell manufacturers to really hone in your preferred shell. HWS staff
When shooting in to a flock of incoming waterfowl, resist the urge to shoot at the bunch. Pick individual birds. If possible, shoot at the rear ducks and move your way forward into the flock. It will be much easier to pick up your double or triple if the second and third ducks are closer to you. (courtesy Mike D.[Yakima])

Dogs

Purchase a Neoprene vest for your dog. It will keep him warmer and more buoyant. HWS staff
If possible, remove your dog's collar before going a field. A collar can easily get snagged on brush and parts of a boat and could harm your dog. HWS staff
This may sound simple.. but, don't forget to bring dog chow for your pooch when going out to hunt. HWS staff

Miscellaneous

Hire a guide for one season. Chances are, that guide will teach you more during your hunt than you would learn from years of "trying to figure it out on your own." Guides are willing to teach and are getting paid to give you all their attention. Most guides will be flattered if you continually pick their brains for information.
If you are from the westside of Washington and are going to hunt the eastside or vice versa, pay attention to the pass reports. Pulling a boat over a pass which has a couple of feet of snow on it, makes for a miserable drive. HWS staff
Make and bring a couple of extra copies of your vehicle keys. Inform your hunting buddies of their location. This will keep you from being locked out of your truck if your keys get lost or if something disastrous happens to you. HWS staff
Double check your vehicle before going out for your hunt. A dead battery or keys in the ignition of a locked vehicle will greatly aggravate you. HWS staff
Layer your clothing. This will make for more efficient body heat regulation. Hunting Eastern Washington could provide a hunter with freezing temperatures in the morning and 60 to 70 degree temperatures by lunchtime. HWS staff
When using a boat, always wear your life jacket, even if you are only going out to retrieve a downed duck. Waterlogged clothes and waders provide no buoyancy and will cause you to drown. Putting on a life preserver only takes a few seconds. In addition, on bitter cold days, the life preserver adds an additional layer of insulation and will help keep you warmer. HWS staff
Keep alcohol back at camp or the hotel. Guns and booze never mix. HWS staff
Root Beer is a good accompaniment to a fine cigar. HWS staff
When packing up your gear and heading back to the truck, unload your weapon. This will prevent accidental discharges when stowing your gear. HWS staff
When nature calls, walk significantly away from your blind and find a concealed spot so that you do not flare incoming ducks so that your hunting buddies can continue to hunt. Use rapidly biodegradable toilet paper. Attempt to bury or cover your waste. Other hunting parties may have a dog who may attempt to roll in this stuff. HWS staff
When hunting an area with other hunters, notice what they are doing. Don’t be afraid to do the exact opposite of what they are doing if the shooting is slow. Don’t be afraid to introduce yourself and talk over the day or your experience. You may meet a potential new hunting companion. You’d be amazed at the stuff you’ll be able to learn by striking up a conversation with a fellow hunter. This support is the reason for HuntWashingtonState.com HWS staff
405,415 ducks were harvested in the 2006-2007 season (54% were Mallards) WDFW Game Status and Trends Report
53,517 geese were harvested in the 2006-2007 season (88% were lesser and greater Canadians) WDFW Game Status and Trends Report
Bird Cleaning Tips

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