Looking good for geese

anthony m coons sr

Well-known member
The other day when we were planting wild rice and duck potato's. We covered six or seven miles of the Hudson River. There were really good signs. For us to have a good goose season in September. We must of jumped three or four hundred young geese in the bays. I love early goose season. Years ago I didn't like the idea of early goose season. But after studying it for years. I kind of understand what the States that have it were doing it for. So much so that back in the day. Me and a good friend of mine were guns for hire . We were called Goose Busters by the golf course that hired us. Nothing like riding in golf carts early in the morning with shotguns. We did scare a few early birds on the course. But they were happy that the goose poop wasn't going to be on the green anymore lol.View attachment IMAG1576.jpg

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Resident pops are extremely high in my area of the eastern shore. We generally have a few good hunts during the resident season . Just hard to find a picked corn field that's picked during resident season. They do favor cut grass fields till that first corn is cut. Remerber 20 years ago it was something to shoot a goose during a duck hunt. Now the geese are a given and unless your hunting an impound the ducks are what are scarce!
 
Roy

Yes! snows can wreck a wheat field. But swans can wreck a wetland of its food. I never ate swan ,but I heard from people who have they told me not bad. Their breast has to be almost the size of a young turkey. God made some great looking birds among all the other great things he made.
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For a while here in SD there was even an August goose season. I never hunted it because 85 and humid doesn't seem like waterfowling weather to me. I believe they have mostly moved it back to September now. Few people hunted that early, those who did killed a bunch, but it seemed to make the geese very skittish very early. By October they were almost unhuntable unless you ran big decoy rigs.
In the late 90s when they really took off here they were easy to decoy, now not so much. At times they can still be dumb but every year they seem to be in bigger flocks and more wary.

Seeing 12lb geese cupped and committed is a rush, that is for sure. My dog likes them too.
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Tom

Thanks for the input, That is a great picture. Here in New York State I have even hunted in 90 degree weather in September for early goose season. Not fun at all. I get out really early and leave before it gets to hot. But I still go. By the middle of the month temps are just right. One year we bagged about one hundred twenty five during the September season. It was hard work but it was worth it. I made goose that year just about any way possible. None of it was wasted I can tell you that. Plus we feed a bunch of our friends families with all the meat. Four of us hunted everyday that year. I think it was like twenty six or twenty eight days. Here the migration hasn't even started yet. So these geese are residents.
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