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LeverActionJunkie
02-28-2009, 01:46 PM
I was talking about duck hunting with a guy at work and how I had always wanted to try it. He asked why I had never tried and I said it was because I didn't have all the gear, and I don't have a dog. He told me I should just try jump shooting them.

So my question to you masters of the marsh is have you done any jump shooting? Is it an effective way to bag a couple ducks? How do I go about getting my duck back if it dies in the water?

Any help would be appreciated as I now feel like I've been missing out for no particular reason at all.

f350ps
02-28-2009, 01:55 PM
Jump shooting ducks works excellent if ya find the right spots. Most guys will walk the water filled ditches that they know that birds frequent. You just have to stay back from the edge a bit so they don't spot you. I've done it lots years ago in the marsh when it was really slow and it does produce birds. Have fun. K

rifleman
02-28-2009, 02:28 PM
I like finding puddles or little ponds that ducks land in & then I sneak up on them & try to get close enough for a shot as they fly away. If I hunt this way I carry a fishing rod & reel so I can retreive the ducks if they are in deep water. Its very exciting trying to sneak up on them. give it a try,when the season opens. good luck.

sparkes3
02-28-2009, 03:10 PM
works great, use a fishing rod with a treble hook on the line next to a float or a chunk of wood 3-4 inches long (depends on the weight of the wood)with single hooks attached all around it to retrieve ducks fron the water.

PGK
02-28-2009, 03:14 PM
Big trolling spoon with a treble on it. Flush duck, shoot duck, spend 20mins trying to reel in duck :biggrin: Often the most challenging part of hunting ducks without a dog is retrieving them :biggrin: You really do need to watch your shots though, because if they fall somewhere you can't get to them, it sucks. I almost died this year trying to cross an old sunken beaver dam to get to a big mallard that had died on the wrong side of a swamp. Aside from that, it's a blast,, so get out there and do it!

Marc
02-28-2009, 04:39 PM
We jumped shot these geese this morning. Makes it a lot easier with a dog as all 4 of them fell into the pond.

http://www.huntingbc.ca/photos/data/500/goose_hunt_28_feb_2009.jpg

crazy ducker
03-01-2009, 08:41 AM
jump shooting is fun. if you don't have a dog. just stick to small ditches, or I have seen a guy how uses a golf ball retriever but it had a hook one the end just big enough to fit over a ducks neck but not over the head. there is nothing in the regs saying you can't hunt if you don't have a dog. lots of people hunt the marsh and they don't have dogs it just makes it easyier thats all.

Dirty
03-01-2009, 08:58 AM
Tips for jump shooting: stay back a ways as F350PS said, be quiet (those little buggers can hear talking, calls (calling will scare them), and off noises), and work the side opposite to tall cover. If there are large trees and high blackberries, chances are they will come out to the open side. When you figure out a ditch, you will learn where birds like to hide. Sometimes it is worth leaving a single bird if you know that there are usually more up further. Ask me how I know :tongue:. If you get a good spot it can be like poor mans pheasant hunting. It is really fun when a duck surprises you.

spock
03-01-2009, 09:37 AM
I've got lot's of fond memories of jump shooting ducks. My grandparents farm had a long narrow slough that ran through their property and into the farms on either side of them. We used to go and walk the sloughs every sunday afternoon and then just before dark sit beside where we figured they were coming in for the night. No decoys, no layout blinds, no fancy HD camo gear, just a green jacket, cheapo hip waders and a shell belt with 25 shells in it. When you were done you picked up your birds and headed in. Nice and simple.

huntwriter
03-01-2009, 09:51 AM
Most of the waterfowl hunting I do is jump shooting and as has been said it works great. Locate spots, smaller ponds, ditches and puddles that hold waterfowl from a distance. Then use the terrain features to sneak up on the flock as quietly as possible using the features to stay undetected. It’s a bit like stalking deer. Once you're within shooting range you can, as I do and shoot the first duck on the ground (sometimes I get two or three with one shot) and the others on the wing as they take off. If you do not own a dog make sure you do not shoot birds that fly toward open deep water as you will not be able to retrieve them unless you have a small boat ready somewhere.

Try it out and you will find that jump shooting can be great fun and very rewarding. In the cold frigid weather I prefer this type of hunting to sitting motionless for hours in a blind. Good luck.

Mr. Friendly
03-01-2009, 04:03 PM
what exactly is 'jump shooting' ducks? I googled it but got no standard definition. does it mean you lie in wait and jump and go blamblamblam or wear waiters and hide in reeds and when ducks land and cycle near you, go blamblamblam or what?

ryanb
03-01-2009, 04:17 PM
Means you walk along until you spot one and/or you "jump" them in to the air...then as you say....blamblamblam...or maybe blamblam.or maybe just blam.

sfire436
03-01-2009, 04:37 PM
Means you walk along until you spot one and/or you "jump" them in to the air...then as you say....blamblamblam...or maybe blamblam.or maybe just blam.


For most duck hunters (and myself) it's "blam blam blam!":razz:

Mr. Friendly
03-01-2009, 04:44 PM
For most duck hunters (and myself) it's "blam blam blam!":razz:
and unfortunately, due to draconian firearm laws, we can't go blamblamblamblam. :(

Marc
03-01-2009, 05:36 PM
and unfortunately, due to draconian firearm laws, we can't go blamblamblamblam. :(

I think the 3 shell law has more to do with conservation measures, if you're shooting properly, and not sky blasting, by the time you have the third shot off the birds are out of range anyways.

PGK
03-01-2009, 07:50 PM
Yeaaah firearms laws have nothing to do with the 3 shell rule.

Bow Walker
03-02-2009, 09:48 AM
I spent a few seasons with a buddy up in Aspen Grove 'puddle jumping' ducks. It generally takes two hunters, one to jump them and one to shoot them.

There are tons of very small ponds up there. The ducks love them. Two guys pull the sneak attack, one on one side of the pond the other on the opposite side. The 'spooker' walks up openly, the ducks always fly away from him and in the direction of the shooter. It's way too much fun. But remember - turnabout is fair play. The spooker gets his turn at the next pond.

Tuffcity
03-02-2009, 04:42 PM
We used to jump shoot ducks off the ponds that now grace Predator Ridge golf course. Damn golf course is a waste of some good upland and duck hunting habitat. :)

Mind you that's going back a lot of years when 16/17 year old boys could still roam at large by themselves with firearms.

Anyway... we used to locate the birds then one or 2 guys would set up ambush and some one would slowly wander into view to scare them off the pond. Usually ended up with ducks hitting the grass & bush as they were off the pond before you shoot (at) them.

One key point we found was that it worked better if you figured out were their escape route would be as it dictated which direction they were likey to take off. ie: low spot in the hill. Not so much of a worry if you're just pushing a ditch line- then stealth is your friend. :)

RC

yamadirt 426
03-02-2009, 06:12 PM
Whats your guys thoughts on sneeking up on ducks or geese and arrowing them on the water or in a field. Anyone done it ? It would be fairly difficult I imagine but I'm all about fair chase. Im sure you would go through a few arrows but I'm all about doing things a little different some times.

Tuffcity
03-02-2009, 06:29 PM
Flu-flu's with broadheads.

RC

PGK
03-02-2009, 06:53 PM
Whats your guys thoughts on sneeking up on ducks or geese and arrowing them on the water or in a field. Anyone done it ? It would be fairly difficult I imagine but I'm all about fair chase. Im sure you would go through a few arrows but I'm all about doing things a little different some times.

Go nuts! I don't like eating ducks enough to want to bowhunt them, although I did whack one with my bow once. I like the challenge of bringing them in feet down over the dekes and hammering them!

huntwriter
03-02-2009, 08:54 PM
Whats your guys thoughts on sneeking up on ducks or geese and arrowing them on the water or in a field. Anyone done it ? It would be fairly difficult I imagine but I'm all about fair chase. Im sure you would go through a few arrows but I'm all about doing things a little different some times.

Never done it myself but I use to go with a good friend duck hunting who used a traditional recurve bow with wooden arrows fletched with flu-flu feathers and he used spider legs between broadhead and arrow shaft to prevent pass trough shots. For as long I hunted with him he never once missed a duck, we gave him the nickname “Byron Ferguson of the duck hunters”. He simply was amazing. Sadly he passed away three years ago.

LeverActionJunkie
03-15-2009, 01:28 PM
Thanks for all the help I appreciate it. Gonna giver a go this fall.