goose calling advice?

[albravo2]

Ok, most of you have read my posts as I try to self-teach myself and my son to hunt waterfowl. We've made some excellent progress through research, trial and error, and advice from the forum and PMs from several experienced hunters.

Now I'd like to come back to the advice trough.

We were up at 3 on opening day (Saturday) and on the water by 430. This is a spot in a river valley where I've been watching some resident geese since April.

We had some decoys (2 lookers, 6 feeders) set up and were well hidden by 5 or so. Way before shooting light I heard some geese overhead. I gave a couple clucks just to let them know where we were. They circled once and I clucked a few more times, then they carried on up the valley. Same thing happened on Sunday.

I damn near deafened myself in the truck driving back from Cabelas with my new goose call and my cluck now sounds OK compared to what I'm hearing on the instructional videos I'm watching, but it is the only tool in my calling tool kit.

Do I need to learn a hail call or a greeting call or do I just keep clucking and hope to get lucky?

Also, what the hell do I do if they come in to my spread fifteen minutes before shooting light?

Any advice appreciated.

[adriaticum]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6X3dt00_Vuc

[lorneparker1]

Ok, most of you have read my posts as I try to self-teach myself and my son to hunt waterfowl. We've made some excellent progress through research, trial and error, and advice from the forum and PMs from several experienced hunters.

Now I'd like to come back to the advice trough.

We were up at 3 on opening day (Saturday) and on the water by 430. This is a spot in a river valley where I've been watching some resident geese since April.

We had some decoys (2 lookers, 6 feeders) set up and were well hidden by 5 or so. Way before shooting light I heard some geese overhead. I gave a couple clucks just to let them know where we were. They circled once and I clucked a few more times, then they carried on up the valley. Same thing happened on Sunday.

I damn near deafened myself in the truck driving back from Cabelas with my new goose call and my cluck now sounds OK compared to what I'm hearing on the instructional videos I'm watching, but it is the only tool in my calling tool kit.

Do I need to learn a hail call or a greeting call or do I just keep clucking and hope to get lucky?

Also, what the hell do I do if they come in to my spread fifteen minutes before shooting light?

Any advice appreciated.

The answer to do you need to learn other calls is yes. However, Learn to cluck first. And what I mean by that is make sure that everytime you put the call to your mouth and cluck it sounds like a goose. Far to many goose hunters want to learn 60 different calls when they cant even cluck properly. Then you just end up with a whole bunch of things that sound terrible. I would learn in this order.

Cluck
Double Cluck
Moan.
Comeback
Mur-mur.

IF you can master those you one at a time then learn how to put them together in cadence, you will on your way and can then worry about the tougher stuff to do. Many Many many geese have died to nothing more then double clucking and moaning.

Lorne

Oh and to answer your question about what to do if they come in your spread before shooting light? Let them land, count down the minutes and kill em!

[f350ps]

Getting them to decoy in the river at first light is a tall order, they are heading to feed at first light! Different story a couple hours after that though as long as you're roughly where they wanna be. K

[barklee]

Go down there the morning of the hunt and see where they are taking off from. Once they have left to go feed put your hustle on and get you decoys out and get hidden. Then Wait till they come back and when they are about to land on your head kill them is what I would do. It seems like its just on group so you will only get one go at them so make sure they are just about in your decoys before you start shooting, Or they start to flare from you then shoot them.
Good luck.

[albravo2]

Getting them to decoy in the river at first light is a tall order, they are heading to feed at first light! Different story a couple hours after that though as long as you're roughly where they wanna be. K

Kelly,
Thanks for that. I thought I was on a feed spot, a sandbar with a covering of grass, but they may be headed up the valley to something a little more lush. During my scouting I usually saw them on my spot later in the day.

I will take your advice and wait longer. Thanks.

[Crazy_Farmer]

Sounds like a roost spot not a feeding spot. They're probably hitting a field nearby. If they are there say from before noonish to 4-6pm they're day roosting on it. Geese wake up. Fly to go feed. Fly back for water and sunbath all day haha. Then repeat in the afternoon later.

This hot weather and early timing in the season can change these variables. Geese may only feed one time a day. And can even switch between morning or afternoon feeding patterns. This can make you shake your head thinking the geese were in a spot the night before but didn't come back.

Fresh corn or anything newly harvested they'll be looking to eat.

It's generally accepted a better method to hunt the geese where they want to feed. As you don't blow the roost and scatter all the birds around your area. But if you only have one option might aswell hunt it right.

Id wake up late and let all the geese leave to the fields and then setup and try to get them when they're coming back to the sandbar or water. probably better luck.

[Foxton Gundogs]

What 350and CF said. find where they feed grain or green fields and get permission or if you are going to hunt the sandbars wait for them to return latter. btw what call do you have??

[albravo2]

I'm hunting in a mountain valley, have been setting up at the bottom end where there is some flooded timber and a dam. I wouldn't think there is much for fields up the valley but they may well be leaving the valley to find food (I would estimate about 25 kms to farmers fields) then returning to the valley to roost in the afternoon. About 6kms up river the terrain turns pretty marshy so they may find food up there too.

I bought the Zink Moneymaker. I think my clucks sound pretty good but if I try and do anything more complex it sounds like a monkey with a trumpet. I'll work on the double-cluck all day tomorrow, then head up and hope to connect in the afternoon, though I expect if they are coming back into my area to roost I may not need to do much calling.

Its been pretty addicting, listening to them fly over and trying to figure out a way to tempt them in. We've been having a lot of fun.

[pnbrock]

bad grammer dvd is a pretty good watch for anyone learning to call.

[adriaticum]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3BepcBDQPLE

The whole session on the tube.