anyone been central flyway snow geese hunting?

[fowlweather]

just wondering what i should be shooting like for snow geese in layout blinds ex: how much to lead them because i know that you shoot them 40yds+ sometimes, the reason i am asking is i dont want to find out the secret two hours into the hunt. and so i can practice in the last couple weeks of the season. thanks

[Chessieguy]

Hunted them in Quebec 2 times. First year they were in your face 20 yd shots and the lead was no different than normal.

The second year was a different story, longer more tricky shots. I was a skeptic on the need for a 3 1/2 inch shell until that hunt, then realized that you needed all the pellets you could get out there.

The big thing I found was to try and shoot shells with the same speed. practicing longer range shots with a 1375 fps shell and then shooting the real thing with a 1550 fps shell made a world of difference in what lead was required.

It will no doubt take some learning, but have fun doing it.

[shotgunjohn]

Been on a hunt in Manitoba. Found it to be a steep learning curve so here are some pointers.

The shots can be long but the geese are often hovering directly overhead. If you are used to pass shooting Canada's you actually have to really shorten up your lead.

Goose straight up looking down at the decoys at 30 yards hold just in front of the bill.

Practice lying on your back and shooting almost straight up.This is after you do a situp to push open the layout blind. For practice do about 200 situps a day.

Snow geese aren't that hard to kill. I did just fine with 2 3/4 inch shells when I hit the birds including killing two lesser canada's with one shot.

Have fun. Remember that that's the whole point.

[fowlweather]

thanks if i really need help i can ask the guide but i dont think i will need it,

[32-40win]

It may take you a bit to figure out how high you can take them at, look for birds that are going slow and semi-hovering in the wind. Make sure you know where the 40 & 50yd line is in the dekes. If you get slow moving birds that are not committing after the first few flocks, that's what you will be doing. Do not pass on singles and doubles for bigger flocks if they start to flare or won't commit.