Out of State Trips - the Good and the Bad

Hydemarsh

Six Pointer
Thought I would create a place where we can tell each other stories about out upcoming travels this fall. Share the places that are good and live up to your expectations as well as tell about the places that did not (and why). Good NC trips count as well.

Its getting close and some of you have already gone to ND or Canada.

Regardless, good luck to everyone this fall. Bird numbers should be OK (not great but good)
 

CountryRN

Twelve Pointer
I have enjoyed quite a few DIY hunts on the sounds of NC along with a few guided hunts in Oregon Inlet.

On the other end of the spectrum, a few years back I went on a guided hunt along the Ohio river for ducks and geese. My buddy and I ended up having to pull the guide out of the river in 20 degree weather and get him back to a warm truck before he froze to death. I then had to drive his underpowered boat back down the river to pick up the rest of the customers and fight our way back up stream against high wind and waves in an underpowered boat. Not a hunt I would want to repeat.
 

JJWise

Twelve Pointer
Hoping we’ll be able to go back to WV for a few days in November or December. Didn’t start duck hunting till we moved to NC so I’m looking to get my first WV waterfowl.
 

Hydemarsh

Six Pointer
Coach, what part of Ontario? I have always wanted to go to hunt Lake St Claire, that place is like Ocracoke in that the guides are always booked up with repeat customers.
My hunting buddies from Dare county and I are headed to Wainwright Alberta on Saturday. 6 days of smoking geese and ducks. The outfitter is Northern Prairie Outfitters. They are highly focused on delivering results everyday. Some of the best guides I have ever seen.

The best guide I have ever used is Adam Jones of Englehard. A very honorable man.
 

coachcornbread

Ten Pointer
Coach, what part of Ontario? I have always wanted to go to hunt Lake St Claire, that place is like Ocracoke in that the guides are always booked up with repeat customers.
My hunting buddies from Dare county and I are headed to Wainwright Alberta on Saturday. 6 days of smoking geese and ducks. The outfitter is Northern Prairie Outfitters. They are highly focused on delivering results everyday. Some of the best guides I have ever seen.

The best guide I have ever used is Adam Jones of Englehard. A very honorable man.

We are going to Lake St Claire. Hunting with Blair Ellison. A friend of mine in Salisbury helps him from time to time.

Ive never hunted with Adam Jones, but Ive met him a few times in Engelhard. You are correct in that he is a pretty stand up dude.
 

JONOV

Old Mossy Horns
I was in North Dakota the last weekend of September/Oct 1. It doesn't fail to disappoint. Fortunately I'm lucky enough to be invited by a group that has a lot of access, but even without it there are so many options, so much small water, etc...

And, the upland hunting for Sharptails is amazing too.
 

Colekira

Ten Pointer
Contributor
Heading to a private ranch in Maryland tomorrow with 2 friends I haven't seen in years. There are Booners on the property but we need to do some major doe control. It's a free trip and I'm just looking forward to all the laughter.
 

Hydemarsh

Six Pointer
We are going to Lake St Claire. Hunting with Blair Ellison. A friend of mine in Salisbury helps him from time to time.

Ive never hunted with Adam Jones, but Ive met him a few times in Engelhard. You are correct in that he is a pretty stand up dude.

I have talked with Blair, he has a very good reputation. Could never find a time when he had an opening. Let me know if you think that an experienced hunter could haul a boat there and hunt without a guide. I know it is big water and from experience I know Canadian weather can be dangerous. I have always suspected a scissor rig would work well there.
 

Hydemarsh

Six Pointer
Heading to a private ranch in Maryland tomorrow with 2 friends I haven't seen in years. There are Booners on the property but we need to do some major doe control. It's a free trip and I'm just looking forward to all the laughter.

good luck, there are some GREAT bucks in that area.
 

dobber

Old Mossy Horns
Heading to Ontario a week from tomorrow.
Where ya heading, not sure if you know it or not, but you have your very own Ontario resident right here
Ahh never mind i see it, i am in Windsor myself close to the lake, big flocks of northerns aren't down yet, but slowly coming, had snow up north so might push them, plus the full moon we had would allow birds to fly at night
 

darkthirty

Old Mossy Horns
Coach, what part of Ontario? I have always wanted to go to hunt Lake St Claire, that place is like Ocracoke in that the guides are always booked up with repeat customers.
My hunting buddies from Dare county and I are headed to Wainwright Alberta on Saturday. 6 days of smoking geese and ducks. The outfitter is Northern Prairie Outfitters. They are highly focused on delivering results everyday. Some of the best guides I have ever seen.

The best guide I have ever used is Adam Jones of Englehard. A very honorable man.

Killed a pile of birds with Adam. He will kill birds when no one else is. He’s the only guide I’d go with if I was looking sea ducks. He books up quick.
 

darkthirty

Old Mossy Horns
I sold a Boykin puppy to a outfitter that guides on Lake Ontario and has private marshes. He was as nice as they come when he came to the house for the puppy. He owns black river valley outfitters. They shoot a lot of goldeneyes, oldsquaws and black ducks.
 

Hydemarsh

Six Pointer
I sold a Boykin puppy to a outfitter that guides on Lake Ontario and has private marshes. He was as nice as they come when he came to the house for the puppy. He owns black river valley outfitters. They shoot a lot of goldeneyes, oldsquaws and black ducks.
I will show my geographic ignorance, does he hunt on the US or Canadian side of the lake?
 

Larry Eckart

Four Pointer
Guys,
Here's my recent trip story.

On September 29 I flew to Alpena, Michigan to meet two friends. Together we were going to duck and grouse hunt an area in northern Ontario that we had hunted many times, but not for the last ten years.

Once upon a time I lived in Michigan. Those years led to many trips to the fishing and hunting areas of the mitten state, as well as into Ontario. When I moved to South Carolina in 2010, those trips stopped. Now, in retirement, this would be my first fall trip to the north woods. I was stoked, not just to go hunting but simply to be in the north woods. Balsam fir. I wanted to smell balsam fir. Wet popple leaves in a grouse and woodcock covert. I wanted to smell those leaves.

Driving across the Mackinac Bridge that separates the Upper Penninsula from the Lower Penninsula is an experience in marveling both at mother nature and the incredible ability of man to master that nature. While Michigan is north, the Upper Penninsula is North!

Customs was an easy get through. The Ontario Fish and Game people now allow you to get your license, outdoors card, and waterfowl stamp online, so we were good to go as we motored through Sault Ste. Marie.

We stayed in a cabin on St. Joseph Island, Ontario and hunted that vicinity. On such trips planned so long in advance, you never know what you will get with the weather or the migration. Even though we would hunt early -the first week of October- we had done well that week in previous years, that far north.

Much, much different than our previous experience in and around the Great Lakes ten years ago was the current water level: a full 3’ higher than normal. Our local knowledge was rather useless. It was like hunting an area we had not been before.

Example: we knew of one narrows about 300 yards wide that ringnecks and bluebills used annually as a flight path. That 300 yard narrows was now ¾ of a mile wide! Crazy! Every place we used to stand in knee deep water was now shoulder deep or over our head. Crazy!

We resorted to the time honored principle: be where the ducks want to be. On Monday night we found an area being used by ringnecks and mallards. Thank You Lord! Anticipation and excitement made it hard to sleep.

Did I mention rain? On the day we arrived the rain came in bands that mimicked the bands of a hurricane. Heavy rain. Pause. Heavy rain. Pause. Repeat. My buddies accused me of bringing hurricane weather with me from North Carolina. We woke the first morning to thunder and lightning.

Waiting until 8:00, the storms abated and we motored to our chosen spot. Where there were ducks last night was an empty marsh this morning. Strange! Beyond strange, for two days we stared at mostly empty skies in areas where in other years we had seen and killed many ducks. Motoring out into big water where we normally would see rafts of ringnecks, we saw nothing. Nothing!

After flying and driving over 1,000 miles and hunting two days I ended up with zero birds. Skunked! I shot a few times but the bird strap remained empty. Our luck was bad. Even on the day we planned to grouse hunt we received solid rain and 40 degrees all day long. Skunked again!

Nevertheless, I thoroughly enjoyed myself. The opportunity to be with friends in a beautiful place is its own reward. Would I have preferred a strap full of mallards and ringnecks? Of course! But it was not to be.

Here are a few pics of other rewards from the trip of skunk:

This balsam fir would look and smell wonderful as anyone’s Christmas tree.
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Nothing like a good fire to ward off the chill of rain and empty bags.
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The local bakery had a raisin pie straight from heaven. I only had one piece. At a time. J
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Here is a pic of where we hunted. Pretty good looking marsh, eh?
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Because two of us flew in, we did not bring fishing equipment. We did, however, stop at the famous St. Mary’s rapids in Sault Ste. Marie. Ten years ago, this was one of the more dangerous places to wade because 2’ and 8’ of water look the same. Now, with three feet of water added to the Great Lakes, the St. Mary’s rapids are nigh on impossible to wade. The guys we saw fishing were basically fishing from shore or near shore.

Thus three experienced hunters came home without one duck. Skunked! To add insult to injury, when friend Mark check his luggage at the Alpena airport, the $70 baggage surcharge he was expecting turned into $170 because one bag was a few pounds overweight. I doubt he ever flies Delta again.

Larry
 

Hydemarsh

Six Pointer
Well written story Larry. Did you get to talk to locals? Are there still substantial numbers of birds in the area or has that changed as well?

I have not followed the issue of great lakes water levels, what has caused such an increase in just 10 years?
 

JONOV

Old Mossy Horns
Much, much different than our previous experience in and around the Great Lakes ten years ago was the current water level: a full 3’ higher than normal. Our local knowledge was rather useless. It was like hunting an area we had not been before.

Example: we knew of one narrows about 300 yards wide that ringnecks and bluebills used annually as a flight path. That 300 yard narrows was now ¾ of a mile wide! Crazy! Every place we used to stand in knee deep water was now shoulder deep or over our head. Crazy!
Great Story.

RE the lake levels, my family has been vacationing on the lake (Michigan) all my life (and Lake Michigan and Lake Huron are actually the same lake according to Hydrologists.) In the late eighties my parents and grandparents were sandbagging to make sure the lake didn't take my grandparents cabin. As a younger kid, we had a nice sandy beach; I remember boat rides around "Rock Island" and learning dirty words when my uncle dinged the prop. In my adolescence, the water rose and we were reduced to a few yards of beach. Later, we had 15 years or so of extensive beach as the waters receded, and a couple years one could almost walk out to "Rock Island" without getting wet. The water has been rising, but this year, WOW, the island has disappeared; it's a rock big enough for one or two gulls to perch on. Kind of interesting!
 

woodmoose

Administrator
Staff member
Contributor
what has caused such an increase in just 10 years?


the Great Lakes fluctuate like any other fresh water body,,,the records broke this summer were set in 1986 for most of the lakes

some of course will blame "climate change"

the recorded history (only 100 years)

34421
 

woodmoose

Administrator
Staff member
Contributor
great Tale Larry,,,funny you mentioned Alpena - I bid some work there last month (and lost)
I am in the U.P right now - having fun, exploring, and not doing much better than you all did (so far)

that raisin pie looks good!
 

woodmoose

Administrator
Staff member
Contributor
thanks Woodmoose, that was very informative. I better start learning about issue if I want to hunt there.


what's interesting is how little land mass drains into the great lakes,,,so think about how much water is in the shield region here ,,,

you'd believe it seeing how much of this area is "wet" in the woods

greatlakesbasin.jpg
 

Hydemarsh

Six Pointer
If you like hunting divers have you ever dreamed of wave after wave of redheads swinging toward to your decoys, cupping up, and coming in like you owed them money? I got to live that dream last February on the Laguna Madre in Mexico. One of my most favorite hunts. I found it very safe, and the outfitter was focused on every detail to ensure you had a good time. We shot ducks in the morning and rock pigeons in the afternoon. The pigeons were really fun hunting. They were big, fast, agile, and tasty.
My partner backed out so I had to hunt by myself (no question then regarding who killed the bird). in addition to the redheads we had occasional flights of pintails, blue wing teal, mottled ducks, and bluebills. It was old 0215191146.jpgfashion duck hunting; unplugged guns and lead shot.
 

Woods and water

Ten Pointer
If you like hunting divers have you ever dreamed of wave after wave of redheads swinging toward to your decoys, cupping up, and coming in like you owed them money? I got to live that dream last February on the Laguna Madre in Mexico. One of my most favorite hunts. I found it very safe, and the outfitter was focused on every detail to ensure you had a good time. We shot ducks in the morning and rock pigeons in the afternoon. The pigeons were really fun hunting. They were big, fast, agile, and tasty.
My partner backed out so I had to hunt by myself (no question then regarding who killed the bird). in addition to the redheads we had occasional flights of pintails, blue wing teal, mottled ducks, and bluebills. It was old View attachment 34427fashion duck hunting; unplugged guns and lead shot.
What outfitter did you use if you don't mind me asking. I don't duck hunt but my son wants to go out the country to bird hunt
 

Roanoke

Eight Pointer
My passports old and new are covered up with stamps and work visas from Mexico. Very fun place to hunt ducks as well as quail. My first trip was in the early 90's and my last was 2018. I am not going back until the cartels get under control. We had to cut our last trip short due to gang activities. It is not worth the risks. You can no longer Gringo yourself out of a situation with the Federales. They will shake you down for all the cash that you have or worst. Americans travel to hunting destinations in Mexico everyday with no issues but it only takes one incident. It is not safe. Even big resort cities like Cancun are starting to have issues. Tensions have gotten worst since Trump got into office. With the legalization of weed in the US the cartels have lost a huge market of business. To cover that loss they have turned to kidnapping and human trafficking.

Mexican Outfitters do not want to tell you the real situation. He may be paying a member of the Gulf Cartel for protection but they could be at war with the Zetas. You can easily get caught in the middle and the Zetas will kill you or vice versa. I own a hunting and fishing booking agency and have done a good bit of traveling. We are still booking fishing trips to Isla Mujeres but have stopped all hunts to interior parts of the country. Check out the US State Department website for current travel warnings.



Here are my picks based on my experience for hunting in North America.
Mallards. Go to Oregon where you can kill seven of them per day. Try the Columbia river area. I like hunting the flooded green tree reservoirs of the South more, but Oregon kills more mallards than any other state.


Teal and Gadwalls. Atchafalaya Basin of Louisiana. Nothing like it. Fun place to hunt and even more fun to experience the food and culture. Note that there is always at least one Parish in Louisiana that kills more ducks each season than the entire Atlantic Flyway.

Pintails- Mexico use to be my go to but Hyde County has been extremely productive in the past few years. Wish that our limit would not of changed.

Red Heads- Texas Gulf Mexico is better but the like their neighbors north of the border.

Canvas Back- Lake ST. Clair, Ontario. The Canvas Back is the duck that many Carolina hunters have never harvested. People do not believe me when I tell them that the Neuse and Pamlico used to be full of them. On some years the James River has a decent amount of Canvas Backs.

Black Ducks- Delmarva peninsula specifically southern tip of Virginia's Eastern Shore.

Going to Alaska next September for puddle ducks.
 
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ThrillofDaChase

Ten Pointer
Went down to visit my sister in Houston the last weekend of September. Good to see her and we caught the Panthers/Texans game as well. I was able to get up with my buddy to hunt the end of their early teal split at their lease about an hour west of Houston. They lease a cattle farm with old sand/gravel pits and canals. The ducks come off of the rice fields and into their lease to loaf.

We shot a five man on Saturday and were done by 10:00. My buddy decided he was going to stay up at his deer lease Saturday evening through Sunday am, and another club member from Louisiana invited me back to hunt Sunday. The ol Cajun and Carolina boy shot a quick two man by 8:30. This is my second year hunting with these guys and to say they are good company is an understatement. Shorts and t-shirts were the gear. I am hoping to get back down for the big duck season.
 

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