Hail calling and skyblasting in high pressure hunting areas...

Do you do it?

Hunted the same area for 3 days strait (Sunday, Monday, and Tuesday), it was packed with hunters every day. This area is best with only 2 groups, but it will pack in 6 groups or so. Sunday was the worse, especially one group, they were highballing all morning long, nonstop.. Man these boys had some air I guess, I mean it was like they were having a duck calling competition, I can just see them all bobbing up and down whaling on the call, spit flying everywhere, slobber running down their face... I felt like yelling STFU!! Really I looked at the time when they took their first breather, it was 45 minutes after legal, then 10 minutes later they are back on it again, round 2 competition started, bobbing up and down again... lol.

Monday, place packed again, but amazingly, no calling this time, and double amazing everyone let the birds work and no sky blasting for the most part. Amazing you can have all these hunters packed in an area, everyone gets to enjoy the peaceful morning and watch the birds work.

So my points:

1) Put away your stupide call, don't make everyone have to listen to you, kinda like the guy that wears too much cologne and stinks up the whole room. I have seen someone post on this forum that he purposely calls to keep the ducks from landing in someone else's spread. I guess some people are self center jerks.

2) No sky blasting. Seen someone say it is not sky blasting if you make the shot. Well that is just stupid too. Normally when birds are working, they fly into an area, and if there are a lot of hunting groups, birds are going to check out all the spreads. If you are going to sky blast every time they check out your spread, this just forces everyone else to sky blast and that is just stupide. Let the birds finish.

I have to do a poll on this one...

Hunted yesterday and the same thing happened exept the sky blasting, but that was just because there were not any birds. Not a duck in the sky and all i heard was feed chuckle after feed chuckle for an hour. They were hunting out of a boat blind that was on a bare bank but all they did is walk @ behind it and blow the call.

7:30 rolled @ and thankfully they left.

Why is it when people hunt public and don't kill birds their excuse is everyone around them is hailcalling and skybusting birds?

Haven't used hail call in years. Actually use whistle most of the time. Use mallard call to turn other species. Only use lonely hen or feeding chuckle on mallards

Keep calling if its working... if not let them send the birds to you

I have enough stress at work, last thing I want is duckstress

Who said I didn't kill birds? You must be one of those highballers...

They should ban calls

I was. Just curious why you are hunting near me with all your super secret ninja public spots???????

Not much of a secrete when packed full of barneys.

Barneys.....lol!

I hunt public at times and yes, the calling and skybustin can get ridiculous. What makes it worse are jackassasauruses that have the "If I can't shoot that duck NOBODY is gonna shoot it" attitude. They bust ducks a mile away to scare'em off. They usually learn real quick that it works both ways. I'll up the jackass ante if need be.

This is a relatively recent observation. An observation that, sadly, is indicative of the type and quality of hunters these days.

I do NOT try to break dux working somebody else's spread, but if they are in my comfort zone and just flying by taking a look I'm gonna kill em (aka skyblasting to some). I don't see the harm if I can make the shot consistently. Just blasting away and missing so it screws everyone else up would be another thing.

Note that my comfort zone is realistic. Inside 35 yards, not 60 like I've seen some jackwagons try.

It's bound to happen every time when you're on public land.....

Beyond 50 yards is when I start pulling the trigger.
Tired of them 15 yards park duck shots, they ain't fun anymore

Hunting a spot last year during the week. Guy pulls up in his brand new z71 and ask if we can hunt together since its obvious were headed to same spot. I oblige. Puts on his brand new waders, pulls out his brand new shotgun, we walk to the spot. He proceeds to randomly throw out his brand new deeks right along shoreline (with price tag stuck to some), backs up 10 ft and sits down up against a tree. By this time I was considering leaving but figured I would stay for the show. We exchanged pleasantries and I ask him what he does, to which he replies "I work the gun counter at Academy". Took everything I had not to shite my waders from laughing my arse off. Anyhow, we sat for an hour while he worked that call like a cheap hooker, nothing was exempt from his squawking, cardinals, mockingbirds, made no difference. As fate would have it, a lone jack came buzzing through low and fast. He emptied, I dropped it. He decided he had enough, no amount of calling was helping. He steps down to the bank, picks up the decoys he can reach without getting in the water and leaves. One of the most entertaining hunts Ive been on and got some free decoys to boot.

If I am hunting public, I rarely call.

Don't look at me. I had bronchitis last weekend.

Couldn't even power a timber call.

Guy, we need a poll on what range the Skybusting begins at. That would be entertaining.

I'm waiting for the obligatory comment that steel 4s will kill a Mallard at 60 yards all day long.

Not me, I drive a Ford, and 215,000 miles on it.

55 yards heavy metal BB patternmaster long range choke.

Let the birds finish. [/quote]

^^^^^^This

^^^^^^This [/quote]


Naaaa, thats for grandpa's
Challenge yourself

If I go to an area and 6 groups are in it, I am going to find another spot.

Yeah me too, but I'm normally the first there. Sunday I was the second one there, Monday and Tuesday I was the first.

Which reminds me of another point. If you are the first there, I give you more slack for the calling and long shots.. I have been late to areas before, and times set up too close to another group, it happens, kinda hard to tell distance some times until the sun comes up and you see how close you are. But the times I have been late to the party and set up too close, you can bet I don't call at all and don't shoot unless they are over the deeks, if I don't bring them in close, you will not even know I'm there.

I'm glad I did a poll on this,13% don't give a crap about others, higher than I expdcted, would have never known w/o the poll. I would like to think that all the ones that do it just don't know any better and are newbies or something, but obviously not. I'm sure newbies here will learn a little etiquette, that's all I hope to achieve with this thread.

And the ones that don't give crap about others, man up and say who you are? You big chickens.

Read your question again, and realized I miss read it. Don't matter any ways because you are full of it. You hunt public any more? I figured you just shoot private water greenheads with a 410 these days.

OK, not that anyone cares but I have to chime in here. I'm a third generation duck hunter, my grandfather hunted the Mississippi River over live decoys, experienced the Veterans day storm and taught me to shoot ducks feet down over the decoys. My father taught me to respect the resource, call, know how to read the birds and to NEVER shoot high. This high shooting thing seems to be the norm now and not the exception. Is it from all the shows and videos that show the high shooting or from people who have never been taught the right way, who knows but it's out of control. I hate to see this tradition rich sport going this way but it is what it is. Have I ever shot high? Yes, but only at birds that have already been shot into and are still at a killable distance when they come over. The only thing we can hope for is the lack of success these high shooters experience will move them on to the next "cool" thing to do.

This is what gives The "Hail Call" a bad name....doubt very seriously that they where "Hail Calling" if they where "Sky busting".
50% of hunters dont know how to really hail call.

Its something that I have just learned to live with if Im going to hunt public, also try new tactics for hunting public like for one, I dont go out early anymore.

Muddyfoot, you may be giving away a little too much right there. Everyone knows the duck hunting is over at 9:00am, nothing really flys after that, no need to hunt past 9 or so. I ain't buying that one bit, got to go early to kill'em.

Read my post again muddy foot, I never said they sky blasted, although there was a little of that, it happens... Note I said that on Monday, there was no calling and no skybasting, and it was awesome, it's how it should be. And the area was packed with hunters.. All it takes is one group to mess it all up though with highballing all morning and skyblasting.

Mo no hunting past 9:00?? Ever heard of 9:00 mallards? Man I love late morning birds, I hunt past 9:00 all the time, and see some of the best group of birds past 9:00.. If I do not have my limit I will hunt up to noon, most WMAs do not allow hunting past noon, if not I still shut it down by noon. My preference is to be done early morning.

Muddy foot many areas you go in late morning and you are liable to be running though someone's decoys.

I only hunt private.

I used to do that, not so much any more. The past few seasons, I've hunted with mixed groups and guys that I've met and who wanted to hunt together. If we click, the fellowship adds to the experience and I can honestly say I've made some great friends over the years from folks I've met out hunting. The downside is if they're not squared away, it sucks big time. I've come to realize they're usually wanting to hunt with me for the wrong reasons and bring nothing to the table. I've got enough dependents, I don't want or need any more.

I'm not a guide but I typically hunt 5 or 6 days a week. Some of the issues I've dealt with the last couple years.....

Running out of shells/being unprepared. one guy told me in the midst of a great hunt that he brought a little less than half a box of shells....after we spent 45 minutes walking in......happened two times in a row....same guy...if he'd limited it wouldn't have mattered...he had ZERO birds though. I don't know about anyone else, but there are times I shoot a box+ of shells to get a limit. Particularly if there are dove or snipe zippin around and it's dove or snipe season.

Bringing dogs to a group hunt that are poorly trained. I see it more often than not with dogs in the field, and it's become a bigger problem with more hunters in the field, even with guides dogs. WTF?....Example....recent incident....young lab shot in the jaw by the owner.....dog chased a wounded bird flying off, leapt in the air at the bird as the owner shot at it. Dog died. Not good. If you want to hang out and bond with Skippy, do it on your own time. No one wants an uncontrollable dog in their midst during the hunt.

Not understanding the importance of concealment, camo. and being still. Showing up in Under Armor Camo with bare hands and face.......not cool if your UA clothes have day glow orange UA logos plastered everywhere.....hunting isn't a fashion show.....well, yea, I guess sometimes it is, why else would someone pay big bucks for Sitka.

Shooting my dekes and mojos OK, you're forgiven. Not offering to replace them...unforgivable.

"Accidentally" snagging a couple of my fully rigged dekes and dumpin your cheap Game Winner BS in my bag instead when we're packing up. Seriously....you really think I can't tell the difference? .....If hunting with mixed parties, I typically set up my dekes by myself away from others spreads when hunting with mixed dekes. And yes, I will ask everyone to dump their bags to find the culprit... happened twice this year with acquaintances of guys I hunt with.

Unsafe handling of firearms. Proficiency with a firearm in Counterstrike or Halo does not equate to safe handling of firearms in the field.

Excessive or poor calling. Practice on your own time, particularly if you haven't developed the social skill of recognizing a certain look on folks faces when you see it.

Hunting someone else's honey hole after swearing you won't use it Unless they are invited. If someone wants to hunt one of your honey holes and agrees to never go in without being with you as a condition of being shown a great hunt, there is NO excuse for violating that agreement. Even if it's public and WAY off the beaten path that no one else knows about. Particularly if they txt asking if they can hunt it and don't get a response and still do it....no response typically means no. There is no excuse. And why they would even ask to hunt it by themselves after agreeing to the conditions is another problem entirely. (btw...it's a good way of testing folks to see if they're truly worthy of hunting ground zero.. .been doing it for years to weed out the jackwagons from the guys that get it and who are worthy

Hunting partners suprising you by bringing unexpected guests or bringing someone you don't care to hunt with and leaving them with you after they leave unexpectedly. I'm not a baby sitter. And I don't teach Duck Hunting 101. Bring an unknown to the party without discussing the matter prior and you will be hunting with someone else.

Regarding the last one, I recently had a buddy unexpectedly bring his 11 yo daughter to a duck hunt (I had the privilege of taking her on her first dove hunt this year:) I enjoy hunting with youth and have fond memories of being taken hunting as a kid, but we had an hour walk through some difficult terrain which I'd communicated clearly, at length, previously. Needless to say, I told him straight up that it was unsafe to bring his daughter and we would find ourselves on the front page of CNN if anything should happen to his daughter, and that he needed to sit this one out. He wasn't happy, his little girl wasn't happy, and I didn't want to ruin their hunt. but it was the right choice. I still felt like the bad guy.

Hunting requires common sense, courtesy, and skill. Sadly lacking in a lot of folks these days.

I feel much better now........



+1

How I pick hunting spots.

If I have to get there 2 hours before lst to hold the spot. I don't go there. Only mallards I've shot this year (only been opening weekend and the 3rd weekend. Been busy with personal issues) we pulled up to the spot probably 5, 10 minutes prior to lst put out a dozen decoys and hunted. If I can see 6 groups I'm likely not going to return for a while.

The poll about the range that is considered sky busting is a great ideal. But is talent to be figured in. For me 40yrd is long and anything pass 50 is sky busting. But I've been known to miss plenty of birds inside 30yrd. I like to call at any birds I see that don't seem to be looking in my direction. Fighting over a circling bird with dueling calls is stupid.

Come on Guy, you know me, you obviously missed the sarcasm in my response. And you know I do not hunt those park ducks anyway, they are way overrated.

Yeah, there's no ducks past 9:00, everyone should pick up and go home, especially them highballers, they need to rest their lungs.

I experienced some high balling feed chatter NONSTOP allllll morning. It was ridiculous. Then came the skyblasting when that didn't work. It's like the louder they got the more of a chance they thought they had to call them in. I'm new to public hunting and even I know that's a no-no.

I'm sure that happens, but I have to think it is rare. You do this and you are really messed up and have no clue about life...

I have had guys set up so close to me sometimes, that I actually finished groups of ducks for them... not kidding. I don't even really get mad anymore unless they miss. I just gave up the weekend public hunts for the most part- but if I do end up out there in the battlezone, just being able to work a group or two over the spread is all I need to recharge the batteries.