Posted By:
rick-hungerford
Field Editor
Sagniaw Bay Fish Point Area 07-06-2009 09:07
Sunny & Clear, High Winds – Over 70 Degrees
Fished around North Island on Friday. Came up just short of three limits in 3 hours. Didn’t get out early and got blown off around 2:30 PM. Had to work to find a feeding school, but then it was like ducks in a barrel, then just a fast they moved or stopped biting with a wind change.
Mid-day stay away from the pack and find your own fish. Water is warming and clearing, fish spook if they are chased too hard.
Still draggin meat, bottom bouncers with crawler harnesses (green and copper worked best) Did catch one nice fish on a long-line Hot-N-Tot, so the switch to plastic may be on soon. 15-20 foot, almost anywhere. 1.7-2.0 mph, slower and you get cats and drum. Look for fish to start migration to the Outer Bay in the next few weeks, water is warming 67 dgrees on the surface.
On Suday, I took a tour on the airboat with my two best girls, Judy and Bell. Stayed away from nesting areas, just ran open channels. Water, water everywhere. Had a mild S 6-10 mph. Areas that haven’t seen water in four years can now float light boats. Higher water is slowing the phragmite growth, this should bode well for cattail resurgence. Rough weather the past few weeks hasn’t helped the wild rice, but the celery and duck potatoe beds look great.
Saw a few early mallards and what looked like young redheads. Geese are on molt, so the only way you will see them is with a golf club in your hand.
Drove by the Managed Area, fields are all planted and appear to be healthy but behind the private fields surrounding. Most corn looks good all over, some late plants and soybeans got washed out. But over all it looks like a bumper corn year AGAIN!
Let’s hope the reports from Canada and the Praries are true and we get to see some ducks this year.
Drop me a line if you got questions.
Regards,
Everything else is between seasons!
Posted By:
John-Cottenham
Field Editor
NORTH DAKOTA 07-01-2009 11:03
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You’ve seen the reports here is an interview with the biologist talking about the ND surveys.
http://www.gf.nd.gov/
jacduck I worked out a new deal in Texas this winter. I quit hunting snows when I get 5 or have used all 12 of the shells I carried. Worked pretty well since I tended to control my shooting. Mostly came home with ammo left over and often with the self imposed limit.
Posted By:
John-Cottenham
Field Editor
middle of the mitten 06-30-2009 17:14
Cloudy, Light Rain & Drizzle – 60-65 Degrees
Water, water everywhere and ducks mostly mallards and woodies are still flying some. 2nd hatch looks good too. I say a group of mallards just out of the shell by the size and there were 11 of them I could count. Too bad that someone pulled the boards on the flooding and now it is dry. Looks good here guys!
jacduck I worked out a new deal in Texas this winter. I quit hunting snows when I get 5 or have used all 12 of the shells I carried. Worked pretty well since I tended to control my shooting. Mostly came home with ammo left over and often with the self imposed limit.
Posted By:
Michael-Majcher
Field Editor
Hoxeyville 06-23-2009 17:09
Sunny & Clear, Winds Calm – Over 70 Degrees
Well the heat has reached us here in the “north”. I can’t believe it was only 2 weeks ago that we had a consistent 60 degree temp. What happened to “spring”?
Well, the first hatch of robins was good. We had a nice hatch of grouse out back on the creek. I killed my first rattler as well as a big racer that was as long as I am tall (I held it up – headless of course). Found that baby herons make an unbelievably awful noise at night when they perch above your house (don’t know if the darn things make that racket in the wild).
Hoxeyville has no waterfowl to speak of, so that is about that…
If you chase the hatches here in Mich, you’ll be happy to know the Hex is on and mousin has heated up as well.
Posted By:
bmyers
Guest
06-15-2009 12:29
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I’ve seen a few flocks of 40-60 birds flyin high heading north over the last couple weeks..
I was amazed at the one flock, nearly 60% of the birds wings looked like they had been sky busted. I know they’re heading north to molt but had never seen such a large number of birds in such poor condition (feather wise). Wings looked more like sieves.
Posted By:
Michael-Majcher
Field Editor
Hoxeyville 06-04-2009 23:04
Sunny & Clear, High Winds – 50-60 Degrees
Not much in this part of Michigan for waterfowl. It is surprising the heck out of me. With all the swamps and wetland around here, I thought I’d see some serious breeding pairs.
We have one resident pair of canadas and a trio of sandhill cranes. The Herons hatched 3 young and boy do they make a gosh aweful sound.
The pups and I found a woodcock nest and we have an active grouse nest that hatched out 4 chicks the other day.
Otherwise, Flyfishing season is in full swing even with this pathetically cool weather.
Just trying to keep you aprised of the happenings round here… Varmints tallies for the season are at 3 opossums, two fox one rattler and a racer. All egg-eaters
Posted By:
John-Cottenham
Field Editor
middle of the mitten 06-01-2009 14:42
Mostly Cloudy, No Precipitation – 60-65 Degrees
I do believe you are right. It appears that the flocks are gone from here near Gladwin and I saw one headed north but missed the chance to follow them on radar last Friday. A friend from Freeland reported much movement Thursday and Friday. Did anyone catch them on radar???
jacduck I worked out a new deal in Texas this winter. I quit hunting snows when I get 5 or have used all 12 of the shells I carried. Worked pretty well since I tended to control my shooting. Mostly came home with ammo left over and often with the self imposed limit.
Posted By:
rick-hungerford
Field Editor
Saginaw Bay Fish Point Area 05-31-2009 13:40
Sunny & Clear, High Winds – Over 70 Degrees
Fished rough water both Friday and Saturday. Was paid back with limits both days for three fishermen.
Fish all over, went South of Thomas’s Cut, ended up trolling North all the way to DaFoe.
Most aggressive fish were in 15+ ft. Bottom bouncers (2-3 oz), crawlers (orange harnesses) and in line boards were the order of the day. All the keepers were solid fish, probably threw back 50 under sized fish. Bodes well for the reproduction on the Bay.
Zebra mussle beds all over. Saw tons of geese, probably 10 groups moving North along the shoreline 50-100 birds each. This in support of John’s post.
From now through July, the Lower Bay will only get better for “Eyes”. Don’t trust weather reports, they were wrong both days. Saturday PM we had a serious “not forecasted” storm cell move through with hail and 60 mph winds. Watch the sky and pull up if winds and clouds move in.
I know this still isn’t about ducks, but its a fun thing to do, and the eating isn’t bad either.
Everything else is between seasons!
Posted By:
CVG
Guest
05-29-2009 12:07
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DRIVING DOWN 12 MILE AROUND NORTHWESTERN HIGHWAY AND IT MUST OF BEEN ONE OF THE FLOCKS OF MOLT MIGRANTS THAT EVERY ONE TALKS ABOUT AT LEAST 100 GEESE HEADING NORTH IN ONE BIG FLOCK
Posted By:
John-Cottenham
Field Editor
middle of the mitten 05-26-2009 08:27
– – 50-60 Degrees
They flocks of Canadas are bunched up I expect the move any day now. Keep an eye on nexrad if the weather is clear enought to differentiate.
jacduck I worked out a new deal in Texas this winter. I quit hunting snows when I get 5 or have used all 12 of the shells I carried. Worked pretty well since I tended to control my shooting. Mostly came home with ammo left over and often with the self imposed limit.
