Posted By:
Bill-Reed
Guest
SW Montana 11-19-2005 18:43
Cloudy, Snow Flurries – 25-30 Degrees – Ice
By way of introduction, I was a Field Editor in Southern NV, but moved up here last Dec. Live on the East Fork of the Bitteroot, Sula. Still trying to learn the area (could use some advise!)
Mainly been hunting Lee Metcalf and the Big Hole river. Limited success at each. Big Hole froze up, very little open water, and NO birds to speak of. Maybe different on private property, but where I can get access and where I can see the river, very few if any birds.
Seem to be a lot of birds working Metcalf, and I am averaging 4 mallards per trip, but that is staying all day. Guys with spinners are pulling the birds in like crazy, and while I have quality deeks and decent calling, I can’t compete. Yesterday, I didn’t get a bird till the spinners left, then got my usual 4 greenheads. Course, all the skybusting doesn’t help either. I got my birds with 7 shots, including one cripple sluce.
So, my report is, there are lots of birds working the lower Bitteroot, but I don’t know where they are feeding. Saw a few hundred honkers also, but they are feeding elsewhere also.
Anyone need a partner? I’ll bring the dekes!
Posted By:
Rain
Guest
11-16-2005 17:20
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Killed a 5 point bull this weekend, will post pics. tonite.
My buddy who lives over by billings says the ducks are arring by the numbers
Posted By:
K-Town
Guest
Kalispell 11-15-2005 18:10
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Havent been able to head out and hunt in a week or so (been chaseing the whitetail species), but spotted a plethera of mallards comeing off a fead lot and heading east towards the river while I was doing some chores, probably saw around 300.If the weather continues, the hunting can only continue to get better. This is my favorite time of the year in Montana, the greenheads are arriving daily, and the bucks are gettin all riled up!
Posted By:
fishski1
Guest
SW Montana 11-15-2005 17:44
Cloudy, High Winds – 0-10 Degrees – Open Water
Hunted again this morning, Shot 14 greenheads! and a few geese. These are DEFINATELY new birds, as they are very agreeable to the call, and want some ‘friendly company’ :)) Flocks are in 5s, to 25s, and saw new birds coming in from outer space, So they are on the move!!
Fish!
Posted By:
Michael-Majcher
Field Editor
main river – Flathead – Foy\’s Bend 11-14-2005 22:48
Cloudy, Snow Flurries – 25-30 Degrees – Open Water
They’re HEEERRREE!!!!!!
I posted the same on Saturday morning, and the post is gone… let me recap.
Scouted Friday evening, with only a pair of goldeneye around. Decided to make a hunt of it, none-the-less, the following morning.
Saturday morning, 28 deg. @ 7 AM Wind picked up and temps dropped in the next half hour. The birds didn’t stop coming in till around 8:30. We limited on green winged teal and a pair of mallards. 2 limits in just under an hour. Poor old Gus was tired and cold. He did a trooper’s job of fetching up and taking direction. I went home and passed out.
Sunday, headed up to Koocanusa to fill my elk tag. Animals are still up high. We didn’t see anything till we got above 4500 feet. The best concentrations were at 5000 feet in the snow. LOTS of cows, bulls were a bit more shy.
Today it snowed really nice this morning. It is sticking BTW. Had a guiding trip for this afternoon, but got some scouting along the river (Flathead). Folks filled their “B” tags in short order. Bucks are still not on the go, but I did find the first scrapes of the year. Geese, ducks and swans were funnelling into the river about 4:30. If you can get out of work early, it could be well worth it to launch the boat and head for some of the unfrozen backwaters along the edge of the main current. There wasn’t a lot of shooting this weekend, so these new birds aren’t very call shy and will come in to your spread.
Have a wonderful week all.
MM
Posted By:
micha
Guest
11-14-2005 19:39
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Have fished the marias a lot never hunted waterfowl there. there are lots of geese on the river by Cascade. not many ducks yet. as soon as pot holes freeze the missouri should be good. Hunted at Benton Lake sat got afew ducks It should be froze today with the cold spell as should freezeout going by freezeout thursday will tell ya if any activity
Posted By:
phutch30
Guest
11-10-2005 14:00
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YEEEEHAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!!!!!!! Bring on the canadian freeze!
Here you go………………as of 11/10/05
CANADA
From central British Columbia to the northern portions of Quebec it appears that a freeze-up is in store for much of Canada. Though the snowfall potential is limited to scattered areas, the ice out on small to medium sized water bodies will serve to kick the migration through, and out of, Canada back into motion.
Most areas should retain some areas of open water for the next few days, but by early next week it looks as though an ice-out may be in store for large sections of the country. It is prime time in Canada for some last minute hunts. As smaller waters freeze, local waterfowl flocks should begin to merge into staging groups on the remaining open waters and feeding activity on grain fields should intensify.
[Edited By phutch30 on 2005-11-10 14:00]
Posted By:
jay
Guest
11-10-2005 12:48
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Could some Montana hunters PM me and tell me why Montana is such a great state for hunters? I’m trying to figure out where my wife and I want to retire in a few years so some first hand knowledge would be of great help. Sorry for posting a non-field report post.
Posted By:
westside
Guest
11-10-2005 09:25
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What happened to Hart’s post. Do we censor things that we don’t like on this board?
Posted By:
boxfa75
Guest
11-09-2005 16:24
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has anyone ever hunted the marias river, and if so any tips.
will be in great falls this weekend, how has the missouri been hunting if at all by cascade.??
would appreciate any info.
as far as bozeman, people have been shooting the heck out of the mallards on private sloughs (imagine that) they say the birds are here, i think the snow and winds just moved some of the local birds around. will post when back from great falls.
