Posted By:
Ray-Sands
Field Editor
Make Peace 10-28-2012 20:56
Mostly Cloudy, No Precipitation – 60-65 Degrees
Greetings from the flat lands down Jersey!
Gunned Makepeace Saturday and water was already up with out Sandy. All the shooting was at legal then nothing at all. Gunned with Big Bill and the McGowan clan. Billy picked up a black and Jaybird a couple of woodies. Woodies were everywhere at legal and gone.
The flood tides from Sandy will get the birds all scrambled up and I don’t expect any birds still out in the salt meadows with all the flooding for opening day. Would have been some great mud hen – rail bird shooting but we gave that up years ago.
Be safe in the storm!
Posted By:
Ray-Sands
Field Editor
Griscom Swamp 10-23-2012 22:27
Sunny & Clear, Winds Calm – 60-65 Degrees
Greetings from the flat lands down Jersey!
Gunning open day with Big Bill and the McGowan Klan was reminiscent of times past. As was expected, Bill pulled off the miracle shot on a hen pintail. I have given up trying to figure out how he does it – every time. Strange to hear young Jason and Jimmy talk about their kids and families – they were the kids. All in all it was a good day even with our buddies that set up 100 yards from us and their bad affliction with skybustingitious. We shot mostly teal with Larry getting a nice BWteal, retold old stories (some with a new twist and facts) and made some stories to tell next time out.
Back out today with Big Bill. Woodies were everywhere and talking up a storm. Had the teal come in 5 minutes before legal and all we could do was sit and watch them get antsy and fly off after a minute or two – just could make shooting time and sunrise work. We had a (7) woodies land out 70 yards and talked them into coming in. Here they come 70 yards, 60, 50, 40 and someone up on the impoundment dike decided to stretch their barrel on a group of teal 100 yards out. Bang goes the shot up goes the woodes and bang bang two hit the water. Back on the call and a drake made a swing back up around in the altitudes but Billy didn’t let me down bang and down he came dead. “Yoo Bill how did you make that shot” – “oh I just lead him out about 8 feet – that’s all.” Amazing is all I can say. A drake black jack filled out the bag and after that first half hour – NOTHING.
Around 9am the migrant Canadas started flying over and flying over and flying over – head to jump the Delaware bay. They flew all day. As for white geese – I would have expected them to bew flying too but I only saw one flock of maybe 20 birds – they must be traveling the Delaware again this year and not the coast.
And thanks Bruce for the CMCDU window sticker – sorry we didn’t get time to see each other in person and chat.
‘Tis the season and a good one it is starting out to be!
Posted By:
Ray-Sands
Field Editor
Lakes Bay to Griscom Swamp 10-15-2012 19:38
Cloudy, Occassional Rain Showers – 60-65 Degrees
Greetings from the flat lands down Jersey!
Brant started too arrived last Tuesday 10/09 in Lakes Bay and they are still arriving. With them came buffleheads, shovelers & sprig.
GWTeal have piled into Griscom and the BWteal have all but vanished; typical. Many local mallards are around right now but after the first shot they will be sitting up at the Mall until after dark. We will have to wait on the ice to get them – but it looks very promising for late season. Cottontops, sprig and blacks are here but not in any significant numbers. I am not counting on them to make my opening day.
Oh yeah, south zone opens this Saturday October 20th. Hope to be gunning with the McGowan clan and big Bill.
I will be trying black cloud close range #3’s. God knows that I need the pattern they are boasting out of the shells – I have not been out this year practicing shooting blackbirds off the corn as in past years.
Good Luck on opening day. Sunrise for Griscom is 07:14am with a low tide @ 08:33am and some cloud cover. Should be a slammer.
Posted By:
Ray-Sands
Field Editor
Tuckerton Decoy Show Tip Seaman County Park 09-20-2012 23:17
Sunny & Clear, Winds Calm – Over 70 Degrees
30th Annual Decoy & Gunning Show
Saturday and Sunday
September 29 & 30, 2012
7:00 am – 5:00 pm
Admission is FREE
Free Shuttle Bus Parking at the Pinelands Regional High School, Tuckerton Seaport, and Freedom Fields County Park
Contests include: Skeet Shooting, Decoy Carving, Retrieving, Duck and Goose Calling, Gunning Displays, Model Boats, Art & Photography, and more!
Posted By:
Ray-Sands
Field Editor
Salem to Cape MayCounty 09-20-2012 18:28
Sunny & Clear, Winds Calm – Over 70 Degrees
Greetings from the flatlands down Jersey! Corn is coming down and the black geese are following in behind. Out and about and many corn fields are being cut in Pittsgrove, Woodstown and Elmer right now. All the fields that were down had birds in them – just waiting for the call backs to get permission. GWteal have shown up in good numbers in Griscom and Cedar Swamp. BWTeal are still hanging in there and it looks like a banner opening day right now. I’ll get to test out the Black Cloud Close Range I bought down in the Savannah Bass Pro Shop a month ago. They read good but the proof will be in the shooting.
Posted By:
Ray-Sands
Field Editor
Mannington Meadows to Griscom Swamp 09-10-2012 21:49
Mostly Sunny, No Precipitation – Over 70 Degrees
Greetings from the flat lands down Jersey!
Season is upon us – a typical September Canada Season that is. If you are not where the birds are going – you are not going to pull them in.
Gunned opening day with the McGowan Clan. Jay had scouted the birds for the week before and secured permission from the land owner – so we were in like Flynn. Well that was until they cut the corn field Friday a mile south of us before opening.
We pulled a half dozen pairs over into the stools but the big flocks were going to the corn and that’s where they went!
I have been putting in the scouting time for the black geese and with it running into a large number of BWTeal – numbers like back in the late 70’s early 80’s. Most of them are out in Griscom Swamp. I hope we have a late frost. It doesn’t seem to matter how many BWteal are around – if we have a heavy frost the week before season (which always seems to happen) they will all have moved out and south. Also pushed up a good number of local mallards – they fill a nice mixed bag limit better than just all teal.
Don’t forget the HIP number and stamps!!
Posted By:
Ray-Sands
Field Editor
Woodstown Salem County 01-22-2012 16:48
Cloudy, Snow & Rain Mix – 30-34 Degrees – Ice
Greetings from the flatlands down Jersey!
Well we thought we had them figured out – snows that is. Jason sat and had 10k land in the field – he secured permission from the farmer but we had to wait a week to hunt his fields. A week went by and there we were with +25 dozen decoys in the snow and freezing rain Saturday – ready to kill a bunch.
But as it always goes with snows – you have to be in the field they want to be in. There is no charming them in this late in the season like Canadas. In the week that went by, they moved a mile down the road to another corn field and would not commit to our spread. You would have a dozen or so peel off the jag but turn right around when the main group keep the straight and steady course. Disheartening to see 5k or 6k go over you and land just down the road and you with no chance for a shot.
Will be scouting Friday for Saturday from now on – we are not going to allow any time in between!
Posted By:
Ray-Sands
Field Editor
Middle River – Griscom Swamp 01-08-2012 18:08
Mostly Sunny, No Precipitation – 50-60 Degrees
Greetings from the flatlands down Jersey!
Well south side is history; the last day was as the rest of the season – a black duck day. Had scouted the day before and seen some green heads but I guess the ice thawed enough Saturday that they didn’t need to travel out to the meadows. Don’t know if I’ll get over to the Coastal side but if the weather stays like this, I will be painting the black n white on the Canada stools to concentrate on them. Also had a friend tease me with the possibility of getting some snow goose hunting in this year – has been at least 10 years since I had the whole snow out and in a field cross state.
Seems you wait forever for season to get here and once it’s here it’s all over in a blink!
Posted By:
Ray-Sands
Field Editor
MacNamara WMA 01-03-2012 20:39
Mostly Sunny, No Precipitation – 30-34 Degrees – Ice
Greetings from the flatlands down Jersey!
Friday the 30th gunned MacNamara WMA in Tuckahoe. Gunned the middle impoundment – Many sprig but they did not cooperate and were held up in the middle of the impoundment. Did manage a black duck an had some high flying mallards take a long distance look but that was it.
Took a ride scouting to see where the mallards are hanging – did see three pair in the dog training impoundment in Corbin City. Also saw a trio of buffleheads in the middle impoundment in Corbin too.
Saturday gunned MacNamara WMA in Tuckahoe but in impoundment 3. Had seen some light colored ducks moving that way the day before and was hoping they were mallards and not just black ducks. Had a dozen birds come in for the morning but they were all black ducks.
Monday they were calling for a gale, I figured the birds would be looking to get out of the blow so I gunned behind the island impoundment in Corbin City. The birds like to get up behind the island and get out of the wind. Well they were there! Shot at 705 am when two pairs pitched right in to land in the stools. Had +75 birds commit and come right into the stools for the day but all were black ducks. I did manage to flag in some high flyers to try and mix the bag but all were black ducks. Well I did have some Hoodies come in but I don’t waste the shell or the bird when it comes to Hooded Mergs. Wrapped @ 11am.
Maybe it’s the weather and the mallards are held up in the drainage ditches – but for all of the black ducks I have seen the last two weeks I haven’t seen any of the (what we call ) “red leggers,” the “Canadian” black ducks that seem to be on steroids. They are twice as big as any other black duck and have the orange red legs. All the birds I shot or had come in over the set were small in stature and had the black orange legs.
Well Saturday is the last day out on the South side – maybe some of this cold will move more birds into the area to mix the bag
Posted By:
Ray-Sands
Field Editor
MacNamara WMA Tuckahoe Impoundments 12-29-2011 21:34
– – 35-40 Degrees
Greetings from the flatlands down Jersey!
The ice made all the difference this morning by forcing the birds to go to the hole I opened. A drake sprig, two greenheads and a Suzy, the predictable black duck and a drake GWTeal – was the first time I limited since teal season!
Back to 40 for tomorrow AM but cold is coming and so to the ice!
Don’t forget that 2012 license for Monday!
