# Official 2016 Muskegon Wastewater Thread



## waterfowlhunter83 (Aug 10, 2005)

Just a FYI, I did confirm with Nik at the HQ that there will be corn strips once they start harvesting the corn this year.


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## Matt.tzew (Oct 9, 2012)

Far Beyond Driven said:


> Just knocked one out of a six pack that did it right to my weak side, of course. Guys around us standing in their decoys while I'm hammering on the call.


West zone did you get?

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## Far Beyond Driven (Jan 23, 2006)

Will post that later as a courtesy to the people that did all the leg work scouting when all I did was show up to hunt (without decoys none the less), as they may be hunting it tomorrow.


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## Matt.tzew (Oct 9, 2012)

Far Beyond Driven said:


> Will post that later as a courtesy to the people that did all the leg work scouting when all I did was show up to hunt (without decoys none the less), as they may be hunting it tomorrow.


Yea that makes sense. I drove up there last Wednesday and Friday to scout. I tried to pm you but it wouldn't let me from my phone.

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## goosemanrdk (Jan 14, 2003)

Hunted this morning after finding a couple of interesting looking spots last night while scouting. Hunted with my dad and best bud. 11 parties this morning and we drew 5th. Got into one of the spots we wanted. Had a good hunt and shot a bunch of mallards and good amount of geese. Birds we had work the decoys did it right and our shooting was above average today.


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## dawntodusk (Sep 14, 2016)

I am planning on making the trip to the Wastewater this weekend with a friend for our first hunt out there. I have a few questions for those that hunt it regularly. 

Our plan is to try and make it out Friday evening to scout. Will it be a problem to scout the evening and hunt the morning? Ideally, we would like to scout when we were going to be hunting, but unfortunately our classes don't allow that. 

From what I have read, it sounds like we need to pick up a permit to be on the property to scout. Are there certain times that we have to pick up this permit, or can we just stop by the office on the way out to scout?

As far as the hunting, how close are you able to park to the field you will be in? I'm trying to decide how light I should be packing. 

If anyone will be there Saturday, feel free to say hi to the two confused college kids trying to figure out what is going on:lol:
Thanks for the help!


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## Matt.tzew (Oct 9, 2012)

dawntodusk said:


> I am planning on making the trip to the Wastewater this weekend with a friend for our first hunt out there. I have a few questions for those that hunt it regularly.
> 
> Our plan is to try and make it out Friday evening to scout. Will it be a problem to scout the evening and hunt the morning? Ideally, we would like to scout when we were going to be hunting, but unfortunately our classes don't allow that.
> 
> ...


I believe the WW administration building is open til 4. I got a bird watchers permit to scout this year and also got a waterfowlers permit to park on the unit on Saturday. This was the first year I did either. The lady at the front desk there is very nice and will have you on your way in 10 minutes after filling out a form. You need to be part of a bird conservation club. I told them I am a DU member so she have me a yearly pass otherwise it's only a day pass. I don't think every hunter follows these rules and gets a pass, but I figure it's easy enough to follow the rules and I wouldn't want to mess with a fine.

You need to carry your gear at least 200ft from the center of the zone you get and have to be at least 200 ft from the edge of the zone. 

Good luck! If be there too if I didn't have plans to go to the east side this weekend. 

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## Far Beyond Driven (Jan 23, 2006)

Don't be a 201' er. Set up where you see the birds using the field with a spread that looks like how the birds in the field. Pay attention to how spread out the birds are.

Ruts on the center pivot roads from the tires can be deep. I don't take the Focus any more now we can drive those roads.


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## waterfowlhunter83 (Aug 10, 2005)

dawntodusk said:


> I am planning on making the trip to the Wastewater this weekend with a friend for our first hunt out there. I have a few questions for those that hunt it regularly.
> 
> Our plan is to try and make it out Friday evening to scout. Will it be a problem to scout the evening and hunt the morning? Ideally, we would like to scout when we were going to be hunting, but unfortunately our classes don't allow that.
> 
> ...


As far as scouting Friday evening...there can be quite a difference on what the birds are doing in the morning versus the afternoon. That was the case last Friday, there were birds seen that didn't show themselves in the evening. So there can be some differences...a lot of time that happens during warm weather patterns. Also depending on the harvesting of crops out there, that may change the birds patterns.

You can drive down the irrigation/rig roads to unload gear, so that does help with getting your gear into the field. As mentioned, you do need to be 200 ft inside your zone and most times need to be more than that to be where the birds are or to give sufficient room for the birds to work.


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## goosemanrdk (Jan 14, 2003)

dawntodusk said:


> I am planning on making the trip to the Wastewater this weekend with a friend for our first hunt out there. I have a few questions for those that hunt it regularly.
> 
> Our plan is to try and make it out Friday evening to scout. Will it be a problem to scout the evening and hunt the morning? Ideally, we would like to scout when we were going to be hunting, but unfortunately our classes don't allow that.
> 
> ...


County office building is open until 5pm. You are supposed to have a permit, but it doesn't have to be a "bird watchers" permit as matt.tzew mentioned. They give out a permit for waterfowl scouting. Just walk in and tell the lady at the desk that you need a permit for waterfowl scouting and she will get you all set up and the permit will be good until the end of the year. In all honesty if you aren't able to make it in time for a permit, you should be fine as long as you aren't out there doing anything suspicious or stupid. All of the sheriff officers that would be patrolling know that it is duck season seeing as several of them duck hunt some, and one of them duck hunts a lot(I just got back from a trip to Saskatchewan with him, lol).

As far as scouting, I have done 99% of my scouting in the evening for next morning hunts over the last 20 years. Have seen far more morning scouters get burned the next day than times I have been burned by an evening scout. Not saying that there are little things that can happen, but the vast majority of the time, the evening scout is what you want for the next morning hunt. If I have been burned, its been for 3 reasons, 1- Birds never flew the next morning, 2- Birds just flew right off the unit to some safe private fields the next morning, or 3- birds knew it was a hunt day and went to find an unoccupied field to feed in, ignoring the fields being hunted.

As far as gear, for almost every zone, you can drive to a spot that you then have to carry your gear 100-200 yards depending on where you need/want to set up in your zone. After that, you have to drive back to a designated parking spot and take the long walk to your decoy spread, but at least for that you aren't carrying anything. Our hunt yesterday was like that. Carried our gear about 100 yards, but had to walk 400 yards from our parking spot.

Let us know if you have any other questions. I won't be there Saturday, but good luck.


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## T-Berd (Oct 29, 2015)

Grab a map when you're waiting for the draw, and use google earth, it will make it a lot easier finding your zone for the morning hunt in the dark. I've only been out there with someone who knows it well, but I can see how it could be confusing your first time out in the dark.


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## saddie1990 (Mar 12, 2014)

What type of cover is available to hunt ?are they dry or flooded? my disabled veteran friend wants to give it a go. We will go a day early for scouting spend the night in a hotel and pray for a decent drive just curious what type of gear to bring.thanks in advance


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## saddie1990 (Mar 12, 2014)

Decent draw not drive damn smart phone


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## N M Mechanical (Feb 7, 2008)

saddie1990 said:


> What type of cover is available to hunt ?are they dry or flooded? my disabled veteran friend wants to give it a go. We will go a day early for scouting spend the night in a hotel and pray for a decent drive just curious what type of gear to bring.thanks in advance


Dry fields


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## saddie1990 (Mar 12, 2014)

No cover so bring layouts or bale blinds? Don't want your spots just an idea of what gear to bring thanks


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## dawntodusk (Sep 14, 2016)

Awesome information. Thank you all!

I definitely plan on grabbing a map and getting a lay of the land Friday evening before trying to navigate the place in the dark. 

So from what I understand you are able to drive the road into the middle of the field to drop gear off, and then walk in from a parking spot. Is that correct?

I called the office today, and they said they haven't started harvesting any corn yet. I think I remember reading that when they do harvest the corn they leave strips to hunt from. When this happens do people usually hunt from the standing corn, or is it better to just use a layout blind anyway? 

Also, do most of the birds roost on the ponds on the property, or are they usually coming from off the property? I am trying to figure out how best to scout. If this gives away any secrets, feel free to PM me. 

Thanks again for all the help! I am looking forward to exploring a new area!


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## waterfowlhunter83 (Aug 10, 2005)

dawntodusk said:


> Awesome information. Thank you all!
> 
> I definitely plan on grabbing a map and getting a lay of the land Friday evening before trying to navigate the place in the dark.
> 
> ...


To answer your questions...

Yes, you can drive the irrigation/rig road to the middle of the field to drop of gear.

As far as hunting from the corn strips, that is personal preference. Usually my decision to hunt from them will depend on where the birds are feeding in the field.

Yes, most of the birds on the unit do roost on the lagoon ponds.


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## BFG (Mar 4, 2005)

Having hunted there a few times over the years with some of the veterans that are posting in this thread, I cannot stress enough how important it is for you to scout the night before you hunt. Living 4 hours away, I was fortunate that these guys would make the drive up on Friday evening to get an idea of what we would do the next day. That place is HUGE...and if you throw a dart at the map in the morning when you pick your zone, you run the risk of not seeing a bird. There might be 5,000 geese and 1,000 ducks there but pick the wrong zone and there might as well be none. 

You have no idea how great it is to be able to drive on the irrigation roads out into the middle of the zones. I can't say that enough....the previous policy was murder. 

I've had some great shoots out there with great friends. I've also had trips out there where we never touched the trigger, but saw one hell of an awesome show as the entire place flew over the top of us to another zone. It happens...but man, when you do your homework and have just a little bit of luck in your favor, you can have some great days at the MWW. 

Hoping to get back this year...fall sports are over this week. Trigger finger is getting itchy!

Good luck out there on Saturday folks....


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## goosemanrdk (Jan 14, 2003)

Lots of good advice above. My extra 2 cents are. Scout, scout and scout some more. Following kill chart is a recipe for not pulling the trigger. Should have been there yesterday. Hide, hide and hide some more. Doesn't always have to be how much stubble you use, but rather where you place the blinds in the decoys. Don't set a decoy spread, set a fake flock of birds. The birds there will NOT let you force/sneak them into a compromising position. I have a philosophy, better to have birds landing in hard to shoot locations of the spread or out of range locations of the spread than having zero birds want into the spread. Ironically every time we are worried about a spread set up, the birds end up finishing right where we want them.
Finally, these are highly educated birds, hunt them accordingly. Case in point, our hunt Tuesday. I knew with the sunny skies, the mallards would be in the decoys well before shooting time. So we planned for it. Set up and ready early, in our blinds 25 mins before hours, blind doors closed 15 mins before hours, zero calling when birds were seen, talking in only a whisper and most important robo ducks were turned off and placed on the ground. We had 85% of the ducks we saw for the morning sitting in the decoys at hours. Jumped them at hours plus 1 minute and shot half our ducks on that jump. If we hadn't taken all those steps those birds would have been in and then out of the decoys before shooting hour even arrived.


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## dawntodusk (Sep 14, 2016)

goosemanrdk said:


> Lots of good advice above. My extra 2 cents are. Scout, scout and scout some more. Following kill chart is a recipe for not pulling the trigger. Should have been there yesterday. Hide, hide and hide some more. Doesn't always have to be how much stubble you use, but rather where you place the blinds in the decoys. Don't set a decoy spread, set a fake flock of birds. The birds there will NOT let you force/sneak them into a compromising position. I have a philosophy, better to have birds landing in hard to shoot locations of the spread or out of range locations of the spread than having zero birds want into the spread. Ironically every time we are worried about a spread set up, the birds end up finishing right where we want them.
> Finally, these are highly educated birds, hunt them accordingly. Case in point, our hunt Tuesday. I knew with the sunny skies, the mallards would be in the decoys well before shooting time. So we planned for it. Set up and ready early, in our blinds 25 mins before hours, blind doors closed 15 mins before hours, zero calling when birds were seen, talking in only a whisper and most important robo ducks were turned off and placed on the ground. We had 85% of the ducks we saw for the morning sitting in the decoys at hours. Jumped them at hours plus 1 minute and shot half our ducks on that jump. If we hadn't taken all those steps those birds would have been in and then out of the decoys before shooting hour even arrived.


Awesome advice thank you! Just out of curiosity why did you have the mojos off and on the ground? I would assume so that birds would land and get comfortable? Would it be better to just not use the mojos or are they more beneficial later in the morning?


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## dawntodusk (Sep 14, 2016)

As of yesterday, none of the corn that we saw was down so just hay and bean fields available.


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## goosemanrdk (Jan 14, 2003)

dawntodusk said:


> As of yesterday, none of the corn that we saw was down so just hay and bean fields available.


Reliable report I got yesterday was that they hope and plan to start on the corn on Tuesday.


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## just tryin to fish (May 31, 2004)

As of Saturday no corn has been cut


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## Rajah (Oct 25, 2010)

goosemanrdk said:


> Reliable report I got yesterday was that they hope and plan to start on the corn on Tuesday.


Thanks guys. Good to know.


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## Walleyealx (Feb 11, 2006)

I'm in Muskegon for a month over from the east side, so if anyone is looking for a shooter I'll be available! I might check out the area alone, but from what u read on here it seems like it might be a lot different than what I'm used to (nayaquing, shi).


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## Michigan_Canoer55 (Dec 28, 2012)

I was checking the counts from the DNR this week and saw that there are huge numbers of ruddy ducks and shovelers on the lagoon. Just wondering if you guys ever have them come to your spreads in the fields, or if they go elsewhere when they leave the roost.


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## Matt.tzew (Oct 9, 2012)

Michigan_Canoer55 said:


> I was checking the counts from the DNR this week and saw that there are huge numbers of ruddy ducks and shovelers on the lagoon. Just wondering if you guys ever have them come to your spreads in the fields, or if they go elsewhere when they leave the roost.












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## just tryin to fish (May 31, 2004)

I don't think they ever leave lol


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## Michigan_Canoer55 (Dec 28, 2012)

Matt.tzew said:


> Sent from my XT1585 using Tapatalk


Thank you sir. That looks like a no.


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## Far Beyond Driven (Jan 23, 2006)

Sweet. We got one of those blacks, two of the pintails, and the hybrid last year. And I've hunted 27 against the refuge in a 50 mph wind with mallards coming over under the power lines, but the ruddies and shovelers just paddled to the upwind side of the refuge and hunkeredter down.


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## goosemanrdk (Jan 14, 2003)

Far Beyond Driven said:


> Sweet. We got one of those blacks, two of the pintails, and the hybrid last year. And I've hunted 27 against the refuge in a 50 mph wind with mallards coming over under the power lines, but the ruddies and shovelers just paddled to the upwind side of the refuge and hunkeredter down.


We got two of the blacks last year. We even had a shoveler fly over our spread one morning. We kept hoping he would swing on in. Wouldn't have been the first to be shot up there, but would have only been the second one I would know of.


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## waterfowlhunter83 (Aug 10, 2005)

goosemanrdk said:


> We got two of the blacks last year. We even had a shoveler fly over our spread one morning. We kept hoping he would swing on in. Wouldn't have been the first to be shot up there, but would have only been the second one I would know of.


I thought one year some guys got into a few of them in one of the fields that had been hold water most of the year (back when they ran the irrigation rig most of the season). Maybe they only got one, maybe they had more than 1 opportunity at some.


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## goosemanrdk (Jan 14, 2003)

waterfowlhunter83 said:


> I thought one year some guys got into a few of them in one of the fields that had been hold water most of the year (back when they ran the irrigation rig most of the season). Maybe they only got one, maybe they had more than 1 opportunity at some.


That would be the only time I am aware of a shoveler being shot. I know they got one for sure, they may have gotten a couple more.


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## just tryin to fish (May 31, 2004)

Anyone hunt this morning?


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## waterfowlhunter83 (Aug 10, 2005)

just tryin to fish said:


> Anyone hunt this morning?


 Today or do you mean yesterday?


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## just tryin to fish (May 31, 2004)

Sorry my days are mixing lol


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## waterfowlhunter83 (Aug 10, 2005)

just tryin to fish said:


> Sorry my days are mixing lol


Lol! With the weather today, it would have been an awesome day to hunt there. But it was probably a good day to hunt anywhere.


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## just tryin to fish (May 31, 2004)

waterfowlhunter83 said:


> Lol! With the weather today, it would have been an awesome day to hunt there. But it was probably a good day to hunt anywhere.


Yea it was the rain in the face sucked on the boat ride but still a good night


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## Duckman Racing (Oct 11, 2004)

Scouted Monday night, saw most of the geese on the property fly into one field, with only a handful of geese in a couple other fields. Went to the draw Tuesday morning as a standby. 6 parties in the draw and after they all made their picks my #1 choice was still on the board, so I got the field I wanted. Unfortunately I got a little lazy after that, decided to take a quick nap in the truck before I started hauling decoys to the far side of the field. Between that and breaking my own rule about only making one trip into the field when hunting solo, I wasn't ready by shooting time, and the first couple flocks of geese busted me as I was finishing up the blind and hiding the decoy bags.

Geese flew really well until about 10:00, but with no cover in the tilled bean field they would lock up a 1/2 mile out and then slide off at 150 yards when they could see the blind. Ended up with one, but should have had a couple more. Had a couple small groups drop in later in the morning on their way back to the refuge, but I had the blind open and the dog laying on my lap so there wasn't much I could do there.

It was my pup's first field hunt and he really did pretty well. He didn't retrieve the goose, but he did tackle it a couple times and kept it pinned down until I could get to it. Unfortunately that will probably be my only hunt at the waste water this year as I have been working out of state and probably won't be home again any time that the season is open there.

Also, a tip for anyone hunting there: If you put your keys in your coat pocket don't forget to take them with you when you go to get your vehicle.


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## pikenetter (Mar 28, 2009)

does any one know if they got corn cut? dont want to bring the kids if there is no corn to stand in


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## StiffNeckRob (Apr 19, 2007)

Highball28 said:


> 4 ducks short of our 4 man limit. Ducks worked all day but would circle about 10 times before committing. It sure is nice to see birds work for quite a while when you know they are eventually going to finish!



What zone were you in?

We drew second to last in the pm draw. Watched the geese do their normal thing....fly high over head and rarely look down. Winged one of a 3 pack and chased it to the end of the zone. Harder to kill on the ground then the air. Had a solo decide today was his day to go home to his slow cooker...no calls, no flag, 3 mojos a blazing...flys straight to us and crumples at 15.

5 mins before the end, my hunting partner was able to witness the meaning of letting the birds work as we had our first (and last) ducknado. Had a few hundred drop from the sky. Due to the time we couldn't let them make the last pass and land ....poor shooting only dropped one. Grabbed it and, with unloaded guns outside the blind, watch hundreds more dive bomb the spinners. Figures the birds would do this on the last hunt of the season just to keep us coming back for more punishment. Tough year but just being able to get out and enjoy mother nature makes it worth while.


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## Highball28 (Oct 17, 2014)

StiffNeckRob said:


> What zone were you in?


I will say we were drawn 11th in the AM and all the birds we shot flew over us coming from the refuge.


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## StiffNeckRob (Apr 19, 2007)

Last hunt of the year. Guess you have your own reasons for your secrets. 

Glad you did well. Was thinking you were out tonight.


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## waterfowlhunter83 (Aug 10, 2005)

Word on the street is there was some early shooting this morning in the triangle. I guess someone felt they needed to start shooting before anyone else...or maybe they can't tell time...


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## DUCK LAB JAKE (Mar 6, 2004)

I think they shot at 7:26


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## Far Beyond Driven (Jan 23, 2006)

Don't want to tell secrets when season's closing, don't expect help later. When my Jeep got messed up last year two of the regulars offered help. Forgot the decoys once one phone call to someone in the AM hunt and they delivered two bags to our zone that night. Great group of people up there; you might want to get in on that for when the birds don't come as easy.


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## Highball28 (Oct 17, 2014)

Far Beyond Driven said:


> Don't want to tell secrets when season's closing, don't expect help later. When my Jeep got messed up last year two of the regulars offered help. Forgot the decoys once one phone call to someone in the AM hunt and they delivered two bags to our zone that night. Great group of people up there; you might want to get in on that for when the birds don't come as easy.


It's just that I didn't pick the zone so it's not my info to share. And goose season is still open for another couple weeks and we did have a fair number of geese work. If we make it out again we would definitely consider the same zone for a goose hunt... Also forgot to mention that we helped the PM boys wheel their gear into the zone when we were done... sorry for being a jerk.


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## StiffNeckRob (Apr 19, 2007)

Highball28 said:


> It's just that I didn't pick the zone so it's not my info to share. And goose season is still open for another couple weeks and we did have a fair number of geese work. If we make it out again we would definitely consider the same zone for a goose hunt... Also forgot to mention that we helped the PM boys wheel their gear into the zone when we were done... sorry for being a jerk.


It's not like it won't be posted on the kill chart anyways.


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## Far Beyond Driven (Jan 23, 2006)

I''ll be sure to go FSamie and post a picture of the kill chart next time I'm up there.


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## Far Beyond Driven (Jan 23, 2006)

19, 18, 27, 33, 34, 35, or 2. I know a couple of those zones didn't get ducks and I know who was in a few of them, so I'm saying 27b, 33, 34, or 35.

And the goose pattern will completely change with the geese getting hammered in about every field they went to.


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## goosemanrdk (Jan 14, 2003)

DUCK LAB JAKE said:


> I think they shot at 7:26


Sounds about right. Shooting time was 7:27. Really no excuse with cellphones these days, as they are connected to satellite and get constant updated times. The old my watch must be fast excuse is hard to justify now days.


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## goosemanrdk (Jan 14, 2003)

Far Beyond Driven said:


> 19, 18, 27, 33, 34, 35, or 2. I know a couple of those zones didn't get ducks and I know who was in a few of them, so I'm saying 27b, 33, 34, or 35.
> 
> And the goose pattern will completely change with the geese getting hammered in about every field they went to.


Wasn't 27b. Both sides of 27 only shot 1 shot between them. Wasn't 33 as there were no groups(incoming or outgoing) when we left from the morning.


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## Highball28 (Oct 17, 2014)

StiffNeckRob said:


> It's not like it won't be posted on the kill chart anyways.


True. 35


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## Far Beyond Driven (Jan 23, 2006)

Heard there was some barrel stretching going on too and saw it from one zone in the morning. The birds there were begging to finish but were lit up in the first pass. At least the guys in the next field with the balled up spread let them swing.


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## Sampsons_owner (Dec 30, 2005)

Got out there for the first time on Saturday afternoon and with FBD's help got a pretty good spot. Had geese trying to land on us before shooting time while setting up and flying throughout the rest of the day but man are they educated. We tried adjusting several things to get them to commit but no go. Our neighbors got one with one shot and my son tried to clip a foursome as they swung wide but he missed. Definitely going to get out there again this year and hopefully in years to come. Thanks Kevin for showing us the area. Steve


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## waterfowlhunter83 (Aug 10, 2005)

Sampsons_owner said:


> Got out there for the first time on Saturday afternoon and with FBD's help got a pretty good spot. Had geese trying to land on us before shooting time while setting up and flying throughout the rest of the day but man are they educated. We tried adjusting several things to get them to commit but no go. Our neighbors got one with one shot and my son tried to clip a foursome as they swung wide but he missed. Definitely going to get out there again this year and hopefully in years to come. Thanks Kevin for showing us the area. Steve


The geese are smart out there. It took moving the decoys 4 times on Saturday to finally get birds to work in close enough to present decent shots.


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## fuseitinthesun (Aug 30, 2016)

Hey folks. Looking for a buddy (hopefully one of you locals) to hunt MWW this Saturday PM. I'm in Lansing, I try to hit all 7 managed areas, this will be my 2nd year trying MWW. As for what I bring to the table, I have 6 full bodies, 6 shells, all with flocked heads, and one of those lucky duck goose flappers. I have some real goose wings stretched and dried that I can affix to the wings (been meaning to do that, I hear it works better). Some guys don't like them, so that's totally optional. I'm a decent caller on the short reed, I do pretty well on wheat & corn stubble here in Ingham & Livingston counties. Happy to share my knowledge of central/east Michigan public lands, as I hunt all over the state. Might have 1 or 2 regular hunting buddies also interested in coming out (if I can convince one or both). I have a layout blind but usually don't use it, typically use a combination of burlap and fast grass. Anybody interested?


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## Far Beyond Driven (Jan 23, 2006)

Got snow camo?


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## fuseitinthesun (Aug 30, 2016)

You know, I don't. Think I can get away with some bed sheets?



Far Beyond Driven said:


> Got snow camo?


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## fowlpursuit (Jan 20, 2012)

fuseitinthesun said:


> You know, I don't. Think I can get away with some bed sheets?


Steer clear of bedsheets.. they look blue on snow..
Go to menards and buy a tyvek painters suit..cheap and blends well


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## fuseitinthesun (Aug 30, 2016)

That's a hunting hack if I ever heard one!



fowlpursuit said:


> Steer clear of bedsheets.. they look blue on snow..
> Go to menards and buy a tyvek painters suit..cheap and blends well


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## fuseitinthesun (Aug 30, 2016)

If nobody wants to be my fwend I'll probably just come, get my punch, pass on the draw, and scout some public land for next year. We keep saying that "this year we'll hunt MWW early and get some field ducks" but every year Saginaw Bay draws us away on every free weekend. I know eventually I'll have a great hunt there but sounds like the geese are pretty educated, and without any knowledge of the area, I'm not sure how time effective hunting will be. Totally willing to buy a tyvek suit or two though!


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## fowlpursuit (Jan 20, 2012)

I 


fuseitinthesun said:


> If nobody wants to be my fwend I'll probably just come, get my punch, pass on the draw, and scout some public land for next year. We keep saying that "this year we'll hunt MWW early and get some field ducks" but every year Saginaw Bay draws us away on every free weekend. I know eventually I'll have a great hunt there but sounds like the geese are pretty educated, and without any knowledge of the area, I'm not sure how time effective hunting will be. Totally willing to buy a tyvek suit or two though!


I use tyvek for late season crows all the time and they work. Geese are stupid compared to crows. 
I'd definitely put forth an effort to increase your spread for managed areas.. I'd say a minimum of 6 doz is a good starting point


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## Far Beyond Driven (Jan 23, 2006)

This time of year drive up there, wait until the birds start moving, go to the HQ and pull that zone and get put there before they stop moving. Sometimes you can hide and just pass shoot without decoys.


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## fuseitinthesun (Aug 30, 2016)

Good to know. I ended up bailing on today, figured maybe we'll try it next weekend on the way up to hunt the middle zone split.



Far Beyond Driven said:


> This time of year drive up there, wait until the birds start moving, go to the HQ and pull that zone and get put there before they stop moving. Sometimes you can hide and just pass shoot without decoys.


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## Rajah (Oct 25, 2010)

Finally made it out there for the first time this season today. Just two of us but limited out. Know of one other party that limited out ahead of us. Not sure on others. Birds have been getting hammered out there over the last week. Only two more days left before it is closed for the season.


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## Highball28 (Oct 17, 2014)

Saw that on the update... 43 geese killed Saturday alone. Wowza!


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## Far Beyond Driven (Jan 23, 2006)

Scouted last night, about 1500 geese very much hunkered down. Did not see any in the fields and only saw one flying other than the few hopping from pod of geese to pod of geese.

The ducks in the ditches were just sick. A couple out of the way spots that no one had driven yet, no tracks in the snow, just stink with mallards. Saw at least 3000 ducks.


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## remington trap (Sep 2, 2011)

Last Saturday we hunted in the morning and got first pick and went to the main field they been using 18. The bird worked perfectly, at one point we had close to 400 birds working, and we got are limit by 930.










Hunted again Tuesday morning got 2nd to last draw out of 7 party's, so after seeing what the birds did Saturday we decide to go to 17. That's where most of the birds wanted to go after circling other field and getting shot at / sky busting. They worked perfectly again and got are limit around 1030.










These were some of the best goose hunts we had in the wastewater.


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## fuseitinthesun (Aug 30, 2016)

Awesome to hear about all this recent success. My buddy and I will be out there on Tuesday, ended up going to Tawas for the middle split this weekend and did ok, with a goose, 2 mallards, and 2 mergs. Missed a ton of divers too, we were shore hunting so they were all pass shots near the outside of our comfort zone. Did the full body tyvek suit trick like you guys said and it worked beautifully. So yeah we'll be there Tuesday with a dozen fullbodies, 6 shells, and six floaters that we'll use like shells. Like I had mentioned before, wouldn't mind joining forces if anyone else wants to. I'm planning on just taking a snow shovel to dig a slot in the snow, getting in there with the tyvek suit on and pulling corn stalks over my face and boots.


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## Far Beyond Driven (Jan 23, 2006)

Here's every bird at the WW as of Friday night. Per the biologists about 3000 bailed last week and there's about 1000 left.


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## Rajah (Oct 25, 2010)

remington trap said:


> Hunted again Tuesday morning got 2nd to last draw out of 7 party's, so after seeing what the birds did Saturday we decide to go to 17. That's where most of the birds wanted to go after circling other field and getting shot at / sky busting. They worked perfectly again and got are limit around 1030.
> 
> View attachment 237257
> 
> ...



Nicely don't on 17. Heard some shootin out there but wasn't sure how much success had actually been had. We were on 19 and after 18B limited out in short order, birds came right over to us and was able to finish our hunt quite nicely.


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