Hunting The Early Bird

A guide to getting an early goose.

Article by Ruben Perez . Uploaded on August 31, 2004

Photo by Outdoor Life Online Editor

While keeping an eye on the distant tree line, waiting for another flock of giant Canada geese to make its way to our decoys, I took a moment in my blind to enjoy the pond, the grassy fields and the beautiful rolling hills in front of us. Suddenly a voice came from in back of us, bringing an end to the morning hunt.

"Mind if we play through?" a surprised golfer asked. I looked on as he and his companion walked right through my rig of goose decoys. I couldn't actually complain, since my hunting party was, in fact, the real intruder. We were hunting resident Canada geese that had taken over a very exclusive golf course just outside of Boston. I had found a club that was very happy to allow us to hunt before its members came to play, just to keep the geese off the property. You might think a golf course is an odd place to chase Canadas, but the sight of our two-person limit of 10 geese at the end of the hunt dispelled all apprehensions.

Golfers, groundskeepers and farmers alike deplore the exploding numbers of resident geese. Some blame the species' ever-increasing population on short stopping, others on the lack of places one can hunt the cagey resident. Without question, geese have become a common sight and problem in suburban areas. Many states have opened an additional season with very generous bag limits in an attempt to keep Canada goose numbers in check. But hunting them requires entirely different tactics from what I would use for late-season migrators.

CONCEALMENT IS KEY

To be successful gunning for early-season resident geese, you have to hunt with tactics that are different from those used for migrators. With few cornfields cut, hunters should look to hayfields, sod farms or open grassy areas like golf courses. Such places attract good numbers of geese but can be a nightmare to hunt. Consistently scoring in areas where cover is non-existent requires innovative methods. To add to the difficulty, resident geese know the fields they frequent intimately. They feed in those fields every day, unlike migrators, who are happy to stop for a meal when passing through. If you set your rig improperly, chances are you'll only witness geese flying away from your spot.

Portable laydown blinds, such as the Avery Finisher, Final Approach's X-Land'r or Wildfowler Outfitter's Layout Blind, allow you to get where the geese want to be. Instead of hunting the edge of the field, you can hide in the middle of the field with only the slightest of cover.

Fred Zink, one of goose hunting's top championship callers, guides, call makers and blind innovators, has taken goose hunting and elevated it to a scientific level. He's known for spending hours in the field just watching geese to learn their habits.

"Portable laydown blinds are comfortable and keep you concealed from even the wisest geese. Selecting a camo pattern that matches a variety of landscapes is important," Zink advises. "I prefer the Mossy Oak Shadow Grass pattern. Its earthy tones and various colors blend into almost any situation. Another tip for camouflaging your setup is to use natural stubble from the fields. Place it into the camo straps on the blinds to create the image of a small scrap pile."

Mobility is a major factor for consistently hunting these smart birds successfully, Zink points out. Not only does the laydown blind offer comfort and the ability to hide without digging pits, but you can easily take it apart and set up shop in another field the geese are using.

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