Birds Flaring need help

J

Jeff G

Member
Been running long lines the past few days , we only bagged 3 broadies . Problem they would flare the last 20yrds before they hit the decoys . My guess is they are educated and knew what was up , but I could be wrong . We would set up facing east with decoys in front . next we moved facing south east . any help would be great .
 
Been running long lines the past few days , we only bagged 3 broadies . Problem they would flare the last 20yrds before they hit the decoys . My guess is they are educated and knew what was up , but I could be wrong . We would set up facing east with decoys in front . next we moved facing south east . any help would be great .
Jeff Broabills can drive you crazy!!! Somedays they finish somedays they won't. Concealment is important but my guess is you are hunting a pressured area. Set up with some decent cover to your back even if you arent on the X it will still be better that sitting in the open bay
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We are covered up pretty good , we have cover over our heads, boat is wrapped pretty tight . We are hunting open water no hunting off points or layouts.
 
Make sure you are not at the end of the long line. Set you position so they fly along the string and dump in range, but you should not be the focus at the end of the string. Then again, sometime (often) educated birds will dump early and swim in or just stay out where they feel safer.
 
So you are anchoring up in the middle? Do you have a grassy blind or an open water camo pattern on your boat? Regardless, this late in the season they are going to be weary of a floating island. With how warm it has been this season there has been an incredible amount of guys out pounding away at them. Saturdays by 8 am they have been so tired of guys rallying them and guys taking long shots on them that they are rafted up out in the middle and wont break apart. Try hunting week days when they have had a few days to settle down. Or try an afternoon hunt. Set up a 1/2 mile down wind of the large rafts or between them and a food source and be patient. They will break into smaller groups that will work the decoys. Try at all costs to not disturb them when they are loafing (rafted up) and they will eventually break up in search of food. It takes patience and will be tough to watch so many fly past without any committing but if you wait them out the singles and small groups will eventually work in.

Also try setting your decoys so they are slightly up wind and set up for crossing shots. If they arent looking at decoys with a boat as a back drop they might be a little more willing to commit
 
Is your boat blind grass or netting?
I use netting but put a lot of cane around the boat to make it look like a clump of vegetation.

Also, I like to put my diver decoys relatively close to the boat, like 10-15 yards. That way when they are in the mood to just buzz the edge of the decoys they are still in range.

Here's my boat out of & in the cane "blind":
View attachment BoatBlindonWater3.jpg

[inline BoatBlindonWater2.jpg ]

View attachment BoatBlindonWater2.jpg
 
I also put some decoys all around the boat, some days they just want to land on one side or the other. Last time we has a good 'bill shoot, more landed in the gadwall decoys than landed in the diver decoys. Go figure.
 
Let me take a guess... are you hunting Parkertown? Those birds get a little bit of pressure down that way!
 
And this year the birds have been there too long. No new birds so they have seen every spread and boat design and just raft up and stay away from anything that looks out of the ordinary
 
Jeff,
If you're hunting where a lot of folks have been hunting, sure, the birds may have been spooked to that area...though, they are killable at 20 yards. ;)
The other factor I've observed mostly is...people in the boat moving...even is just their heads a bit. Eyeglasses flash is easily detected by birds.
MHO ;)
Lou
 
Let me take a guess... are you hunting Parkertown? Those birds get a little bit of pressure down that way!
Click to expand...

If you are hunting this area and are setup out on the open bay that is your problem. They have seen that game way too many times!!!
 
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