In a boat close to shore or set up out far?

M

mikeNHBayhunter

Member
What do you prefer and why? I hunt great bay in NH and prefer hunting in a boat tied close to shore, there's a few guys that set in open water. Just curious what you guys/gals like to do?
Happy hunting Mike
 
Depends on what your gunning for most of the time. Bottom line is like the quote in "Duck Decoys and How to Rig Them", You got to be where the ducks is usin'.
 
I agree with Howard, but if you are setting up your boat near shore, why not just sit on shore and stash the boat down the shore?

I suppose in some cases the shore is posted.

But where possible, I always prefer the cover available on shore.
 
Where we hunt, we can almost never hunt close to shore, the water is too shallow unless you have a mud boat/motor. So we almost always are at least 20 yards off the bank.
That said, it all depends on where the birds want to be. If they birds are on the shoreline, set up there. If they a mile out on the bay, that is where you need to be.
 
I'm the opposite of Carl - I always hunt near the shore but always from the boat. Totally depends on where you are located. Too much private shoreline around here but the water is open to the public.

Mark W
 
That law would make hunting the tidal areas of coastal AL literally impossible.
 
We hunt out of my friends tdb all grassed up w a custom top cover. It's a tidal bay so we can get in close to shore. In nh people don't own below the high water mark so your good just can't get out and take a walk if posted.
 
Mike,

A TDB with a top cover should hunt well in either situation. I prefer being tucked up agaist the bank where there's some tree cover, but sometimes water levels or where the ducks seem to want to be dictates otherwise.

Here's a picture I snapped of a place where I had set up under very low water conditions. I have had ducks work well with the boat like this, but I am compeletely concealed from above; and the top I made for my blind can be adjusted so I can have a viewing area that allows me to see out well, but not be seen at all. As always, some days they'll work; some days you can be in what you consider the ideal spot and can't get a second look.

View attachment TDB.jpg
Interestingly enough, there was a post not too long ago about reconfiguring the slant on a TDB blind so there would be more "room" in the boat. One of the purposes of the original design of the TDB 14 and its blind was to re-create that beaver hut / muskrat den silhouette, and while squaring up the blind might create more room, it would give the boat a square "boxcar" look instead of a more natural sloped, "mound" look - especially in a more open water placement.

View attachment 8-muskrat-den (600 x 450).jpg

View attachment hut.jpg
 
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