# Can't seem to find em'



## #1DEER 1-I (Sep 10, 2007)

Where are the ducks and geese right now? I can't seem to find any around my area and when I see them don't have a gun with me. All the ponds are frozen (most) and yet I do two peices of river every day and can't seem to jump a single duck? Where will they go besides open water, because I only know of one pond that stays uniced and still can't seem to catch em' on the river.


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## Loke (Sep 7, 2007)

When you find them, give me a call and I'll go shoot them for you.


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## dunn_gary (Sep 11, 2007)

I'm having a bit of the same problem here in Cache Valley. A ditch close to my house, where I killed several mallards last year, has produced one, today, this year. I have walked it two or three times, and today was the first ducks I have seen in it, one hen, one drake. I dropped the drake. Hyrum dam isn't frozen up yet, so maybe that is the problem. But, I haven't seen very many birds on Hyrum either. This area I hunt had tons of ducks coming in virtually every evening to land in a field just east of this ditch. I have seen very few this year. Maybe I, we, need to wait a bit longer as there may be a few patches of open water here and there. :?


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## Riverrat77 (Sep 7, 2007)

dunn gary, I think you may be right. It just seems warmer than normal this year. Several spots I go late season are not producing as well as normal and I think its because the weather up north either hasn't been bad enough to push lots of birds to us or there is just enough open water left around for them to stay rafted up on bigger pockets instead of moving to the smaller waters like that ditch you hit and the spots I go to when everything else is bitterly cold.


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## TagmBagm (Nov 4, 2007)

It seems like right now the birds are smart and there is still enough open water where nobody can really hunt them that they are just rafting up. It seems though that as soon as a big storm comes it messes up their perception of time and they get off to feed earlier plus the rain and snow get them off that big open water. For the past three or four weeks my best hunts have been in the rain, snow, and hail. It sucks horribly to sit in it, but i am a die hard duck hunter so it is definately worth it.


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## dunn_gary (Sep 11, 2007)

Well, I hit my place again this morning, after looking for elk in the early morning. Only kicked up one pair of mallards again in basically the same spot as the other day. Still too much open water I guess. In another post, there is a photo of the Cutler marsh. It should be frozen solid by now, but the photo shows a lot of open water. Hyrum Dam still has not frozen over. As much as I dislike it, come on colder temps!


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## huntducksordietrying (Sep 21, 2007)

I was always able to hunt Cutler the whole season, at least for the five years I hunted it. There are channels out there that have just enough current in them to keep the water alive. There is some good walk in access to the south east of the boat ramp. You should be able to go out there and kill as many golden eyes as you dare eat.


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## hairy1 (Sep 10, 2007)

I believe that most of the ducks have already migrated!

I don't think we will see to many new birds.

Get creative and go to the birds!


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## dunn_gary (Sep 11, 2007)

Ok, dudes. I took a few minutes and walked my favorite canal this evening. And I finally jumped a few. There was only one group of mallards, about 8 birds, and I got a double. My first double of the season. Yeah, I know. Kinda late for my first double. Nevertheless, It adds to my grand total of one limit of ducks this season. Yeah, that's right, a whopping 7! This has definitely not been my best season, but at least better than two years ago when I only got one. I haven't been out all that much though, cause I was so busy trying to fill my other big game tags. So, I'm not even going to mess with posting in the other post about how many this year. Most will have had days as good as my whole season has been. Oh well, what do ya do. I would like to find some geese before it's all over, but they have seemed, at least for the most part, to have left Cache Valley. There aren't many ducks either. Everything that will freeze this winter has I believe. So if they are gone, they are gone. Of course, there is always a few that winter here, it's just a matter of finding. But mostly it's jump shoot. I'm not sure I want to sit in whatever water may be open when the outside temps are below 10 degrees! Too cold for this old fart.

Have a great one ya'll.


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## spork40 (Oct 8, 2007)

i had an awesome hunt new years eve in the morning, i went out with my brothers and we got ten birds. it was my best trip this year and we saw over a hundred birds, mostly teal and gadwalls with a few mallards. the ducks are holding up tight and we had to walk a very long way through very thick cattails and mud but they are in there. keep looking deeper in the wetlands and they will be there. there is a lot more open water in thick cattails and cover then you would think, just a lot further in.


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## dunn_gary (Sep 11, 2007)

With the season winding down, I am trying to get out a few more times. I don't have a lot of time as I have started directing a Musical at my school. But I did have an hour Thursday evening and again today, Friday. Thursday I jumped two mallards and got them both after walking about a half a mile to the end of this ditch I like. After that area, even thought he ditch is still going, I've never jumped any birds passed the end of this area. It may be because the ditch is pretty much treelined and offers good protection in this stretch. But those two were the only ones I saw. Tonight, I jumped two more, right at the start, and got my third double of the season. I did jump two more pairs, but did not get a shot. The second two jumped a bit too far out, and the third pair jumped great for shooting, just right behind a tree. I wanted the drake, but the only shot I had, which wasn't a very good one, was at the hen, so I passed. One hen a day is more than enough. But, woohooo, my total is now up to 11 birds for the season! Man, I am just slaying them, and destroying the Cache Valley population! I have seen a goose in the sky for weeks now. If there are any around in a hunting area, I have no idea where. Oh well, maybe I'll have more time next year. Or maybe I'll invest in an Idaho small game license. 

I'm off to ice fish Hyrum in the morning and up to the Aggie BB game in the evening, so no time for a hunt. Maybe next Fri and Sat. But for the northern part of the state, that will be the last day of the season, so I'll have to put up the 12 gauge until next fall unless I decide to go to a club and shoot a couple pheasants. We'll see. I haven't killed any this year, so if I can scrap 50 bucks or so together, I may do that. But, Cabo San Lucas, Baja is calling my name for the end of the month, so I hope to have some cool pictures to post in the fishing section!


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## dunn_gary (Sep 11, 2007)

Sadly, the last post of the season. But.........

Friday night, I went to the old faithful ditch, and got two green heads. My wife said, "Oh crap", what are you going to do with all these ducks? I said I was going to eat them. But what do you mean "all these ducks"? I've only killed 13 this year, and that's not even two limits!

So, my son and I, after we fished Hyrum in the morning, decided to go back to the ditch for one last "ditch" effort (pun intended). He didn't have his gun, so he used my single shot 10 gauge (man does it mess up a ducK!). We found nothing in the tree line, except two deer. There are also 7 bull elk in a neighboring field!

We headed east on a joining ditch and 3/4 of the way to the road, he said out loud "do you want me to go get the truck?" Three mallards got up about 50 yards away. The sheepish look on his face was priceless! We walked right up to the ditch and I looked ahead, and saw another bird in the water. I quietly told him there were still more there. We proceeded to sneak up on them by circling out into the field a little. Then we walked up to the ditch, and WOAH! Up came about a dozen mallards. He picked out one and shot it, and I dropped another right behind it. He tried to put in another shell, as two more were getting up. He shot at the ones already in the air, and I dropped the two that got up to my left. My first triple ever! *OOO* -()/- *(())* Now, for those sceptics out there, the last two jumped when he fired the first shot. So I, after I fired my first shot swung around to my left and dropped the other two. It happened in less than 10 seconds.

We went to my house and I filletted fish while he started plucking. Then I joined in the fun. When all was cleaned up, my wife and I went up to the USU Bball game and watch JC Carroll smash the school scoring record in a sweet victory over the Idaho Vandals! All in all, a great day, and my duck count got up to 16 ducks for the season. Not bad when you consider that I only had three up until the end on the the Holidays. But, I'm paying for all the walking with leg cramps tonight. :evil:


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