# DWR Proposes a light goose spring



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

> DWR proposal would let you hunt light geese this spring.
> 
> Get ready, Utah goose hunters. Utah's first-ever spring light goose hunt would provide hunters with a unique opportunity. It would also help light goose populations (snow, blue and Ross' geese) and reduce damage to grain and alfalfa crops in Utah.
> 
> ...


Would this hunt even be a good idea? How many snow/blue geese are here in the spring?


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## hamernhonkers (Sep 28, 2007)

This would be so cool if it came about. Of course most of the opportunities would be for people who can access private land but it would give a lot of people the chance to get a white goose. And yes there are a lot of geese that come through each spring.


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## wingmanck (Sep 7, 2007)

#1DEER 1-I said:


> Would this hunt even be a good idea?


As it stands now, I think the only folks that have any real chance of taking advantage of this proposal are those with private land. If the Division is able to create more access, as suggested, for the 95% of us who can't afford to buy into clubs, I think it would certainly be better for the average joe hunter. It's gonna take responsible hunters that'll do less damage to the fields than the birds to make it work though.



#1DEER 1-I said:


> How many snow/blue geese are here in the spring?


 :?: Well...quoting your quoted info... :wink: 


> 50,000 geese
> 
> "We don't see many light geese in the fall, but in the spring, more than 50,000 light geese - most of them snow and Ross' geese - stop over in Utah," says Tom Aldrich, migratory game bird coordinator for the DWR.


I doubt the birds will stick around very long if they are being shot at, but there should still be some good opportunities for hunters to bag a rare (in these parts) species.


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## kingfish (Sep 10, 2007)

when i heard of the rumblings of this it didnt take long for me to get some properties in line. i think i have 4 different places here in box elder county ready to go. would be nice to shot them here rather than take a long drive to do it.........even i we harvest just a couple, im good on that! 

got my approval!!!


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## Steve Earley (Feb 25, 2008)

I've been up to Box Elder County the past two years watching the snow geese during their spring migration. I agree with the DWR's numbers although I don't think there are 50,000 birds at any one time. They come in over several weeks and move out over several weeks. I think the last to leave this year wasn't till late April. Different groups coming and going all the time.

The tricky part is going to be how to hunt them even if you get permission. One hunt in a field and it's all over for that spot. If they get bounced around too much they might change their migration pattern or timing. Then there will be the guys that pass shoot them heading into a field. I don't know of anyone who's going to want to spend several hundred, if not thousands of dollars, for snow goose decoys just for one or two hunts. 

I think it's a great opportunity and am glad to have it. How successful it is in terms of hunting will take several years to determine.


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## dkhntrdstn (Sep 7, 2007)

It will be tuff hunting. but fun trying for them anywas. it a good idea but like said befor us hunters will have to treat the land owner as if it was are owen. but we will see how that goes.


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## shotgunwill (May 16, 2008)

This sounds like a great idea. I think a lot of land owners would be appreciative of our help as hunter's, we just gotta ask. This year, I am headed to Colorado to "help out" a land owner with their goose problem. She's even offered to pay my gas!! A lot of people don't realize how destructive a goose can be to alfalfa and hay fields. They not only eat the grass blade, but the pull up the roots too. If you run a cattle ranch, which my contact in Colorado does, you know first hand how much feed costs. Those costs rise when you have none of your own feed to use. So, I hope this goes through, and if it does guys, don't hesitate to ask someone. I am sure out of all the people you do ask, someone will let you on. And besides that, shooting all the way into march, makes October get here faster!!


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## woollybugger (Oct 13, 2007)

I doubt that you could find one single waterfowler that would say 'no' to that! Getting to hunt waterfowl clear into March?!?!?! Sounds great!!! All those snow geese in the spring - completely untouched; says that we need a spring goose hunt.


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## Longgun (Sep 7, 2007)

will bountarys be set?


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## ram2h2o (Sep 11, 2007)

Have an open season in Louisiana after regular season closes for Snows, Blues and speckled Belly geese. You can use electronic calls and take the plugs out of your shotguns. Would be great here in Utah, if we had some public land to hunt or public access for private land, Heck, I would be willing to pay to hunt on some good places.


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## Mojo1 (Sep 8, 2007)

ram2h2o said:


> Have an open season in Louisiana after regular season closes for Snows, Blues and speckled Belly geese. You can use electronic calls and take the plugs out of your shotguns. Would be great here in Utah, if we had some public land to hunt or public access for private land, Heck, I would be willing to pay to hunt on some good places.


Utah does have a private land Walk in Access program, check it out on the DNR site, it has maps of the land in the program.

Don't forget the several hundred decoys that are required to get snows into shooting range and that's just for the ones tht haven't been hunted yet. :twisted:

I will most likely still hunt them if I'm not back down in Arkansas on a hunt at that time.


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## Great Basin Canada (May 7, 2008)

The idea of a light goose system in Utah is a logical extension of the expanded seasons in the Mississippi and Central Flyways. However, I would offer the following in terms of a season in Utah:

Most of the light geese that migrate through Utah nest on Banks Island in the NWTand winter around the Salton Sea in California. This is a relatively small breeding colony; it is much smaller than James Bay or Wrangel Island breeding populations. The total number of birds moving through the state is approximately 50,000 - 55,000. In the Spring the migration encompasses a 5 to 6 week period depending on weather conditions. Even though the population is approximately,50k - 55k not all of these birds are in the state at the same time. 30,000 - 35,000 birds would be my estimate for peaks during the Spring Migration.

Based on experiences in the Central and Mississippi Flyways, it will probably a tough hunt for the following reasons: These birds will have been hunted almost continually from September 1st until they arrive in Utah. They will have seen plenty of decys and been shot at over and over. The hunt will be doubly tough if the majority of the birds are adults - even with big spreads of decoys adults are hard to decoy since they've been hunted in several seasons. Also, snow geese do not show same feeding patterns as Canada Geese. If you see Canada Geese in a field and they are not disturbed the chances are better than even they will be back the next day. This is not true with snows. I don't know how many times I watched birds feeding in fields in Howell Valley or Blue Creek, set up for them the next day and watched them fly into Hansel Valley to feed. Walk in hunters will have a tough time carrying enough decoys in to make a decent spread in areas where vehicles are prohibited.

When I was hunting them Howell Valley, Blue Creek and Hansel Valley were pretty much open to hunting - with the exception of the Posted Pheasant Hunting Unit around Howell. I imagine that has chaged dramatically and private land access may be a problem in box Elder County.

The two areas where the birds concentrate on the Spring Migration are in Millard and Box Elder Counties. Some of the birds do use Clear Lake, occasionally Farmington Bay and the Public but most of the use is off State-owned WMAs. In Box Elder County the birds traditionally roosted on Bear River NWR, they would fly out in the morning to feed and then use Howell/Blue Creek Reservior as a loafing area during the day. I haven't been to the reservior in several years and don't know how development may have changed this behavior. However, I do know they do not take a lot of disturbance when they're on the reservior and have seen them return to the refuge in the middle of the day if they were bothered.

On thing the Division will have to decide is whether the water areas will be open to hunting. If they open the water areas, I think the migration speeded up and compressed. Many water areas in Canada remain closed to hunting during the season to hold birds in the area.

In terms liberalizing regulations to allow electronic calling that will be up to the FWS and Division.

This looks like a great opportunity to provide additional hunting opportunity but it won't be a piece of cake.


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## Travis R. Bullock (Jul 25, 2008)

Light Geese are overated! 8)


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## ram2h2o (Sep 11, 2007)

Mojo1, back home we used cloth baby diapers and white rags set out in a rice field, Used the irrriagation ditches for crawling into the area and as a blind. Not too expensive, but took a lot of time to put them out and pick them up after the hunt. Had to go way early in the am well before dawn or sometimes we set them out the evening before we hunted.


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## gunrunner (Feb 1, 2008)

Bullock Outdoors said:


> Light Geese are overated! 8)


Unless your in the middle of them.........


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## threshershark (Sep 7, 2007)

I hunt mainly in Northern Utah, and I'm very much in favor of a light goose Spring hunt. From what I have seen landowners would be quite open to allowing snow goose hunting -- I have seen them absolutely devastate winter wheat fields to the point they needed to be replanted. They are considered pests by many of the farmers because of the sheer numbers that tend to show up at feeding locations. I'd say getting permission without paying is a strong possibility.

One thing I have observed, however, is that the best hunting in the North would really be about 2 to 3 weeks after March 10th, which is the proposed end of the season. I'm not sure what the flocks do in the Delta area, but Mar 10 - Mar 25 or so is the sweet spot from what I've seen. It could just be the location, and there are certainly a fair number of birds around in early March.


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## spork40 (Oct 8, 2007)

are there many geese in the utah county area? i have never seen the lesser species down here.


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## kingfish (Sep 10, 2007)

this hunt will mainly work in two areas at best. Delta and corinne. those are the two areas that will hold most the snows.


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## spork40 (Oct 8, 2007)

why open a new season if it only benefits private clubs and a small number of hunters?


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## Longgun (Sep 7, 2007)

kingfish said:


> this hunt will mainly work in two areas at best. Delta and corinne. those are the two areas that will hold most the snows.


missed one....the millionare club


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## Great Basin Canada (May 7, 2008)

spork40 said:


> why open a new season if it only benefits private clubs and a small number of hunters?


There is a biological reason to hunt these birds as well as providing additional recreation to Utah hunters. In the Central Flyway white/blue goose populations essentially got away from waterfowl managers before they realized what was happening and the geese began to destroy their breeding habitat by overgrazing it. Breeding habitat in the high arctic is extremely fragile and once it is damaged, it takes years to repair itself. Several areas of once prime nesting habitat in the Central Flyway have essentially been eliminated by goose use. If habitat loss trend continues it will eventually reduce the nuber of geese in the Central Flyway population.

Waterfowl managers in the Pacific Flyway believe a similar situation is developing in the western arctic populations and want to depress this growth before it reaches the proportions that developed in the Central Flyway. It's worth the effort to try it and evaluate its impact on this group of geese. However, as I mentioned in an earlier post.this is a relatively small population of of geese as opposed to snow geese using the Central Valley and Klamath Basin where the bulk of the white geese congregate.


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## Mojo1 (Sep 8, 2007)

ram2h2o said:


> Mojo1, back home we used cloth baby diapers and white rags set out in a rice field, Used the irrriagation ditches for crawling into the area and as a blind. Not too expensive, but took a lot of time to put them out and pick them up after the hunt. Had to go way early in the am well before dawn or sometimes we set them out the evening before we hunted.


We played that same game back about 10 years ago down in Ark, you might get by for the first shoot at a flock with diapers and rags but snow are fast learners, the old birds don't fall for the same tricks after the first time.

We hunt out of pit blinds or layouts, occasionally we use the ditches to get close and drive (roll) the geese over the shooters.

You're right it takes a while to put out several hundred dekes in the morning, but the rewards can be great if you do the work. Sometimes we put out the night before and sleep in a little, but usually just get up at 3 AM and do it.

Ain't nothing easy about snow goose hunting period. :lol:


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## neils (Aug 26, 2008)

We should close water hunting to keep the geese around longer to help harvest more birds.
In Canada you can't hunt the water. The geese use the same ponds for a month because it is safe. The birds keep flying out of the safe haven where they are hunted in the fields. Using the same pond, we almost hunt the same 10,000 geese in Canada for a week. We just chase them out to the new feild where they are feeding get permission & hunt the next day. We kill alot of birds that way. Although this doesn't always work. Canada geese will fly to the feild they were in last night but, Snow geese are very fickle. You might have 5000 snow's in a feild at evening feeding, watch them for hours, (undisturbed feeding) & you will be thinking they will be here in the morning. But they don't. They get off the pond and go the other way. Snow are just fickle. That's why you need the pond to be their safe haven so you can try it again and again. Either way I would rather spend the morning knowing that there is a huge amount of geese undisturbed on a pond in Delta knowing they are going to feed some where and they might fly over you. That's all you can do is hope. Put out a crap load of decoys or full of white garbage sacks on sticks. The more the merrier!

2nd Idea close water hunting for the first two weeks or so of prime migration then open the water hunting later. 

Belive me if they don't have a place to rest they won't stick around they fly to Idaho that day.


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## kingfish (Sep 10, 2007)

Neils,

their will be PLENTY of open water that will not be hunted. the BRBR will be closed as most likely the bear river club. i see no reason for them to open up for such a small hunt. their members will not waist time on this utah hunt. so that leaves HUGE rest ponds open to them. the GSL will be largely untouched as well. i would like to see someone have a spread big enough to make an impact on birds that roost south of the BRBR. most snows do not roost on public or salt creek. most roost on the bear river club and the BRBR. google earth the area and you will see how big of a rest pond they will have.


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## dckhuntr (Oct 11, 2007)

i brought this up last year but nobody took me seriouse


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