Gear buy....what do I need?

[pass-thru]

Putting in an order tonight to get some additional waterfowl gear. As a newby, not real sure everything I need, and don' want to miss anything.

What I have:

1 dozen mallard decoys and rigging.
4 Canada decoys, feeding
shotgun (wife just got it out of town this weekend for Christmas and haven't put my hands on it yet!)
about 50 shells
hip waders and chest waders from trapping
1 goose and 1 duck call

What I plan to get:
another half dozen duck decoys: woodie and black duck mixed
long sleeve gauntlet gloves (not sure if this is a good idea or not)


Not sure what else I might be missing. Especially in the clothing department. Just have deerhunting camo/clothes.

Thanks.

 

[Dirt Dobber]

Check out Macks for your decoys. Got some hella deals goin on now, and only takes 2-3 days tops to receive em.
What kinda water you gonna be huntin? Big open water, get 1/2 dozen or so of some diver dekes. Can't go wrong with bluebills. Cans, buffleheads, as long as they got a good bit of white on em. All your deer gear should be good, as long as it's cold weather gear.

 

[pass-thru]

The only access I have right now is a small farm pond. There are some small rivers around here and I may try to get some river access as well, but may be tough to round it up this year.

 

[XCR-2]

I'd pass on the long gloves. Spend the extra money and get a good pair of gore-tex mid season gloves from drake. Jerk rig is a nesacety also. I use a small kayak anchor for my weight, it's a little cheaper to build your own rather than buy the exact same rig. And also when rigging decoys do yourself a favor and Texas rig them if you haven't already.

 

[scn]

Short term, I'd acquire 4-6 pintail decoys with the majority drakes if you can. Pintails are in the same breeding areas as your mallards. The white on the drakes can really show up. I'd rather have pintails than the wood ducks. The black ducks are a great addition.

From your deer hunting gear, a face mask can be a big help if you are not in a really well camoed blind. The "new" camo Buffs in merino wool or polar fleece will help keep you warm and do a great job in hiding your face while working birds.

A blind bag would be a great addition to your gear. They will help to transport all the odds and ends (thermos, shells, etc, etc) that make for a productive and comfortable day.

Some army surplus wool glove liners are great for waterfowl hunting. They will keep your hands warm even if they get a little wet, and are cheap enough to have an extra pair or two in the blind bag. They are the only warm glove that I've ever been comfortable in shooting with gloves on. The dark green color blends in well.

If you aren't going with the mojo type motion decoys at this point, a goose "flag" is good to have. It can bring birds for a closer look when they are way off. Once close, your decoys and calling can take over. They are "oldschool" compared to all of the mechanized decoys out there, but they are cheap and still work.

But, don't think you have to have every waterfowl "toy" in the catalog to have some fun hunting.

 

[Dirt Dobber]

Seen your located in Virginia. Is this where you'll be huntin? If so, y'all are ate up with black ducks!!! Happy huntin

 

[Jon54]

Pintail whistle, cheap but can be effective on late season ducks. I'd also suggest some Gore-Tex gloves. Put together a jerk string for one of your decoys.

 

[pass-thru]

Thanks guys, much appreciated!

Yes I will be hunting in the foothills of VA. I regularly see wood ducks on the pond, and have also seen mallards and black ducks. I went once last year and a drake hooded merganser came in and land in front of me, saw me and took off by the time I got the safety off he was gone. I often see ducks on the pond from on of my treestands but too far to ID. I guess a good day hunting on that pond would be seeing any ducks. Not a lot of ducks move through my part of VA. We have a lot of resident geese though!

 

[Dirt Dobber]

X2 on a whistle. Many different calls from one whistle. Greenheads, pintails, woodrows, widgeons, and greenwings all can be mimicked from a whistle.

 

[Dodge Man]

I would say a good water proof blind bag is a must to carry shells, and everything else you might want while hunting. WingSupply has some great close out deals on lots of bags and other items.

 

[Crosshairy]

lanyard for your calls

A motion decoy like a Mojo or Lucky duck. Based on the depth of the water you will be hunting, you may want to build or buy an extension to the poles that come with it, since they are often short for certain areas.

A medium-sized backpack will carry your motion decoy, collapsed poles for it, and other odds and ends. Inside mine, I have a couple screw-in steps in case I have to hang gear in a tree if I'm standing in water to hunt. I carry both heavyweight waterproof gloves, and thin gloves that I can wear while calling/shooting that keep dexterity.

I just bought a sled to slide over mud/water/swampy areas (cost about $50, check Cabelas, Amazon, etc.) for walk-in hunts. If you wade swamps, they can be really handy since it floats.

A strong flashlight or small spotlight for looking duck holes over to check for the best decoy placement can be handy if you are often hunting new areas that must be surveyed on the walk-in.

If you end up going the boat hunting route, that can complicate things with even more junk to deal with

 

[Cache]

http://www.ducks.org/hunting/waterfowl- ... decoysHome

The video should get you started on all the decoys you need.....................