Rugged Record: How to Field Hunt Ducks
Last week we went over duck hunting over water. There’s one other main place to hunt ducks, and that’s over land. This article is dedicated to covering that type of duck hunting. Some of the parts covered here are going to be the same as last week (sorry its going to be repetitive), as they don’t change whether you’re hunting ducks over water or land. However, there are key differences that are covered below.
Duck hunting at first glance looks like a difficult and expensive type of hunting to try, and if you want to hunt them over land it can be even more expensive. You look online at videos and see hunters in head-to-toe camo, with dozens of decoys, fancy shotguns, crazy in-ground blinds, and more. You may have never gone and don’t even know where to start. Then you start figuring out that you have to be careful about how many of each kind of duck you shoot, and also have to know where you can and can’t set up on land. Sounds intimidating right?
Don’t let that stop you, it isn’t as hard as it seems. With some basic information and equipment, you can be out hunting ducks before you know it.
Ready to dive in?
Where should you go and set up to hunt ducks over land?
The best way to find a place to hunt is to do some scouting. Usually, this looks like driving around looking for fields that have ducks on them. You’ll want to find farm fields that are already harvested (you don’t be that guy/gal that hunts on someone’s crops) as these are where ducks will go to find leftover food to eat. Another place to look for are fields that are right next to bodies of water. Spend some time using maps and apps like onX Hunt to find places to check out if driving around isn’t successful for you.
Once you find land this way, you’ll have two options of what that land is: public or private land. Public land is the easiest to gain access to, as long as you are in the correct season to hunt there, you’re allowed to hunt. Private land can be a bit more tricky. You’ll have to figure out who the land owner is and how to reach them, but once you do you can give them a call or find them in person to ask for permission.
Pro Tip: If you’re planning on asking to hunt private land, bring some sort of gift for the land owner. Something like beer or food is usually a safe bet.
When you find a field that looks intriguing, you’ll have to figure out where you’re going to hide. There are a few options for this such as cattails (if you’re next to water), ground blinds, and ghillie suits. You basically want to find somewhere that you can get out of the sight of ducks.
You’ll also need some amount of ground decoys for this style of hunting. It’s less common that you will be able to pass shoot at ducks this way, so you’ll need something to get them to land next to you. There are lots of different ways to set up your decoys on land, but an easy one is to put them to your left and right, forming a landing area right in the middle. This should line up with where you’re hiding so that they land right in front of you. You’ll also want to make sure that the wind is always at your back, the ducks want to land into the wind if possible.
What equipment do you need?
You don’t need to spend $10,000+ to be a duck hunter, with a few essentials you can get started in no time.
Here’s where you should start:
Camo clothing. Ducks are capable of seeing you if you stick out like a sore thumb. Unlike pheasant hunting where you want to wear orange, for ducks you’ll want to be completely concealed in camo. Get yourself your favorite kind of hat, a jacket, and some sort of camo pants/bibs/waders and you should be good to go.
A shotgun. This will be based on personal preference and what’s on sale while you’re looking. Both 20 gauge and 12 gauge shotguns are effective for ducks, and the most popular styles are either pump or semi-auto.
Steel shot. Ducks and other waterfowl are usually required to be hunted with steel shot instead of lead. When I’m hunting, my first two shots are 2 3/4 inch shells and my last shot is a 3 inch for the farther shots.
Duck calls. A duck call is great to help you get the ducks’ attention as they’re flying and make them want to come to check out your setup. You don’t have to go crazy with these, last season my go-to call was from this company (https://www.legendcalls.com/) and it’s on their website for $30 right now.
Basic decoys. If you go online you can see videos of people with dozens and dozens of decoys setup. That is an extra, and not necessarily needed. If you want to get started with some decoys, get a dozen or so mallard decoys, that will be more than enough to start. Places like Craigslist and Facebook Marketplace can be great places to look for decoys.
Cover of some sort. If you aren’t able to hunt from the cattails, you’ll need some place to hide. There are two entry options for this. The first is to get a layout ground blind. These are basically structured sleeping bag with an incline that you pop out of when ducks come in. They can be a bit pricey, but you don’t have to get something top of the line to starrt with. Another strategy I’ve seen used is ghillie suits. With this, you’ll just have to lay down in the field. For both options, try to surround yourself and your cover with whatever the field has. For example, if there is wheat stubble on the field, put that all over your blind or around your ghillie suit.
Extra things that are nice to have if you can get them:
Moving decoy. There are companies out there (like Mojo) that make decoys with spinning wings. These decoys sit on a post and look as if they’re landing in the field. They are a great attention grabber for ducks and aren’t super expensive, especially if you wait for a good sale on them.
How do you get their attention?
When you’re sitting in the duck blind and you’re seeing ducks but they’re ignoring you it can get incredibly frustrating. We’ve already talked about a few ways to get their attention, but the best one in my opinion is by using a duck call. There are three main sounds that I use to get their attention.
Chatter calling. This is a shorter repetitive sound. I blow into my call using a “tick-uh” sound over and over. This makes a chattering noise that mimics the ducks.
Normal quack. This is a standard quacking sound that ducks make. To do this one, I blow into my call for about 2 seconds and then quickly raise the pitch and shorten my breath. Practice this for a bit and you’ll eventually get it figured out.
Comeback. This call is the loudest and most attention-grabbing one in my experience. I use this when ducks are ignoring me, or circling around but headed away. I take a deep breath and blow into the call for about two seconds with a lot of air, pause for half a second, and repeat until I make that call 6 times.
Using a mix of these three as your calling will make you sound more like an actual duck to the ones flying around you and will give you a better shot at calling them in.
What about limits?
Duck hunting is a bit unique in that there are so many different species you can end up shooting. This is both awesome and a challenge. The various types of ducks and also the gender of ducks have different limits in different states. Whichever state you’re hunting in will have regulations, make sure to look them up and study them so you don’t unintentionally go over your limit.
If you’re just starting out duck hunting, it’s also a good idea to study the different kinds of ducks in the area you’re going to hunt. You’ll need to be able to identify them while they’re flying to decide if you should shoot them or not based on your limits. If you’re ever not sure, it’s safer to not shoot and wait for the next chance you get, better than going over your limit.
What weather should you look out for?
Weather plays a huge role in duck hunting. Unfortunately, the weather that you and I would want to spend time outside isn’t always the best for ducks. In general, sunny days with no clouds are not good duck days. If they’re flying they’ll be up high and won’t want to land in your spread. On the flip side, good days for duck hunting are usually rainy, overcast, foggy, and generally gross. This keeps the ducks moving lower and landing.
Well, there you have it, hopefully, this article helps get you started in duck hunting so you can go out and get some for yourself. It really is an awesome outdoor activity and it’s worth trying if you’ve ever been interested in it. If you have any questions always feel free to reach out on social media!
Calvin
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