Crow Busters Forum

Bob · Guru

What do you like about crow hunting?

Hizzoner · Senior Member

Hi Bobby,

I agree with all youv'e said! I love "OUT WITTING" these birds,the excitement when a crow comes in to your set up and starts "BACK PEDDLING" looking at you knowing he's made the BIGGEST MISTAKE of his life! "YOU KNOW EXACTLY WHAT I MEAN"!! you can see that look in his eye as he's looking at you trying to escape knowing full well he bolixed things up! The most exciting part is the calling and the AUDACITY these birds have coming in for the attack! The Noise is AWSOME and EXCITING! The shooting,the shots,the ones you've smoked and the ones you missed(gravy shots). Using guns of yester that are just as good if not better than the ones today! The comradery,your freinds,your dogs.ANd Last but not least its a hell of alot easier than sea duck hunting! I could go ON + ON+ON ! smile smile Like I said I could never get tired of it!! CROWS + HUNTING + FRIENDS + DOGS + FOOD + WINE = smile smile smile smile smile smile smile smile smile smile smile smile smile smile smile smile smile smile smile smile smile smile smile smile smile smile smile smile smile smile smile = biggrin biggrin biggrin biggrin biggrin

TnCrow · Member

It something that me and my nephew does together. We don't kill a lot of crows, but we sure have a lot of fun together trying.

Bob · Guru

Hi Hizz & TN,

Hizz, you just reminded me of the excited feeling you get when you hear em cawing on the way in. If that don't get the blood pumpin you gotta be dead!

TN, memories last a lifetime, hope you have many more years with you're hunting partner.

Bob A.

Minnesota John · Senior Member

Building a blind that works well.

John

Pat B · Senior Member

Agree with you all......plus no limits (except for Calif). Don't have to pack up and leave after you take five. I like hunting in general, not just crows, field goose, or sea ducks on a rocking boat. I like watching the sun come up. The fog burn off. The first flights of the day. 1 like to share that with my son or with a friend....but I don't feel sad if I'm alone either. With crows, it's the caw, the wings locked and gliding in, and the pretty way they fold when hit. Took a picture of my son fishing for striped bass last year. Love the shot. Sharing with you.

Bob · Guru

Pat B,

I used to love fishing for salt water stripers and blue fish when I lived on Long Island back in the 60's. I was just talking to a life long friend from Long Island today, known him for over 55 years! He still goes out for stripers & blue fish.

Thats a nice silhouette shot of you're son.

Bob A.

Big Honkers · Guru

There are so many things to like about hunting crows and many have already been mentioned.

I am (was) a diehard waterfowler and get the same or better satisfaction out of a good crow hunt. Over the past few years I have felt myself transition into more of a crow hunter and a little less of a waterfowler. Here are a few thoughts why I like crow hunting:

- They approach the decoys similar to the way ducks or geese do.

- It takes less gear to hunt crows compared to waterfowl.

- There is less hunting pressure on crows when compared to waterfowl.

- It is easier to gain permission to hunt crows than almost any other type of game.

- Cheaper shells than waterfowl loads...but you shoot more so I guess that does not really count, hehehe.

Those are just a few of the reasons I am starting to prefer crows over waterfowl.

8fishermen · Guru

I describe this as "The Prefect Storm".

I love tinkering with stuff like electronics and now reloading.

Wing shooting has always been my favorite sport.

No limit.

No problem to get permission.

Can set in the blind with kids and friends and talk as the caller drowns out your voices.

Love the way they come screaming in.

I could go on and on...

-- Edited by 8fishermen on Sunday 24th of April 2011 03:43:22 AM

fowlplay · Member

Big Honkers wrote:
There are so many things to like about hunting crows and many have already been mentioned.

I am (was) a diehard waterfowler and get the same or better satisfaction out of a good crow hunt. Over the past few years I have felt myself transition into more of a crow hunter and a little less of a waterfowler. Here are a few thoughts why I like crow hunting:

- They approach the decoys similar to the way ducks or geese do.

- It takes less gear to hunt crows compared to waterfowl.

- There is less hunting pressure on crows when compared to waterfowl.

- It is easier to gain permission to hunt crows than almost any other type of game.

- Cheaper shells than waterfowl loads...but you shoot more so I guess that does not really count, hehehe.

Those are just a few of the reasons I am starting to prefer crows over waterfowl.

My list exactly. Being a waterfowler I have come to enjoy crow hunting for the same reasons above. Plus:

Mastering the calling technique to lure them within gun range. The scouting and trying to create the perfect set up that will fool them on that day.

Adapting existing equipment and creating new equipment to make the hunt easier and more productive.

Introducing new people to the thrill. My youngest son is deaf and the fact that he can use recorded calls makes it easier for him versus waterfowling where playing recordings is illegal, and for obvious reasons, his attempts at blowing on a call and replicating a sound are far short of being the next calling champion. His sight has more than made up for his lack of hearing though. He will spot something in the air two counties away, and I have to keep telling him they need to be just a slight bit closer, lol.

And of course, striving for that one perfect hunt where I find myself knee deep in dead crows. Yessss!!!!

There definetly is something thrilling about bringing something from the sky down to earth.

Bob · Guru

BH & 8,

You guys love it, thats pretty plain to see.

Greg, when you said you love to tinker with stuff I can relate to that (tweaking the equipment) during the off season.

BH, when you said "I am (was) a diehard waterfowler" I can tell you that is the way I felt back in 1974 when I left New York and moved to Kansas. I used to live to hunt ducks back in the 1960's. I used to love to shoot Greater Scaup and Canvasbacks with a few Black Ducks thrown in.

Bob A.

Bob · Guru

Ron,

Dick Kilbane and Boyd Robeson (two of my crow hunting partners) had eyes like you're son, I needed field glasses to make out what they saw with their naked eyes! It brings back some good memories when you said what you said, Boyd has been gone over 10 years now. Dick is still alive and kickin.

Bob A.

Big Honkers · Guru

Bob,

There are many parallels between hunting crows and ducks. I have taken quite a few other waterfowlers crow hunting. They all enjoy it but none of the guys I introduced to the sport have taken it seriously. In fact, none of them have spent any money on gear except shotgun shells. In a way that is good...just more crows for me...and if they want to hunt they need to hunt WITH me instead of AGAINST me. Although, it does make a guy start to question his sanity when so few others "get" this passionate sport of crow hunting.

Here is my favorite sight from the blind when crows are working the spread:

The crow is a couple hundred yards out and on the approach. It is already low enough to shoot. At about the 100 yard mark the bird gets extra fired up and does a "double tuck" of the wings to lose altitude at a faster rate. The wing beats go from flying to tucked wings for a speedy decent, to a quick glide, to another wing tuck to a glide then back to flying. By this time the bird is probably about 50 yards out. The bird unleashes a scolding scream as it reaches the edge of the spread and quickly thereafter is met with an even louder scream from the end of my gun. The scene replays itself again with another bird that was trailing the recently departed by about 100 yards. I really like shooting birds that are stacked that close together in a flyway...it seems like since crows are so damn smart the sound of gunfire should scare off nearby birds but that is not always the case. This is where shooting skills become important...1 shot 1 kill and the trailer keeps coming...3 shots 1 kill and the trailing bird flares.

When birds do that "double tuck" you have them 100% fooled and I love that.

BH

nhcrowshooter · Guru

First and foremost it's all about the ability to get out i.e. a long season, by purchasing a small game license in nearby Maine I can hunt crows 6 months out of the year (Combine it with late season waterfowling I can hunt and wingshoot 7 months a year). Second like waterfowling it is a sport that can be shared, the comraderie and cooperation that helps make it successful, sitting by myself on a deer stand is boring. Crow hunting you talk about all kinds of things while passing the time. The rest of it is what most of you have covered; they respond to decoys and calling, they are plentiful, less competition, you can still use lead shot, no limits, and you don't have to clean them biggrin .

-- Edited by nhcrowshooter on Sunday 24th of April 2011 12:44:44 PM

SHANEDOG · Guru

I love how it gets rid of my excess money.

Bob · Guru

BH,

I love seeing them come in when there tempers get the best of them and they have there legs down ready for a fight. It damn sure gets me going when I witness that from the blind with my shotgun at the ready.

When you mentioned how they tuck there wings in to loose altitude you reminded me of how fast they can come down into you're spread from a high altitude. On clear windless days this occurs and thats why if at all possible I try to avoid these types of days for flyway shooting. For every 100 birds that go by (at 100 yards high) you peel one out and watch him spirial downward with his wings tucked back. The rest just keep on truckin where as they might all come in if you had the right wind!

NH & I feel like a lot of us do in regard to just getting out and enjoying the day. Many of us (me encluded) don't have to have a good shoot inorder to have a good day outside.

Shane just send you're money to NH since shot is as high as $ 40.00 for a 25 pound bag. It takes me all spring & summer to pay off the credit card for motels, gas, ammo & out of state licences.

Talk to you guys soon.

Bob A.

Rook-ie · Senior Member

As a Rook-ie I have enjoyed the trial and error of learning how to hunt them and observing their behavior. First hunt was with a gun and a call, then with a few decoys, and of course after reading CrowBusters I started to figure things out. I had to laugh after thinking, I probably was calling the warning call, and then read about and listened to the Danger call on here. That was exactly what I was doing. Then, observing hundreds of crows in the distance, and them sending a scout - which apparently did not like what it saw! Amazing critters -- they are good at what they do.

Sniper John · Veteran Member

I'm not as much a dedicated Crow hunter as most of the regulars on this forum. So what I like about it is that it extends my bird hunting seasons. Crow season on public land in Oklahoma runs later than other bird hunting seasons in Texas. And I can hunt year round in Texas when I have private land access. It allows me to get out and hunt when I normally would be done for the season. Not to mention being outfitted with decoys and calls I can always scratch out a few Crows in even the poorest of hunting areas.

Mainehunt · Guru

I like it all. :)

-tricking them into range.

-building blinds

-making my own decoys and other eqipment

-sharing the blind with friends, along with funny stories, snacks, coffee, etc...

-watching the feathers "fly" as one is smacked dead-center

-unlimited limits

-shooting them with cheapo shells that are lead, not having to buy the high-priced steel

-using my FoxPro

-any excuse to get outside and out of my lazy-bastard recliner

What else is there to do in February and March in Maine??? Yeah, ice fishing gets boring, they won't let us shoot the fish.

Kev

Bob · Guru

This past winter was colder than normal so I broke out my old fire bucket for the crow blind. I wrap ham & cheese together between two slices of bread and wrap tin foil around it. I just lay it on top of the fire buckets lid for about 45 seconds on each side and you have a smokin hot ham & cheese sandwich right in the crow blind. I dump 10 pounds of charcoal into the fire bucket and it's enough to last for more than half the day, it heats the blind plus you can cook off of it. It sure makes it nice in bitter cold weather if you have heat in the blind plus a hot sandwich & coffee.

Bob A.

Pat B · Senior Member

Bob,
I have a small backpack stove I use to heat up soup or stew or boil water for hot dogs.
Also, if I drank all my coffee from the thermos I can make another thermos of tea.

Hizzoner · Senior Member

For the "CROW BLIND" I use a Coleman stove and also use it on Duck hunts.BUT I also have what I call THE TGB>(traveling goose blind). I took an 6x10 Utility traier and plywooded it on 3 sides,the gate drops down,I store my Big Foot dekes inside.When I set up it doubles as a trailer and a blind.Vegetation to match the surroundings,a propane heater and a stove/oven(propane) that came out of an R/V.If the birds aren't flying we eat like Kings! Oh yes the ocasional crow stops in to check out the dekes, but not many have left!! smile smile

Bob · Guru

Hizz,

You aught to send a photo both inside and outside so we can view you're blind. It sure does make it much more enjoyable when you have a little heat in the blind. Especially when it gets down into the single digets.

Bob A.

SHANEDOG · Guru

Hizz

Is there room so I can take a nap when the geese are slow?? confuse

Hizzoner · Senior Member

Hi Bobby,Shaneo,

Yea theres enough room to snooze, I implemented a folding bench seat so when I load the dekes it hangs on the wall I have more room! You'll shoot out of it soon enough Shaneo biggrin .

Bob- when I shift some stuff around and I reflock my geese heads I'll be sure to post some pic's! smile

Bob · Guru

Hizz,

Years back I hunted out of the fanciest duck boat I ever saw. This was up in Iowa, it was 18 feet long and had a tv, a stove like in you're home, two bunks and panneling on the bulkhead. When things started to freeze up this fella would take his tender to the big duck boat and anchor it where he planed to hunt the next morning. What he would do is run an 18 horse motor all night long inorder to keep the water from freezing in that spot. When the ducks started to move the next morning and he had the only open water, you can see why he got the shooting.

Yea, send us a photo of you're rig, we would love to see it.

Bob A.

nhcrowshooter · Guru

Fancy duck hunting? Try this, the first level hides four boats underneath and has room for two hunters with two dog doors. The second level has a full kitchen with two stoves, electricity, a living room with two couches and satellite TV. It has theater seating around the "porch of the blind" to shoot 14 hunters comfortably, and the side porch has a running toilet. The third level is the "crow's nest" with room for three hunters. It's 25 feet off the water, meaning you'd probably have to shoot down at most of the ducks.

-- Edited by nhcrowshooter on Thursday 28th of April 2011 01:31:21 PM

Bob · Guru

NH,

Thats the most unusual duck blind I ever saw, it looks like Louisiana or Arkansas with the way the trees look in the photo. I'd take the crows nest, I hate crowds lol.

Where did you get that photo NH? That would be some barrage coming from that blind everytime a flock of ducks decoyed in.

Great photo!

Bob A.

nhcrowshooter · Guru

Sent to me in an email some time ago by my hunting partner, don't recall where he got it but remembered it as being the greatest Redneck Hilton I had seen.

M12Shooter · Guru

Looks more like a party shack than a duck blind but it would be fun to try hunting from something like that smile . I dislike crowds as well Bob biggrin .

Ted

Bob · Guru

Ted & NH,

When I hunted ducks I either hunted alone or with one partner, once in a very great while three of us would be in the same blind.

NH, whats that famous hotel in India? Thats what they should name that "Red Neck" duck blind. They might be red necks but they are darn resourcefull. I'll side with a red neck over you're city types anyday.

Bob A.

nhcrowshooter · Guru

Bob wrote:
Ted & NH,

When I hunted ducks I either hunted alone or with one partner, once in a very great while three of us would be in the same blind.

NH, whats that famous hotel in India? Thats what they should name that "Red Neck" duck blind. They might be red necks but they are darn resourcefull. I'll side with a red neck over you're city types anyday.

Bob A.

Huh? I didn't realize we were taking sides or we were on any particular side of anything. Which reminds me, what do you get when you have 32 rednecks in one place? A full set of teeth biggrin

Pat B · Senior Member

I'd take a redneck over a white collar tofu eating city slicker any day.......

Pat

nhcrowshooter · Guru

Pat B wrote:
I'd take a redneck over a white collar tofu eating city slicker any day.......

Pat

and what is the last thing a Redneck says before he dies....."Hey y'all watch this" biggrin

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vmUrHe4LTeE&feature=related

-- Edited by nhcrowshooter on Thursday 28th of April 2011 07:30:59 PM

crow commander · Senior Member

i like taking my 16 year old cousin out in the off season for crows. he has always liked hunting but this past year ive moved 15 miles from him so we go hunting every sat. like clockwork rain or shine. lol as we sit there though he always tells me about the things we done over the past year like what we killed, missed, & funny bloopers (jumping creeks that was a little to wide, shooting each others target, tipping a canoe from the recoil of a 3" shell, gun malfunctions, being master possum trappers, & lots of other memories). he has since become addicted to crows. & if it wasnt for them our hunting adventures would b cut short every year.

Bob · Guru

CC,

Memories (good ones) are wonderful, you and you're cousin will get even closer as the years go on. A good hunting partner is worth his weight in gold.

Bob A.

Bob · Guru

Hi NH,

They don't have to be red necks, I just like country people better because they don't put on the dog, (being pretentious) what you see is what you get.

There are some nice folks in the big city as well, you just have to seek out you're own kind.

Bob A.

SHANEDOG · Guru

I hear you Bob,theres a bunch of people on here that if they lived near me,we would be partners in crime!! biggrin

Prayers, going out to all of our fellow country men that have been hit by this years tornados!!! smile

nhcrowshooter · Guru

Nothing like some Redneck waterskiing.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7KJNQdOclVo&NR=1

and then there is Redneck skydiving biggrin

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5tdsbzubam0

-- Edited by nhcrowshooter on Friday 29th of April 2011 12:08:56 AM

nhcrowshooter · Guru

Finally, it's time for.........Redneck crow hunters biggrin

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PbOSrH6Mcgg

-- Edited by nhcrowshooter on Friday 29th of April 2011 12:16:53 AM

M12Shooter · Guru

nhcrowshooter wrote:
Finally, it's time for.........Redneck crow hunters

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PbOSrH6Mcgg

-- Edited by nhcrowshooter on Friday 29th of April 2011 12:16:53 AM

That one has shooting accident written all over it hmm

Ted

Bob · Guru

NH,

The skydiving clip was without doubt one of the very best I have ever seen! Boy did I ever get a good laugh over that one, I also love slapstick comedy.

Bob A.

Bob · Guru

Shane,

Those poor folks in Alabama took a hell of a hit. About 4 years ago Greensburg, Kansas got totally wiped out by a tornado.

Bob A.

8fishermen · Guru

Bob wrote:
Shane,

Those poor folks in Alabama took a hell of a hit. About 4 years ago Greensburg, Kansas got totally wiped out by a tornado.

Bob A.

T-Town was hit really hard. It just barley missed the campus of Alabama. That would have been devastating. It took out the city water treatment facility so they are in a serious mess. Folks around here are sending water over there and trying to clean up here. Tornadoes two weeks in a row. Not good.

Bob · Guru

Greg,

I'm glad it missed the campus, years ago you never heard of tornados east of the Mississippi River. Kansas, Oklahoma & Texas used to always get it but things have sure changed in the last 50 years.

How far south in Alabama was the destruction? Did it get as far south as Montgomery?

Bob A.

8fishermen · Guru

Bob wrote:
Greg,

I'm glad it missed the campus, years ago you never heard of tornados east of the Mississippi River. Kansas, Oklahoma & Texas used to always get it but things have sure changed in the last 50 years.

How far south in Alabama was the destruction? Did it get as far south as Montgomery?

Bob A.

Not sure about Montgomery. They are expecting power outages across large swaths of Alabama for weeks. It ain't looking good for them.

I'm 42 and ever since I can remember we have had tornadoes in the spring and fall. The strong cold fronts mixed with the massive amounts of Gulf moisture produce some good ones in the deep south. We are fortunate that we do not have many long track tornadoes like these that just passed through. Most of ours touch down and then pick back up and are not as strong as some out west in Tornado Ally. These were of a different nature. They were long and strong.

Some isolated spots of the damage looked Katrina-ish. There are whole neighborhoods missing. Of course with Katrina there were whole town's missing and the area of devastation was hundreds of miles across and deep into the southeast. We had 100+ MPH sustained winds in Jackson and we are 3 hours north of where it made landfall. That was a fun ride.

Bob · Guru

Hi Greg,

Two weeks ago we had 62 mph winds going through my neighborhood. I saw a section of my wooden fence starting to give way so I went out to brace it up with some 2x4's that I keep in the shed outside. My neighbor had a metal shed 12 x10 feet within 20 feet of my fence. About 15 minutes after I got a couple of braces on my fence her shed lifted off the concrete slab it was on and smashed into a telephone pole within a couple of feet from my fence. If I had gone out 15 minutes later I wouldn't be writing to you right now! It just wasn't my time!

Talk to you soon Greg.

Bob A.

Bob · Guru

Greg,

If you want a good laugh scroll up to NH's post and look for the "skydiving clip" it is one of the very best I have ever seen.

Bob A.

Hizzoner · Senior Member

Hi Bob,

Sorry about being late on the reply but I've been busy!! In cold weather i've put out blue tarps on bay ice with dekes on it and it always sucked them in or by for a pass shot! I'll post some pics on the TGB when i get to it! That 3 decker deluxe duck blind is down in the Bayou!!

crow commander · Senior Member

the blue tarps resembling water reminds me of that cheech & chong movie. lol thats a cool idea for crow hunting though.