So, was just over looking at them harvesting the fields, and thought, "what a lot of corvids" :)
So nipped back home, and, (still in my best going out gear, not my hunting or working gear), grabbed the shotgun and cartridge belt and drove back over to them. Soon as the gun appeared out of the sheath they all took off, but managed to drop three, with the first three shots, between 30 and 60 metres :)
Then some more came over, but stayed very very high, thinking they were out of range, so another two joined them in falling from the sky.
Five birds in about 3-4 minutes, can't be bad.
Now I have the wagon back, I can set up on one of the fields in the morning, but will choose the one they do as last tonight :)
That's the best chance of drawing them in I think.
Just annoyed I now have blood all over my clothes LOL
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If it moves and is legal but also moral, SHOOT IT !!
Blood stains on good clothes can be annoying, however, every time you wear them it will remind you of the crows you killed today. So, I'd call that a win.
Your blood story reminded me of a blood story of my own:
I was hunting solo. I did some good scouting and had the right wind for the direction the birds were traveling one morning. I set up near some trees that are generally taller than I prefer but my options were limited. The morning went well and I shot 279 crows by 11am. I was near a break in the trees with some open ground in front of me. Given the wind direction, I had shooting straight out in front of me but about 50% of the crows were killed with a nice straight overhead shot. I dodged quite a few falling bodies from knocking me off the seat.
After the hunt I picked up my stuff and went to the gas station for some fuel and a celebration snack. The young female clerk was really looking at me intently as I handed her some cash. I assumed she was attracted to men in camo and went on my way. haha. I looked in the mirror before I pulled out of the gas station parking lot and discovered the REAL reason she was giving me the stink eye. Yeah, blood all over my face. It looked like someone had dusted me with a can of red spray paint. The red droplets showed up nicely against my pale dutchman skin.
I still like those medium range overheads...with or without a blood mask.
So Mr.Honkers-you shot 379 crows? I'd love to read more of this...no details of course regarding how to get there, I want tio hear about setting up and your techniques if you don't mind...for example the same kind of stuff i ask BobA..or have...how did you arrange your crows, did you use a fox pro whatever and what calls and do you ever do a mouth call..that idea...what kind of shotgun, size shot,what ever you can give..thanks!
Your favorite shotgun, favorite choke, best days, what is the estimated size of your local roost...I am going to look at newer areas myself...It really stinks starting over however but what can one do? My kills have been totally pathetic! Naturally I don't have the crow resources you do...while there are a lot of crows in the fall and winter to a point; there is nothing like the areas you frequent!
So whatever thoughts and experiences without endangering your hot spot idea...what shotguns have you use don crows...what did you start with ...and rumor has it you have a 15 shot shot gun...I forget..thought it might be you...love to hear more about it if you; best i ever did was an eight shot shotgun...
Hopefully you decide to share whatever you safely can and thank you very much if you decide to!
Oh sorry still that is quite an achievement as you know if anyone would. Thanks for the correction. Still I like hearing about it....i only know of a few who have done that or in that ball park fairly regularly. This is absolutely nothing like we have in this area...pretty incredible stuff...
I do not really do anything different than what Bob describes. We hunt in a fairly similar fashion.
My local roost is 0. I travel across multiple states. I do not talk about it much and I do not hunt near as much as Bob. And, his success is more consistent because of his experience and hard earned web of locations to hunt. Some of the biggest roosts draw the most hunters, so finding smaller less known and less hunted roosts can be productive.
With that said, I still hunt locally. I remember the first "good" hunt I had locally. I shot 17 birds over decoys and it really hooked me. I used to be an absolute waterfowl freak but this crow hunting thing has really decreased my drive to put in the work required to stay on the ducks or honkers.
High kill numbers do not always make a hunt more enjoyable. I realize that every hunter wants to maximize the crow bloodshed on every hunt, it is a hunters natural nature. I have had some local 30 bird shoots that I really enjoyed and have found to be more memorable than some 100+ bird shoots.
I'll try to answer a few of your questions: -I keep my decoys close to the blind. Probably closer than most, generally 15 yards or less. -I set 2 dozen or less decoys. Some of my best shoots have been with less than 10 decoys. -I shoot an 870....normal 5 shot capacity. -I load my own shells. If I had to choose a favorite load it would be #7s. I always shoot 1oz across all shot sizes. -Modified choke. -I generally hunt solo although my dad retired a couple months ago so he might hunt with me more often. -I use a foxpro caller. I almost always set it upwind of the blind. -The best shoot I had this year was 292. Afternoon hunt. It was 3 hours of consistent shooting and about 40 minutes of madness. I had been to this area only one time before and could see the potential, however, I never had the right weather. This year I got the right wind. I shot over 100 crows in those 40 minutes. I keep track of kills with a clicker and I did not have time to click, only reload and prepare for the next bird. I counted out loud as I killed so I would not loose track. 2.5+ birds per minute is a tuff pace to keep. Bob talks about shooters fatigue; its real. I maintained composure pretty well, I shot over 80% for the hunt.
Good hunting,
BH
-- Edited by Big Honkers on Wednesday 17th of June 2015 04:18:14 AM
Now this will make you sick; my local winter roost is about 30-35 birds...but soon as the snow comes it is gone..no place to access anywhere near to safely shoot at it-all the land is gone now..houses by and large...in the good years my best shoot solo was 21 crows and that was in spring-colder than hell too with a foot of snow on the ground but we had dumps then so we often had crows around..the roost that time had to be about 150 birds...I had no idea about the big new england roosts...at that time in fall you had to get out there one week before pheasant season opened or you will be hard pressed to get many crows...at that time a good shoot was roughly ten after the season began..sitting and waiting for the pheasant hunters to grow bored was the norm....I did see pheasant hunters shoot down some pheasants..no idea if they limited out or not...then I think I used an Ithaca model 37 using 6's I think...but i had a perfect blind and I always used more decoys than anybody else near as I could tell and this is why they'd only get 2 or 3 birds...most crow shooting was at the dump for those in the know..you called up the police department and told them how long you'd be there...the farm i frequented quickly dried up...my big shoot of the season was about 14-15 crows-I missed a lot and I do mean a lot!
I got better with a winchester 1200 but it made me sick to hold some ones' remington 870 which everyone seem to have..yes people like to hold others' guns and i did it only because they could hold mine as I held so many of the 870s...the winchester 1200 was the longest owned shotgun i ever had..I eventualy sold it..I switched to lighter loads of mainly 7 1/2s...I think i had a modified choke...but i was good with it...but better when i shot my partners featherlight 37...or his remington 870 short barreled 20" police 12 gauge...like everyone else i have seen far more than I have ever shot at..I taught myself how to blow a crow call and imitated the crows out in the field at the time....unless I hunt with someone else I do not use an electronic caller...the style we use is an old Burnham Bros. or johnny Stewart with cassette tapes...generally no need to call where i shot as the crows were right there flying over head..hawks kept attacking the crow decoys so there was no need to call much...I was lucky last year getting a lot fo ammunition for free we could say...5' and 6s...a cousin passed away and i got about 8 boxes of his ammo...and he loaded them hot but i was far from "hot" now using an 11-87...too much over time demands kept me out of the fields...too bad the 11-87 is not at all like the 1100 series as the 1100s would digest anything you fed it-no hang ups...I think I will get a pump this year for the fall...maybe find some old used rossi double barrel as the shooting is nothing like what you midwestern folks get...I don't really know...I got some hot tips so I likely ought to get a shotgun that will hold extra rounds particularly if i go alone...I cannot drive to hotspots like you midwestern folks can...so i often carry about 5 boxes of ammo, a handful of decoys, about 5 different mouth calls and egg mcmuffin and coffee for breakfast...
If I hit the territory in the afternoon I sure see a lot-shoot at a few i am absolutely sure I hit and wonder why I missed all the rest...this year I hope it will be very different indeed...but it is all pathetic compared to you folks out there...the best crow area is all unshootable for one reason or another...if it ain't posted it is too close to downtown as in a parking lot!!!
This one section of the state i have said a lot about. i recently read where some new comers want to try it out...well be my guest as there are hardly any crows like the 70s where there so many crows it got a little write up in Field and Stream.....there was corn planted anywhere there any tree less properties and and tons of crows...it was wild! Today land is posted practically everywhere there and the crow activity is pathetic...I mean when i saw 12 crows headed for beddy bye it was further proof that area is gone. And across the river too...the big flights have long ago gone...in an area a good shooter could get a hundred crows a day too...or quite a number in any case...far more than I ever did but i used to leave the fields with a hundred empties ready for reloading!
Ironically about 14 crows...maybe 18..should have had a hundred...I found a new area now and i am not saying anything.....mums the word! You can be sure I wish the old flights would again frequent my old stomping grounds...I'd love to see my "new" area at its' peak though...it looks like one could get a goodly number if they get there on the right day sure enough!
Are there less crows? No, not at all...they have relocated shall i say? Not worth checking to see if they forage for all that silage they ignored in fall if indeed they use that old flyway from years ago-just buzz on over; save it for spring idea...but here again I doubt it in any of the numbers from the 70s...
About shooting 300 crows whatever in any given afternoon? Generally and mostly in New England that is about half the roost excepting the thousand or two bird roosts being-again-the exception.....scattered about southern New England...
When you say that many of the places you used to hunt in NH have dried up then you must venture out and find new places. It boils down to keeping your ears open for any leads and having the time and money to do it.
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To listen to this radio talk show go to episode 12, Bob Aronsohn
BobA;
You read my mind. I think I am emphasizing appreciate what you got. Fortunately the adverse weather keeps the developers out of the midwest...I am going exploring to be sure. I studied on states gun laws to see where I could be legal completely as well as :"asking permission"...emphasis is on written permisssion if the land is posted...posted property generally means stay out but it can also mean a desire to know who is out there. This I am looking into. Frankly rather hunt states that are more constitutional than police states...but basically it's keeping the unloaded long arm encased and locked to transport along with a non resident license.
Right now I am collecting ammo as i expect things to be more interesting than last year although there was always shooting to be had... I still got areas to explore...but all in all...I wish i knew who that was talking about my old stomping grounds. he will find he isn't welcomed there and anyways no more shootable crows in any numbers there either....a few people screwed that area up by actually walking through peoples' back yards chasing pheasant-I heard this complaint first hand when i asked permission to shoot crows which I got...then I realized what happened a little north of me...why all the posted land..i don't want to be eating and suddenly a ((KKAAA-BBOOMM))) right outside the window. It only takes one now..to mess it all up. As the push for sound suppressors catches any momentum I feel there will be more areas opened up. In France they encourage sound suppressors for target practise. One state down south allows sound suppressor son .22 caliber firearms...
The new areas i am exploring just to double check on why the land is posted up north...it is doable as there is another area within hearing of the posted land...so all is not lost. But as always thanks for the advice...
Here in the UK we can have sound suppressors (moderators) on rifles and shotguns, and even on the very few pistols (when the pistol is used for humane dispatch)
All my rifles have moderators fitted (this law was passed due to health and safety. I.e. If you are wearing ear protection in the field, you can't hear someone calling a warning or walking up behind you, so to protect your hearing, your life, and maybe someone else's, moderators were licensed for use)
At the moment my shotguns aren't moderated (to make those really effective, you need sub sonic cartridges) but I plan on getting a moderated pump action or o/u in 20 bore for shooting near to "townie" houses, and near to animals
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If it moves and is legal but also moral, SHOOT IT !!
There is some positive movement in my state (Michigan) toward permitting hunters to use moderators/suppressors for hunting for all the reasons you've stated. Curiously, it's not a legislative matter, but a decision to be made by our Dept. of Natural Resources. It's already legal to own a suppressor. However...
As far as acquiring the suppressor, currently one has to jump through all kinds of hoops to own one and pay a lot of money in addition to a $200 tax to the feds because "silencers" are scary and only 1920s--30s Hollywood movie-type gangster types use them. Blah, blah, blah. Local law enforcement must sign off on your application to ensure you are not a "bad guy." Yet, grandma still gets groped by our TSA "guards" at the airport. Crazy world.
As far as suppressed shotguns go, you should make an inquiry with the Texas Crow Patrol boys (Texas Matt and Gadget Bob) who use the Metro-barrels to attenuate the sound. Don't know if they must use sub-sonic rounds.
On another matter, I'm still collecting parts for the Crow Magnet. Got the motor yesterday. I'm feeling really good about this project as it seems it will cost <$100 for basically the same rig (kit) sold by one of our big outdoor stores (Cabala's) for >$500!
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"Arms are the only true badges of liberty. The possession of arms is the distinction of a free man from a slave." -- Andrew Fletcher 1698
yep, they are remarkably simple to make, and cheap to make (you can source almost all parts from the scrap yard).
So the profit margins to begin with are huge. As more people use them, so the price can be expected to drop in store, but still even then, expect to pay $100-$200.00 . And here they retail anything from £36.95 for crap ones, to £300.00 for really top notch ones. Around £80-£100.00 is the going rate for a reasonable one
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If it moves and is legal but also moral, SHOOT IT !!
Had one spot years ago that was spotted and never had a bad shoot there..only a few people were allowed there....and i knew all three too!
"Me, myself and I!"
Seriously it was hot for this location but the farmer has since stopped corning it and the crows were leaving even before this too so...so-here again-I will ask....that seems to be the way to go!
