Last year I hunted crows in several local dove fields in order to run them out so the owners could hunt more doves. One on nearby Wadmalaw Island (old Indian name meaning "loaded with crows") was a great one, hunting with the owner's son. Last January we got 112 crows and had a blast. Last Wednesday the owner of this field called to say that the crows had again returned and he wanted to have another go at it.
After scoping out the fields, we picked one that had a nice bunch of trees to back the blind up to and planned everything for Friday morning. I set up the blind Thursday evening after watching hundreds of crows leave the field after eating. Most were commons and maybe 25% were fish crows.
Friday morning started out a little slow, but I was very pleased to see that our setup was perfect. Not one incoming common crow flared on us. I think it had a lot to do with the sentry birds hung on the nearby wires and the 6' sapling I "planted" on the edge of the decoy spread for hanging my FoxPro and another sentry (see photo). As the morning progressed, things warmed up and we had a blast!
The final count was 101 crows plus three pigeons. The owner hunted with me this time (vs. his son last year) and was excited to be able to make the Century Club two years straight! He couldn't wait to report to his son about this hunt. Good times with great people!
Enjoy the pictures.
Demi
-- Edited by Island Shooter on Monday 15th of February 2016 07:31:31 PM
Not evening, but just a heavily overcast day. At points it started to drizzle and at another point a sea fog rolled in which slowed down the action for awhile. We were sitting less than a half mile from a salt water creek and a couple miles or so from the ocean.
Weather wise, we were right on the edge. It probably cost us many birds as sound does not travel well through fog and the crows hunker down in rain or fog.
Demi
__________________
The man who thinks he can, and the man who thinks he can’t are both right.
IS: You said not a single crow flared!!! That is the most revealing part of your post!! Just look at that FINE blind you had...crows never saw you, were focused on your decoy spread, never flared at least while in this world! Well managed, sir!! Century Club puts you into select company as you know. Repeating as such a club member shows there is a learning curve somewhere!!!!
Once again your sharp observation skills caught me in an inaccuracy (lie?). Dang! I should have further qualified my statement that no FRESH common crow flared. For those few crows who got away from us and came back later, it was obvious that they were "Repeaters" when we saw them cross the treetops 200 yards away and IMMEDIATELY do a 180. Those I did not count.
I also did not count (and did qualify) that all bets are off with fish crows. They mostly travel in large groups, flying high, and are much smarter and more wary. Those other fish crows which came in low and in smaller numbers all had a big surprise upon arrival at our spread...but there were very few of these fish crows compared to the high groups.
As this forum is frequented by the serious hunters who don't normally compete in my area, I'm happy to share secrets. My big secret for blind building is Dog Fennell. It s an abundant weed around here and is just the right height to use in front of our blinds. After putting up camo burlap, we use a brush such as wax myrtle or palmetto fronds at the base, then run a row of Dog Fennell which allows us to see out, but crows cannot see us behind it. Another trick is my 16" long screwdriver that I use as a dibble to plant the brush around the blind.
Our blind count this year has now passed 500, which is peanuts compared to your TBC, but it has been a late season with many distractions for us. Hope you are still tearing them up. You are my Corvid Hero and a master at the vivid accounts of your outings! Keep the coming!!!
Demi
__________________
The man who thinks he can, and the man who thinks he can’t are both right.
) was a great one, hunting with the owner's son. Last January we got 112 crows and had a blast. Last Wednesday the owner of this field called to say that the crows had again returned and he wanted to have another go at it.
