We did quite a bit of hunting in Feb. What follows are those hunts in which something notable happened, the good, the bad and the ugly.
On 5 Feb. we set up to call them off a feeding area. Conditions couldn't have been more perfect for this spot. Temperature at dawn was low teens and rose to the mid twenty's. Wind was ENE 5-10 mph with cloudy skies. After the first half hour we knew there was trouble. These were the most call shy crows we'd had all winter. They just flat out ignored us. Crows flew by us all day at 2-300 yds and no amount of coaxing could get them in. We should have packed up and went home, but got stubborn and stuck it out for most of the day. It was a good thing we could drive to this spot as we carried out almost as many shells as we carried in.
The ones that did come in presented decent shots. 28 crows were killed in the most frustrating hunt of the season.
16 Feb. We had an afternoon flyway shoot scouted out for this day. The crows were staging about a half mile north of our ambush point which was on a fence line they flew down. Wind was SSE at 10 mph with partly cloudy skies and temperature about 30.
We set up a couple hours early and had about 35 down before the flight started. Tricked. Today's flight was from the east, down a fence line about three hundred yds south of us and upwind. We adjusted speaker direction and got a good number turned. With a tail wind they stayed high gave us a circle and headed for home. The ones that did come diving in, did so at a high rate of speed. Tough shooting to say the least. But fun. The flight ended with 59 kills. More to come.
22 Feb. dawned at 20 with the temperature rising to near 40. Wind was SW at 10 mph and it was mostly clear. We'd be getting some as they came in to feed in a field about a half mile NE of us and hopefully call them back into us for a good part of the day.
Things worked pretty well, although they were definitely wary. We had a good number come in from the NW as they went back and forth to the crick for a drink. Those crows presented some challenging shots as they could grab the cross wind and bank out in a hurry. We ended up with 58.
It was mid morning and near 30 degrees on 24 Feb. I was driving down a county blacktop about forty minutes from home when I saw what looked like crows on the road ahead. Sure enough, about 20-30 were on the road near a bridge, getting their grit. As I slowed for a better look, about the same number boiled out from under the bridge. As I crossed the bridge, a green sign by a narrow driveway caught my eye. "Public Hunting", it said. As I resumed speed, I began to wonder how many a guy could get out of that bunch. Eight? Ten? "You have all your stuff", I told myself. At about this time I was half a mile west of the bridge and to the north I spot 30-40 crows feeding a couple hundred yds off the road. And they'd be downwind. I turned around and headed back.
The narrow driveway led to a small, snow filled parking lot that I had second thoughts about entering. What the heck, I have a scoop shovel in the back, I thought, and dove in. I managed to get turned around and aimed out without getting stuck. So far, so good. I got out amongst a swirl of crows. There were more than I'd originally seen. Probably close to a hundred. I knew how this would turn out. I'd shoot twice and they'd be gone, upwind. My only hope is if I can call some off the field to the west. I loaded my stuff on the sled, slung a bandoleer of 48 shells over my shoulder and headed in. I was headed to a spot between two low hedgerows, about a hundred yds away. The snow was hard but about every fourth step I fell through to the knees. I stopped once, but the lure to shoot even a few crows overcame my doubts.
It was a quick set up once I got in. My decoys weren't as visible as I'd have liked, but I was blinded well. It was calm where I was, but above the trees there was a 10 mph ENE breeze. The largest number of crows would be coming from behind me, with the wind, but I'd have to live with that.
I got two singles in with the hand call, but the third one brought a big bunch with him and as expected, they were gone. I turned on the e-caller, hoping to get some from the west. After about five minutes, nothing. Five minutes later I heard one to the east. The original group was filtering back. The first one surprised me from behind, but amazingly swung around into the wind, set his wings and sailed in. The next one did the same thing. And the next. And the next. I began to realize I'd stumbled on the greenest crows of the season. I'd forgotten how easy soft shooting is. It was like batting practice. On about the 12th or 13th crow it took me two shots to get one. Then they started coming from both directions and several crows later I made a mistake I'd regret. I missed one, expending four shots on him, the last two were #%#%# shots. At some point I wasted a shot on two others I'd missed.
I had 26 down when it dried up. For about twenty minutes I could hear crows but none would come in. I looked down at my bandoleer. I'd found a handful of shells in my coat pocket, my gun was full, so I figured I had about eighteen left. I decided to give it one more chance and went to a fight call. They started back in, singles and doubles, low, slow and pissed. On the 41st crow the 1100 went click. The bolt had failed to lock back after she'd went empty and had given me hope for 41 kills. The spare flat I almost always have with me had been set out the day before.
As I took the decoys down, a couple were circling, seemingly mocking me.
Randy
-- Edited by Granite Jaw on Friday 6th of March 2020 02:53:44 AM
We'd been keeping an eye on a building number of crows on a farm several miles south of my place. It'd been two years since we'd shot there, so we were looking forward to some fun close to home.
28 Feb. dawned at 20 degrees. It was calm with a light snow falling. As forecast, the wind picked up to 10 mph out of the NW, the temperature rose to 30 and the sky was clearing by noon.
The crows would be flying in from the south and feeding a quarter to half a mile south of us. Unexpectedly, some did come from the north, from where, we don't know. We had consistent shooting til mid-afternoon, with the best action in mid-morning. They decoyed fairly well and there were few tough shots, but not many soft ones either, just pretty darn good shooting for this time of the season. We ended up with 69 down.
We've worked a lot harder to get a similar number, so it makes a guy appreciate when he can drive up to the blind site and get set up the night before, basically in your back yard. We also can't complain about the weather in Feb. I got stuck in the snow a couple times, but at least the ground stayed froze and we didn't have to fight muddy /greasy conditions. We never hunted in extreme cold either.
At any rate, the migration is on and the end is near. But not yet. Not yet.
Randy, your Walt Whitman like writing skills had be hanging on every word. The impromptu hunt you had on the 24 had me biting my nails in anticipation. Glad to hear someone else is willing to risk life and limb and also a decent hump to down a few Mexican buzzards. Also, that was a nice little treat you stumbled on.
Again I thank you for feeding my crow addiction.
__________________
"If men had wings and bore black feathers, few of them would be wise enough to be crows." Thoreau.
Randy, your Walt Whitman like writing skills had be hanging on every word. The impromptu hunt you had on the 24 had me biting my nails in anticipation. Glad to hear someone else is willing to risk life and limb and also a decent hump to down a few Mexican buzzards. Also, that was a nice little treat you stumbled on.
Again I thank you for feeding my crow addiction.
Dale,
I can probably do a few things better than Walt Whitman could. Writing would not be one of them.
Glad to alleviate some of your withdrawal pains. I'll be easing mine soon by watching some of your videos and reviewing everyone's hunt reports and photos from the past year.
Hey Randy, I ran into a guy who used to guide for Canada Geese in North Dakota that used to take Bud Grant out hunting!
Bob A.
The crows in the snow make for a nice photo.
Bob,
I'll bet he had some interesting story's tell.
We get a lot of places with tall grass or corn stalks or a plowed field where crows on the ground don't show up. Crows in the snow make a pretty sight!
Today's flight was from the east, down a fence line about three hundred yds south of us and upwind. We adjusted speaker direction and got a good number turned. With a tail wind they stayed high gave us a circle and headed for home. The ones that did come diving in, did so at a high rate of speed. Tough shooting to say the least. But fun. The flight ended with 59 kills. More to come.
