Ive found that in my local spots, the damn ducks come flying in in the evening really heavy starting about 5 minutes AFTER shooting hours.....

 

A friend of mine of Italian heritage grew up on American Lake, south of Tacoma Washington and his mother used to tell him to shoot a limit of coots so she could make spaghetti sauce with them. He said it was very tasty and he was a great cook in his own right, but he never offered to make coot spaghetti on any of our hunting trips.

I’ve shot lots of ducks in the afternoon when conditions were right but I’ve also watched huge numbers flying in five minutes after shooting time as Frank C said above, so the answer to your question is “maybe”.

 

I will have to try staying a bit longer in the evening. I am hunting from a solo canoe, so I usually like to be back on shore before dark. There are way to many things sticking up out of the water and just below to try and navigate in the dark.
I guess I will just have to keep trying and se what happens
Thanks

 

at paddling speed in a canoe a directional bump off a deadhead shouldn't be catastrophic, Im sure you know that. Other boats coming back in the dark scare me more. Wear your pfd, use your grey matter its probably worth staying till dark

 

For several reasons the morning. One is chasing a cripple at dark is no fun also it's safer to run home in the daylight, especially on unfamiliar waters !

 

arnt you just trading arriving in the dark for returning in the dark? Chasing cripples is a good point.

 

In my state, shooting must end at sunset

 

Inst that a Federal law

 

Lots depends on what your hunting spots are,water mostly or fields,are the birds using the spot to feed,roost,loaf etc. or are you hunting traffic birds that are just going from one area to another,whats the weather doing today,tomorrow and next week,all these things and more will determine if its worth your time and effort to hunt evenings.
This takes time to learn and understand how it affects the birds in your hunting area,its part of the experience for me,along with the rest of it.
By all means hunt when ever you get a chance,two weeks from now with a push of birds the places you hunt might be covered up in the evenings.
If you feel like you might stick with it for a few years start a journal of some sort, standard stuff like location,date,moon phase, wind, temp,numbers seen,numbers killed,species,direction the majority of the birds came from,hunting pressure in the area,etc. after a few seasons you will be able to have a better ideal of what the birds might do during a certain weather event or different hunting pressure in certain areas etc.
To make a long story longer the main thing is to enjoy yourself and BE SAFE.

Greg

 

Shooting ducks in the very late afternoon right before LST ends will do nothing but push the ducks out of that area. I never do it unless it’s the last day of the season.

 

If you are where the ducks want to be in the morning then you will get some shooting, otherwise it will be slow. If you are where the ducks want to be in the afternoon you will get some shooting, otherwise it will be slow. Typically morning spots are different than afternoon spots and are again different than evening spots.

 

Morning is best. Unless your scouting shows activity during middle of day, when weather is driving birds down. I've had super shooting early afternoon when birds are moving due to light snow/wind and theres food between you and their water holes.

 

Mournings hands down - sort of easy waiting for the second hand to legal in the A.M.
Evenings if you hit it right it's hard to stop on time - The woodies used to come in so thick AT close
that even Jesus himself would be tempted.

 

There are some more variables to consider with weather being one of them. If a weather front comes through, often ducks will begin to move, morning or afternoons. I've seen that happen often over the years. Another variable is hunting pressure. If an area is hunted heavily, especially mornings, ducks will move out just before sunrise and not return until after shooting hours. Sometimes, afternoons can be good, especially if there is less hunting pressure and the few guys out there allow the birds to work. Regardless, too many hunters keeps the birds shy, making it difficult to bring the birds into decoys.

 

There is a lot of information for me to dissect. Thanks to all. Starting a journal I think will be a good idea. I am not sure why I didn't think of that, I kept one back when I trapped.

 

This will be a long answer. Hopefully it is worth the read.
Afternoon hunting for ducks is the pretty much the only way I hunt these days. Unless I know that I will have a marsh to myself, (private property or club) I will not go out until 10:00 or eleven. I usually shoot just as many or more than the morning crowd.
1.) Mid day and evening duck hunting is different. You are hunting birds that are looking for a place to rest and get out of the wind and sun. The morning crowd is blasting them off the roost and their first time around the track before breakfast. From 11:00 to the end LST they are usually looking to rest. Pick a spot with shade along the cattails or a shady shore and or tree line.
Years ago a professional guide taught me ducks get hot mid-day and go looking for shade. We hunted on a big lake. There was the normal morning attack of teal and small gray ducks. The big ducks would leave to food and come back around 9:00 to 10:00. They would sit in the open water in safety but they get hot and fly to shade or small water. From 11:00 to 3:00 if was a continuous string of birds working groups six to twelve at a time.
2.) The morning crowd is gone and 50% or more of the sky busting is also gone. You can work birds into the decoys and there are not as many many people and spreads trying to steal your birds away. Few shooters mean fewer shots flaring birds that are working there way down. It is less competition. It is not uncommon where I hunt to see 24 rigs in the parking lot when I show up at 10:00. By noon it is less than 10 rigs. At the end of LST its down to four.
3.) Hunting the afternoon has you in place on a flight day. The birds have been flying half the night and all day by the time they get to your spread. They fall out of the stratosphere into your spread. A spot on the edge of big water is preferred. Migrating birds got to bird water first then find the small water.
4.) Afternoon hunts for me are much more relaxing and productive. If you hunt the afternoon you have a better chance of going home with a Cadillac Limit of Greenheads and a Bull Sprig. Hunt the morning and you will burn more shells and end up with a spoony hen shot in low light conditions, and some fast action teal. What's your pleasure?

For me IMO, the mornings are made to shoot at ducks. 11:00 to end of LST is for duck hunting.

 

I have always been a morning hunter, the only time I will hunt and afternoon is when it's late season and strong NW winds and things are freezing up to the north of where I hunt, I have had some really good hunts in these conditions, Migration Days,early season I wouldn't think of hunting an afternoon...........

 

I'm a morning to mid afternoon guy. Like a few here said they seem to come in just after quitting time. Unless you find a good roost in which I won't hunt a roost unless it's the last days of the season. Like freeze up time.

 

Yep, freeze up is a whole different ball game. If it comes fast with some nasty weather, all bets are off. Morning or afternoon, doesn't make any difference.

 

Remember the 3 keys thingsfor for good waterfowl hunting are location, location and location. If you want to hunt in the afternoon find a feed or a roost pond and hunt as late as you legally can.

 

Yesterday Afternoon....

 

Afternoon hunting water is easy and effective. Locate the spot they are watering during the day and kick them out..DO NOT SHOOT AT THEM WHEN YOU KICK THEM OUT!! Once they have flown off set out your decoys on that exact spot you kicked them off and wait for them to return. My friends and I shot LOTS OF LIMITS that way back when I used to hunt water. Often they start coming back before you have the last decoy set and have gotten hidden....

 

Depends on your area for sure. I hunt a public refuge that requires a check in and out, shooting time ends at 4pm regardless of what sunset is. We have had some awesome hunts at other places closer to sunset, but it really depends on the evening flight and how easy to get home.

 

always had better luck in the mornings

 

Evening hunts are great on dark glumey days. Otherwise mournings are your best bet.

 

Our hunts have swapped here in the last 3 weeks. After Christmas it was mornings and this past week the evenings have been great.

Sent from my LG-H700 using Tapatalk

 

Afternoon shoot. Set up at 1:00. Waited until 3:00 before it got going. Should have filled a full seven bird limit but too much operator error.
California Grasslands area. One week left to the season.

 

Mornings are usually better in Nebraska, but then evenings can be hot when getting birds feeding in the fields before sunset.