# ND newbies looking for info on Devils lake area



## polarpaul (Oct 17, 2008)

I am hoping that someone would be so kind to help a couple of wisconsinites locating some duck hunting locations near the devils lake area. We are also willing to check out some other locations other than Devils Lake if someone points us in such a direction. We are planning on heading to ND on 11/1/08 for 3 days or so...

Some advice from locals or others with experience hunting in this area would be appreciated. FYI- My brother and I are avid duck hunters here in Wisconsin... We also come from a very small town in NW Wisconsin and are very familiar with the challenges of out of state hunters. With that said we respect land owners and the Natural Resources that ND has to offer and hope we can reach out to someone who may want to lend some advice for our trip which we are very much looking forward too.

Thanks in advance
Paul


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## water_swater (Sep 19, 2006)

Go ten miles north of town when you get there turn around go back two miles then take a left, two miles down that road is a cornfield, there will be birds there.


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## MSG Rude (Oct 6, 2003)

:eyeroll:

Use this GPS coordinate. Hope it helps....

N46°51.70248, W096°49.11096


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## blhunter3 (May 5, 2007)

Code: 


> We recommend that new visitors to the site use the search box on the home page when first looking for information on areas in ND (click here (see upper left side). Almost every question has been asked before, and Google has archived every one of the threads.
> 
> We also have 2 fantastic threads full of information on exactly what you're looking for including water conditions, restrictions, maps, etc:
> 
> ...


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## Scott LeDuc (Aug 4, 2008)

Swater and Rude,

I am not sure I see the value in your posts. I guy asks for help in the most respectful way possible and you stick it to him. The only thing that does is stir the soup....

Paul,

Honestly you are not going to get much help in a highly competitive area like DLake. Too many guys and not enought spots... Here is the best advice I can give you.
1) Scout your tail off and then scout some more
2) eat breakfast, lunch and dinner at the local eatery's and talk to every farmer & local you can (they are extremely helpful)

Good luck


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## MSG Rude (Oct 6, 2003)

Scott,

I was making humor so no one got too serious.....guess I was too late.


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## Scott LeDuc (Aug 4, 2008)

I am all for humor, especially on this topic - I am just not sure if Paul ( or the next person who comes along) will see it that way....


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## slough (Oct 12, 2003)

There's not a whole lot more to say. Obviously, there will be birds in the area. Maybe a lot, maybe a few. Drive around and scout. A lot. Look for harvested corn (if any is down by then) near water. Guys aren't going to give you their spots. Grab a PLOTS map when you get here or look online at one if you want to look for public land to hunt.


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## barebackjack (Sep 5, 2006)

First off.....welcome to the site polarpaul.

Second, that kind of exact info that you asked for is generally frowned upon here. Its called internet scouting, and you can get your a** chewed for it.

Third, good luck. DL hunter numbers are WAYYYY up this year. Im from there originaly, its where I do all my waterfowling. All I can say is, drive drive drive, than drive some more. Competition is tough this year in that area, VERY tough.


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## Chester (Sep 12, 2003)

You could very easily end up 100 miles from DL before finding what you want. Did you buy the whole state lic?

You may spend 1 day on the road for every one day you hunt. Don't be too proud to jump shoot a few potholes while scouting. Make sure you do it legally. You could easily pick up a limit that way.

Ask nicely and don't mention that you support DU, you would have a 50% of making an enemy. Take that from expernce.


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## barebackjack (Sep 5, 2006)

Chester said:


> Don't be too proud to jump shoot a few potholes while scouting. Make sure you do it legally. You could easily pick up a limit that way.


Disregard this.

There aint to many "potholes" this year. Its pretty dry and even the roosts may look like a "pothole". If you dont know the area well, the "pothole" your jumping may just be a roost. And youll not only be hurting yourself but alot of other guys.


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## Lardy (Oct 15, 2007)

My best advice paul would be to try a different forum or other source of information. As you can see this site has way too many views from too many characters to get a simple answer.


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## barebackjack (Sep 5, 2006)

Lardy said:


> My best advice paul would be to try a different forum or other source of information. As you can see this site has way too many views from too many characters to get a simple answer.


Im sure theres some guys on sotaoutdoors.com that will be more than happy to help ya.

After all, their hunts over and their back in the land of 10,000 sloughs, err, lakes.


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## hunt4P&amp;Y (Sep 23, 2004)

Lardy said:


> My best advice paul would be to try a different forum or other source of information. As you can see this site has way too many views from too many characters to get a simple answer.


Put yourself in our shoes... I am guessing you fish... or try to in Minn. I say he I am coming to xxx lake.... where is a good spot to go? I am guessing you aren't going to be like well... go to the blue cabin here, then go out 150 yards graph 20 feet and fish! Are you?

This is about as similar as I can get.

I guess there is record amounts of water in Sota! I would hit that up!


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## tumblebuck (Feb 17, 2004)

Lardy said:


> My best advice paul would be to try a different forum or other source of information. As you can see this site has way too many views from too many characters to get a simple answer.


You MN guys are too funny. Just recently on a MN hunting forum some guy asked for information about a spot and was blasted for internet scouting. But when somebody asks for information about spot in ND and gets blasted, we're all a bunch of pricks.


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## Fallin' Sky's (Oct 22, 2008)

As you can tell by my location I am a non-resident myself. I have been making yearly trips to your great state for so many years i can't count them anymore. I have been in their shoes, so i know what it's like. Everyone complains on here how irresponsible and rude so many of the "NR's" are (and for good reason, because alot of them are) but this is a great place to educate people on good hunting ethics. There alot of young people that look at this site, and look at this site for info on coming out to NoDak! We are all here for the same reason, to have a great time hunting, spending time with freinds and family, and lets not forget that. Instead of jumping on every "NR" that comes on here, actually help them a little bit, don't give em' locations, but teach them the proper techniques, and ways to go afield! Encourage them to ask for permission, whether it's posted or not. We are in your state, and you guys deserve our respect, so let's teach them how to respect you guys and your land!

...of course thats just my opinion...I could be wrong!

:beer:


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## fubar (Mar 10, 2008)

here we go.... :eyeroll: every time...dont you guys ever get tired of driving people away from this site?


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## blhunter3 (May 5, 2007)

The thing is many of the people who want the full scouting report contribute nothing in return. They just want some quick answers so they know where to go to shoot their limit. If a person was really interested in this site they would have read the rules and read other post to get a feel of what to ask and how to ask it.


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## USAlx50 (Nov 30, 2004)

fubar said:


> here we go.... :eyeroll: every time...dont you guys ever get tired of driving people away from this site?


When you spend years and LOTS of gas $$ learning the different landscapes and developing friendships with people in different areas, its not really important to me telling someone how/where to do things that I figured out through effort.

Many of these people get friendly PM's trying to give some help. Just gets old when people want something for nothing.


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## MSG Rude (Oct 6, 2003)

USAlx50 said:


> Just gets old when people want something for nothing.


No B.S. there....ask about my ex-wife!


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## Lardy (Oct 15, 2007)

I didnt want to bash ND outdoors, this site is a great source of info. I still think on THIS issue youd be better off calling the FWS or game and fish or possibly trying another forum. Just honest advice.


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## canpoint (Oct 16, 2008)

I'm from Wi as well. I can tell you what they said about the Devils area is true.......Lots of pressure. We used to hunt around the XXXX area in the early and mid 90's. Lot's of geese and few hunters. Moved to Devils, kinda the same, and now as of the last three years.......it seems like the place everyone heads to.

There are birds, this year is tough, corn is still up, and the food is limited for the birds. Devils, itself, is a diver goldmine, but it can also be a grave. Know your limitations when hunting it. Many backwater bays you can safely hunt. You'll shoot a nice mixture of birds.

SCout, Scout, and Scout..........when you get a farmer where you've developed trust with, treat them right and never lose that connection.

Good Luck!!


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## Lardy (Oct 15, 2007)

Escpecially since its your first trip it would probably be best to put on some extra miles. Thats the problem with my dad when he comes out here to south dakota. He's relied mostly on relatives/buddies for the last 6 years. Then the days that they cant come out he gets skunked going on his own. If you sacrafice some time famaliarizing yourself with the area and make connections it will be alot easier for seasons to come.

(pretty much what Canpoint said)

I know as long as theyre not super busy government employees are extremely friendly and helpful, plus its part of their job to serve and inform the public so dont be afraid to give them a call


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## Chaws (Oct 12, 2007)

For internet scouting, use Google Earth or something of the likes. You can even download and view online the PLOTS maps from the comfort of your camo'd lazy boy if you'd like.


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