# "The Roost"



## cutt-em (Feb 13, 2008)

I wanted to start this topic as a branch off from the topic "Where do you hunt geese" because I'm tired of so many people saying that hunting geese over water is hunting them in "the roost".

My definition of "the roost" is a body of water that a large number of geese frequent daily. They fly from and return to that body of water daily. This area is usually used from year to year and is well established. New areas can be established and again are identified by large numbers using this body of water as their daily/nightly resting area.

Because someone saw 20 geese two days ago land into a smaller body of water at noon does not make that body of water "the roost". Because someone saw 100 geese land in a large pot-hole two years ago does not make that pot-hole "the roost" for eternity.

Hunting geese over water can be very fun and rewarding, it has all the aspects of the field hunt; calling, set-up, decoying, etc. It may even be harder.

NO - YOU NEVER HUNT "THE ROOST" but lets not make every body of water "the roost"


----------



## Blue Plate (Jul 31, 2006)

Honestly, I've been hunting a roost last last year and this year. My friend has access to this lake that geese love to loaf and roost on. The geese continue to come back day after day . . . year after year. This year we shot over 90 geese on it. I think there is much more that just black and white (is it a roost or not).


----------



## justund223 (Aug 28, 2006)

i think what you are trying to get across has been well established here and agreed upon. however there is always less experienced hunters that will hunt a roost and say it was too small to be a roost.

one of my best weeks of hunting was all over transitional ponds between two feeding fields. limited 3 times in one week on ducks and geese and a of couple snows, but the two highlights were landing 1000 geese on this 3 acre slough and seeing a collared snow glide out of shooting range right when it was spotted, he was about 80 to 100 yards out, but we had him at 40 but didn't see the collar and that is when we had the 1000 land on us it was too incredible to shoot. we were between two cornfields where at least 5000 geese and at least that many ducks were feeding.


----------



## USAlx50 (Nov 30, 2004)

If you want to set up on a pond you saw 20 geese on, 2 days ago, be my guest :lol:

I agree with you. Sometimes it does become hard to decide if something is a roost or not though. In those times I air on the side of caution.


----------



## blhunter3 (May 5, 2007)

I never heard of "roost busting" untill I got on the website. I am glad that I have learned what it is and why it can be bad. I had a roost that I was going to hunt, but when I heard of this "roost busting" I didn't hunt because I didn't want the birds to leave. In personal experience I have busted many roosts and many times the birds came back. But there were times where they didn't come back. I think that some people have gotten over zealous on "busting the roost". I think that this "roost busting" should be taught in Hunter Ed. just to give anyone an idea of what it is. There will never be a solid definition for "roost busting". There that being said, I will continue to hunt water, and I will hunt some roosts.


----------



## USAlx50 (Nov 30, 2004)

And you will contiune to be a part of why MN has inferiror hunting compared ND. That is coming from a MN resident who still hunts MN multiple times a year but also gets resident licenses in ND. So keep going, you will continue to be less successful then people who want to help the situation.


----------



## cut'em (Oct 23, 2004)

I hunt year after year in an area that has a six acre pond. There's atleast five other hunting groups in the area. We gauge or upcoming sucess based on how many birds are in that pond. It's an unwritting law of sorts don't shoot the roost and no-one to my knowledge has. Trust me I've been tempted parked near it and looking a collared birds One actually had a radio transmiter on it's collar within range. But I honared the deal as others have and we enjoy countless days laying on the ground knowing they'll be here cause, nobody "Busted the Roost"
just my two pennies


----------



## blhunter3 (May 5, 2007)

Well, if you going to talk to about inferoir hunting, its all of a where you go. I those roosts I will be hunting, the geese leave the same time every year. So why not hunt get one last hunt before they leave? Also I will hunt some roosts is ND as well. It's my land so I am going to hunt how I feel like it. I am sorry if my way of hunting goes agianst your norm. We will just have agree with our difference. All of the roosts I hunt, the birds all leave within the same week every year. So they are going to leave anyways.


----------



## Phil The Thrill (Oct 21, 2005)

Wow I think I have heard this argument before... give it a rest guys. :eyeroll:


----------



## AV (May 24, 2007)

People come up around us and hunt the roost.... It makes it unpleasent when they hunt the roost and your field hunt is worthless because its near frezze up and when they kick the birds up in the morening they go strait south... We watched 4 thousend mallers reed in a field. We hunted it that night and limeted out but then the roost got hunted and the few birds that didn't head south were so werey that u couldn't bring them in if your life depended on it


----------



## blhunter3 (May 5, 2007)

Sorry to hear about eh roost busting people. Find out who there and and talk to them in a civil manner and then invite them on a hunt. I had the same thing happen to me this year. Luckily the birds went the the next big slough (which was in the next field). I would prefer if you wouldn't generalize all MN people as "city people". If you know they were from the cities then thats fine. I am from MN and I live in a town with 700 people. I am not trying to :stirpot: but ignorance is what gets people into trouble. Also I bet that there are roost busters from ND as well.

I am glad that I know what busting the roost is, so I can avoid it as much as possible, but there are time that I will do it.

There will always be people not as educated on things. If someone is busting a roost go and tell them what they just did, in a very civil manner and explain what it does for the people around the area and to the birds. If they don't care just walk away.


----------



## USAlx50 (Nov 30, 2004)

Sota roosts and nodak roosts are often quite a bit different in how birds react to the pressure.


----------



## blhunter3 (May 5, 2007)

Im curious, I know that different places get hunted more and such. But what makes MN birds different from ND birds?


----------



## chris lillehoff (Jan 9, 2006)

oh man, i was gonna bust this place up!


----------



## justund223 (Aug 28, 2006)

chris lillehoff said:


> oh man, i was gonna bust this place up!


now that was fricken hilarious :rollin:


----------



## cut'em (Oct 23, 2004)

There will always be people not as educated on things. If someone is busting a roost go and tell them what they just did, in a very civil manner and explain what it does for the people around the area and for the birds quote] well said :beer: :beer: :beer:


----------



## blhunter3 (May 5, 2007)

Well, like I said I never knew anything about roost busting and I am glad to know the knowledge of it now. I think that we as hunters need to teach this in Hunter Education, because I never heard of such a thing. We all need to help educate the people that don't know anythign about it. I know we can all agree on that.

This has be a fun thread. I would like to keep it going... but civil. I would like to know more about it. Hopefully more people will read this thread and learn something new.


----------



## Horker23 (Mar 2, 2006)

i take a roost as somewhere a bird spends most of it resting period. Big bodys of water, also sometimes small sloughs are used as the biggest roosts. Dont get me wrong some water spots are pefect because they are just short stops for the bird, but if you find an area where there is alot of loafing going on you found your roost.

Roost can also be feilds some time, take into consideration snow geese. I have seen them roost multiple times in pastures with sheet water in it! You just have to watch the body language of the birds and it will determind what they are using it for!


----------



## blhunter3 (May 5, 2007)

Any other person have another idea of what a roost is?


----------



## cut'em (Oct 23, 2004)

Correct me if I'm wrong. But I've always looked at a Roost as the place where the birds lay overnight and fly from to their feeding grounds and then back to.


----------



## blhunter3 (May 5, 2007)

I think a roost is where the birds sleep at night.


----------



## nodakoutdoors.com (Feb 27, 2002)

cut'em said:


> Correct me if I'm wrong. But I've always looked at a Roost as the place where the birds lay overnight and fly from to their feeding grounds and then back to.


That's basically what it is, but that doesn't mean it doesn't get pounded like the rest of the water. You know the difference, I know the difference, most guys on here know the difference, but there's a lot of people that don't. It doesn't make it illegal, just unethical in OUR book.

Yup, I've spoken on this topic before. :lol:

Go up to search and enter the word roost and search only the canada goose forum and you'll have dozens and dozens of threads full of opinions.


----------



## averyghg (Oct 16, 2006)

In my book a roost is considered two things:

1) what you guys said above about a safe resting area for geese at night

2) A word that gets threads blocked on this site more than any other word on here.................................besides nonresident ofcourse


----------



## honkerslayr (Dec 14, 2006)

i agree with blhunter3, :beer: 
i've always known it as a place where birds rest over night then go out in the morning to fields or transition sloghs(where the hunting should take place) then they head back to the roost or transition slough then again in the evening go back out to eat then back to the roost.


----------

