# is snow goose hunting non-existent??



## Dusty05 (Aug 21, 2005)

I was in scheels today and I heard another customer ask an employee if anyone hunted snows around the area. Apparently he hasn't hunted around ND lately. The Shcheels employee told him that snow goose hunting in ND is almost "non-existent" now days.  After he said that I stopped what I was doing and went to look at something else. So tell me your opinion fellow Nodak hunters, do you think snow goose hunting is non-existent in this state?


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## bighunter (Oct 25, 2005)

What a ******..No Deffinetly NOT :roll: :sniper:


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## snowkiller (Mar 19, 2005)

Tell all the OUT OF STATERS it is 8) I dont hunt in your state why do you hunt in mine :x


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## FlashBoomSplash (Aug 26, 2005)

Thats true snow geese dont even come through here. The duck and canada geese never come through. and the pheasant huntin is bad they all died off winter kill. :huh: I think everyone from ND should go hunt MN.


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## lasalle (Jan 15, 2003)

Great posts. :eyeroll: :eyeroll: :eyeroll:


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## Dusty05 (Aug 21, 2005)

I heard that the state is barren from the lack of winter precipitation :rollin:


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## h2ofwlr (Feb 6, 2004)

Maybe he was thinking of traditional fall hunting.

I quite hunting ND in the fall 10 years ago basically becuase the Snows now jump over ND to SD where literally there is very little hunting pressure on them. Recently ND is nothing compared to say the 1980s for Snow hunting.


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## jb (Feb 8, 2005)

snowkiller said:


> Tell all the OUT OF STATERS it is 8) I dont hunt in your state why do you hunt in mine :x


now was that nessasary

P.S. come on down to Mo if you like I dont mind dont know if you will get any ducks but I cook a mean breakfast :lol:


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## snowkiller (Mar 19, 2005)

Im sorry but last fall I hunted the bottineau area for 2 weeks and the birds didnt even get a chance to land and there was 3 or more trucks on them.Almost every truck was Out of staters.I even saw some out of staters hutning snows in the evening.The birds would stick around more if there wasnt as many jump shooters.


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## R y a n (Apr 4, 2005)

h2ofwlr said:


> Maybe he was thinking of tradition fall hunting.
> 
> I quite hunting ND in the fall 10 years ago basically becuase the Snows now jump over ND to SD where literally there is very little hunting pressure on them. Recently ND is nothing compared to say the 1980s for Snow hunting.


This is so true! Unfortunately, most here can't comprehend that. Ever since the influx of NR's pounding the birds relentlessly during the week and never giving them a chance to rest, the birds stay in Canada longer and longer because they aren't bothered, then overfly the state in 1-2 days with a strong north wind on their tail.....

it is nothing like it used to be......


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## g/o (Jul 13, 2004)

> This is so true! Unfortunately, most here can't comprehend that. Ever since the influx of NR's pounding the birds relentlessly during the week and never giving them a chance to rest, the birds stay in Canada longer and longer because they aren't bothered, then overfly the state in 1-2 days with a strong north wind on their tail.....
> 
> Ben Elli, I know you think I'm picking on you, but this is uncalled for. This is so untrue is what you should have said. Nonresidents have nothing to do with the flight of the snow geese. Please do some studying on snow geese before you start your non resident bashing. You are so far off base on this one. There are many reason why snows have stayed longer in places and moved nothing has to do with nonresident hunters


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## R y a n (Apr 4, 2005)

g/o said:


> > This is so true! Unfortunately, most here can't comprehend that. Ever since the influx of NR's pounding the birds relentlessly during the week and never giving them a chance to rest, the birds stay in Canada longer and longer because they aren't bothered, then overfly the state in 1-2 days with a strong north wind on their tail.....
> >
> > Ben Elli, I know you think I'm picking on you, but this is uncalled for. This is so untrue is what you should have said. Nonresidents have nothing to do with the flight of the snow geese. Please do some studying on snow geese before you start your non resident bashing. You are so far off base on this one. There are many reason why snows have stayed longer in places and moved nothing has to do with nonresident hunters


I was thinking you'd respond to this as soon as you saw it.  OK... I'll reposition my statement on this. ....

There are many factors on why hunting migrating waterfowl have overflown the state in recent years. Included among those reasons are:

1. Recent history of warmer weather later and later into the fall each season. It seems we have entered into a weather pattern that has given us long extended warm falls and abrupt weather changes into early November. This weather has extended up into Canada, providing the birds with ample food further north, a lack of snow cover up there, and tremendously less pressure. This has caused the birds to shift their migration patterns to delay their migration until such time as it is too late for them to spend sufficient time in North Dakota getting established on their traditional Migration water in the state.

2. However there has also been a disturbingly increasing pattern of exponential Non resident hunter growth within the state of North Dakota that is causing the birds to be incessantly non stop pressured 6 hours a day 7 days a week. This influx of pressure has gotten so bad, that the birds are harrassed even on their roosting water. The influx of NR"s has caused new levels of competition that we are now finding the birds harrassed in places they have previously been undisturbed. Consequently, the birds are extremely wary, no longer pattern the same way, and tend to move much more quickly out of the state. This phenomenon is quite noticeable to those who hunted the state previous to the late 1990's when the NR influx took off rapidly.

3. With the birds moving in later from Canada due to #1, the birds often come through with the region's first winter storm of the season. Depending on the severity of the storm, and the lateness of the season, the birds may decide to stop in ND or flyover into southern South Dakota and Nebraska.

Granted NR's aren't the primary factor in snow goose migrations. However they are a significant factor on whether the birds stick around for 1 week or 3, if they aren't allowed to "establish" themselves in different areas without being shot at constantly.

G/O do you ever remember the times you could drive along the highway by Lake Alice or Rock Lake NWR in October and watch hundreds of thousands of snows sitting right along the highway unconcerned about traffic? I believe you said you are from South East/Central ND correct? Do you remember all the birds that used to pile into Cottonwood Lake or Fox Lake? Do you mean to tell me that the increased pressure has had nothing to do with the pattern changes?

Just curious?

Ryan


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## g/o (Jul 13, 2004)

Ben Elli, Congratulations you did say one thing that was correct. Food and water. This why the geese stay where they do and not head south early as they did in prior years. All the places you mentioned are still and have been National Wildlife refuges. These have always been where the geese would roost.

Now for you, or anyone else, to come on this site or anywhere. And blame Nonresident hunters for is the most idiotic thing I've ever heard.


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## Jiffy (Apr 22, 2005)

Ryan, ask him if he remembers the way the Ludden Refuge use to be....I beleive this is closer to home for him.... :wink:


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## g/o (Jul 13, 2004)

Jiffy, That would be Dakota Lake, and south of there would be Sand lake. Yes I remeber those places and NONRESIDENT HUNTERS didn't chase them out of there either.


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## Dusty05 (Aug 21, 2005)

I agree that hunting is not what it used to be. I can think back to just ten years ago in the southern tip of IL, it is hard to believe the way hunting is today. Until someone invents a weather machine, it would be nice to find a way to have those days again, more often. If things have slowed down so far, where will we be in 50 years? I don't think there is that much less food&water in the state as there was in the 90's is there?


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## Jiffy (Apr 22, 2005)

g/o, I agree NR hunters didnt chase them out.......AAAAAHHHHHH yes, the good ol days of "the firing line".


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## Dusty05 (Aug 21, 2005)

Opening day...Ready....Aim.... :sniper: :bartime:


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## C BROWNDUCK (Oct 11, 2003)

thats hunting boys!!! here in missouri, swan lake was the mecca for canada goose hunting in the late 70's up into the real early 90's, life was good!!!. then a migration change took place and most of the geese started going through illinois, more geese were staying up north in minn. and now your lucky to see 1000 geese opening day. i guess i could complain that its someones fault, but that still dosnst bring them back to us, so we have to adapt and make do with what the nature brings us :lol: , man, it sure was fun back in those days, still have the memories for life


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## Water Swater (Oct 23, 2003)

There is a little bit of truth to the hunting pressure but it is not just from non residents. These birds are hunted for 9 months out of the year they are getting smarter and harder to hunt. This is a fact. We all hunt more now than we ever did. There is early Canada goose season which does put stress on the ducks as well as the geese, because they still come into the decoys and hear the shots at the geese. There is the youth waterfowl hunt which is a terrible idea because of the pressure it puts on all of the birds. After all of the regular season we have the late Canada Goose season as well. Waterfowl are getting more wise to hunters and their methods. Until we go back to the late 90's and only hunt 60 days out of the year they will always be wise to us. With the overpopulation of snow geese this won't happen for a long time. Not bashing because I hunt them as well just stating some facts.


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## Chuck Smith (Feb 22, 2005)

I love how a post about a stupid question/response some one gave in a sporting goods store turns into bashing NR hunters......If I start a post on decoy spreasds I am sure someone will turn it into a NR issue...... :eyeroll: ....let this dying horse die!!!!


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## nodakoutdoors.com (Feb 27, 2002)

Chuck Smith said:


> I love how a post about a stupid question/response some one gave in a sporting goods store turns into bashing NR hunters......If I start a post on decoy spreasds I am sure someone will turn it into a NR issue...... :eyeroll: ....let this dying horse die!!!!


I agree.

The spring is still fine, the fall has changed. But the migration shifting is A LOT more than just a nonresident hunter pressure problem. To say that's the sole reason is just false.

Let it go


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## Dusty05 (Aug 21, 2005)

I agree as well.... I thought the story was funny b/c to some people snow goose hunting is something people used to do, and to the people on this site that have given the hunting report 45K+ views, it is very important. Besides, I have hunted as a resident, and I have been fortunate enough to travel other places to hunt, where I had to do it as a non resident. We may have our own states but we all have to share the same geese.


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## Guest (Mar 13, 2006)

I don't exactly know when everything changed. I do know that when I used to hunt in the westhope or rock lake areas of north dakota I would always come home with warm regards for the people I met there. It seemed to me there must have been a contest there for the locals to see who among them could be the friendliest. I loved your state for it. Now you can take any forum, fishing or hunting and it won't take long to find a negative post written by someone bashing the non-residents. People and CO's need to pay heed to this growing blight. The reason for the anti nonresident sentiment is the same wherever you go. Failure of some to go about the sport ethically. Sky busting, taking over the limit, trespassing, the list could go on and on. I personnally am a sportsman. Those people that do break the rules and behave rudly in the field whether resident or non in my book are not sportsman and give us all a bad name. I would love to be able to re-live those days in the early to mid eighties as they are my fondest. I have seen many abuses and am repulsed by all of them. Lets try to get along and if you see a violation report it! Maybe we can make a difference.


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