Category Archives: Guided Snow Goose Hunts

Fully Guided Spring Snow Goose Hunts – Mound City, Missouri – Muck Boy and Snow Goose Guides

The Muck Boy crew will be in Mound City, Missouri the weekend of March 2nd, for our 2nd spring snow goose hunt. As all waterfowlers know this hunt will be subject to the birds migration. You can only be in the path of Snow Goose Huntig - Full Body Spreadthis spring migration, the rest is up to the birds. With this winter being more like a normal winter, we are hoping our timing will be a little better than last year, when we arrived a little late. As like last year we will be hunting with Snow Goose Chasers. We had such a great experience with Scott our outfitter, George the field boss (guide) and JP, George’s trusted assistant, choosing them again to guide our hunt was a no brainier.

2/6/13 – Geese are starting to move. Up until about Wednesday most reports had the geese in the south of Missouri but the picture on the left was taken near Vandalia IL. and JP one of guides for this trip reported just seeing the first geese around the Mound City Area.

2/14/13 –Let the hunting begin – more and more geese are arriving everyday into the Mound City area. Today one of the crew members had a nice hunt prior to our trip in 12 days, with Snow Goose Chasers– (Note: Scott has a few openings left if you think you ay want to try a hunt like this – just give him a call.

2/23/13 – Snow, Snow and now more Snow on the way – If this isn’t bad enough, most of the geese that had arrived have moved back to southern Missouri and Arkansas. Our Outfitter Scott has asked us to reschedule to the weekend of March 15th and 16th. If your planning a trip next week or weekend first check with your outfitter.

3/18/13 – The hunt is over and we have our complete report posted by the end of the week. Make sure to check back.

The Hunt – 3/ 15/13 Friday –We arrived at the Kwik Stop in downtown Mound City at 6am where we met up with out outfitter Scott of Snow Goose Chasers and Guide George for today’s hunt. We had four other hunters along today, a father and son team from Indiana, alocal Grandfather and Grandson and George’s trusted companion J.P. The morning started slow with a lot of Canadian Geese and a few flocks of Snow Geese around but nothing was Guided Spring Snow Goose Huntsworked the spread. Around 9am a six pack came from the north and headed straight to us losing altitude the whole time. They circled once and came directly overhead about 60 yards. It was a difficult shot out the back of  the lay out blinds and unfortunately only one bird fell. By this time the temperature had reached the mid 60’s and there was hardly a wisp of wind or a bird in the sky. This gave us a chance to get out of the blinds and stretch our legs and check the blinds and decoys. Just before our lunch break a snow dropped in but only came to within 50 yards and looked to be hooking off so George yelled “take’em” and this poor bird ran into a wall of steel shot.

After getting lunch we ran over to the Squaw Creek Wildlife Refuge to see how many Snow Geese were there and the latest count by the refuge staff was at 615,000 birds. It looked like every one of them was there at lunch, it is quite a sight to see that many birds in one place at one time. We all showed back up to the spread at 2pm and stayed until end of shooting time. Temperatures by this time were in the high 70’s to low 80’s but the wind had shifted to the northwest. We turned the blinds and made sure they were camo’ed up good for the afternoon hunt. There was a little more action with the group taking five more singles. The temperatures by the end of the hunt had started to drop and the winds were already due north. Everyone was excited about the prospects for the morning. With over 600,000 birds less than 5 miles away, a strong North wind and the temp’s in the 40’s we thought we were going to be in for a special hunt.

Fully Guided Snow Goose Hunts - Mound City, Missouri3/ 16/13 Saturday – We arrived back at the field around 6:30am with temperatures around the 40 degree mark and a stiff NNE wind at 20 to 25 mph. We took two large adult snow geese early and watched bunch after bunch of ducks buzz the spread. About 9am a couple of us had to go back to the truck and get our winter bibs and coats because the temperature had dropped to the very low 30’s and the wind had not let up. With nothing much flying, around 11am the group from Indiana headed home. This gave us a chance to catch an early lunch and head to the refuge to check the bird numbers. To our surprise they were all gone, from 600,000 to around 1000 birds overnight. Mother Nature never ceases to amaze. Knowing there were not many birds in the area we still went back to the field and hunted till about 5pm. As expected, we seen very few snows that afternoon but still enjoyed the comradery  of the hunt and the efforts of George.

We are still figuring out Snow Goose hunting and have adjusted our plans again for next year. Our schedules limit our flexibility but we know that Snow Goose Guides will always do everything that they can to make               sure that we have the best chance for success on the weekend we are there. We look forward to the 2014 migration and have our fingers crossed for better luck, because you can count on us buying our tickets for the Snow Goose Lottery again.

 

 

 

Guided Spring Snow Goose Hunts – Missouri Spring Snow Goose Conservation Season – Opening February 1

Guided Spring Snow Goose Hunts

Call NOW before we are booked!

The migration is on the move the numbers of snow geese in the Squaw Creek NWR Refuge are climbing again. It is time to make some memories.

Decoy Spreads Available

  • 1000 full body decoys, 500 sillosocks, over 30 flyers -hilltop cornfield
  • 700 deadly decoys, 200 floaters, over 20 flyers – pond / cornfield
  • 1500 Sillosocks, over 25 flyers – to go spread (go where the snow goose are at)
  • 750 shells decoys (Avery 5/8s, full size, and motion shells)
  • over 15 location that we can hunt in the Mound City / Squaw Creek NWR area

Big Days in Mound City, Missouri are still coming!

February 10 – March 15

Spring Snow Goose - Mound City, Missouri - 402-304-1192

855-473-2875

  • Heated Pit Blind Hunts $250 per hunter / per day
  • Guided Spring Snow Goose Hunts in Missouri from Grand Pass to Mound City.
  • Book and Hunt before February 15 and pay $175 per hunter/ per day
  • Fully guided hunt in stalked cornfields with over 1000 decoys in each spread including Avery full body decoys, silo socks, flyers, E-callers
  • NO LIMITS, NO PLUGS
  • Visit Snow Goose Guides
  • Purchase Your Permit!

Top 5 reasons to book your hunt with us this season!

1. All of our hunts take place over Avery & Bigfoot full body goose decoys, 5/8 Avery Snow Goose Shells and Sillo Sock Decoys.

2. We have 10 years of Spring Snow Goose hunting experience and we live here. We know where the geese are and we will do our absolute best to put you on them.

3. We hunt all day and are in the most predominant flyway in the United States.

4. 1000’s of  geese killed in the past 10 year.

5. We want you to have the best hunting experience as possible. Your success is our business!

The Missouri Conservation Action Season opens February 1,  We have some openings for the beginning of the season.

Special Early Season Price

All hunts Feb. 1 – 15th will be $175.00 the snow geese already in Missouri and the hunting should be fast and furious.

Guided Snow Goose Hunts - Mound City, Missouri - 402-304-1192

 

  • Exclusive fields available
  • Maximum of 10 hunters per field
  • Avery, GHG, and Silosock Decoys
  • Stalked cornfields
  • Layout ground blinds

Pricing – $175 per hunter / per day

 

Snow Goose Hunting Adventure – Part 2

Snow Goose Calling

Dozens of good goose calls are available, all of which are effective in the hands of a good caller. It’s helpful to listen to wild birds and try to imitate them with your calls. There are no better teachers. But unless you have a friend who is a skilled caller who can teach you, you also should purchase an instructional CD, DVD or audiotape that will allow you to hear the actual sounds of geese and good calling by practiced goose hunters. Study this and try to duplicate the sounds used for various situations. After some practice, record yourself on a tape recorder and decide for yourself if you’re good enough to start calling in the field. Listen for weaknesses in your repertoire, then practice to improve them.

Snow Goose Hunting Tips

There’s no such thing as a casual snow goose hunt, one reason many waterfowlers don’t participate. This sport requires large goose decoy spreads and constant scouting.

First, you must study movement patterns of geese where you want to goose hunt, then secure permission to hunt where concentrations are located. (Most hunting is on private hunting lands.) When geese start using a field, they stay until the food supply is exhausted. Being there after they’ve started using the field and before they’ve eaten it out is the trick.

Elaborate ground blinds are nice but not necessary because a goose field usually produces only one or two good shoots before geese move elsewhere. Many goose hunters simply lie on their backs in the goose decoys and wear white or camouflage-pattern clothing. Pit ground blinds, portable ground blinds and makeshift ground blinds made from natural materials on-site also can be used, depending on where you hunt.

When it comes to snow goose decoy spreads, bigger usually is better. The decoys should be in place before sunrise to take advantage of the snow goose’s propensity for flying early.

The most important thing goose hunters should remember is to remain well hidden and motionless until birds are well within shooting range. Snow geese are wary, and if they see or hear anything out of place, they’ll avoid it. If approaching birds seem reluctant to land, flare off at the last minute or land consistently outside the decoys, chances are they are spotting the blind, hunter movement or something else that makes them nervous. Adjust as necessary.

Avoid the temptation to shoot when the first geese start dropping into your set-up. Veteran waterfowlers hold off until the lead geese are touching down and geese in the rear of the flock are well within gun range before making their move.

Remember this rule of thumb as well: If, when aiming, the end of your gun barrel covers more than half the bird, the goose is beyond 45 yards and is too far away for a clean kill.

If you’re not up to the tasks just outlined, consider hiring a hunting guide. These guys can show you the ins and outs of snow goose hunting, and after you’ve experienced a hunt first-hand, you’ll know whether you really want to make the required investment in time and hunting equipment to hunt on your own. Best of all, hunting guides do all the work. The hunter need not spend hours scouting, gaining hunting permission, and setting and retrieving goose decoys. For a reasonable fee, reputable hunting guides do all this and clean and pack your birds, too.

Snow Goose Hunting Conclusion

Snow goose hunting is challenging, for sure. Nevertheless, it’s a sport many of us find irresistibly attractive. Goose hunting allows us to perfect our skills with a shotgun and to go afield with men we enjoy and admire. Most of all, it gives us another excuse to be outdoors. Until you have sat in a goose spread and watched a fall or winter day unfold, develop and decline, you have missed one of life’s greatest pleasures.

Special Early Season Hunting – Missouri Spring Snow Goose Conservation Season – Opening February 1

The Missouri Conservation Action Season opens February 1, 2012 We have some openings for the beginning of the season.

Special Early Season Price

All hunts Feb. 1 – 15th will be $150.00 there are snow geese already in Missouri and the hunting should be fast and furious.

14 Snow Goose Hunting Tips – Guided Snow Goose Hunts

Snow geese are fast learners and quickly become wary when hunted. They are long-lived and travel in large flocks, so thousands of experienced eyes examine every potential feeding and resting place for danger before landing. Furthermore, their nomadic lifestyle makes them difficult to locate.
Hunting snow geese requires hard work and specialized strategies, but those who learn the tricks find it immensely rewarding.  Several hunters claim that few outdoor experiences can compare with being at the center of a swirling-vortex of several thousand squawking snow geese settling into a decoy spread.
Follow these quick tips to improve your odds on your next trip.

  1. Begin by driving back roads to locate fields where snow geese are feeding.  Scouting the fields for where the geese want to be is the key to success. Find the landowner and always get permission to hunt before anything else.  If the decoys can be set by mid-afternoon, you can hunt the field that evening and again the next morning.
  2. Snow geese usually return to a field until the food is exhausted. However, they have good memories and will not return to a place where they have been shot at. Finding a hot field and setting out decoys may result in two or three successful hunts; an evening, morning and possibly another evening. After that, the birds are gone and its back to scouting.
  3. Hide all signs of human activity, including tire tracks, candy wrappers and any other non-natural items.
  4. Park vehicles at least a half mile away.
  5. Set out a minimum of 300-500 full body decoys (800 to 1,200 is better). Using Silosocks and shells to fill in.
  6. Supplement full body decoys(Avery, GHG, Bigfoot) with lighter, less expensive shell and silhouette decoys.
  7. Wear camouflage or white if snow covers the ground.
  8. Electronic calls will work on large bunches of snow geese while often time a mouth call can be for calling in single birds or isolated pairs.
  9. Do not begin shooting until your outfitter or guide calls the shot. For maximum shooting opportunity, wait until bird are in front of the blinds and everyone is ready. The snow geese  may circle many times before they are in gun range. Snow geese are also know for leaving a decoy spread for NO reason at all.
  10. Hunting partners should agree on fields of fire so shooting opportunities are not wasted by shooting at the same bird.
  11. Take your first shots at birds that are at the fringe of your effective range, then work your way back through closer birds.
  12. Focus on one bird at a time.
  13. A morning’s shooting ends when the birds go back to roost in refuge areas during the middle of the day. Sometimes that is as early as 9 a.m., other times they may not roost until noon. Afternoon feeding flights can arrive two hours before dark, but they may not appear until shooting hours are almost over.
  14. 3-inch shotgun shells with BB or BBB steel shot work well for snow geese but many of the performance loads like Hevi-shot, Hevi-Steel, Bismuth are excellent choices.