You western folks thought public land hunting was bad....

[Split toe]

Try state forced 4am launches on public land which lead to "hole races"

 

[Btaylor]

That was way tamer than the boat races.

 

[Samson7x]

Not even worth it....

 

[SW hunter]

The click bait post title fooled me. Excellent wording.

I think public land hunting is excellent west of the rockies. Thats the overwhelming opinion. Leasing to hunt a 20 acre plot is unreal crumby compared to having a unit of national forest or wilderness in the west.

 

[Benchleg Hunter]

Wow. I don't care how early I woke up, if I saw that at the parking lot I'm going home.

 

[CorbLand]

Wow. I don't care how early I woke up, if I saw that at the parking lot I'm going home.

Went out for opening day of waterfowl here. 14 trailers at the ramp. Put the boat in, motored to three spots, people in all three of them. Motored back to the dock, drank a coffee watching the sunrise and went home.

 

[ozyclint]

You've just got to go further in than everyone else.

 

[Billy Goat]

You've just got to go further in than everyone else.

No, just need a faster and louder mud motor

 

[Hnthrdr]

Many such cases for public duck spots in Colorado. But I want to know from an Arkansas guy, was it this nuts to hun the timber 5-10-15 years ago? What changed?

 

[Sccritterkiller]

That looks like a large gathering of humans...or a F that as I like to call it.

 

[Fireflyfishing]

Public land hunting is awful in the west. Best for folks to not come out here.

 

[Split toe]

Many such cases for public duck spots in Colorado. But I want to know from an Arkansas guy, was it this nuts to hun the timber 5-10-15 years ago? What changed?

It is far more crowded on public land here than it was 10 years ago. We are overrun with NRs. Everybody wants to come hunt the flooded green timber.

 

[Hnthrdr]

It is far more crowded on public land here than it was 10 years ago. We are overrun with NRs. Everybody wants to come hunt the flooded green timber.

Right? And why is that? Thank you very much social media… same with elk/MD/p-horn hunting in Co or Wyo. 10 years ago I could buy a pronghorn tag online and drive up to Wyoming and hunt

 

[Samson7x]

Many such cases for public duck spots in Colorado. But I want to know from an Arkansas guy, was it this nuts to hun the timber 5-10-15 years ago? What changed?

Much worse now than 10yrs ago. More hunters, less ducks. I think social media is at least partially to blame. Everyone wants to post pics standing next to a pile of ducks on the gram.

 

[Split toe]

Right? And why is that? Thank you very much social media… same with elk/MD/p-horn hunting in Co or Wyo. 10 years ago I could buy a pronghorn tag online and drive up to Wyoming and hunt

You aren't wrong at all!

 

[jwatts]

A lot of the NWRs in Mississippi are the same way. Gates or ramps open at 4am and it's a mad rush. WMAs don't have that rule, so people just get there really early. We rolled up on one this past Saturday at 430am. Multiple groups already had decoys out in a flooded field and were rotating between sitting there to hold their spot and sleeping in their truck on the levee. The obscure timber hole we planned to hunt was already full too, so we had a .75mi hike in to an bayou. No sooner than we broke ice and set the decoys, 2 more groups walked in on us from the other direction a full hour before legal shooting light.

I won't complain though. Those kids are freaking dedicated to sleep on a levee in 20 degree temps for a handful of birds that may or may not show. 2 weeks ago we took my 15yo son into a hole,set decoys at 3am, and slept in the woods til daylight to give him a taste of the whole experience.

 

[Will_m]

Pretty much the case for anything public land in the south. Absolutely wild compared to 20 years ago. @jwatts is not exaggerating about ducks.

I keep telling everyone there’s going to be zero opportunity in another 20.

And yes, I blame it on social media and YouTube. Sad, sad, sad.

 

[willtim]

Many such cases for public duck spots in Colorado. But I want to know from an Arkansas guy, was it this nuts to hun the timber 5-10-15 years ago? What changed?

5-10-15 years ago...yes. 20-25 years ago there might be two trucks in the parking lot.

 

[WiscoHoundsman]

It’s not just hunting. The local county campground /lake has a reservation day here. They take reservations on a first come first serve basis. Dad got there at 3 am for a 8:00 office open and was 26th in line. First guy in line was 36 hours early according to the manager. I don’t care how much I like camping or a certain spot is not wasting a day and a half to get it.

 

[Ucsdryder]

Looks like tule lake on the opener, except everyone is using surface drive motors with propellers sticking half way out of the water.