[Leo Porcello]

Okay here is the problem I run into. I am the dude with all the dekes, dog, boat, and whatever else. It seems everyone else just wants to come along for the hunt and kill some birds. However when it is time to wash or paint those decoys they are no where to be found. When the boat has to be winterized it is the same story. No one wants to learn to call or if they can call they don't want to practice. I am the kind of person that would just say thanks for the offer but I can handle it because I would be happy that they offered (this will change as my decoy spread increases) Maybe it is because I am up here in Alaska and waterfowling is not the #1 thing to do. Do you all run into this problem? Have you had set parnters or groups? Do you all hang out after the season or do you split ways till scouting time comes around? Hell I don't mind hunting by myself and my wife is a big help but I guess it would be nice if it was not expected of me to do all the work because I have all the goods. Hell when I did not have my own decoys I would go over this dudes house on my off time and paint the decoys just as a thank you for him letting me use them and taking me out hunting. Do your partners stop and think about everything that is involved and all the money and time you have invested? If so I would say your pretty lucky. Maybe I am just expecting too much? I guess when I think of a "hunting parter" I think more than just killing some birds. Leo

 

[Old Hunter]

Leo I have the same problem. I am filtering these guys out of the hunt. Its not easy to do because some of them are long time friends. I think some of the blame may rest on our own shoulders. We are just too damn nice. I should get on their backs more. One time I even bought a friend a call and tape and tried to sit him down and teach him . He never followed through with it. I hunt with him very seldom. He shoots very few geese now. I can understand why a guy may not be able to spend much on decoys and other gear but the calling is important. I run out of air trying to sound like a whole flock of geese. It gets frustrating and takes the fun out of the hunt. I have this to say to the guys that are too lazy to learn how to call YOU ARE SLUGS AND YOU ARE NOT PULLING YOUR WEIGHT. So if you want to hunt with Pork Chop or Old Hunter get with it and dont be a wannabe. Good Luck

 

[Matt Jones]

I use to hunt with guys like that but have since cut the "fat" so to speak. My biggest thing isn't even dekes, calling or stuff like that...it's scouting. If someone has the desire to come hunting I don't really care what they're bringing to the table in terms of gear. It took me years to acquire my gear and I wouldn't expect anyone who's relatively new to the sport to go and buy all that stuff overnight. If a newbie has a genuine desire to learn the ropes and is willing to do his share the work they're more than welcome to hunt. You can never have to many guys willing to go scouting. If you can get a solid crew of 4-6 guys to hunt with who are all willing to take their turn and scout it's huge because scouting basically doubles the time of a hunt and scraps your plans for the evening before. There's several mornings I have each fall where I could go hunting but I had obligations the night before and wasn't able to scout. When you can have a buddy scout on your "off" nights and vice versa it's a lot easier to make it out most days.

So I guess what I'm saying is first see if the person is willing to put time into the hunt...then there's plenty of time later to hound them about their calling or mention how great the spread would look filled out with another couple dozen bigfoots. :wink:

 

[Matt Jones]

Old Hunter, that story really hit home! I gave a call and a tape to a friend this past spring who used to hunt with us. He hasn't even tried to learn with it. Anything that takes more than a minute of his time when it comes to hunting and he won't do it. This guy even invought a friend from several states away to fly in to come hunt with "him". He basically expected myself and another friend to guide him and his buddy the whole weekend. He started freaking out telling us how he needed the two of us to go scouting because his buddy was flying in from so far away and he didn't have time to scout. The list goes on and on with his kid, well not anymore. I hope he doesn't have the nerve to call us the week before opener and ask "what are the plans" after not hanging out with us all off season...I'm going to tell him mine and then ask him what his plans are and who he plans to hunt with. :******:

 

[Leo Porcello]

It ain't about the gear for me either. I am all for taking someone that does not have the gear. But as we all know it takes a certain amount of time and cash to maintain the gear. You can paint a lot of white cheeks in an hour or with a 5 dollar can of paint. And yes scouting is a HUGE part of it. You would not imagine the crap I have gotten cause the birds were not there. Alaska is HUGE. I can't see it all.

Maybe I should come up with a contract or something. But Matt that is a good idea about asking first. I guess I just assume that everyone is good hearted and willing to help or go that extra mile. I mean I may be too hard core but I would crawl a mile through mud and snow to get a goose and hell if I don't get that goose at least I tried. I guess I am not seeing that in the guys I take. I guess I should ask them what they are willing to do. How bad do you want it kind of thing. RIGHT ON Old Hunter!!! No more free rides for the wannabes. If you don't have the gear then there are other ways to make up for it. Hell some people don't even help get the boat on the trailor, unhitch the boat or get the decoys out of it. Maybe I am just PMSing or something.

 

[Leo Porcello]

Hey Matt we must hunt with the same dude!!! :******: It is amazing how people want a free ride.

 

[hoosier dhr]

How about the guys that dont want to hunt but want you to give them some deer goose or duck meat! I work with alot of them.

 

[Ron Gilmore]

Any of you got any advice for a tone deaf caller. Three different tapes and 4 different calls waitng for the 5th and I still sound like S$$$.

 

[Leo Porcello]

Hey Ron you help wash the decoys and I will do the calling. :beer: My dad is tone deaf as well. I am use to being the caller.

 

[mallard]

I have friends that wont hunt unless you just about guarantee that they are going to get into birds.I feel the same way Matt does,they expect you to do all of the work,scouting,landowner contacts,hotel reservations if needed and dont contribute anything.I am sure Chris has his fair share of people that want to hunt with him but contribute nothing when they have the time or money to do so.

 

[djleye]

I am kind of on the other side of the spectrum. I had a great group of guys I hunted with, in fact, some of the Hustad stories sound an awful lot like my crew when we were youg and in school and not married. We had time to scout and hunt and fish, etc. whenever we felt like it. That is probably why I never got married until I was thirty. Also because I went to eight years of school. Most, if not all of the guys I used to hunt with have moved out of state and only one makes the annual trek back to ND for the fall ritual. The ones that hung around just haven't kept hunting as I have tried to. Now don't get me wrong, I am not defending the lazy hitch hikers, I just think that Matt has the right idea that the scouting should be split up, and the work on the gear should be shared in the off season. I can't call for s$$$ so I can't complain about that anyway. I guess my point is that the older you get, the tougher it is to find hunting buddies.

 

[gandergrinder]

Its funny we were just talking about this very subject last night at the gun range. Another problem I have is when your hunting buds say they want to go but you have to spend the better part of the morning waking them up getting thier crap together for them. Sometimes things happen and you run a little late but time after time really wears on a guy. I have a policy now with some of my friends who just want to go on the "hunt" part. The bus leaves at this time if you are not ready I will be gone. Even if you live in the same house as me. It doesn't take to many times of this policy for them to shape up. Yes they get ****** at first but all you have to tell them is that you told them when you were leaving and they didn't make it. I can't say I have much problem with the guys I hunt with not having equipment because most of them have as much or more than I do.

 

[redlabel]

I was also just thinking about the same thing Tuesday when we were pulling weeds in our newest tree planting. The only help that showed up were my o adult son and daughter, and my 15 year old hunting and golfing buddy.

People always say they want to help when it's hunting season but not many come across in the summer when you could use the help.

 

[mallard]

When I was younger I hunted with a crew that was the size of Hustads and we would all meet in one of the guys driveway before heading out.There was one guy that would allways oversleep and it cost us a few times.Anyways during an o dark thirty pow wow between all of us we decided that from that point on we would leave at the time decided on the night before and not wait for anyone.Man was that guy ticked off,but we were really tired of the 1/2-1 hour late crap every weekend.After that it was not as much of a problem.DJ,I am in the same boat as you.Out of total of something like 15 guys There is only 2 of the origional crew still hunting.Most of the rest gave up because of family commitments or moved.

 

[KEN W]

Yeah I basically hunt with 2 locals and a few relatives.They are the only ones who put effort into it.

My pet pieve was taking along someone deer hunting and as soon as they shot theirs,they never came along to help push.They were never asked along again.

 

[Field Hunter]

I thought the deer hunting thing only happened to me. 3-4 years ago I invited a friend deer hunting that normally hunts in MN with friends to hunt with me and my boys. It was nice to have him along especially since there was a foot of snow on the ground and one boy was only 14. As a courtesy I had him post on the first drive of the day, 14 deer come out the end of a sunflower field and he shoots a yearling. We drag it through 2-3 foot snow drifts up out of a 100 ft deep draw help him gut it and then he informs me that it's his anniversary and he'd really like to get going. If you'd been there, I'm sure you would have seen steam cooming out my ears. Then there's the 68 year old friend who asks to accompany us every year as his kids have moved away and don't hunt ND any longer. This guy walks everything with us, does a lot of posting and generally has a car at the end of what ever we walk. He usually has a doe tag so he can carry his rifle but more likely than not never shoots a deer.

My rule has become this, unless someone is passing up good bucks looking for that wall hanger, you are expected to hunt the better part of the 3 day opening weekend, even after you have filled your tag. Not party hunting but helping to push for the others....not jumping in the car in time to get home for the Bison game.

 

[djleye]

I invited my brothers brother-in-law to go to tewauken the day it opened for pheasants. (back before it got out of control). There was a lot of snow on the ground and he has bad knees. He posted a lot, shot his three pheasants very early, said he was done and hopped in his vehicle and drove home!! Needless to say I haven't hunted with him since!!!! :******: :******: :******:

 

[Leo Porcello]

Yes my dad use to be very strict. If he said be at the house at 0330 then you better be there. If not he would leave. No if, ands, or buts about it. As a kid this use to get me mad cause I liked when all the guys were there but now that I am older I see why he did it. Some guys would show up to the field and my dad would tell them to hit the road.

 

[SJB]

I have certainly experienced many of the same stories in my times.

The next time a new hunter (friend) asks me to come hunting, I will tell them to read the previous 18 letters / posts on this page. In fact, I may have them join the nodakoutdoors.com board and read the wisdom about what it takes to hunt written by many years of experienced hunters written on these pages.

SJB
Colorado

 

[foust007]

Hi all,

If any of you might be interested in showing a couple of guys from tennessee the ropes about hunting in the great dakotas would promise to carry our end of the load. We could cook ,wash dishes, paint decoys ,wash decoys or about anything else that we could to help . Not looking for a free ride its just a long ride from Tennessee not to know where to go or where not to go . We have our own gear ,not sure if it is the right gear for how you hunt up there. We even have a kennel full of well trained dogs one of us trains competition labs. Not to sound too desperate or any thing we are just wanting to come hunt up there with out feeling lost before we get there. We would even be wiiling to show our hospatality to any one who would like to come down here and try out our swamps or rice fields. We spend half our season in tennessee and the other half in arkansas.

thanks joe

:withstupid: