The Legend and Old Snow Geese

Many times I'm often asked this question: If you are The Legend, what is the secret to decoying old snow geese?

My patented answer is that I am The Legend, not Jesus.

That being said, I do have some thoughts that are way out of the conventional Box Thinking. In a previous blog, I talked about how mature Snow Geese can see into the Ultra-Violent range. This presents a unique problem.

Most hunters think that ultimately the mature bird picks a human figure out and then flares off the decoys. If it were only that simple. Disappearing into the decoys, while difficult, isn't impossible. Presenting a decoy that a has the same UV signature of a goose is damn near impossible.

The popular Silo-Socks absorb UV light, which is better than reflecting. But as the goose gets closer to the decoys, it will eventually "see" the wrong signature. Hard plastic decoys reflect UV light and in good vision conditions, don't work as well as the Silo-Socks.

About 10 years ago, there was a movement to paint decoys in UV-absorbing paint. It turned out to be a waste of money and time.

This leaves only one solution as I can see it. Use a decoy that has the same UV signature as a real goose. That also has only one solution. Use a taxidermy goose, also known as stuffers, as a decoy.

With the bad hatch this year, it becomes even more important that we decoy mature birds. So this year, Third Coast is going to use stuffers for decoys. This is not a new concept. People on the East Coast have used stuffers for hunting Canada geese for years. And I've used stuffers on a limited basis and was astounded by my success.

While other outfitters are scratching their heads and worrying about the lack of young birds, Third Coast is tackling the challenge with a solution that is sure to make a difference. Along with scouting for birds every day to ensure a good place to hunt the next morning, hunting a fresh field and good calling, I'm confident that Third Coast will have enjoyable hunting this season.