Decoy placement/ spreads

[Bdub]

Hey guys with the second split in the coastal zone opening up this weekend I've been getting things in orders to be a little more productive for the late season hunts, which got me thinking about decoy spreads.

What kind of spreads do you guys use in the marsh? How many decoys do you usually put out?

I always have a few seperate groups with a bit of a hole in the middle. I usually have a couple groups of big ducks and a group of teal off to the side. It's proven deadly during the first split but I'd like to keep them falling right in during the late season. I also try to pull some decoys out as the season winds down also making adjustments as needed during a hunt.

Here is a pic of my typical spread, I'd like to try some new spreads out, post your spreads if you have any pics so I can get some ideas or any pointers yall got.

[PaulMyers]

Put your teal about 3~7 feet in front of the blind and continue to pull a few deeks every trip from here on out. I've been down to 8~12 deeks by the end of the season several years back.

[ScubaLatt]

where do you hunt?

[Bdub]

Grand Chenier about 5 mi west of rockefeller, across from the "we clean ducks" sign

[Spunt Drag]

You might be the first person I've seen post a pic of their spread and it be Mojo free.

[Bdub]

I don't like them...I bought one and never used it I just don't see how it could be worth a crap except for early teal season...I do use a jerk rig sometimes though.
SC yall kinda slow tonight! I guess no one is excited about hunting this weekend.

[AubreyLaHaye458]

Originally Posted by Bdub

SC yall kinda slow tonight! I guess no one is excited about hunting this weekend.

I'll be honest with you, I'm not real excited and my expectations are low for this weekend


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[Bdub]

Aubrey do you stay in LC sometimes?

[AubreyLaHaye458]

Not normally. But I can stay in LC anytimes


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[Bdub]

We can plan for you to make a hunt with me after christmas just remind me...Would be a long *** trip for you to meet me from where you live, but if you stay in lake charles you could meet me and we could drive down one morning..

[AubreyLaHaye458]

I love that plan. We will be in touch.


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[B-Stealth]

I honestly don't believe in the 2nd split means less decoys theory

Lets say you started the 1st split with 200 decoys you left out 24/7 then hunted with 100 by the end of the second split and the birds "worked" better you may attribute your success to the decrease in decoys. But I disagree.

We have birds that become localized and very smart by the second split, they pass by your blind every other day and see the same 200 decoys that are not set up for the current wind conditions and they say nope not goin there.

2 Weeks later you pull 100 decoys, and I know your gonna pull the old faded ones 1st.

For a couple more weeks you have more success because your hunting "less" decoys....

My opinion is pull the decoys every weekend if not every day.

Set the decoys for the current wind and hunt over as many as you can afford/need/or wanna pull at the end of the hunt.

[bab52]

Bdub whose prop ya'll hunt on my lease is right there also. I hunt the Sweeney prop. We use about 3 dozen deks per pond.

[Bdub]

My fiances family's, her grandma is Loraine Baccigalopi. Where exactly do you hunt?

[Bdub]

Originally Posted by B-Stealth

My opinion is pull the decoys every weekend if not every day

This is the biggest helper if you ask me..I pull mine after every hunt for the most part.

[Duffy.yyz]

This right here: Bring some of those deeks in tight. Ever thought about getting some coot deeks too?

^^^^^^^^^^^What Paul said.

Originally Posted by PaulMyers

Put your teal about 3~7 feet in front of the blind and continue to pull a few deeks every trip from here on out. I've been down to 8~12 deeks by the end of the season several years back.

[C-Bass2mouth]

I think it all depends on your situation. Every spot is different. I could tell you what works for me, but it's going to be completely different at your spot, or the next guys spot, and so on. Just because you've been killing ducks for years over the same spread out of your hole, doesn't mean that this set up is the holy grail of spreads. Do the birds want to feed in your hole, or is it just a loafing spot? What do the other people that you are competing with spreads look like that hunt around you? Physically, how many decoys are you willing to pick up/put out on a daily basis? Do you feel that you are in an area they feed and would come into regardless if you had decoys or not, or are you in between where they are and where they want to go and have to "run traffic"? The flight paths differ from every spot also obviously. If you're right smack in the middle of a flyway then you can get away with using less decoys, as opposed to the main flyway being 300 yds away where you would need a ton of decoys and motion just for them to even realize you are there. Being flexible and willing to tweak your spread is the ticket most times. Although, sometimes you might hit the nail on the head the first try and can hunt without making any changes. I believe it needs to start with
1) understanding your situation.
2) Developing a starting point
3) Not being too stubborn to realize that this isn't working and develop a new plan.
4) Don't solely listen to an old persons theory on decoys. Develop your own. S**t has changed from the past, lets face it
5) Brush, brush, and brush. You're absolutely wasting your time if they can see you. If you're in the marsh what kind of shadow does your blind cast?
6) Start troubleshooting

[Bdub]

That would be a great guide for someone new in the game, some very useful info there. Great contribution to the thread man

[Bdub]

Originally Posted by Duffy.yyz

This right here: Bring some of those deeks in tight. Ever thought about getting some coot deeks too?

^^^^^^^^^^^What Paul said.

I've used one big pod of ducks in the middle before, it was devastating haha

[DaPointIsDaBomb]

Buddy from Patoutville a big duck hunter and he taught me a lot this past season. All about the whites and blacks. Ducks can't see them drab browns and grays from far away, need some color so use bleach bottles and good flat paint, shiny will flare em. We save bleach bottles all year and when if I see a crab trap with a certain fellow's name on it, I cut them and save them up all year to make decoy heads to stick on the bleach bottles. Carve em up aint gotta be pretty and wrap electrical tape on em, don't paint em it will melt that styrofoam.

Sometimes if mallards are around we put out a few sprite bottles in middle of spread to look like greenheads. If reds and cans are in the area, use CocaCola bottles in spread.

For late season, less decoys is not needed, we see em rafted up in the bay in big flocks but they started pairing up already, so we put out some duckling decoys too to make it look like a safe place to land. If baby ducks around, then all ducks know its safe. Proof in the pudding baw