Hunting in the crowd

[Swagdaddy]

Although I personally like to sit out opening weekend in South Dakota and Kansas, many hunters enjoy the tradition that often comes with it.
What are some tips and advice for opening day to help make it a success?

 

[Wolfchief]

Do a bit of research before you firm up opening day plans....try to get a handle on the weather; if Opening Day temps are in the 70's/80's you may want to reconsider, as those temperatures are very hard on the dogs, and if yours are like mine, they don't know how/when to quit. Also, in most areas there is the harvest to consider. If there is a lot of standing corn, sunflowers, etc. the birds will be in the standing crop and it's hard to dislodge them, not to mention how upset the landowner may get with hunters walking through unharvested fields.
I often try to sit out the middle of the day for an hour or so to relax, eat lunch and let the dogs relax. The most productive time of the day can be the last hour/2 hours of the afternoon before the end of legal shooting time. So I try to reserve some energy to hunt hard at that time.
I've read, and heard others say, a good recipe for success is to find good cover and work it with a good dog, into the wind as much as possible. And trust the dog's nose; it's infinitely more reliable than ours. Take plenty of water in your vest for the dogs, they will last longer if they're adequately hydrated.
I'd also suggest that a hunter relax and enjoy the start of a fresh season...a relaxed yet focused shooter will kill more birds---and you won't kill 'em any deader by wanting them so bad!

 

[gimruis]

Do a bit of research before you firm up opening day plans....try to get a handle on the weather; if Opening Day temps are in the 70's/80's you may want to reconsider, as those temperatures are very hard on the dogs, and if yours are like mine, they don't know how/when to quit. Also, in most areas there is the harvest to consider. If there is a lot of standing corn, sunflowers, etc. the birds will be in the standing crop and it's hard to dislodge them, not to mention how upset the landowner may get with hunters walking through unharvested fields.

This! Lately openers here have been extremely hot. Like pushing 70+ degrees. And corn harvest has quite often not even begun. So I don't even go anymore. There will be better conditions ahead when there's cooler temps and less crops. Target those days and let the desperados sweat it out on opener.

 

[A5 Sweet 16]

I hunt almost exclusively SD public land & walk-ins. I never hunt the opening bell early in the season. But I don't sit it out. I just wait a few hours & let the other yahoos have their way with it first. By & large I don't have much competition & the people who hunted before me don't really affect my success. Even if they hunted the same exact spot I want to hunt....they did it at a different time, probably in a different manner, & certainly with a different dog. A lot can change in a couple hours.