Knoh: Chasing Geese
I, like many folks in the Northwest, have been hunting for quite some time. What I didn't know, up until about 10 years ago, is that I was missing out on a lot of hunting opportunities because all I was hunting was typical Montana big game.
My hunting epiphany occurred in my 20's when my dad picked up 18 used goose decoys to get us started in a new adventure. Up until then I'd always had a place to go goose hunting, but never did it. My thought was that laying in a field waiting for geese couldn't be nearly as fun as stalking a deer, elk, antelope, etc- Dang I was wrong, but luckily I found this out before it was too late!
If you haven't tried chasing geese I highly recommend that you do: here are my top 3 reasons why waterfowl hunting is a blast: pun intended!
- Extend Your Season: Before I started chasing geese my hunting season typically ended around Thanksgiving. Now I'm hunting honkers well into January! What hunter doesn't want more time in the field?
- Goose Hunting is Social: Unlike a lot of my big game hunts that are solo, physically demanding or extremely intense I've found that goose hunting is very relaxing, social and accessible for almost any level of physical fitness. This point is probably my favorite. Being able to joke around while hunting with a bunch of friends is something that I look forward to every year.
- Food! Goose is good, don't let anyone convince you otherwise. Just ask my co-workers about my goose jerky! A big goose will have around 3 lbs of meat. Multiply that by a lot of geese per hunt (hopefully!) and you have as much meat, if not more, than you would after big game season.
Eat good food, extend your season, enjoy the company of good friends and make new ones next year chasing the migration.