School me on doves

[elk yinzer]

Ok, I’ve pickled a little for doves over the years. Usually just walking through a cornfield and jump shooting them. It’s fun and they’re tasty. Not sure but I feel like jump shooting is maybe taboo to the hoity-toity dove hunters. I beg for your forgiveness if so.

My son is getting to the age he likes to tag along and seeing as the season comes in soon, I see a good chance to get him out. But he’s a little small yet to keep up with jump shooting.

This pass-shooting style of doves, what’s the deal? Seems the gist is to get between food and roost. Where do they roost?

A lot of farms driving around I’ll see one or three here on a wire, and intermittent flying missiles, but no big flocks or constant action like I see in some of the youtubes. Do I just need to keep scouting for primo areas? Is prime pass shooting action more just a result of doves being constantly bumped around a heavily hunted area?

We have some official public managed fields, but they’re a hike and not trying to be around other people, don’t enjoy hunting that way and don't want my son getting rained on. I have some other unofficial public in mind but I need to do some scouting.

Might try knocking on some doors next week but I dearly hate that. I’m not social and I hate feeling obligated or beholden to LO’s.

 

[bowhuntr09]

The only way to get any real action like you want it to be part of a large party hunt. The doves want in the field and the various shooters make sure they keep on the move. You could find a good field and if it’s only you and your son the doves will just slip in and eat and not much you can do about it. I’ve seen fields where you could drop in for a few bucks or go to public. The really good hunts are mostly a social thing though, shoot doves, cookout, etc.

 

[BTaylor]

Sky crappie in flight, bacon wrapped delight...

I'm guessing the setup are probably different down here than your area. Here, for field hunting you want to be on cut sunflowers, milo, millet or corn. Growing up though one of our favorite spots to hunt was a pecan grove. After the morning feed they would spend the day in the pecans. We would set on the edge and shoot returning birds until we knew there were several that got back in the trees. Then we would stroll through and jump shoot them out of the trees. Other good spots were isolated dead trees in a field and small water holes with a clean dirt flat bank. Watermelon patches if there are a bunch of busted melons will draw them too.

 

[Reagan H.]

The only way to get any real action like you want it to be part of a large party hunt. The doves want in the field and the various shooters make sure they keep on the move. You could find a good field and if it’s only you and your son the doves will just slip in and eat and not much you can do about it. I’ve seen fields where you could drop in for a few bucks or go to public. The really good hunts are mostly a social thing though, shoot doves, cookout, etc.

This^^^ Nothin like hanging out with your buddies shooting doves all day then cracking a cold one after and grilling them up while they're fresh.

 

[NMSbowhunter]

Growing up, opening day of dove season was THE THING! It was a big social event and like was previously mentioned, you need a lot of people scattered about to keep them up and flying. I've been peppered with #8 shot many a time. You can usually hear it incoming (sounds like rain) and turn your face away, lol. I would also be a solid bruise from my right elbow to my neck from shooting a few days after the opener as a kid...good times.

 

[elk yinzer]

Thanks for the info. Yeah if that's a cultural thing around here it's stayed outside my cult. Sounds fun as long as you trust the next guy down the line. Not sure I can get there with him yet, he's still pretty small. Just started kindergarten. We'll figure something out.

 

[BTaylor]

Thanks for the info. Yeah if that's a cultural thing around here it's stayed outside my cult. Sounds fun as long as you trust the next guy down the line. Not sure I can get there with him yet, he's still pretty small. Just started kindergarten. We'll figure something out.

When Dad started me hunting them, we wouldnt go to field shoot just for the safety reasons. We had a couple of water sources we would hunt. One was really sweet. It was a pretty good sized ditch that had a had little mini sand bars in it. There was a highline that cut through the field and crossed the ditch. Birds would come to the line before flying down into the ditch to water. It was the perfect setup for me as a kid getting to shoot birds slowing down to light rather than dive bombing across a field getting shot at.

 

[NMSbowhunter]

Thanks for the info. Yeah if that's a cultural thing around here it's stayed outside my cult. Sounds fun as long as you trust the next guy down the line. Not sure I can get there with him yet, he's still pretty small. Just started kindergarten. We'll figure something out.

There's usually a pretty good distance between people for safety's sake. It's not as dangerous as it might sound, but some shooting glasses might be a good idea for you and your son. See if you can find a shoot put on by the game and fish people. They are usually going to be pretty well organized. Better yet if you can talk to some local farmers. They might know of some family organized shoots locally.

 

[bowhuntr09]

There's usually a pretty good distance between people for safety's sake. It's not as dangerous as it might sound, but some shooting glasses might be a good idea for you and your son. See if you can find a shoot put on by the game and fish people. They are usually going to be pretty well organized. Better yet if you can talk to some local farmers. They might know of some family organized shoots locally.

Your son standing there when you’re asking may be just the ticket to get a yes answer

 

[John 35]

Dove hunting success is very dependent on scouting just like any other hunting. You need to find a spot where they’re concentrated. I think sitting and pass shooting is a lot more fun than jump shooting. But jump shooting can work better if it’s slow. You don’t necessarily need a big group to hunt a field, I’ve had plenty of good hunts by myself. It depends on how good the spot is. A spinning wing decoy can help a lot.

 

[TNbowhunter]

Can't believe nobody on here has mentioned doves' kryptonite: power lines! Sitting with your back to a low power pole that runs through a sunflower, corn, or millet field is a near-surefire way to find success. Hunting over a small pond near ag is another solid option. If you're hunting solo in a big field, it'll be very tough to concentrate the birds enough to make for a good hunt, but if you have to do that, I agree with @John 35 that a spinning wing decoy makes a big difference.

 

[Nutterbuster]

hoity-toity dove hunters

That's an oxymoron. Dove hunters are chill. The most memorable shoot I was involved in had half of the fellas sitting in nasty old lazyboys that they dragged out of the barn. The other half were flipping burgers in between drinking and shooting.

Dove hunters ain't getting up early, they ain't walking 2 miles back, and their "gear" consists of a chair and a gun and some shells. If you're wearing a vest it's because it's your first time and you didn't realize there would be a dog or a kid on a buggy to go fetch your birds.

The only thing hard about Dove hunting is finding somebody with a field who likes you, or knowing who to hand the money to.

 

[Micneador]

That's an oxymoron. Dove hunters are chill. The most memorable shoot I was involved in had half of the fellas sitting in nasty old lazyboys that they dragged out of the barn. The other half were flipping burgers in between drinking and shooting.

Dove hunters ain't getting up early, they ain't walking 2 miles back, and their "gear" consists of a chair and a gun and some shells. If you're wearing a vest it's because it's your first time and you didn't realize there would be a dog or a kid on a buggy to go fetch your birds.

The only thing hard about Dove hunting is finding somebody with a field who likes you, or knowing who to hand the money to.

Nah I love my old strap vest, it's my favorite. Dad likes his belt that has a shell pocket, empty hull pocket (we shoot O/U or SxS) and a bird pocket. A decent chair and maybe a MOJO.


To the OP, a good water hole hunt can be a barrel burner. Evening or mid morning. I especially like decoying them with a MOJO.

The best thing about dove are talking smack to your buddies (or strangers) when they miss a cake shot, complamenting tough shots, and all around fellowship. The year we married, my wife and I shot limits opening morning, married the afternoon of the 2nd, and shot limits on the 3rd. 29 weeks pregnant with our first born she was whacking dove.

 

[Camelcluch]

Doves are awesome. If you have a few friends to go then that makes things easier. If not, just post up and watch the field from a ways off. Try and see the pattern. Decoys work ok and don’t be afraid to move. Make sure the new hunter is having fun and shoot away.

 

[The_Fit_Ness_Monster]

In LA we just hunt old rice or bean fields and shoot them as they fly over. Any new plowed fields they’ll be in, or if you have sunflowers that’s crack to them. Some fields here have way more doves than others but it’s usually a good season for them every year.

 

[SoILslocker]

Get close to a power line over some fresh cut corn with a dove mojo & you should be in business. Where I live the timing always works out that a couple farmers start shelling corn the last couple days of August/first week of Sept & season starts 9/1. It really helps to concentrate the birds onto the freshest fields for the beginning of season. After that it becomes about finding the hot field with the most in it.

 

[kbetts]

Dove shoots are one of the best social events you can attend.....with the right people. I've seen it both ways. One idiot can ruin it. Main rule is "No low birds."

 

[The_Fit_Ness_Monster]

Dove shoots are one of the best social events you can attend.....with the right people. I've seen it both ways. One idiot can ruin it. Main rule is "No low birds."

It’s the ultimate unspoken and sometimes spoken rule. I was peppered from about 90 yds away when I was 16, took my dad an uncle a while to dig all the BBS out of my back and side that had went just under the skin. Went to Hostpital after to be sure I didn’t have lead poisoning. It was an eventful day. The guy who peppered me wasn’t a regular and I thought that day I was going to witness my dad kill someone but needless to say it didn’t end that way.

 

[Buckhole75]

Aint nothin much more fun than a good bird shoot Growing up we shot at least once a weekend and lots of times three or four times a week Lots of peanut fields here along with corn and milo so generally plenty of birds But just like Deer hunting Greed and the almighty dollar have ruined it forever

 

[Micneador]

It’s the ultimate unspoken and sometimes spoken rule. I was peppered from about 90 yds away when I was 16, took my dad an uncle a while to dig all the BBS out of my back and side that had went just under the skin. Went to Hostpital after to be sure I didn’t have lead poisoning. It was an eventful day. The guy who peppered me wasn’t a regular and I thought that day I was going to witness my dad kill someone but needless to say it didn’t end that way.

I'm sorry, but if you had to have pellets dug out they were a lot closer than 90 yards. I've been peppered from 100 to 60 yards (most with #5 or #4 pheasant loads) and have yet to dig out pellets. Was the guy shooting buckshot?