Honkers over Water

[Brad Dean]

Hey Guys, I am thinking of buying a water spread for hunting Canadas. How many decoys do people usually use in the water? I once heard that you do not need as many decoys compared to the field. Also, what "Sentry/Rester Ratio" do you use? I will be mostly hunting marshes and small lakes. Thanks.

[Mark Brendemuehl]

Brad- The most I have used is 3 dozen on water. The following day we did the same thing, and added about 3 dozen fullbodies on the shore of the pasture. I have had good results with as few as 6. I like the sleeper heads when its cold. That is a great look. Put them out like what you see the birds doing there when they are relaxed.
Mark

[Scott Turpen]

Put most of the resters close to shore (loafers) and the sentry's out. Watch geese they swim in kinda of a hierarchy meaning an unorganized line when they are coming into another group of geese or just across a body of water. Put your sentrys out here and put a few resters at the head of line. I'm not saying a single file line either. Do this downwind coming into the main group on shore.
Watch a few geese at a park or something and you see what I mean hope that makes sense. Good luck.

[Jeff Riverin]

Brad,

I agree with Mark's and TN's comments. My personnal spread consist of 32 GHG floaters(8 sentry-style + 24 rester-style)in conjonction with 20 Y-boards.

As TN wrote :Watch geese they swim in kinda of a hierarchy meaning an unorganized line when they are coming into another group of geese or just across a body of water. Put your sentrys out here and put a few resters at the head of line.

When it's very cold, like Mark I use more sleepers. If you hunt the edge of a shoreline, don't hesitate to add full bodies in shallow water as well as on the shore. Use a few feeders to mimmic drinkers, but most of your fulls should be active and relax poses with some lookers or sentries. On sand banks, I always add sleeper and rester-style shells to the floating set.

Good luck!!!

[Tony Vandemore]

Decoy numbers depend on the situation. We run anywhere from 2 dozen up to 15 dozen. I am a big fan of the rester heads. 10% sentries, 30% sleeper and the rest the resters for me.

[Mike Bard]

I typically use 24-36 floaters with a few Full bodies along the shore if possible. Like others have said, I try to keep my resters closer to shore. I have 8 sleepers that I like to keep upwind and close to shore as well.

I get away with 24-36 floaters in my area because the majority of the hunters on the water are targeting ducks and will only have 4-12 goose floaters, so my goose spread is more visiable than the competition and I will typically pull a lot of small groups of geese into my floaters.

[Brett Beinke]

I hunt geese a little different than many when it comes to water. I usually am not on a shore line but rather a reed point or reed bed of some sort and often in quite deep water. The one thing I have noticed about real geese dropping into live birds on water is that the birds often land short and swim in. A spread I have often used with as little as a dozen but often 2 dozen (smaller water/smaller boats, not enought room for more) is a great big "U" shape set up with the opening of the "U" down wind. I even open the "U" up a lot so that larger flocks can come right in. Sometimes I will have one tail longer than the other and almost always a lone goose in the kill hole. Usually the birds land within feet of that loner goose. I have attached a small sketch of what I use. FYI, that X is also where the majority of the malllards will land as well!

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v393/55434/decoysetup.bmp

[Cory Niccum]

During the early season we rund mainly from 4 to 8 with some full bodies on the banks. During the late season we use around 36 on up, mainly resters like Tony said. We use some drinkers. Mainly set them up in three strings or so. Take care and good luck

[Brad Dean]

Thanks for all the info guys!

[imported_Derek Rambo]

Sweet diagram Brett!!! :D

[Brad Hanson]

Not to swell Brett's head(formally known as the Artist) but gteat point made when he said he studies the geese on the water. I think in this high tech world we live in we forget to take time and study the birds. But in Brett's case he has it easy living in the Minneapolis area. He can play 18 holes of golf and study the geese on every shot! All bull aside a goose on the water is so much more relaxed than field birds! I think as we are setting our dekes have to keep that in mind. Field birds are fighting for a place in line at the buffet and water birds are looking for a place to crash out and watch football for the afternoon.

[Scott Turpen]

Or watch Golf all afternoon. :D