Setting duck decoys from river bank

[shootingmike]

Howdy,

 

I'm after some tips on the best way to rig decoys from the river bank of a tidal, fairly wide river. A boat is out of the question, as is wading!

 

I'm thinking some kind of mother line system with decoys clipped to it, with a weight at one end and the other end tied to a bank stick. But, I'm also thinking it might be a nightmare to throw them all out at once. I know each decoy will need a long drop on it to avoid the dog getting tangled but am not sure how and where to weight the line or drops. To keep it easier, I'm thinking of only using 6 decoys and keeping them fairly close to the bank as they would be in real life.

 

Any ideas?

[Penelope]

Take a look at this thread.

 

I posted a picture of the arrangement that I use.

 

Post No.14, click on the image link.

 

http://forums.pigeonwatch.co.uk/forums/topic/247461-decoys/

Edited July 16, 2013 by Penelope

[Barls2-9-12]

The system which Penelope has described will work well. You could always use two mother lines with small numbers of decoys attached with the end of the mother line being weighted I use fishing weights. Keep it as simple as possible to prevent tangles. I would use the mother line clips and PVC black line you can get from eBay with the crimps for the droppers for the decoys as these don't get in a mess when putting out. The length of the drop on the decoys will allow more movement as well with the tide.

[Penelope]

Dacron decoy line for the main line (it is neutral bouyancy/sinks, so is out of the way of dogs) and the black pvc line for the dropper (tangle resistant).

 

The system which Penelope has described will work well. You could always use two mother lines with small numbers of decoys attached with the end of the mother line being weighted I use fishing weights. Keep it as simple as possible to prevent tangles. I would use the mother line clips and PVC black line you can get from eBay with the crimps for the droppers for the decoys as these don't get in a mess when putting out. The length of the drop on the decoys will allow more movement as well with the tide.

[Barls2-9-12]

That's the one but Dacron is expensive but worth it.

[otherwayup]

...But, I'm also thinking it might be a nightmare to throw them all out at once....

 

I had a total nightmare with my decoys last year when I chucked them out with a weight and mother line etc. It was my first year, so not confident enough to go striding out over the mud at low tide.

 

I'm trying to think of some way of throwing out a weight with a line looped through it and then pulling the loop so it tows the decoys out from the bank to the weight in a nice controlled manner.

 

Haven't worked it out yet.

[anser2]

I use a 50 yard length of heavy duty crab line ( do not worry abount the colour the ducks never seem to notice its orange ),Attach a sea fishing lead between 6 and 8 oz depending in the current. chuck it out abore 25 yards. Next tie a seris of loops along the line to attach the decoys to. Attach a clip swivel ( large or get some of Tidepools great clips ) on as short a piece of line as possible , say 3 inches. Its important to keep the line short to avoid tangles. Clip the decoy onto the loop and repeat for each loop for up to 8 decoys. Tie the end of the crab line to a stout stick and push into the bank, As the tide or wind catches the decoys they will be draged into a bow formating. Try and shoot a little down tide of the decoys and allow any dead ducks to drift clear of the decoy rig to keep the dog well clear of the lineor if she tangles she will drag the whole lot ashore. This will not work if you have a strong onshore wind, the wind must be to your side or behind you. If you do have an strong onshore wind pull 15 yards of line from the lead end off the stick and lay on the ground. Use a weighted decoy and chuck it as far as possible into the wind and quickly chuck out the lead as far as possible. This should drag the decoy a further 5 yards out. Set up a second line and repeat. Sometimes if the tide is strong you can sometimes manage to get 2 decoys out on each line. When pulling the line off the stick before chucking out the lead try and pick a spot where it is not likely to tangle with reeds ect. Try riging the decoys first in daylight until you know what you are doing. With experiance you will be able to set the rig in darkness. Good luck..

Edited July 16, 2013 by anser2

[Terry P]

Same as Anser only with the tidespool type clips I just clip straight onto the motherline and don't bother with loops. I've used it in some really strong winds aslong as the tide is flooding the drag of the line has tended to overcome the effect of wind on the decoys, if it did not I would just take a couple off.

[shootingmike]

Err. Confused!

 

Surely if I weight a mother line and throw the weighted end into the river, how do I then attach the decoys? I thought the clips held decoys in place so surely they'd need to be attached first, which will no doubt then be a nightmare to throw the lot out?

 

Regarding the bit about the tide dragging them out, again, how does that work? Do they need to be on some sort of sliding clip? Surely though, they'll all just drag into each other with nothing to separate them?

 

I really do appreciate the advice guys, I'm just a very visual person and need to see things sometimes to understand,

Like YouTube clips etc.. I've looked at Penelope's drawing but can't really work out why the weight wouldn't just sink and pull the two decoys together....

[Penelope]

The lead is free running, so has the tide rises the decoys pull the line through the ring attached to the lead. If you fish, it's the same as a free running leger rig. Just remember to pull of some slack line to allow for the tidal rise.

 

The front decoy (nearest to the lead) is fixed to the main line and the rear decoy is tied to the front one; tide and wind keep them apart.

 

 

Err. Confused!

Surely if I weight a mother line and throw the weighted end into the river, how do I then attach the decoys? I thought the clips held decoys in place so surely they'd need to be attached first, which will no doubt then be a nightmare to throw the lot out?

Regarding the bit about the tide dragging them out, again, how does that work? Do they need to be on some sort of sliding clip? Surely though, they'll all just drag into each other with nothing to separate them?

I really do appreciate the advice guys, I'm just a very visual person and need to see things sometimes to understand,
Like YouTube clips etc.. I've looked at Penelope's drawing but can't really work out why the weight wouldn't just sink and pull the two decoys together....

Edited July 17, 2013 by Penelope

[shootingmike]

Cheers Penelope. I think I get that. Have you ever tried it with more than 2 decoys or would it be impossible to throw? I'm trying to work out a way to do it where any drops are weighted and on at least 3 foot drops so my dog won't get tangled..

[Penelope]

You are correct, on that set up two is the maximum, so they can be thrown, using a technique similar to throwing a cast net. Also helps if the dropper decoy has a weighted keel.

 

If the dropper lines are weighted, it will just pull the decoys together, what you want is a stiff'ish dropper line like the PVC decoy line.

 

I have used up to 20 decoys using this set up, and as they are in pairs you can get a realistic pattern, although I don't think ducks are that fussy.

 

Works equally well on ponds, lakes and pits.

 

Like anser2, I wait for the wind/flow to drift dead birds out of the decoys if they fall in them before sending the dog.

Edited July 17, 2013 by Penelope

[anser2]

The clips are on the decoys which are then attached to the loops on the line,

 

The tide will pull on the ,main line and pull the decoys out into creek provided there is not a strong wind blowing thowards the bank.

 

On my marsh when tide flighting in broad daylight it pays to match the type of decoy for the species you extect to shoot. I had a classic example of this last year. On day I had teal decoys out and the wigeon ignored them, but the teal piled in with some landing in the decoys . A week later at the same spot I used wigeon decoys and they came in well while the teal buzzed the decoys at long range , but landed a 100 yards away. On both days the mallard ignored the decoy set ups. Of course you can set up 2 stands of decoys , one of each species.

 

If you are flighting at dawn\dusk while its still quite dark then it does not matter what type of decoy you use. I am not saying teal will not come into say wigeon decoys, they will , but you will draw more ducks in if you have got the right species of decoy.

 

The number of decoys you use will depend on your marsh. 8-10 is plenty i find on a creek , but when of a open shore line I may double the number and when I shoot from a boat on a local large lake at morning flight I usualy have 50 decoys out. If you can try and use the decoys in an area where you have seen the duck using. Regard the decoys as fine tuning to bring birds that were going to land on the creek anyway , but the decoys draw them within range. Decoying on a flightline is usualy usless.

[shootingmike]

Anser2, I'm still not understanding the bit about the tide pulling the main line. Pulling it from where? Are you still weighting the end and throwin it out? Surely once it's out, it's out? Also, if you are theowing it out, how long is the line from the weighted end to the first decoy and how many decoys do you attach? Also, where do you put the decoys to start with? Along the edge of the river?

 

Sorry for all the questions. I really do appreciate the help, I'm just struggling visualising it!! I think another thing that we might be missing each other on is the river itself. I'm talking a 50 yard wide, deep, tidal river with steepish banks about 15 feet high.

[anser2]

When you chuck the lead out ( lione attached ) the line will streach from the lead back to your feet . The tidal movement passing the line will cause drag and it will start to pull out. This speeds up as you attch each decoy so they get dragged out into the creek.

 

Between the lead and your feet its usually about 20 yards. As you pull more line off the stick ( as you attach more decoys ) you may end with about 40 yards of line in the water as the tide pulls it into a abow shape.

 

This rig should work well as long as you can get the decoys out into the water . If the bank is too steep to get to the waters edge use weighted decoys and chuck them out from the top of the bank.

[shootingmike]

Brilliant! Light bulb moment! That makes sense now. Do you still think it'd work with each drop line weighted a bit near the clip to sink the line a couple of feet? Just thinking for the dog is all.

 

I should be able to get within a yard or two of the waters edge probably.

[Penelope]

The water pressure from the tide will lift the line anyway. To have enough weight to counter that would defeat what you would be trying to attain.

 

Brilliant! Light bulb moment! That makes sense now. Do you still think it'd work with each drop line weighted a bit near the clip to sink the line a couple of feet? Just thinking for the dog is all.

I should be able to get within a yard or two of the waters edge probably.

[anser2]

Do not use drop lines , just attach the decoy to the loops and only use a very short line to tie the clip to the decoy. If you use long drop lines of over a foot the decoys are prone to tangle when the tide chances direction

[Tony123456]

On 16/07/2013 at 10:56, shootingmike said:

Howdy,

 

I'm after some tips on the best way to rig decoys from the river bank of a tidal, fairly wide river. A boat is out of the question, as is wading!

 

I'm thinking some kind of mother line system with decoys clipped to it, with a weight at one end and the other end tied to a bank stick. But, I'm also thinking it might be a nightmare to throw them all out at once. I know each decoy will need a long drop on it to avoid the dog getting tangled but am not sure how and where to weight the line or drops. To keep it easier, I'm thinking of only using 6 decoys and keeping them fairly close to the bank as they would be in real life.

 

Any ideas?

Hi 

I use a long line in same conditions 

slide the cord through a round 3oz watch lead then simply tie on a single decoy . Unravel your long line and hold line about 2ft from decoy , the lead will simply sit in front of the decoy . Throw out the decoy allow some loose line the lead will slide to the bottom of the creek allowing the decoy to float with the line going through the weight. Stake the line to the bank and job done 

good luck happy hunting 

regards Tony 

[TIGHTCHOKE]

Do you think he is still waiting for an answer?

[Jim Neal]

6 hours ago, TIGHTCHOKE said:

Do you think he is still waiting for an answer?

Some people are so polite, it could be a possibility

[TIGHTCHOKE]

Jim, those mushrooms are not good for you!

[Jim Neal]

16 hours ago, TIGHTCHOKE said:

Jim, those mushrooms are not good for you!

I'm more of a hunter than a gatherer, must have picked the wrong ones