Bingo Working mallards.

Oh, the hunting has definitely been good. But there's going to have to be a balance. Harsens has averaged over 70 parties/draw all season, Fish Point is similar, and NP regularly has close to twice as many parties as zones available. It's not going to take terribly long for support to erode with those odds, especially at Harsens where people are shelling out $20 just to get a truck and trailer across the ferry. Whether that means expanded pre-registration, a return to two draws a day, or some other sort of compromise, I think/hope there will be some adjustments in the future. If one draw/day is perfection for Shiawassee, fantastic for Shiawassee. But I'm not sure how long it will remain supported elsewhere.

 

Well I wish we could have our cake and eat it too, but usually it don’t pan out that way. I believe it is possible to have quality hunts with quantity hunters, but the masses are too selfish and shortsighted. I had a quality hunt and darned near last draw. Could have had another mallard pretty easy but sailed a greentop a mile in that wind so counted him to the stringer. I shot horribly today too.

 

Oh that’s completely understandable. I don’t know how people do it. Harsens has always been crazy though.

My only point is we can’t simply focus on hunter trips. It’s very important, yes. However, so is quality and satisfaction. Like I said, we have to determine what success is and how do we measure success.

Shi could easily fit more zones into their fields if they made them smaller like the other areas. They don’t though. They chose to go bigger zones for a better quality hunt. I guess it’s things like that I am getting at.

 

This is meaningless. First, the numbers are skewed because early season averages are much higher than total season always. Second, with being able to hunt all day per hunter trip, that number needs to be at least 60-80% higher than last year at the end of the season to even consider having made a difference.

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That number also is factoring that people most likely are not filling out their cards right. Meaning, the people that are putting friends on the card so if they get a good draw but don’t actually hunt aren’t being crossed out when the card is turned in. So that throws the number off.

However, yes. The numbers do skew higher in the beginning then drop off later in the season when hunting gets a little tougher.

 

I’m a west sider. So I’m in a bit of a different position here.

I’ve kicked around trying some of the better draw areas on the East side this year. But, I would never consider going to a draw hunt with twice the parties compared to available hunt zones, that host no re-issue, or afternoon draw. So count my hunter trips out. Maybe someone else’s satisfaction will be higher as a result?

How’s reducing the draws per week been working at the Todd Farm and Muskegon Waste Water?

 

I too am not getting up at two am or getting a hotel the night before to turn around and drive home after a bad draw. I hunted Shiawassee later in the year on pm hunts when I could still be home to help the kids with homework. This schedule has crossed the east side managed areas off my list this year.

I am glad those partaking are able and those who know how to improvise are doing well within the new structure.

 

The higher than usual prospects of not getting a field are taking the lustre off a trip to FP this year, definitely.

 

It really should come as no surprise to the DNR or anyone if you limit the draws to once a day and open the fields for a full day hunt, the metrics will look differently. And, if I understood the earlier discussion the DNR would use these lower metrics for budgeting, then I think those using the managed areas are getting screwed.

I don’t use any of the managed areas and if I understand it right, this just pisses me right off. DNR limits draws and yet expects more participation. That’s a special kind of stupid if you ask me. Maybe I missed something.

 

Hijacking this post with a bingo setup question...

When the corn strip runs North/South I've always setup facing East. I guess i never looked to see if there was a decoy strip on the west side of the corn. If there is, is it legal to hunt it? I'm blessed with glasses. If I gotta be up at 3am to make the draw, I might as well give myself the best chance possible to be successful. Which means facing West in the morning makes more sense so I'm not shining birds with the reflection off my glasses.

 

Disregard. Found my own answer in last years NP thread where Craig shared the charts on how to setup in the zones.

 

Kid made those charts.

 

I think those set up field charts SHOULD be posted in the shacks for everyone to see how to set up on different winds.. Thats more important than the kill charts in my eyes..Always have some guys out there not knowing where to set up for the birds to use the biggest run way to your spread..
Good stuff there...