dealing with duck hunters

[northeast beast]

New Beast member here. Love the site! its has been so helpful this fall. One things I have not seen a thread for here under public land is hunting with duck hunters. I currently hunt a federal marsh and duck hunting is allowed on Saturdays and Tuesday mornings from sunup till noon. I have avoided where the duck hunters are on their hunting days but I have found some of the best spots for deer hunting is also the same ground as the duck hunters. I am wondering what you guys who have hunted with duck hunters think about how those gunshots and human intrusion affect the deer your hunting? Is anyone willing to set up within 200 yards of some duck hunters and still seeing decent deer activity? My strategy so far has been to hunt those marsh spots on Satuday nights or Sundays. I'm really looking to find out who has had some experiences sharing their hunting ground with duck hunters. By the way bow season falls during duck season so I would only have my bow.

[Bowhunting Brian]

I hunt a marsh with waterfowl hunting as well. I don't think the gun shots bother them. Scent is a bigger issue. Hunting in the evenings only, I don't deal with the duck hunters. In fact. I do duck hunt there in the mornings sometimes and never see a hunter back there past 10am, so the area is all mine in the afternoon.

[Rich M]

I'm a big duck hunter.

We were hunting a (3-day a week hunting area) large marsh and two does came out and bedded about 150-200 yards from us. I had to chase a cripple right over by them, figured it would spook them out. Did not. We saw them get up about an hour later and browse on out of the marsh - with us and others shooting. They were not effected by us.

You have to remember that these deer grow up in these areas. The doe will determine the extent of impact the duck hunters have on the fawn. Similar to deer near houses or using long-term food plots, they are conditioned.

If you have big buck sign - hunt it. At least you won't have much deer hunting competition.

[Jonny]

I am convinced a deer can smell the difference between a deer hunter and everybody else. They must be catching on to the scent of scent lok

[matt1336]

They have their safe zones that they're comfortable with. If there isn't commotion within their safe zone they won't care and won't mind the gunshots, talking, dekes clanking against each other ...all that noise. They know where the duck hunters show up at. Think about your setups carefully and you might be able to use the duck hunters to your advantage. Think about access,exit and the probable "safe zones" that the deer might have.
I've seen them not even flinch at the sound of duck hunters pounding away at birds flying down the river. They think they know what safe and what's no safe. You might be able to use this sense of security to your advantage.....remember mature bucks act differently often time than to younger deer.

[Jonny]

Not duck hunting, but there is a stretch of public along a river bottom that I fish by. During november there are piles of canoes and kayaks along it everywhere. In the summer you can drive a motor boat within 50' of deer standing on the bank or in the water. As soon as a canoe or kayak drifts by they are gone. These deer have come to accept the noise of the busy river and know that silent moving objects in the water are bad.

When I hunt there, we take our big fishing boat for this reason