Hunting & Fishing Sandhill crane hunt

264win

264win

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    • Oct 15, 2008
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    whidbey island wa.
    #1
    Looking for recommendations on an outfitter for crane hunting. Thinking this fall or next. There isn’t any legal hunting in my area so planning on a flight to get where we’re going.
    Would appreciate any info from others who have done this hunt.
     
    #6
    SFree said:
    Hmmm, I’m guessing they taste somewhere between a Whooping Crane and a California Condor…
    Click to expand...
    Have never tried it but my uncles on my mom's side called them the ribeye of the sky. 😁
    I had many things growing up but we ate more wild game than most people.
    Everything from alligator, armadillo, turtles, snakes, game birds of all kinds and about every kind of fish.
    A cajun dish that's great for just about anything that walks, crawls, slithers or swims is a Sauce Piquante.
     
    #7
    Guy I work with who grew up in Lafayette said when his uncle was in Vietnam, he tied fishing line and fish hooks on his boots and wayed up and down the river, catching fish and whatever else. He was the only guy in his unit that was gaining weight the whole time he was there, crazy Cajun
     
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    #12
    Beefmanne said:
    Suppressed only!
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    Honestly I never tried hunting them, were I lived in south Texas our house was on a farm in the middle of thousands of acres grain fields.
    Once harvest was going on you could wing shoot doves until you ran out of ammo or your shoulder was so fucking sore you didn't want to pick up a shotgun let alone shoot at anything.
    I had just as much fun closing the equipment barn doors and shooting pigeons with an air rifle until I got bored or watching the barn owls pick them off.
     
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    #16
    davsco said:
    i love seeing them around orlando and melbourne, would never think of hunting them.
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    Clearly you've never eaten them.
    The ones that live year round here in FL are like pets.
    The ones along the central flyway are, at times, in huge flocks.
    You should see their numbers in the Dakotas when they begin their northward migration.
     
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    #17
    There are only about 10 states that have a hunting season on them, with west texas being a hot spot of many hunters . I have never made the trip myself, but I know folks that have and they highly recommend that area . I think they stayed near abilene .
     
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    #21
    1739562470041.png


    There are zillions of them. I suppose they would decoy, but since you only get three usually one foray to jump shoot them is all it takes for everyone to limit out. That said, the breasts can be larger than 4lbs, and the things can get almost five feet tall standing. Bigger wingspan, but like a big Canada Goose with long legs. I've never seen a single different crane where they pile into a wetland, so it's always if it flies it dies and you don't have to be careful like you do duck hunting. We were using steel Ts and Fs which worked well, but still quite a few cripples to be arkansased. We didn't have dogs, but they like sandy shallows, so we didn't loose any.

    The people in West Texas where we hunted considered them pests, and didn't even know you could eat them. We found some kids drinking on a levee near the highway, and one of them told us his uncle owned all the land we could see, and we could kill them all as far as he was concerned. God bless Texas.
     
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    #22
    We can draw a permit for them here in MT. They come out of the air like a B52 when you get one. No better eating meat on a bird than a Sandhill Crane, bar none. Pretty sure TX has some pretty liberal seasons on them compared to the northern states, but not 100% sure on that one.
     
    #23
    shields shtr said:
    We can draw a permit for them here in MT. They come out of the air like a B52 when you get one. No better eating meat on a bird than a Sandhill Crane, bar none. Pretty sure TX has some pretty liberal seasons on them compared to the northern states, but not 100% sure on that one.
    Click to expand...
    I have thought about Montana as it’s a drivable distance, but I’d like to be able to get more than one bird per person.
    So far it looks like Texas and Saskatchewan have the best opportunities.
     
    #26
    264win said:
    Looking for recommendations on an outfitter for crane hunting. Thinking this fall or next. There isn’t any legal hunting in my area so planning on a flight to get where we’re going.
    Would appreciate any info from others who have done this hunt.
    Click to expand...
    Just went this January and got into quite a few. Speck Ops is who we went through.
     

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    #32
    Used to hunt them as a young man around Lubbock. As I recall the season limit was 20. Bring heavy shot 12 or even 10 Guage as they are big tough birds and further away than you think. Oh, and they get pissed when you walk up on a wounded one. Very fun to hunt and good to eat.
     
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