Anyone duck hunt in Mecosta county?

[Swampbuckster]

I am heading up to Big Rapids over the weekend to visit my little brother at Ferris and was going to duck hunt both mornings and deer hunt in the evenings. My bro bow hunts but does not duck hunt so he has a few places scouted out but I am going up there blind as far as the ducks and was trying to get some information on Haymarsh Lake or Featherbed Swamp. Anyone have any advice?

[Lobes]

Not sure how anyone can see ducks or geese through all the deer. I'm seeing upwards from 25 deer per sitting. No shooters coming into range yet though. Come rifle season we'll be thinning out some does though!

NBG

[Swampbuckster]

Yeah, just got back from the trip. Beautiful country up there though. Did have a great oppurtunity on a nice six point last night, pulled back on him at a ten yard shot, my facemask was in the way of my kisser button and as I was pulled back and trying to mess with the face mask, somehow my release managed to go off and the arrow goes flying four feet in front of the buck! Oh my god, talk about some bad luck. The deer hopped up the river bank, tried to find where the hell the white and yellow flash came from, and walked off. I was quite upset to say the least. Did a little duck hunting, however the weather was just too tranquil. I did shoot a nice green head this morning.  Of course, tomorrow and Tuesday would be great days to hunt! But yeah, it does seem that there are quite a bit of deer around there. My buddy saw a six and a four point one night and a doe, and then missed an eight point last night. Tried a forty yard shot and fell short. That's why I don't try anything over 30. I stop shooting at where I stop practicing.

[Lobes]

I don't do any waterfowl hunting anymore but my brother in law still does. I guess him and his buddies slammed them in north east Kent county this year.
 Now the focus is on deer and I think it will be a great season. More and more people are getting into the QDM values and with it just barely getting off the ground there are already some real nice bucks showing up out there. I have been watching a good one around here that's about 20" inside and he is just a bruiser! A couple like that have been taken in this area already. The idea of shooting does for meat and letting those young bucks grow is working. You don't really yield nearly as much meat from a small buck as you do from an average doe anyway. Does always hang in groups so it's easy to distinguish them from the button bucks (who often travel alone - away from the does). Just pick out the largest antlerless deer in the group and your in!!!

NBG

[WhiteTail Madness]

There are a lot of deer of there lobes!! Im seeing at least 15 deer every night/morning sit, and as high as 30 in a sit!! I've killed 2 does and a buck, 1 doe off my lease and the buck off my lease.  THe lease is just norht of Stanton about a mile, some dang good huntin up htere

WhiteTail

[Lobes]

Hey I hear ya there!
I know some other folks hunting around Stanton. The deer herd is huge this year and the bucks are getting better every year. Great job on your seasn so far.Keep up the good work!

NBG

[WhiteTail Madness]

Yup we see bigger bucks every year, there is a few areas off of 66 that the deer herd is just OUTSTANDING!!! Some of the best hunting i've ever had!

[Lobes]

Since I moved one of my cameras to a neckdown of several trails on 10/23/07 I have nearly 2,000 pictures of deer and countless bucks in there. Nearly all the bucks in my pics are 2 1/2 years or younger. If I was to move the camera 300 yards south to the opposite side of one of our freshly run corn fields I would probably be getting pics of some really huge guys. I know one of those is around 20 " inside and a couple others in the 15" - 17" range. I hunt that fringe and don't want to disturb their nest as long as I know they are staying there. It's starting to look like my best opportunity with these bruisers will have to wait until the firearms opener. The rut is clearly in full swing right now.

NBG