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Southern CA Duck Recap: Final weekend; Refuge hunters enjoyed good gunning this season
BY JIM NIEMIEC/WON Staff WriterPublished: Feb 01, 2012
NILAND — Southern California duck and goose hunters might have just recorded one of the better seasons in many years. Ducks showed up early, mixed well with locally hatched birds and then stuck around until the first week of December on state and federal refuges and many duck clubs. While northern California didn't fare all that well, as reported last week in Western Outdoor News by northern California editor Bill Karr, that was not the scenario for this part of the Pacific flyway.
Kern National Wildlife Refuge only had a few days where the average dipped below 2 birds a gun, but for most hunt days (Sat. and Wed.) they shot for nearly a 4.0 average and there were a number of blind sites that shot for better than 5 birds per gun average. One reason Kern shot so consistently all season long was the extra allotment of water the refuge received this year that greatly enhanced the wetlands and allowed the refuge staff to do more flooding and provide additional duck food for those birds stopping off in the southern end of the San Joaquin Valley.
Wister also offered very good duck hunting right up to just before Christmas when the duck and goose counts tumbled. But this refuge had fresh water and green feed which really turned white goose hunting around just after New Year's when comp counts soared above 100 birds combined for Wister, Hazard and Union. The Wister staff worked hard to improve the habitat, produced more green feed and made this refuge shoot much better than it had the last couple of seasons. More improvements to ponds, fields and habitat during the off season.
San Jacinto Wildlife Area was a good place to hunt ducks this past season. Staff, CWA and other volunteers have worked hard together to improve the wetlands of this nearby refuge and it paid off big time for waterfowlers over the entire season. This editor viewed the refuge from the air this year and it really looked very ducky. Not many geese were taken on the refuge but there were Canada and white geese killed in the San Jacinto valley by members of private clubs and those who had access to ranch properties.
Another popular hunting spot open to public duck hunting was Prado Basin. Raahauge's Duck Club shot for a very high 4 bird per gun average for most of the season for members and day hunters shot well too. Ralph's Club shot fine during the early part of the season and then slowed down even though the basin was partially flooded the last week of the season. Members of the Riverside County Flyway Association enjoyed a pretty good season that was a result of a lot of work prior to opening day and an abundance of duck food.
Word was passed on to Western Outdoor News about a very good goose hunt that took place last Friday for members of Wilderness Unlimited at a hunting site called "pipeline". Hunters bagged near limits of snow and Ross' geese while pass shooting birds crossing this prime field.
Junior hunts are set for Wister, San Jacinto and Kern for Sat. Feb. 4. The last chance for waterfowl hunting in California will be the special white goose only season for Imperial Valley that will open on Feb. 11.
Wister Wildlife Refuge — It was very windy on Sat. and hunters shot pretty well and posted a 1.9 average. There were a total of 119 white geese shot to go along with 474 ducks for the 1.9 bird average. Total ducks shot on Sun. dipped to 64 and there were just 32 white geese taken by 39 hunters for a respectable 2.51 average. This popular refuge shoots on Wednesday, Saturday and Sunday. For more details on hunting Wister call the DFG on site office at (760) 359-0577.
Sonny Bono Salton Sea National Wildlife Refuge — On Sat. this refuge shot for a 2.51 average with 64 hunters shooting 39 geese and 32 ducks. The average fell down to just .62 birds a shooter on Sun. For more information on hunting this national refuge call (760) 359-0577.
Finney-Ramer Unit — Teal and ruddy ducks, but not very many were reported shot last week. Finney-Ramer is part of the Imperial Wildlife Area, located on the south end of the Salton Sea, is open to hunters 7 days a week under a self-registration and self-reporting system. For more details on this refuge managed by the Wister Unit call (760) 359-0577.
Westmorland — No comp counts for this week were reported to WON. Hunters looking to extend the goose season should contact Fortin Outfitters at (760) 996-3527 to book a spot to hunt snow and Ross' geese during the special late season for Imperial Valley.
San Jacinto Wildlife Refuge — Shot for a 2.08 bird average on closing day for the 120 hunters in blinds. The top duck shot was the green-winged teal with 84 bagged to go along with 51 shovelers. The average for last Wed. was a bit higher at 2.55 birds per gun with 158 GWT shot. No refill hunters will be allowed to go into the field after 2 pm. Shoot days are Wednesday and Saturday and the draw on shoot days is 3 am. For more information contact the wildlife office at (951) 928-0580.
Lake Perris — Did not shoot ducks this season. The San Jacinto Wildlife Area manages this hunting site.
Baldwin Lake — Due to a lack of water did not open for hunting this season.
Prado Basin — Santa Ana winds howled over the basin on Sat. with gusts exceeding 35 mph. Hunters who toughed out the strong winds walked out of blinds with about a 3 bird per gun average. Hunters fared a little better on Sun. with the average up at least one bird a shooter.
Raahauge's Duck Club was one of very few clubs that offered public hunting this past season with advance reservations. For additional information call (951) 735-7981.
Lake Henshaw — Lake was open to public shooting on Wed. and Sat. For reservations call (760) 782-3501.
San Diego City Reservoirs — It was a ruddy duck closing day at Barrett on Sat. with a total of 34 hunters shooting only 38 ducks, and of those ducks bagged 26 were ruddy ducks. Hunted Wed. and Sat. this year. For more information on hunting the San Diego City Lakes call (619) 465-3474.
Kern National Wildlife Refuge — Hunters had a good closing day on Sat. with a total of 153 hunters shooting 461 ducks and 3 white fronted geese for a 3.0 average. The top duck on the game strap was the GWT with 145 shot, followed by shovelers with 107 taken and the comp count also showed that 93 cinnamon teal were harvested. Most all hunting sites shot pretty good. The average posted for last Wed. was 3.3 birds per shooter and topping off a good day at this refuge was the shooting of 14 white fronted geese. For information on hunting Kern call (661) 725-2767 or for the hunter information hotline call (661) 725-6504, which is updated after each shoot day. A web site is available to access hunt results and other information about this popular San Joaquin Valley hunting refuge.
Cibola/Lower Colorado River — Cibola Sportsman's Club shooters shot some dark geese and ducks. A Chinook wind established itself in the Pacific northwest and had Canada geese heading in the wrong direction. Hunting on the river remained spotty with some Canada geese being shot from sand bars over decoys. The Island Unit of the Cibola National Wildlife Refuge was closed for the season, but the Farm Unit was huntable.
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NILAND — Southern California duck and goose hunters might have just recorded one of the better seasons in many years. Ducks showed up early, mixed well with locally hatched birds and then stuck around until the first week of December on state and federal refuges and many duck clubs. While northern California didn't fare all that well, as reported last week in Western Outdoor News by northern California editor Bill Karr, that was not the scenario for this part of the Pacific flyway.Kern National Wildlife Refuge only had a few days where the average dipped below 2 birds a gun, but for most hunt days (Sat. and Wed.) they shot for nearly a 4.0 average and there were a number of blind sites that shot for better than 5 birds per gun average. One reason Kern shot so consistently all season long was the extra allotment of water the refuge received this year that greatly enhanced the wetlands and allowed the refuge staff to do more flooding and provide additional duck food for those birds stopping off in the southern end of the San Joaquin Valley. Wister also offered very good duck hunting right up to just before Christmas when the duck and goose counts tumbled. But this refuge had fresh water and green feed which really turned white goose hunting around just after New Year's when comp counts soared above 100 birds combined for Wister, Hazard and Union. The Wister staff worked hard to improve the habitat, produced more green feed and made this refuge shoot much better than it had the last couple of seasons. More improvements to ponds, fields and habitat during the off season. San Jacinto Wildlife Area was a good place to hunt ducks this past season. Staff, CWA and other volunteers have worked hard together to improve the wetlands of this nearby refuge and it paid off big time for waterfowlers over the entire season. This editor viewed the refuge from the air this year and it really looked very ducky. Not many geese were taken on the refuge but there were Canada and white geese killed in the San Jacinto valley by members of private clubs and those who had access to ranch properties. Another popular hunting spot open to public duck hunting was Prado Basin. Raahauge's Duck Club shot for a very high 4 bird per gun average for most of the season for members and day hunters shot well too. Ralph's Club shot fine during the early part of the season and then slowed down even though the basin was partially flooded the last week of the season. Members of the Riverside County Flyway Association enjoyed a pretty good season that was a result of a lot of work prior to opening day and an abundance of duck food. Word was passed on to Western Outdoor News about a very good goose hunt that took place last Friday for members of Wilderness Unlimited at a hunting site called "pipeline". Hunters bagged near limits of snow and Ross' geese while pass shooting birds crossing this prime field. Junior hunts are set for Wister, San Jacinto and Kern for Sat. Feb. 4. The last chance for waterfowl hunting in California will be the special white goose only season for Imperial Valley that will open on Feb. 11. Wister Wildlife Refuge — It was very windy on Sat. and hunters shot pretty well and posted a 1.9 average. There were a total of 119 white geese shot to go along with 474 ducks for the 1.9 bird average. Total ducks shot on Sun. dipped to 64 and there were just 32 white geese taken by 39 hunters for a respectable 2.51 average. This popular refuge shoots on Wednesday, Saturday and Sunday. For more details on hunting Wister call the DFG on site office at (760) 359-0577. Sonny Bono Salton Sea National Wildlife Refuge — On Sat. this refuge shot for a 2.51 average with 64 hunters shooting 39 geese and 32 ducks. The average fell down to just .62 birds a shooter on Sun. For more information on hunting this national refuge call (760) 359-0577. Finney-Ramer Unit — Teal and ruddy ducks, but not very many were reported shot last week. Finney-Ramer is part of the Imperial Wildlife Area, located on the south end of the Salton Sea, is open to hunters 7 days a week under a self-registration and self-reporting system. For more details on this refuge managed by the Wister Unit call (760) 359-0577. Westmorland — No comp counts for this week were reported to WON. Hunters looking to extend the goose season should contact Fortin Outfitters at (760) 996-3527 to book a spot to hunt snow and Ross' geese during the special late season for Imperial Valley. San Jacinto Wildlife Refuge — Shot for a 2.08 bird average on closing day for the 120 hunters in blinds. The top duck shot was the green-winged teal with 84 bagged to go along with 51 shovelers. The average for last Wed. was a bit higher at 2.55 birds per gun with 158 GWT shot. No refill hunters will be allowed to go into the field after 2 pm. Shoot days are Wednesday and Saturday and the draw on shoot days is 3 am. For more information contact the wildlife office at (951) 928-0580. Lake Perris — Did not shoot ducks this season. The San Jacinto Wildlife Area manages this hunting site. Baldwin Lake — Due to a lack of water did not open for hunting this season. Prado Basin — Santa Ana winds howled over the basin on Sat. with gusts exceeding 35 mph. Hunters who toughed out the strong winds walked out of blinds with about a 3 bird per gun average. Hunters fared a little better on Sun. with the average up at least one bird a shooter. Raahauge's Duck Club was one of very few clubs that offered public hunting this past season with advance reservations. For additional information call (951) 735-7981. Lake Henshaw — Lake was open to public shooting on Wed. and Sat. For reservations call (760) 782-3501. San Diego City Reservoirs — It was a ruddy duck closing day at Barrett on Sat. with a total of 34 hunters shooting only 38 ducks, and of those ducks bagged 26 were ruddy ducks. Hunted Wed. and Sat. this year. For more information on hunting the San Diego City Lakes call (619) 465-3474. Kern National Wildlife Refuge — Hunters had a good closing day on Sat. with a total of 153 hunters shooting 461 ducks and 3 white fronted geese for a 3.0 average. The top duck on the game strap was the GWT with 145 shot, followed by shovelers with 107 taken and the comp count also showed that 93 cinnamon teal were harvested. Most all hunting sites shot pretty good. The average posted for last Wed. was 3.3 birds per shooter and topping off a good day at this refuge was the shooting of 14 white fronted geese. For information on hunting Kern call (661) 725-2767 or for the hunter information hotline call (661) 725-6504, which is updated after each shoot day. A web site is available to access hunt results and other information about this popular San Joaquin Valley hunting refuge. Cibola/Lower Colorado River — Cibola Sportsman's Club shooters shot some dark geese and ducks. A Chinook wind established itself in the Pacific northwest and had Canada geese heading in the wrong direction. Hunting on the river remained spotty with some Canada geese being shot from sand bars over decoys. The Island Unit of the Cibola National Wildlife Refuge was closed for the season, but the Farm Unit was huntable. |
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