Sta 5 1-15 pm

[Real V]

My son and I hunted sta 5 and it was bad. At 3 when the gun fire started 1000's of bird flew west and left. We had 3 come in and got 1. When we left 6 groups had left and only 1 other bird was shoot. We picked up about 20 spent shells someone esle left and some trash and put them in the bag on the back of Bill's truck. There was also some roockie that would not shut up the whole time. They were parked somewhere around 5,6 we were in 18.
After this hunt I would say that hunting is better at sta1 for the pm hunt.
All in all it was a good time for me and my son and had some good laughs with Bill.

[duckmanJR]

I guess it can be a day to day type thing. My son and I were at sta 5 with a morning hunt and I was picking shots...Had a GW a fulvous a mottled and 3 pretty drake BW's all before 8AM.... Could have been done early but old eyes don't see as well as they once did in a very overcast/spitting rain situation.
I sat for 3 hours waiting for my son to shoot his last bird....Insisted on a fulvous for the wall. If it wasn't his birthday he would have enjoyed a 140 mile walk home! :)

Now today we bounce down to 1W for a morning hunt and with yesterdays hunt and the very ducky weather we were expecting fast and furious shooting..well, that was not to be..In fact, I never fired the gun! I saw about 25 ducks all morning. Joey poped a GW that was hiding in a clump while we walked back in..obviously a crip(from all the weks of skybusting I'm sure). It was a weird deal..... The first shot wasn't till 7:30... I talked with the 8st gang on the way out....They were way out back and had 3 birds between 3 guys..said it was a first and can't recall anything like this ever before.... Ducky weather with no ducks! :sad11:

[N. Cook]

How did the water depth compare to past hunts? We had a lot of rain Friday....it seems extra water in STA1W is not good for hunting....also the teal had a lot of flooded fields to choose from after the rains.

[duckmanJR]

Newton, It did seem a little bit higher bu not significantly so. There was current running to the west over the submerged roadbed.

PS...Got the trash from the mid point parking area and put a new bag in place and picked up the parking lot..all in full view of Billy and three FFWC officers. :)

[Randy Clark]

drove four hours to sta 5 at 230 we saw all the birds fly off not much else the rest of the afternoon 3bwt that afternoon between my son and i

[Lawrence]

And to think I was considering driving down there for a sure thing canned hunt. 5 hours (Maybe, I don't know exactly where it is). I guess it sounds like if you are going to go. Go in the beginning of the season.

Hey, we finally had some shooting up here! I doubt the cold drove them north. Now I will believe skybusting pressure will eventually move birds.

[N. Cook]

The movement of birds on and off the STAs is not all bad....one of the major reasons we are fighting to get them open is to allow proper distribution of the birds throughout south FL.......may do away with the "sure thing" limit...but best for all.
Newton

[Randy Clark]

heck with the limit i just enjoyed seeing that many birds and the variety that was there i think some of the people down there take thios for granted and do not really realise what you have we drive four hours one way to hunt there and have loved the experience i want to thank all those in the uwf for the work that allowed my son and i to enjoy this wonderful place.

[Real V]

Yes seeing all he birds is nice. Billy said that Sat. morning hunt had 524 birds. I think the mornings sound better.

Also when we were at sta the cat tails are loaded with Saddleback catipillars and they bite. The head we were in most of had a hundred, and half the cat tails were eaten.

[MUCKDOG]

Had a GREAT hunt sat morn at sta5 limits and a great time [the boys had a BLAST] Hunted with an old buddy and a new one both were first timers at "5" the new one came back sunday morning to "1" and after a very long walk out to the back NEVER fired a shot but still a GREAT TIME! that's hunting. and was still picking up trash the whole time[hulls,plastic bags, decoys[shot to ****"] and palmettos.My boys now look for stuff all the time and who ever get's the most get's NO CHORE DAY!!! all and all a GREAT weekend [ps, the marine patrol officers were funny]

[Ducknut]

I hunted 1 west on sunday morning, and never pulled the trigger. It is not the first time this happend to me, but I had taken a friend and he must think I am full of it with my hunt reports. I took the trash out at the front gate this week and last week. I keep forgetting the parking area, because I park at the main gate. Jeff :icon_rabb

[duckmanJR]

Thank you for taking the trash Jeff.... I didn't even realize that we had a
UW-F trash can at the mid-dike parking area! The first two times I went I parked at the check station..... This time the wind was so strong( wow!! was it ever strong!) we were in danger of swamping our little layout boats so we push poled back to the east on the hydrilla then walked up to the north on the roadbed that goes to the mid-dike parking lot... I had plenty of time to kill while my son walked back to get the truck..... :)

[MUCKDOG]

Ducknut .We will haul the trash at mid parking from now on. We filled the boat with palmetto fronds sunday morning that people left!! Who left the waders and boots in the trash can? { must have been a bad day**