Duck Hunting 2021 Opening Day - Incredible Timber Hole

Duck hunting season is finally back! To kick off our 2021 early season here in Virginia we headed to a timber hole we had found on public land that was absolutely loaded with food. We were anticipating that woodies and teal would just dump in there like that had been doing the week prior. While some did decoy well, we had quite a few birds flare off us badly resulting in us missing out on some opportunities. Even with the struggles we ended the morning with a mixed bag and some great memories. Hope you enjoy!
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[@gilwhitmore9682]

Thomas, this is how it was explained to me. If you came home and all of the furniture in your kitchen was rearranged would you notice it? Wild animals make a living out of being wary. Smashing up the place, building a three room condo in the middle of the living room, leaving as many footprints on the shoreline as a marching band, turning the quiet protected water into chocolate milk all will have an impact. Think about your solo kayak hunts. Minimal disturbance, maximum results. That's not to say that your permanent blind on your small pond does that. It is always there, they are used to it, and nothing bad happening from it for 99.9% of the time. Good aim and they won't remember the .01% that something bad did come out of it. Some dirty water in flooded rice, or whatever crop, would be more normal. There are always some exceptions to stuff. Some days you can stand in the middle of the spread and swat birds down with a tennis racket. Some days you can't buy at bird at the meat section of the grocery store.

[@HokeOutdoors]

I made a similar analogy that morning, definitely makes a lot of sense and will be something I try to be very cognizant of moving forward. Getting carried away with things like decoys on opening day has been an issues for me in the past and obviously I haven't correct it all the way quite yet. I thought about doing something like building a little makeshift blind on the edge of this hole so that the birds would get used to it

[@gilwhitmore9682]

@@HokeOutdoors I still enjoyed it!

[@knightcustombuilds6988]

@@HokeOutdoors yoyhahoe wassup Thomas man glad to see you doing the dang thang . I've been so caught up in shooting uspsa that I'm late to the jump on these SC birds. Lol. Looks like u ain't been sleeping on them birds like me. We got to get together and quack and stack.

[@910Outdoors]

Ole Zach Bailey on the big screen!

[@HokeOutdoors]

Haha live and in color!

[@BigMouth380cal]

Without a doubt, too many decoys. Especially early. The early arrival flights are used to being the first in there. And then the subsequent flights see their buddies and all is good. I suggest using a very few ( if any) dekes to start a spot like this, and add a sprinkling here and there as the morning lightens up.

[@HokeOutdoors]

I appreciate the insight! That's what I think was the problem as well, hopefully we'll learn and not make that mistake again

[@joshporter8572]

When you scout your spots if you get to close and spook birds most of them will not come back your hunt will never be what it should have been.stay back and watch what they do first thing in the am and sneak out great videos kid good luck keep your eyes on the sky's

[@HokeOutdoors]

Thank you! Typically we try to slip in and out without spooking them but in this case we thought 5 days from when we flushed them till opener would be enough for them to fill back in. I didn't seem like all of them came back though so we'll have to be more careful in the future

[@michaelrussell9996]

A hole like that no mojo and six decoy and three of them on the jerk rig 👍🏻

[@HokeOutdoors]

Yep I think that would have been the perfect spread for this one

[@chucksmith5002]

Yeah around 4:40 the sound of them Woodies love it . Glad to see you Thomas put out a video was thinking that I wasn`t getting notified . Enjoyed it as always .

[@HokeOutdoors]

Thanks Chuck! Just been a little busy with school lately but got more videos coming soon. Love those squealers too!

[@duckht183]

When I hunt a small timber pocket like that, I keep the hole open and free of decoys to give the birds a good landing area. I’ll throw a small handful of decoys along the edge of the trees but other than that I keep it pretty simple.

[@HokeOutdoors]

That makes sense, I was kinda of trying to do that with the mallard decoys but don't think I did it enough unfortunately

[@tuyo_adventures.2185]

....."I think the clip needs to be in" is that your boat or is it a joke? LOL

[@HokeOutdoors]

Haha I think he just got that boat so still figuring out all the bells and whistles

[@MartellOutdoors]

I will admit bro, since I first watched you a few years, till now you are definitely ontop of your stuff. As always great video

[@HokeOutdoors]

Thanks brother! Always trying to improve all aspects of the videos so I appreciate the feedback!

[@evanwhitten2418]

I believe it played a pretty big role, especially considering there wasn’t significant weather. I think the decoy spread was also a little too big as well, but I’m still newer and I’m not gonna pretend to be an expert

[@HokeOutdoors]

I agree with both of those, definitely not an expert here either but alway trying to learn more

[@thefonti4509]

Cool hole. My sorry butt got skunked on public land this weekend. Saw lots of birds flying high, not many decoying...not to mention my shooting...yikes

[@HokeOutdoors]

Opening weekend shooting is very rarely on top form from my experience. Glad to hear you had some birds in the decoys to kick things off though!

[@fullstrapoutdoors9154]

Great video!

[@HokeOutdoors]

Thanks brother!

[@chrishill3595]

Living in sc this style of hunt is what I'm use to compared to the guys that film in the missippi/central fly ways. I really enjoyed it ! I always have hunts where I wonder what I was doing right/wrong haha especially with woodies!

[@HokeOutdoors]

Thanks Chris! They can be extra frustrating, typically opening day is when they dump right in from my experience though

[@philipmccumbee3624]

Woodies do not require a lot of decoys. Maybe a little to much trampling down of weeds in hole. Find a good spot and hunt it as is.

[@HokeOutdoors]

That will definitely be my mindset for spots like this moving forward

[@Drblood6721]

Woot woot! We'll be in the blind in 5 hours for duck opener!

[@HokeOutdoors]

Hope the opener is treating you well so far!

[@Drblood6721]

@@HokeOutdoors i ended up with a hen mallard, 3 ringneck and a blue wing. Out of 3 people we shot 12 and 2 geese which seemed better than most from reports.

[@HokeOutdoors]

@@Drblood6721 sounds like a great opener! You going back out tomorrow?

[@Drblood6721]

@@HokeOutdoors yessir, 5 day opening split. Wanna drive up ha

[@HokeOutdoors]

@@Drblood6721 man if I didn't have class I would in a heartbeat. Headed to MD this weekend for their opener

[@DuckalopeOutdoors]

I think it could have effected it but on the other hand who knows. I say give it another shot and see what happens. Ether way a good hunt! Nice work Thomas 🤙🏼

[@HokeOutdoors]

Thanks Chris! If this area continues to hold water I'm sure we'll give it another go when the season opens back up

[@DuckalopeOutdoors]

@@HokeOutdoors I’ll be watchin!

[@aljohnson1191]

After years of mediocre hunting in NC finally going out west to MO for some quality hunts

[@GameWarden]

What part?

[@aljohnson1191]

@@GameWarden joined a club in NW MO

[@GameWarden]

@@aljohnson1191 ahh I’m in semo

[@HokeOutdoors]

Hope those MO greenheads treat you well out there! I guarantee you'll see more birds than NC at the very least

[@GameWarden]

@@HokeOutdoors if you find yourself in this part of the world. I’m a game warden down here in the bootheel.

[@bennettkittrell4223]

It definitely mattered. Early season ducks are frequently in the same spot for a long period of time before you get to hunt them and pretty used to what it looks like. However, I am surprised those birds flared like that in low light with timber around the hole. It would seem wood ducks wouldn’t be able to recognize the changes before it was too late. I’m honestly surprised there that they flared as bad as they did. Maybe someone left the led lights on in the boat haha

[@HokeOutdoors]

Haha I don't think so but that would've definitely done it. I couldn't believe how bad they were pulling off, never seen woodies act that skiddish about a hole like that. Next time we'll leave it undisturbed and see if that fixes the problem

[@samlewis8183]

Great hunt! They took the early season from us in NC this year :(

[@HokeOutdoors]

Thanks brother! They're still having it but they just pushed it back

[@kraigkaatz6858]

I always enjoy your videos... I don't know that I could comment on the reason the birds weren't cooperating but could have been the change in weeds and what not... still a cool little spot...

[@HokeOutdoors]

Thank Kraig! One of my favorite spots I have had the privilege of hunting in this area

[@myreej1]

Let’s goooooo🤘🏼

[@HokeOutdoors]

Hope you enjoyed!

[@adkinsoutdooradventures9842]

Too many decoys 👍🎯 you are right

[@HokeOutdoors]

Agreed, live and learn!

[@Jbacilo]

Were there any mallards sitting in there during the scout? If no, having a whole wad of mallard decoys could have done that. Couldn’t see your entire spread but it looked like you were using predominantly mallard decoys.

[@HokeOutdoors]

There were some close by but we didn't see any in the hole itself. We threw them out in the hopes that we might have the opportunity to call some mallards in but I think you may be right

[@Jbacilo]

@@HokeOutdoors yeah we generally like to match the spread as close as possible to what we see scouting meaning species specific. Scoodrows sometimes will only prefer wood duck decoys and don’t like seeing mallard decoys (especially if there were no real mallards there). I’ve observed that a few times but not always. Who really knows lol, every day is different. Queue the “wood ducks don’t decoy” saying 😂. Also having a couple goose decoys always helps with scoodies they love their honkers.

[@tylersGBO]

Interesting! I had a ton of woodies using a hole last year. When hunted I put the mallard dekes out the woodies flared. Wouldn’t do it. Killed some mallards later on. Thought about minimal or woodie decoys first 30-45 min then putting mallards out.

[@3dhunting]

We put out some pretty good waterfowl videos. Check us out.

[@HokeOutdoors]

Haha that has to be the favorite catchphrase of the guys who haven't discovered a woodie call yet.. definitely agreed on the match the scout mentality when it comes to setting dekes

[@cshively520]

Just moved to the RVA area from PA and watch all your videos. Looking forward to getting out this fall/winter. Got any advice on public spots to check out? Thanks in advance.

[@HokeOutdoors]

Thanks brother, hope the RVA area treats you well! This map (vafwis.dgif.virginia.gov/FindWildlifeVA/#/map) is a good starting place for public land. Best best around here to find walk in areas that are far off the beaten path or get a kayak to get where the walk-in hunters can't

[@cshively520]

@@HokeOutdoors yeah I’ve been enjoying your kayak hunts. I think kayaking will be my best bet tbh. I live fairly close to the James (west of Richmond) and want to try a couple floats this fall.

[@HokeOutdoors]

It's by far my favorite style of hunting, especially around here. Those floats are a lot of fun but you do have to do your homework on the stretches of river before trying one. Especially in the winter there isn't much room for error

[@cshively520]

@@HokeOutdoors yeah for sure. It’s pretty much my only option since the majority of my gear is still in PA, except a shotgun, kayak, and half a dozen mallard decoys. My biggest problem is I don’t have anyone to float with lol so I might check out the lower James and see if that will be worthwhile. The other option is to get on some swamps/marshes.

[@trashpandafighter8376]

If there's wood ducks definitely keep the spinner. For at least the first hour. Later on if it is sunny leave it out, cloudy put it up. I always throw a pair of geese out. There has never been a hunt when i didn't have at least a pair.

[@HokeOutdoors]

I typically bring some honkers but felt like this spot might be a little tight for them. Will have to tote them along next time

[@trashpandafighter8376]

@@HokeOutdoors you might be giving geese more credit that they deserve. If you a have 50yd x 50yd hole or larger geese can use it. Even if its smaller. if you have decoys out and call they will circle. Bet you will get some shots.

[@HokeOutdoors]

I have seen them do some crazy things to get into tight spots, these birds just have so much open water as well as field around here. Easy food is easy food though

[@trashpandafighter8376]

@@HokeOutdoors You get several guys around a small hole who can call, geese get real stupid. Doesn't matter if bigger holes are around. Think of it this way. If you and your buddies are cackling away, geese will pass plenty of open water thinking "Man, they partying over here. Let's have a look." Either way man really enjoy your videos.

[@tylergeisler6376]

Should have left the mojo at home. I would have put less than half of dozen decoys

[@HokeOutdoors]

Agreed on both those points. Hard to leave them in the boat sometimes even when you know you should

[@daiserbeams_adventures7486]

Ide say that's hunting. Don't think too much into it. But I would say yall trampling down their food pissed them off 🤣

[@HokeOutdoors]

Yeah I have trouble with overthinking stuff at times 😂 we'll give them another shot here soon

[@braydenedwards10]

Yes sir still got a a few weeks for us

[@HokeOutdoors]

Gonna be here before we know it

[@braydenedwards10]

@@HokeOutdoors yes sir gonna try to get the best quality. But I only have a gopro

[@trashpandafighter8376]

That water was clear. Layin down all that vegetation and murking up the water didn't do you all any favors. We've done that before and learned our lesson. Best to use a dog for retrieves if available. Have one guy that is closest to down birds to retrieve. Have one guy set out decoys while the others build blinds. A dozen decoys with a couple spinners would have been plenty if they were using it. Main thing is... did you have fun? Keep it up. I enjoy the vids.

[@HokeOutdoors]

That all make sense, I appreciate the advice! Definitely had a blast, the best moments aren't tied to killing birds at the end of the day. Thank you for watching them!

[@duckht183]

Wood ducks are goofy birds.. sometimes they want to bomb in and land and other times they’ll just fly right past ya without giving a damn. Just depends on their mood that day.

[@HokeOutdoors]

Haha can definitely agree with that, seen them do some weird stuff over the years

[@outdoorswithdaole5984]

I been watching your videos for while and noticed you hunt in NC quite often. Would be interested on taking out a few active veterans on a hunt?

[@HokeOutdoors]

Yeah man I'm always game for that! Where are you located?

[@outdoorswithdaole5984]

@@HokeOutdoors we are near Fort Bragg/Fayetteville area. We are down to travel but I would have to figure out a timeline and # of folks can you take?

[@shawnfarris8908]

Did you get that wood duck and whistle in?

[@HokeOutdoors]

I left MN right before it got there so waiting for my buddy to mail it down to me. I'll have it before our November split gets here

[@shawnfarris8908]

Just keep me posted. The wood duck call will need to reed to be broke in, after that it should be perfect

[@HokeOutdoors]

Will do and sounds good!

[@al_alexader4562]

😍😍😍

[@cadeandrews9086]

to many decoys. in louisiana, when you put over a dozen decoys in a spot where they consistently go to everyday, it different will flare some

[@HokeOutdoors]

Definitely gonna have to open up some more space in the hole the next time we hunt here. Are y'all using any water motion down there typically?

[@cadeandrews9086]

@@HokeOutdoors yes indeed. everytime. jerk string usually

[@TaterSaladz]

Was it over scouted? How many times did people push birds off the hole.

[@HokeOutdoors]

I don't believe so but can't say for sure. We pushed them out on Monday (wish we hadn't but didnt think there would be that many in there) and then when Zach watched on Thursday he didn't bust them out and didn't see any sign of other hunters coming in

[@TaterSaladz]

@@HokeOutdoors duck gods where not in your favor.

[@chrispoutdoors5821]

I’ll catch heck for no hash browns for many years to come 🤦🏼‍♂️

[@HokeOutdoors]

Haha Zach ain't gonna let you forget about that one

[@jakejlax11megood61]

What woodie call do you use?

[@HokeOutdoors]

Duck Commander "Woodie" Call

[@brycewilliams2908]

No Face Mask is one thing for sure and none of your buddies weren't either,Ducks are litterly like turkeys on the ground but there ducks and they have good eyes

[@HokeOutdoors]

Yeah it certainly couldn't of hurt to have that or some face paint. We typically don't worry about it during the early season but in a tight spot like this it could be a difference maker

[@brycewilliams2908]

@@HokeOutdoors haha just like phill and willy off duck dynasty, them and there face paint loll

[@joshuaeck2712]

I think knocking it down may have played a.part

[@HokeOutdoors]

I'll never know for sure but not planning on doing that again if I can help it

[@Debacle83]

Should have pushed more west

[@HokeOutdoors]

In this spot or the state in general?

[@awesomesteveawesome4851]

Should have knocked it down a week ago. Let them get used to it.

[@HokeOutdoors]

That would have been a good idea. It was a pretty spur of the moment decision that morning

[@wisconsinwaterfowl8944]

I wouldn’t put a mojo and 2 decoys would be perfect

[@HokeOutdoors]

Yep a little water motion is really all you need but I have never had woodies shy away from the spinner on opening day. We really put it out there with the hope of pulling in teal though

[@wisconsinwaterfowl8944]

@@HokeOutdoors honestly no decoys cause when wood ducks commit they commit don’t have anything to flare em on

[@josephcioni5293]

@@wisconsinwaterfowl8944 I agree, no spinner and a few decoys or jerk string.

[@HokeOutdoors]

May have to do some experimenting with that this season

[@wisconsinwaterfowl8944]

@@HokeOutdoors always best of luck and hope too have you up sometime this year or the next

[@featherspreaderinc3146]

wheres a dog right about now

[@HokeOutdoors]

Needed one badly for sure. Next season I will have one

[@thefonti4509]

@@HokeOutdoors we gonna get some training video content??

[@HokeOutdoors]

@@thefonti4509 I'm planning on doing some

[@thefonti4509]

@@HokeOutdoors love it. I thought Titus's series with rocky was awesome. Would love to see it.

[@NHSik50]

Hoke, what’s your IG?If you have one

[@HokeOutdoors]

instagram.com/hoke_outdoors/

[@NHSik50]

Added

[@NHSik50]

Your stuff is great!!

[@HokeOutdoors]

Thanks brother!

[@austinpnw2235]

I think you should've hid better

[@wisconsinwaterfowl8944]

No they were better off out

[@HokeOutdoors]

I wish I had flew the drone over before we hunted it because I think we could've hid a lot better in the willows on the other side. I still feel like we had good enough top cover to keep their eyes off us though

[@austinpnw2235]

@@HokeOutdoors it's hard for me to say since I wasn't there. But to me looked like they flared when they were out front looking up under maybe. Maybe even the spinner decoys I like to not use em early season I find more success and closer shooting without one early season. None the less great video 🤙

[@HokeOutdoors]

Thanks brother! I could see that being the reason for sure. Will have to try leaving it at home next time

[@a5inthisbih538]

No offense but i don’t know how people expect to kill birds when doing stuff like this. Why would you change up the only thing those birds know? Also running a spinner in that small hole? This hunt failed for many what seem like amateur mistakes. I’ve seen very few youtube duck hunters that actually know what they are doing, your not one of them.

[@HokeOutdoors]

I think you're dead wrong by characterizing this hunt as a failure but we definitely did make mistakes. At the end of the day we had fun, brought home birds, and learned from our mistakes which I all consider to be successes