Goose hunting in Scotland

[Highlander9465]

Hi to everyone.

I am a Goose guide in Scotland, Has any of you guys ever been to Scotland hunting Geese and Ducks /

I am looking for any tips you might have as our Pinkfeet Geese are getting realy wild like your Snows.

What happend to the Haydel Snow Goose flute It was the best call for our Pinks but now we cant get hold of them.

[John Boy]

Highlander: Flighted Scotland in 2002 and plan to return in 2004.
2002:  Gunned from the Eden Estuary up the Tay Firthe on both sides of the Tay. Primary birds were pinks anf gray legged ... field and water decoying, plus pass shooting.

UK waterfowlers can improve their bags substantially if they use more shell decoys in the field and do flagging.  I noticed that UK fowlers use few decoys and that can be an issue when trying to attract large flights moving to the feeding fields.  At a minimum, ya gotta flag to let the birds know other geese are moving to 'smaller flocks'.

Forget about the Haydel Flutes, use Rich-N-Tone.  Produces the best variable call for Snows that can be modified for Pinks.  As with Snows, the key to decoying Pinks is to talk to the lead bird only.  Forget about the multi chatter crap cause it don't work for your birds and our Snows either.  If the lead bird starts to cup, the rest of the flock will too ... of course after you have put the flag in a down bird position.
As ya taught me to say ... Hope ya git yer Goose today!
Regards

[Wildfowler]

Tell me about your duck hunting in Scotland.  Do you have public lands to hunt on or is it all private property?  Is it the rich only who can hunt or can regular guys hunt?

My wife is on the internet talking to people from Great Britian.  They claim that no one owns guns over there and they take a very dim view of anyone that would want to own a gun.  How does gun ownership work?

Thanks,

The Kansas Wildfowler

[John Boy]

Wildfowler, my knowledge of the UK goose hunting in Scotland and GB is:
... mostly guided hunts on leased land, hunting on private association land or leased land
... pass shooting on public land is limited to the coastal marshes where public access is available.
... my British waterfowler friends are non gentry and they hunt through their association
If you have an interest to hunt waterfowl over there, do what I did ...get on the internet, go to the waterfowl assoc sites and put a post for a Swap Hunt.  I'm going back to Scotland this fall to hunt with my friends there on permission granted fields(for a bottle of good Scotch in payment) for pinks and graylegged geese.  My only costs will be out of pocket and airfare.  If you have frequent flyer points ... it's basically a free hunt

Nice part though, is can hunt waterfowl 24 hours a day...

Firearms ... ultra restrictive and importation of guns is restricted with local police department approval such as our ATF.  
http://www.legislation.hmso.gov.uk/si/si1992/Uksi_19922823_en_1.htm

Good UK waterfowler link
http://www.wildfowling.co.uk/links.htm

Regards