December Youth Goose Hunt 

It wasn’t ideal goose hunting weather, but when you have a chance to go…you GO!

A local guide, Joel Morris, invited Pass It On - Outdoor Mentors to bring 3 youth hunters out for an evening goose hunt. Joel has access to some fields just outside of the city limits of Wichita and wanted to give some kids the chance to experience a goose field hunt.

We pulled up to the field with 3 young boys who had never hunted geese before to meet Joel and his friend John. It was a little after 2 on a sunny, 55 degree December day with a light wind out of the north. Pleasant, but not necessarily ideal goose hunting weather. Joel and John had hunted this field in the past and had patterned the geese and their feeding habits.

We put the kids to work, setting the decoys per Joel’s instructions. Then we settled into the blinds to wait…and wait…and wait. For new hunters, this waiting can be pretty tough. Especially with kids and their video games and everything happening NOW!!! With the pleasant weather, the geese weren’t pressed to go to feed early. We were getting a little nervous as to whether or not they were going to give us time as the sun kept sinking lower and lower on the horizon.

With less than 15 minutes before sundown, we heard and saw the geese lifting off of nearby ponds. Soon the sky had V after V of geese heading out to feed. With Joel’s calling and the skillful placement of the decoys, we soon had birds settling into the decoys in front of us. “Kill’em Boys!” shouted Joel as the first flight came in. We only dropped a couple, probably due to all of the excitement. But no sooner had those birds headed out before we had another flight settling in. This flight didn’t fare as well as we dropped 6!

Big grins were on everyone’s face.

We got to watch Joel’s lab Mia do what she was born to do, chasing down the birds and retrieving them all. The kids learned a little about patience and a lot about how things can change in an instant when hunting.

Many thanks to Joel Morris for setting up the hunt and giving these kids a great time outdoors!