Just returned from a wonderful hunt in North Carolina, We hunted for swan on day one and we hunted bluebills the next day. We hunted with Outback Outfitters & Guide Service out of washington NC. The owner outfitter is Willie Allen an excellent and knowlegable guide, also Willie is a charismatic and fun loving guy, who has a passion for hunting. We stayed at the Vanceboro Bed and Breakfast, the accomadations were excellent and a true taste of good old southern hospitality. An "A" rated operation. The hunt started off slow with a few birds moving about, but we were hunting on the full moon so we hoped they would move later in the day. I was first up and underestimated the size and how fast they move for a big bird, and I didn't follow instructions and didn't lead the bird enough and missed the shot. One thing is always listen to your guide and Willie had suggested we hunt with 3 1/2 inch BB or 3" shells really leaning towards the bigger shells. we had two 3 1/2" guns and all six were killed with the big gun although my second shot was a 3 inch but was the new heavy shot and it worked really well. Well the bird moved around 3 and did they ever move, to watch these big beatiful birds in flight was awesome. We all got our birds, the six of us. the last one coming as the sun was fading. Willie said the amount of birds flying was not what it should be on a good day he said thousands can fill the sky at a time. The snow geese that flew were by the thousand. but we were there to hunt swans not snows. It was a fantastic day, we stopped at the taxidermist then it was off to the inn for a wonderful post hunt dinner and discussion of the days events. Day two we loaded up the duck boats with three of Willies guides and set off on the Pamlico sound. shooting was fast with good flocks of bluebirds flying, it was good fun and a special hunt with my brother and Dad. I would recommend this hunt to anyone and anyone interested feel free to contact me and I'll give you any info you need. I will email anyone interested Willies phone number. Thanks Tim Hand

i have been thinking about hunting swans for some time but none of my buddies are really interested. Can you provide me with information on how these birds are hunted (fields/water/over decoys/calling etc.), limits, season, and price?

Thanks

bmpregler, Sorry i have not gotten back to you till now, my wife gave birth to our second child on feb 9th a wonderful baby girl. Swan hunting is a hunt all waterfowlers should experience, this big birds are quite a sight to see. They are hunted over fields with decoys the guide calls them in by mouth, a sound he has perfected as there are few calls on the market that mimic their sound. NC sets the season and you have to apply for a permit, we all drew our permits 6 of us,but the guide didn't pull a permit this year he said it was the first time he never pulled a permit. Close to 100,000 birds winter in NC, You are allowed one swan per permit. If you are going to come from OK I would plan to hunt swans and something else like sea ducks or puddle ducks. We hunted bluebills the second day.Shoot me an e-mail and I'll give you the guides phone number. If you need any more info contact me Thanks Tim.

I'd love to get a Tundra swan, but If there were snows around and I had a permit I'm not sure I could resist trying to get my limit on those as well...

What was the cost of the hunt, the permit, etc?

AD

I've hunted tundra swans in Montana. One of the greatest thrills of my hunting career when that huge bird came down ... It is mounted in my living room flying .. my, oh my !

Those swans are huuuuuuge. I saw a lot of them while duck hunting in North Dakota this year, but unfortunately did not have a permit.

That swan hunt sure sounds interesting. Here in Finland we have a lot of swans all over the place. Unfortunately they are strictly protected, although they are by no means rare anymore. They used to be near extinction in the 50s, but now they are more common than some huntable goose species. It's all about public opinion, since they are so beautiful and our national bird etc. etc. You know how it goes.

There have been some debates in the media about hunting them in the last couple of years, but so far no hunting. I hope this changes in the future.

Congrats to you lucky ones who have done it!

Tim Hand:

It was not clear from your posting as to what size shot you used? Was it BB size? Also did you use steel shot or a denser, nontoxic form, such as HeviShot?

I used to have swans come in over the goose decoys near Boise, Idaho and they looked enormous. I always thought that something like the T-sized "Dead Coyote" loads would probably work well.