BIG FOOT DECOYS

Hello fellow junkies. Just got back from a visit to the Big Foot decoy factory in Clinton, Iowa. It was crazy there today as hundreds of blue geese were being painted and shipped all over the country! Art Ladehoff has a very simple and highly functional factory. He does one thing and does it well. He makes the worlds best decoys. Added to the famous Canada goose decoys including full bodies, floaters and the new shells are also field mallards and floating mallards as well. What you might not know is that Big Foot sells a ton of speckled belly full bodies as well as blue and snow geese. There were literally thousands of boxes being ready to be shipped while I was there. I watched part of the painting process, the packing and even some assembly. For you fellow BigFoot fans, a new web site is in the works as well as some other surprises.

BIGFOOT DECOYS SHELL SHOCKED!

BY: JIM CROWLEY



Bigfoot decoys have and continue to be the decoy by which all others are measured. They are the most durable by far and the United States as well as Canada are covered with them. No one at BigFoot including owner and waterfowl icon Art Ladehoff will ever settle for second best. So when I tell you we put these shells through some of the windiest and coldest days I can remember on a trip to Manitoba last October, you can be rest assured they were put through the ringer! What we found were shells that were well designed and did not "roll over" in the wind. We never chased one of these shells anywhere. Two models are available. The resting shells are beautiful with flocked heads and tail feathers. They can be easy and securely stacked. In the field they were incredibley life like and added demension to our full body set up. The resting heads up shell has a detachable head, stackable shell and other heads from Bigfoot full bodies can be matched to this shell. An excellent feature to mix and match shells and full bodies. As with all BigFoots they are extremly durable with excellent paint schemes including superior attention to detail in areas like the breast, head and feather layering. The new BigFoot shells stand Head and Tail feathers above all the rest. Once you see them, you'll be shell shocked! www.bigfootdecoys.com

Central Illinois Recap

December 23rd marked the end of the Illinois central zone duck season. Many reported this as being one of the worst seasons in a decade! Even the top clubs had few ducks up until the last freeze at the end of the season. From the start of the season, the conditions were less than ideal. Warm weather, then excessive flooding of food sources, and more flooding lead to high water, which allowed some ducks to get out of harms way. Late in the season, ice ended hunting in shallower water areas.

Generally, duck numbers were lower in the Illinois River Valley. The average ducks per hunter was down at most locations. All I can say is, better duck next year!

Illinois

wow what a change in a week new birds a lot of divers and geese its been nice to shot some new birds the cold and wind helped out a lot wounder lake they are getting birds the fields are good for geese a lot of the fields freeze so they've been hitting the bigger water grass lake is doing ok i here

slow in IL

It's been to slow no birds in long time. Deer opened Friday. It was bad- did not have one come by or see one. I was told 64 deer were shot opening day. It's up from last year. It opens back up on the 2nd so lets see what happens.
We should be good on the birds at the end of the week -snow and in the 20s. Let it come -can't wait! My dog (Bear) hates me. I want to i find some birds but nobody is shooting much here...

Soooo slow in IL

It is so slow im going to work today that is how slow it is . The pheasant youth hunt was good it was hot but we put up birds . The kids had a good time. That's all that matters. But for the ducks we need the north to get reel cold to push them down. Jeff