Weather plays a huge role in your decoying strategies when duck or goose hunting as much as the type and positioning of your decoys. Overcast skies and wind can really cause a damper on your hunting intake if you do not strategize for the situations. Waterfowl natural habits alter from their normal daily routines when weather becomes les then desirable such as high winds and gray skies. They become more alert and are more cautious of where they land to take a break in their flight or to feed.
Overcast skies strategy
With dark over cast skies waterfowl cannot see as well and avoid anything they cannot make out readily. To help make the ducks feel more secure cut back on the number of decoys used. By removing 5 to 10 decoys you take away extra shadows, glare, and the ripples in the water making visibility better for the waterfowl. Utilize in replace of the removed decoys a jerk string or if you started with 50 decoys lessen the count to 38 or 40 and add a couple swimming or splashing decoy in the mix.
Strong straight wind offshore
Set decoys in two family units spread 6 to 8 feet apart with an ample size incoming landing area between the family units. The blind should face the landing area. Place the furthest decoy no more then 30 yards from the blind.
Crosswinds
Wind from the left, position blind to the left of the decoys and decoys in “C” pattern and visa versa when wind is from the right. Position the blind to where the landing area is directly in front. This lures the ducks into the “C” central landing area and since ducks do not want to fly over other ducks or decoys to land it will draw them right into shooting range.
Strong angled wind offshore
When strong winds are coming at an angle from offshore ducks will fly downwind. Whenever the wind angle is from the left, position one decoy flock to the right and one to the left. Place the majority of the decoys in the left flock unit. Since the ducks will be flying in from the right, you want an open landing approach for them and want them to be lured in within shooting range. If the wind is at an angle to the right, reverse the positioning.
A few points to remember are keep your back positioned against the wind when positioning decoys. Also, remember waterfowl land into the wind and to the side where there are the least amount of decoys, so make sure your blind is facing the landing area created for easy targets as the waterfowl approach head on and resituated your blind and/or decoys as needed if wind direction changes.
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