Rochester, Minnesota Goose Hunting Reports

spring snows

2011-02-21T17:28:00.000-08:00

We've been hunting in Arkansas with great success,It's playing out as the experts expected.With a huge juvey hatch It's playing out to be a great season.We're going to run some fields in Arkansas and Missouri this coming weekend.Birds are showing up in mound in good numbers.We'll keep updating now birds are on the migration.

Thanks Dean Tlougan and Premier Flight staff

12/02/10 - Rochester Hunting Report

2010-12-02T11:00:00.000-08:00

The count is rising quickly. We are up to 501 birds killed in the last 13 days.

We have a lot of birds in town and the super-cold weather has spared us (for now). The weather report for this weekend looks excellent for shooting geese. We will get snow on Friday, with a clearing trend on Saturday and Sunday.

That should force the birds out of town and across our fields in big numbers so the count will rise dramatically this weekend.

Give Dean a call -- 507-261-2072

Client Testimonial

2010-11-27T08:45:00.000-08:00

Once in a while we need to thank our clients who are so kind as to thank us for guiding them to a successful hunt. Plus, they sent us some great photos:

"Hey Dean – thanks for the opportunity to Hunt! It is always fun to be able to hunt with my brother and friends in my home town. We had a great time. I thought after 35 years of hunting geese, I had calling down to an art form. However, hearing your two guides use the short reed calls, I think I need to “re-learn” to call on short reeds! Twenty-Seven geese in one day is not too bad."

11/25/2010 -- Goose Hunting Report

2010-11-25T18:45:00.000-08:00

We're slamming the birds in Rochester this week! We had a big push of birds with the last round of weather and we've killed 175 birds in 6 days. Come on down and get in the pits with us!

Here's a picture of Rob Stucker with 3 birds from Thursday. Notice anything weird about their coloration?

Call Dean for reservations -- 507-261-2072

11/23/10 - Rochester Hunting Report

2010-11-23T08:32:00.001-08:00

We're still seeing birds entering Rochester in good numbers. The water is open down here so most of the migrating birds are staying in the area. We will hold solid numbers of geese until the temperature drops enough to freeze the lakes. Keep your fingers crossed for a good, warm spell and big numbers of birds through mid-January.

The birds are here but they are getting more selective in their patterns by the day. If you are out chasing geese this time of year you need to be sure to wear full camouflage and keep your movements to a minimum.

Our guides are using all of our fields and setting some pretty elaborate spreads. This is the time of year to see some major numbers of birds and listen to the guides calling back and forth to each flock. You'll hear calling like you've never heard before.

We are killing birds around town. The picture below was a group that hunted the weekend with us in the South West side of town.

When everyone else is out shopping, you can be chasing geese with Dean and company! Give us a call and we'll find a place for you to hunt with us.

Talk to Dean: 507-261-2072

Hunting Report -- 11/20

2010-11-20T10:54:00.000-08:00

The hunting has really picked up the last 4 days. The weather last week really pushed a lot of birds into the area and we've been shooting birds every day.

The east side of town produced limits for a field of hunters last night. The south side was the ticket this morning with Dean guiding a group that took 15 birds this morning.

The birds are here in town and we're hunting multiple fields a day. Give Dean a call to schedule a hunt and we'll fit you in with our guides!

2010 Duck and Goose Season

2010-09-16T08:10:00.000-07:00

The dates for the 2010 Minnesota Duck and Goose seasons are set!

Shooting hours remain the same as 2009. Ducks and geese are the same - one-half hour before sunrise (except 9 a.m. on Oct. 2) to 4 p.m. through Saturday Oct. 9, and until sunset thereafter.

Ducks:
Oct. 2 - Nov. 30th
Bag limit is 6 ducks daily and canvasbacks return to the bag limit.

Geese (Statewide):
Oc.t 2 - Dec. 25
Bag limit has been raised to 3 per day!

Geese (ROCHESTER zone):
First Split: Oct. 2 - Dec. 7
Second Split: Dec. 16 - Jan. 2
Bag limit has been raised to 3 per day!

Full Goose Hunting Memberships Available

2010-08-31T08:53:00.001-07:00

We are still accepting applications for full memberships to our Premier Flight Guide Service in Rochester. We are the real deal and this is a full membership. These are proven, established fields run by nationally-recognized guides.

Premier Flight is the only guide service that offers 18 fields to hunt around the area. Typically, other services have 2 or 3. By having this many spots, we can more easily locate to where the geese are flying and put you in the birds. Our fields are consistent early and as the geese move out to the exterior, we have fields farther out to accommodate late season hunting. No one else has these accommodations to the degree we do.

We're just starting the early season so you haven't missed a thing.

Give Dean a call and ask about the benefits of membership. It's less than you think...

507-261-2072

Premier Flight Guide Service
www.goosegrinders.com

Early Goose Season set to begin!

2010-08-30T17:40:00.000-07:00

We know you may be thinking about sun and fishing but there are birds to chase in September. The early goose season for resident Canada geese starts in just 5 days.

The dates are set for 09/04/10 - 09/22/10 with a limit of 5 geese in the Rochester area.

We have some trick new fields in Rochester and to our west. Give Dean a call and schedule a hunt.

507-261-2072
www.goosegrinders.com

Spring Snow Geese report

2010-03-06T18:14:00.000-08:00

Well we're off to a slow migration due to the snow and ice in Mound City Missouri.We had some successful hunts in Arkansas and Illinois.We're south of St Joe's and we should be getting our spreads in ground in Mound City over the weekend.We still have a few dates available in Missouri and South Dakota.

Dean Tlougan and Premier Flight staff

Year end hunting report

2010-01-18T17:03:00.000-08:00

Well we got through another season and what a season. I can't remember the last time we had to deal with this much snow during our season. We ended with 1147 birds, down from last years record, but overall good year.

I would like to thank everyone who made it down this year and look forward to seeing you all next year. We start up our snow goose hunts around the 15th of February in Missouri and move to South Dakota around March 15th. We have some dates still open, please call for more information and availability.

Dean Tlougan and Premier Flight Staff

Late Season Goose Hunting in Rochester

2009-12-14T23:51:00.000-08:00

We're getting ready for late season hunts that start Saturday, with a little digging out we're ready to go.

It's looking great so far we been getting steady stream of birds in from north and they seem to be staying in Rochester. The season runs from 19th to the 28th and we still have room left for some awesome hunts. We have birds moving in all directions around town and with a little warm up this weekend should be great hunting. Hope to see you down here for the notorious Rochester late season.

Dean Tlougan and Premier Flight staff

Goose Hunting Report - 11/29/09

2009-11-30T11:09:00.000-08:00

The colder weather is pushing birds into Rochester in good numbers. We had success over the weekend with some limits being taken around the city. The birds are getting wary as the season progresses and this is the time of year when our high-quality fields pay huge dividends.

The weather forecast shows cold temps with flurries late in the week. This could be the weekend to load up!

Here's two heavy honkers from Sunday:

Thanksgiving update

2009-11-23T17:58:00.000-08:00

I'm back from deer hunting and back in the groove I was fortunate to shoot a respectable 10 point.

Had an excellent weekend of hunting we shot 68 birds over the weekend. The DNR is reporting 28,000 birds here not so sure there's that many but we're seeing substantial numbers on all sides of town. With a cold front coming we're expecting more birds to show up the next couple days so book your hunt and let's go get a couple.

Dean Tlougan and Premier Flight Staff

Goose Hunting Report - 11/19/09

2009-11-19T16:44:00.000-08:00

We are seeing geese in good numbers and our clients are taking birds. Here's some pictures from a week back from of our client Bill Grillo and his son Jon:

One:

Two:

Three:

Thank for the photos guys! Keep it coming!

Goose Hunting Report - 11/4/09

2009-11-04T07:30:00.000-08:00

Overall we had a good week of hunting even with a full moon. Took home many limits on several days.

We had a good migration on Monday we're seeing a lot of new birds. Harvest is still slowed down by wet crops but we have made some progress. Hopefully everyone can go out and kill their deer this weekend and then focus on waterfowl.

Flagging Canada Geese

2009-10-21T21:27:00.000-07:00

We get a lot of questions about how to flag Canada Geese and it's finally time we show you what we're talking about. Now we can finally SHOW you what we're talking about.

In this video you'll hear one guy calling and 2 guys are flagging with 2 different types of Flagman flags. We like to mix it up a little so they don't see the same old thing all the time.

Flagging distant geese

The trick is to make the flag look like the wings of a goose in their last few feet of flight before they land. Hold it high over your head and give it a good flap. Then 5-6 fast flaps before you slap it into the ground. They are attracted to the flapping black wings.

You can really let the flag have it when flagging distant geese.

Flagging geese at close range

One word - Don't.

Put the flag down and let them come. Why ruin a good thing?

Watch us in action via YouTube:

We're in full swing of the goose season. Call Dean and book your hunt today!

Goose Hunting Report - 10/21/09

2009-10-21T14:14:00.000-07:00

Well we did get two more fields out in our couple day dry spell.

We're still seeing a few new birds coming in and getting outside refuge to feed. We shot birds over the weekend and shot 17 in our new field on Wednesday. With the rain now, it'll be a while before farmers get back in fields.

Got a busy weekend of hunting coming up so hopefully weather holds out and we kill a pile of them

Goose Hunting Report - 10/12/09

2009-10-12T16:34:00.000-07:00

Had a good past weekend hunting. On Saturday we shot 10 birds and on Sunday we shot 14. Both days we hunted hamburger hill.

We're seeing more birds show up daily not a huge migration, but a lot of calender geese. We expect with the cold temps that will continue. We still have some room for MEA this weekend.

Crop cutting will be on standstill for a few days due to snow and rain, but we have four fields ready to hunt as of Tuesday.

Crops Starting to Come Out

2009-10-01T16:00:00.000-07:00

As of today we have three bean fields that have come out and two of them are already holding birds. Season opens Saturday at 9:00 a.m.

Looking forward to another great year!. We added 3 new fields in key locations which will give us more options on places to hunt.

Remember we have a split this year first season ends December 11th and reopens December 19th for ten days.

We're taking reservations for the upcoming season. We're doing duck hunts in Missouri and Arkansas and booking spring snow goose hunts starting in February.

Dean Tlougan and Premier Flight Staff

Premier Flight on Facebook

2009-08-24T11:06:00.001-07:00

Premier Flight is now on Facebook!

Do a quick search for Premier Flight Guide Service and you will find our page. Become a fan and suggest it to your friends. We will be posting our blog updates on the Facebook page this season. You may even see us updating the page with photos in real time - from the fields!

The season starts in just 12 days!

2009 waterfowl season

2009-08-12T17:55:00.000-07:00

Well another season is approaching fast.We finally got a split season again which will give us some great hunting opportunities.

Early season starts Sept. 5th ends Sept. 22nd, regular season starts October 3rd to December 11th and reopens on 19th until the 28th. We picked up three new quality fields this year that we're excited about. Rochester is offering a early 5 bird limit that's new for us this year also.

Start making your reservations know to assure the days you want to hunt. Look forward to hearing from longtime clients and new ones, make this the year you go on a guided goose hunt.

Snow goose update

2009-03-13T15:47:00.000-07:00

The snow goose season has been as good as anticipated we're taking advantage of the great hatch we had this year.We have one more week in Missouri and will be starting in South Dakota this coming Thursday.Birds are starting to get into Yankton and surrounding areas so timing should be great.Still have limited spots left for spring hunt in S.D. so give us a call and make your reservation.

snow geese have arrived in Missouri

2009-02-22T18:24:00.000-08:00

With the big warm up a week ago the snow geese have showed up in big numbers the guides are telling me it's the most geese they've seen there at one time in years.The hunting has been excellent guys are getting a lot of shooting and seeing tons of birds.Days that are warmer with good winds have been the best hunting.We had a cool weekend that brought are numbers down slightly but still some good shoots.We have a warm up coming so be prepared for some awesome hunting.We still have some weekday spots open in Missouri,should be there until middle of March.

Dean Tlougan and Premier flight staff

Happy New Year!

2009-01-02T09:54:00.001-08:00

Happy New Year from us at Premier Flight to all of you!

Hunt safe in 2009!

Record year for Premier Flight

2008-12-24T12:36:00.000-08:00

Well after a long season we're wrapping things up in Rochester. In review Premier set another single season record killing 1423 birds. The harsh weather at the end the season didn't help sending most of the birds packing south.

This is the first season I can remember that this many birds had left town mostly because silver lakes turbine was down and didn't keep the water open in which the birds that migrated late just kept going.

I would like to thank everyone who made it down this year, even with the economy in the toilet hopefully that will improve. We're focusing on our spring snow goose hunts in Missouri and south Dakota. We will start up Feb 10Th and end around April 10Th still have space available for both states.

Dean Tlougan and Premier Flight Staff

Minnesota Late Goose Season 12/13 - 12/22

2008-12-08T13:09:00.000-08:00

The Minnesota Late Goose season is set to begin in another 5 days and we are ready to go!

There's a very important reminder if you come to Rochester to hunt the late goose season.

-- You must purchase and carry a Late Season Goose Permit. It's a $4 that you must have in order to hunt the December season. We are checked by Game Wardens all the time so have it with you.

Watch Babe Winkelman Shoot Geese With Premier Flight

2008-12-05T14:10:00.000-08:00

Watch Babe Winkelman shoot Canada and Snow Geese with us Online!

What better way to while away the office hours while no-one is looking?

http://www.goosegrinders.com/winkleman_guiding.html

Snow on the Ground!

2008-12-01T15:55:00.000-08:00

We ended up with a great weekend of hunting, we shot 63 birds on Saturday in 8 different fields.

The birds are hitting most of our fields now. Shot 35 on Sunday with the arrival of fresh snow. With the grass being covered up the birds have to come out to eat, that's what we have been waiting for.

We shot another 23 today with minimal hunters.

The time is right if you are thinking about a Rochester Guided Goose Hunt.

Dean Tlougan and Premier Flight Staff

Goose Hunting Report - 11/24/08

2008-11-24T15:46:00.000-08:00

Hunting has been very consistant the birds aren't flying heavy in mornings most of them going to grass.The evenings have been far better which is a trend I hope ends soon.We are killing birds that are transferring from bodies of water to grass, but evenings there going into grain fields.We shot 51 birds on Saturday and 28 on Sunday.Great time to book a hunt from now until end of season.With the north wind today I saw several migrating birds with many more to come.

Goose Hunting Report - 11/16/08

2008-11-18T07:24:00.000-08:00

The ponds are frozen, the ducks are nearly gone but the geese are in the area!

There are a ton of geese in the area right now and we're having good success putting birds on the ground. The migrating birds have seen just about everything at this point in the season so our presentation really has to be right to get them into range. We're setting our best dekes out in front and taking our time calling the birds. It's easy to over call and blow them out of the spread at this time of year so everything has to be right.

We had multiple sightings of greater Canadian geese mixed in the flocks this weekend and we killed one greater in a field to the north of Rochester. There's nothing quite like hearing a 20-plus pound honker hitting the ground!

We're in full swing of the season down here! Call Dean today to set up a hunt.

Good migration over weekend

2008-11-11T17:41:00.000-08:00

Little late on report this week had to do some deer hunting. Hunting has been excellent shot 23 on Saturdays and 35 on Sunday. Tuesday we had 3 three groups out and everybody shot their limit. Ended the day with 41. One of the fields got a flock of 12 in and shot 10! Not bad for a bunch of rookies from Tennessee.

Hunting has been great and should continue to be.

Dean Tlougan and Premier Flight staff

Goose Hunting Report - 11/09/08

2008-11-11T07:41:00.000-08:00

We saw a big migration of birds over the weekend with the cold weather pushing them south. Our guided hunters had no problem on Saturday and Sunday - shooting limits and near limits from our fields on the west side of town.

Our unguided hunters had mixed success. Every team of hunters saw a lot of birds but hunting success was mixed. Teams on the north side of town had a hard time finishing birds into shooting distance.

The birds in Rochester are plenty - but they're also plenty wary of hunters at this point in the season. It takes a team of highly-experienced callers to bring them all the way striking distance.

Contact Dean today for a guided goose hunt. Not only will you shoot birds, but you will learn a lot from listening to the guides working the geese all the way to the ground.

Minnesota Snow Geese Building in Numbers

2008-11-11T07:30:00.000-08:00

It's official, the snow goose migration has started. Shallow ponds and small lakes are freezing up throughout Canada and the northern states. Now we are hearing multiple reports of snow geese around Western Minnesota and Eastern South Dakota.

From the 11/06/08 Minnesota DNR Waterfowl Migration Report:

Tamarac NWR:
A flock of 35 snow geese were noted flying over the refuge earlier in the week.

Slayton:
Noticed a few snow geese have moved into the area along with a trickling of mallards and a few swans. Maintaining good goose numbers.

We're still shooting Canadian Honkers around Rochester but the snow geese are heavy on our minds. We already have a good number of hunters booked for the spring hunts. Contact Dean soon to lock in your weekend in Missouri and South Dakota.

New Snow Goose Hunting Pages

2008-11-06T20:56:00.000-08:00

We try hard to continue building the informative content of our website. It's not just about taking clients out on a guide hunt for us - we also want you to learn about what we do so you can do it yourself down the road!

Today we posted the following snow goose hunting pages to our snow goose area:

What to wear
Information about the spring snow goose flocks
A bit about our snow goose guides
Our strategy behind the hunt

The geese are flying south but we are already thinking about spring hunts. Give us a call and talk with Dean about a spring trip to South Dakota.

Goose Hunting Report - 11/03/08

2008-11-04T17:50:00.000-08:00

With the temps on the rise we surprisingly had good weekend of hunting. We shot 16 birds on sat and 19 on Sunday. Today I took 4 hunters out west and shot limit in 30 minutes.

Looks like we got cold front coming in over weekend which we'll embrace with open arms. Should bring in more new birds.

Dean Tlougan and Premier Flight staff

Snow Goose Report

2008-10-31T12:46:00.000-07:00

The Minnesota DNR 2008 Migration Report is reporting numbers of snow geese entering northern Minnesota. We are always happy to see Canada freeze up as it pushes these birds south.

A good-solid freeze is our first chance to look at the 2008 / 2009 snow goose migration. According to their reports:

Thief River Falls:

"There still remain a large number of (Canada) geese but they are in very large groups (40-100) and have been observed field feeding in harvested soybean fields. Some snow geese are in the area as well."

Thief Lake WMA:

"Some geese (mostly Canadas, but still some snows) are present and a few are being taken in the CHZ."

This is all good news to us. It's a little early to get too worked up about the spring snow goose hunts but we can't help it. Early migrations of snow geese means the tundra ponds are freezing over but more than likely it also means that the snows are eating themselves out of the area. That means good numbers for our hunters in South Dakota next spring.

We'll keep you posted but in the mean time, we suggest calling Dean now to put your name on a trip now. We're starting to fill up hunts and you don't want to miss out on this year.

Goose Hunting Report - 10/30/08

2008-10-30T17:33:00.000-07:00

We hunted hamburger hill today the first time in 4 days. We're trying to let birds get in there so we can have more productive days in future. We shot 14 birds today, just short of limit but a quality hunt.

Everybody agreed if we shot a little better we easily would of filled out our limits of geese. Birds are coming out of refuge more often and that is creating good opportunities to harvest birds.

Dean Tlougan and Premier Flight staff

Goose Hunting Report - 10/27/08

2008-10-27T18:00:00.000-07:00

We had 3 unguided hunters today and they were successful shooting 4 birds. Birds were sluggish in morning but flew well in afternoon. The hunting has certainly picked up this last week, great time to get down and enjoy a hunt.

Dean Tlougan and Premier Flight Staff

The First Snow Goose Hunting Report of 2008/2009!

2008-10-27T07:33:00.000-07:00

Friends of ours spent the weekend hunting geese in in North Dakota over the weekend and saw the first Snow Geese of the season!

They were completely surprised when a small flock of juvenile snow geese buzzed their decoys in morning.

We already have our preliminary South Dakota Snow Goose Hunting leases established and we are ready to start chasing the spring flocks. We will start in Missouri around February 20th and then follow the birds up into South Dakota as the weather allows them to move north.

We had a successful year in 2008, including a great weekend trip hunting snow geese with Babe Winkelman and his wife Kris.

Contact us today to sign up for a 2009 hunt.

Duck and Goose Hunting Report - 10/27/2008

2008-10-27T07:19:00.000-07:00

A heavy front blew into the area Saturday night and it really stirred the pot for Sunday morning hunts. The forecast was for winds out of the NW at 20-30 MPH with gusts to 50 MPH - snow flurries were possible.

Mississippi River Ducks:

Two of our hunters chased ducks in the Mississippi River valley to the East of Rochester. They saw a LOT of ducks but the success rate was low for the entire area. Birds were flying fast in the wind and they weren't slowing down for decoys. Only 3 ducks were taken by the 16 hunters we spoke to at the Winona landing.

Rochester Geese - morning:

Hunters in 2 fields had mixed success, taking a few birds. We hunted through high winds and snow flurries and the conditions were tough. The birds didn't fly in large numbers so we had few opportunities.

Rochester Geese - afternoon:

We will occasionally hunt the afternoon if the morning hunts are tough. Sunday was a good example of a tough morning. By afternoon the wind had subsided into the 15 MPH range and the heavy snow had calmed to a light dusting.

Birds started streaming out of town at about 2pm and the return flight occurred at 5pm. We saw hundreds and hundreds of birds streaming out to feed before dark.

Goose Hunting Report - 10/26/08

2008-10-27T07:11:00.000-07:00

There are a lot of new birds in the area and we saw our fair share!

Saturday was clear and windy the entire day. We weren't sure what to expect with the cold, clear skies but it proved to be a successful day. We didn't quite know which way the birds would fly in the morning so we divided 25 hunters across 4 fields and hoped for good fortune.

We killed 44 birds and missed a lot more before we wrapped it up mid-morning. It was a good day for so many hunters in the field!

Canadian Goose Hunting Video

2008-10-24T14:28:00.000-07:00

Join Bill Urseth and Trevor Goudy in a late season hunt for a giant Canadian goose in Rochester, MN.

We guided Bill and Trevor on a late season hunt were they had all the opportunities for giant Canadian geese that we could throw at them. Before you watch the video, we suggest you pay special attention to the calling of the guys in the pits. They can really put the birds in your lap.

Watch the video here:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FNnCPckIfHo

Goose Hunting Report - 10/23/08

2008-10-23T16:09:00.000-07:00

We had 6 people out today and had a great day of goose hunting. We had several small flocks come in and had our 12 bird limits by 8:30.

We are seeing a substantial increase of birds that moved in, and birds moving outside the refuge. The temperature is going to drop over weekend and the geese will have to increase their consumption of food, good news for us hunters.

Dean Tlougan and Premier Flight Staff

Harvest back on track

2008-10-20T14:54:00.000-07:00

After a slow start the farmers are going at the harvest at a good clip now.Hamburger hill is on track to get cut on thursday.Hunting over weekend was a little slow due to warm temps and lack of wind.Did see new birds come in today with north wind.We had three hunters in fergus today they shot their birds pretty easy.

Dean Tlougan and Premier Flight staff

Duck Hunting Report - 10/18/08

2008-10-20T07:51:00.001-07:00

Two of our hunters ventured away from the Rochester basin on Saturday to chase ducks in the rivers just East of Rochester, Minnesota. The goose hunting in the Rochester area has been strong but the duck hunting has been hit or miss in the fields.

A cold front last week supposedly pushed the teal and wood ducks out of the area. The cold marked an arrival of early wigeon, mallards and ringnecks to southern Minnesota.

Two of us decided to take advantage of the early migration and chase puddle ducks in the marsh.

Weather:

The weather created some obstacles for us. The wind was calm and the temperature at day break was just below the freezing mark, which combined for a nice frost. As the morning warmed, the frost cleared, and a heavy fog set into the valley. Visibility went from darkness, to blue skies, to a fog so thick that we couldn't see the outer decoys.

The Decoy Spread:

We set up on a small 8 x 60 foot island in the backwater weave of the river. We set a dozen mallard decoys in the shallow current at the head of the island. A half dozen more mallard decoys went into the slack water behind the island. We sprinkled in additional pintail, wood duck, teal, feeder butts, shaker mags, and 2 Mojo mallard decoys throughout the spread.

We hid in the thin river willows so that we could shoot either side of the island with the west wind was coming in from the current side. The ideal situation would have put our backs to the wind but in a marsh hunt sometimes you have to make do.

Hunting Report:

The migration report was incorrect for the area. Wood ducks were gone but there was a huge variety of ducks. The day quickly became a lesson in duck identification through the fog. We saw blue wing teal, green wing teal, mallards, ringnecks, wigeon, canvasbacks, and geese.

Daybreak produced multiple flocks of ducks within the first hour of legal shooting time. The first group to commit was a wary set of wigeons. They shopped our decoys for a minute first going to the rear, then the front, and then the rear. We called and whistled to them as they circled front and rear. Finally they passed behind us, turned, and locked up their wings to buzz 10 feet over our heads. They came in with wings locked, feet down and to land in our laps.

The drake fell hard into the river and Gracie, the female yellow lab, made a nice retrieve.

Four more ducks fell to the water during the first hour and then the fog set in. For three hours it was all we could do to watch the decoys and keep track of the dogs. There was nothing we could do but eat snacks and wait it out.

Eventually the sun warmed the air, the wind picked up and the fog began to clear. Two green wing teal hens marked the arrival of a 2nd shooting time by landing in the decoys. They both found their way into the bag.

The sun eventually burned through and the birds came back. We took a few more birds and killed the final green wing teal at 1:30 in the afternoon.

We were a few shy of the 12-duck limit with a variety of birds. Included in the bag were mallard, green wing teal, ringnecks, and wigeon.

A Snow Goose Tornado in South Dakota

2008-10-15T23:31:00.000-07:00

We get asked all the time, "What's so great about snow goose hunting?"

The answer is simply, "Have you ever watched a snow goose tornado?"

There's no way to answer that question without bringing up the topic of a true snow goose tornado. In an effort to describe what we mean by a true "tornado" we have taken a few pictures and written some text to go along with it.

The pictures you see are real photos taken by one of our hunters during a real live snow goose tornado during one of our South Dakota hunts. The first birds of this very group of birds slid through the Vortex machine and locked their feet at 6 feet off the ground.

Some of them didn't survive the experience!

New Products Added to the Site

2008-10-12T14:46:00.001-07:00

We are proud to announce our latest addition to the GooseGrinders.com website - GooseGrinder Gear

Our full line of t-shirts, hoodies and instructional CD/DVDs are now available.

Please take a minute to peruse our products and contact us for purchase.

Crop Harvest Behind Schedule

2008-10-10T10:25:00.000-07:00

As of today beans are a little over half harvested and to find a corn field cut would be hard to find.We have a corn field getting cut this weekend that should help us out.With a full moon coming on the 14th I'm expecting a good push of new birds.Most birds are eating in refuge right know,but with an increase of birds they'll eat it out fairly quick.still space available to book hunts.our season runs until december 22nd.Look forward to hearing from new clients and all past clients,should be a great year.

Dean Tlougan and Premier Flight Staff

Successful Minnesota Duck Hunting Season Opener

2008-10-09T17:50:00.000-07:00

Water levels are hit or miss around SE Minnesota but there are plenty of ducks in the area. The MN DNR reports for Winona states: "Unusually good numbers of wigeon around, large rafts of coot, good numbers of wood ducks and teal. "

Our hunters in SE Minnesota reported excellent numbers of ducks in the area with good success of Wood Ducks and Blue Wing Teal on Sunday.

Two of our hunters reported limits of Wood Ducks while hunting Wednesday with geese and mallards in the bag.

This year we will continue to offer mixed hunts of Canada Goose and duck hunting out of the Rochester area. We had good success last year and we expect great things in our new fields ths year!

Goose Season Is Here!

2008-10-09T17:45:00.000-07:00

The season has started with a bang with good numbers of geese being shot.

We had decent success during the early Goose season in Rochester. Now the regular season has begun and we are already taking birds. The weather has been mild and dry.

The MN DNR reports:

"Crop harvest is just beginning. Soybeans are 5-10% harvested. Some corn is being chopped for silage. "

We have access to our old standby fields. Plenty of private access is available so we will be set up in the path of feeding geese.

Come on down to Rochester for an amazing hunt!

game fair coming soon

2008-06-19T18:27:00.000-07:00

We'll be at game fair coming up august 8th thru 10th and august 15th to 17th.Stop and visit us and make reservations for upcoming season.Some new fields have been added we're excited to add these to our long list of fields.Still have openings for early season hunts in sept.hope to see you there.

Dean Tlougan and Premier Flight staff

Snow Geese in Lake Preston

2008-03-25T17:39:00.000-07:00

March 23rd we saw huge migration into lake Preston area.Even though we have alot of ice on the lakes, birds are finding water on edges and runoff areas.we've been shooting decent number of birds but expect it to get better everyday.With the delay of spring we'll be extending our stay in s.d. at least until 15th of april.Still time to book a hunt and get into some great shooting.I can be reached on cell 507-261-2072.

Dean Tlougan and Premier Flight Staff

South Dakota hunts are starting tuesday

2008-03-16T17:53:00.000-07:00

As of march 13th there was a good movement of birds into lake thompson area.Temps are to stay in mid 30's.That we'll keep birds around searching for open water.Talked to our farmers they told me birds were feeding in surrounding fields.We're doing a T.V. show with Babe Winkelmam starting tuesday looking forward to a GREAT HUNT.still have some dates open best to call on cell 507-261-2072.

Premier Flight Staff

Record year for Premier Flight

2007-12-25T05:20:00.000-08:00

Yes, it took until last day but we did it. shot 1330 birds outdoing last years 1325.Thanks to all that participated in this 2007 season,hope to see you all next year.On behalf of Premier Flight staff , I would like to thank you and wish you a safe holiday season.It's time to start thinking of spring snow goose hunts.They'll be starting Feb 2nd in missouri and around march 15th in south dakota.Still have dates available,so give us a call and we'll help you arrange everything.

Dean Tlougan and Premier Flight staff

Late Season

2007-12-16T15:27:00.000-08:00

Late season has started,not a great 1st day but made up for it onsaturday and sunday.We shot 79 on sat and 87 on sun.Birds are rolling time to get your last bang in for the year.We're open until sunday the 23rd.

Dean Tlougan and staff

huge migration

2007-12-03T17:57:00.000-08:00

On sunday I witnessed one of the largest one day migration I have ever seen.Birds piled in to rochester flock after flock.We shot 89 birds on saturday and another 65 on sunday.9 guys shot there 18 today.If your thinking about hunting we're open until friday dec 7th reopen dec 14th until 23rd.hope to here from you.

Dean Tlougan and Premier Flight Staff

honkers are here

2007-11-26T16:47:00.000-08:00

wow! what a differance a little weather makes.we've shot 180 geese in the past 6 days and the geese are showing up in large numbers.If your thinking of booking hunt the time is now.With continued cold weather in the forecast hunting will continue to be awesome.Still dates avaiable now and for late season.Come shoot some honkers in rochester 1st season ends dec 7th reopen dec 14th until dec 23rd.

Dean Tlougan and Premier Flight staff

goose hunting getting hot in rochester

2007-11-13T16:25:00.000-08:00

We're finally starting to see large amounts of birds showing up in the metro and rochester.Birds are coming out of refuge on daily basis now,and the hunting has been excellant.Time to get hunting is know,book your guided or unguided trip today.

Dean Tlougan and Premier flight staff

Goose hunting report

2007-10-30T18:12:00.000-07:00

We're starting to see better push of birds come into state.Rochester is seeing a good push of birds.We're getting birds breaking the refuge line more consistently,providing some great hunting opportunities.Still got a few fields not cut but making good progress.Book your hunts know to ensure the dates you wanted.Look forward to hunting with you soon.

Dean Tlougan and Premier Flight staff

hunting is starting out with a bang

2007-10-08T17:21:00.000-07:00

Even with the warm temps we're seeing good migration coming into the state.most of our fields have been harvested including hamburger hill.we're taking out small groups and having excellant results.good time to book your hunt now for this fall.also we're taking bookings for spring snows.hope to hear from you soon.

Dean Tlougan and Premier Flight Staff

Premier Flight Appears on Babe Winkleman

2007-09-18T14:13:00.000-07:00

We were proud to host Babe Winkleman and his daughter Karlee on a Rochester Canadian Goose hunt. The show has been airing throughout the midwest during the months of August and September.

Read the article on Babe's website and catch the show when it airs in your area.

Good opener

2007-09-09T17:39:00.000-07:00

For the most part opener was a little slow but we did enjoy a flock of 13 in our face and killed 7. Second weekend brought better hunting weather, we did have much better succcess and did bag a couple limits. We have until the 22nd to hunt these local birds with the 5 bird limit. Regular season starts on sept 29th and runs until dec 7th.

Thanks Dean

Early Goose season hunts starts Sept. 1st

2007-08-28T10:18:00.000-07:00

Early season goose hunts are upon us. We are looking forward to opening Sept. 1st and we still have dates availiable so call soon to book spots. There is a 5 bird limit on early goose hunts from Sept 1st to 21st.

New Website Design!

2007-08-23T21:37:00.000-07:00

We are really excited to have a new website this year. Our team has put a lot of effort into the site and we hope you like it!

Please email us with your comments!

Pre-season preparation

2007-08-17T14:03:00.001-07:00

With the warm temperatures that we have received early this summer, the crops in our fields are starting to look really good. There is more corn planted this year than we have ever seen so barring any disasters from mother nature we should have an awesome fall season. It's never too early to start thinking about the fall hunting plans. From all reports that we have seen there was a good nesting conditions across Canada so we should see some liberal limits and a regular season again this fall.

Game fair is just around the corner in Anoka and this year will be back for all 6 days of the show. We hope you will take the time to stop by and visit us at this year's Game Fair. We have begun to take reservations for the early season hunts in the Fergus Falls and Twin Cities Metro area. There continues to be an abundance of local geese so these hunts should be a lot of fun. Call early to get the dates you want for this early season action.

We look forward to hearing from you soon and providing you a safe and enjoyable hunt.

C'ya down the road,

Lil' Goslin

Our first Blog Entry!

2007-08-17T13:57:00.001-07:00

Welcome to our new hunting report area! We are very excited to start hunting this year, we are preparing fields and looking forward to the season.

Contact us now for the early season goose hunts!