Guided Canada geese and duck hunt with Michel La Haye

CANADA GOOSE HUNTING

The 2022 – 23 hunting season will start soon, at the moment the opening date for the duck is expected to be September 24 as the goose hunting pre-season is not yet known. Watch my Facebook page or contact our team directly at 613-677-1705 for an update. This year, we plan to make several outings at the end of the season (mid-December to mid-January) for the duck dive on the Ottawa River.

Hunting Canada geese is the one that fascinates Michel La Haye the most. The service is based on facts, technique and the experience acquired over 30 years to bring you action within shooting range, at least 8 to 10 groups of birds in the effective shooting zone, nothing less. You will hunt comfortably SEATED in our “A” blinds. YES ! with Sauvagine Michel La Haye, you don't have to freeze like hell in a lay down like caches.

QUOTAS - REGULATORY CHANGE CONCERNING GOOSE IN QUEBEC AND ONTARIO:

The daily catch quota for Canada geese will probably be maintained at three catches/day for the month of October 2023 in Ontario (two in Quebec). I hear and I see a lot of frustration, however the trend observed for several years is heavy, even considering the uncertainties surrounding the estimates of breeding pairs, a clear drop in their number has been observed in northern Quebec as well as the success of breeding. Entire territories seem to have been abandoned by geese in Quebec last season. In Eastern Ontario things seem less serious and justify a lesser reduction in daily quotas than in Quebec, a clear advantage for you if you come hunting on our side (if you are from Québec)! Instead of ranting against the planners, have a long-term vision, remember the 90s when such restrictions in the taking were put in place for similar reasons but also the extraordinary boom of these populations which followed those lean years! In the 2000s, it was raining geese, they will come back if a conservation effort is deployed and if the waterfowlers show a good spirit of collaboration.

To compensate for the decrease in the daily goose catch quota in October, i.e. 3 instead of 5 per hunter, we allow hunters to harvest the quotas of the two guides. For example, for a group of 5 people, the possibility of harvest goes from 15 to 21, or 4 less than the normal quota of 25 geese.

HUNTING PUDDLE DUCKS IN THE RIVER

The Sauvaginemlh team invites you to come and hunt puddle ducks in the small privately owned rivers of Eastern Ontario. Hunted river sections are used for two purposes by ducks, as a morning feeding area and as a daytime roost. Indeed, the dabblers will use these sites while waiting to return to feed at the end of the afternoon to avoid having to return to the Ottawa River located several km further. This behavior therefore allows us to have two passes in the morning, one at dusk and another later in the morning, which greatly increases the chances of harvesting the daily quotas allowed (6 ducks/hunter).

DIVING DUCK HUNTING - ST. LAWRENCE RIVER AND LAKE ONTARIO

Sauvaginemlh offer you an exciting hunt for diving and sea ducks at the end of the season in the St. Lawrence River below Cornwall and the mouth of Lake Ontario. A safe boat approved floating caches and two experienced guides will take you on exceptional hunting adventures in the magnificent landscapes of our beautiful river in complete safety and in excellent company. These images will remain etched in your memory for a long time, be sure.

YOUR GUIDE

My name is Michel La Haye, the chief guide of Sauvagine MLH and I have more than 30 years of experience as a waterfowl hunting guide. Among other professions, I have been a fish biologist since 1986 and a commercial fisherman since 1993. Owning my own environmental consulting firm (Enviro Science et Faune), I have always worked as a consultant, mainly specializing in the study of the spawning of whitewater species (in the spring) including, in particular, the lake sturgeon. For lack of obtaining enough mandates in this field and always finishing all my reports before the fall, I started the job of waterfowl hunting guide under the recommendation of one of my Déry uncles on the fire side my mother Nicole (who were my waterfowl hunting mentors). Indeed, this uncle always told me: “when you go out alone, you almost always bring your limits back, why not guide people to ducks or bustards? And that's how his passion for guiding waterfowl began, whether it's Canada geese, surface ducks or divers and snow geese. The very first outing was... pigeons with a group of hunters from the region of Saint-Jean-sur-Richelieu, my native land, then ducks in the fields, on the water and then the goose. Hunting bustards (geese or Canada geese) is the one that fascinates me the most, especially since 1994 when I discovered eastern Ontario and its many fishing resources. It was also at this time that I started making my own goose calls. Today, the scarcity of experienced aquatic biologists and my reputation in this field means that the demand is very high. However, I still prefer to prepare the caches in “A” each August, repaint my decoys one by one and make the rounds of my farmer friends. Less lucrative than biology and requiring much more effort, the bustard and duck hunting guide service that I offer brings me much more satisfaction, and this, on several levels that go far beyond simple gain. and pecuniary aspect of this activity!

A LITTLE BIT OF TECHNIQUE

You will find below, some photos and videos taken during our hunts. They will know how to persuade you to trust us regarding the success of the hunt, the safety during these activities and your comfort.

Regarding hunting success, we cannot guarantee the limits, it would be a dishonest practice that other such services use too often. Our service is based on the facts of the technique and the experience acquired over 30 years to bring you action within shooting range, i.e. at least 8 to 10 groups of birds in the effective shooting zone, nothing less . This is what we guarantee on every release. As for reaching the limits, it largely depends on the talent of the shooters and their performance than just our goose hunting guide service. However, we take a host of precautions to ensure a great bustard hunting trip with lots of action. For example, we never hunt two consecutive days in the same field (nor in the same sector). We have some 3,500 acres of land reserved for our use and we always provide an impeccable prospecting and preparation effort. An important statistic, we managed 112 complete goose hunting boards between 2016 and 2018 with only 4 outings without complete limits last year (between 9 and 14 geese harvested out of a possibility of 25), who says better? Another example of the professionalism of our hunting service, if the weather or hunting conditions do not lend themselves to an outing with a good probability of success, or if drastic changes in these conditions affect the hunt in progress, we we advise our customers or we discuss it on site, and, if there is consensus, the release is simply postponed! No question of spending endless hours waiting for geese for nothing in the field. An earlier return home or an invitation to your family for a short outing to the local restaurant for lunch are guarantees of future "loose airs" of hunting, so why waste time in the field or on the water?

Safety is a subject treated with the utmost importance in our waterfowl guiding service, whether it is a field trip or a waterway trip. Before each start of the hunt, my guide partner, Sylvain Lamade, and I take the time to explain the safety rules relating to each stage of the hunt. Drugs, alcohol, other narcotics, dangerous behavior and refusal to follow safety instructions are NEVER tolerated, in any way, the safety of all participants in the outing is at stake.

Your comfort is very important to us. We know waterfowlers are tough, this sport demands it at the start. However, hunters who are uncomfortable and in an unstable shooting position always have a poorer shot and they have great difficulty anticipating their target. We would like to point out that you will be hunting comfortably SEATED in our “A” blinds. YES ! with Waterfowl MLH, you don't have to freeze your loins in tomb-like caches. With our goose guiding services in Ontario, we provide you with a unique, safe and exciting waterfowl hunting experience. I designed these caches in 1994 while guiding in the Cornwall area with my good friend Ronald Proulx from C.R. Sport in Dorion (see photo below). I have not stopped perfecting them since, from two simple panels partially hiding the hunters in 1994, the caches we use today have become real “bunkers” and completely hide the hunters. They offer an impeccable view of the action through a semi-transparent panel that tilts when the hunters get up, this is an undeniable advantage for the hunters who are then in an excellent position to fire.

SMALL GAME HUNTING LICENSES FOR NON-ONTARIO RESIDENTS

You must obtain a Small Game Hunting Permit for non-residents of Ontario. If you have an Ontario Outdoors Card, you can buy it online with the following link https://www.ontario.ca/fr/page/permis-de-hunting-non-residents -de-ontario, if not, follow these procedures. If you can travel within Ontario, these permits are available at select Canadian Tire and all Service Ontario locations. If not, we have entered into an agreement with the Ontario government to obtain your card and license. You must complete and return the attached form with an original Quebec hunting license, not a scan or photocopy, as an official document from the Government of Quebec proving that you have successfully completed a firearms handling course. fire. As everywhere in Canada, you also have your federal migratory bird hunting permit.

HUNTING DURATION AND GUARANTEE

The duck or goose hunting trip normally only lasts the morning because the guarantee of success is often reached during this period. We cannot guarantee the limits, it depends too much, as said before, on your skills and the quality of your weapons, ammunition etc. what we guarantee, is at least eight flocks of birds well placed above the decoys within range. This applies for two-thirds of the season. Passed November 10-12, it often happens that the barnacles come out in small groups throughout the day if not at the very last minute when the sun goes down. In this case, the hunt will last from one sun to another. Spare and warm clothes as well as a sturdy lunch are then in order.

AMMO AND CHOKE

I recommend a medium choke (modified choke) with bead size #4 for duck and bead size #2 for Canada geese which will evolve to size #1 towards the end of the season.

ARRIVING TIME

The conditions being variable, we will have to confirm by telephone the time and place to meet to start the hunt.

COVID

Regarding COVID 19, we will adjust our techniques to comply with the instructions of the health services and offer you A SAFE HUNTING ENVIRONMENT! We will put in place all the precautions required to comply with the Covid-19 social distancing and anti-pandemic hygiene instructions.

In the event of a case of force majeure preventing the outing from taking place, the deposits (50% of the amount of the hunt) will be returned or given back if no other agreement is agreed between us as required by the various regulations governing this commercial area. . This year however, given the many last minute cancellations in 2019, the deposit of 50% of the amount of the hunt for reservation one month or more in advance will be mandatory to reserve your places: no deposit = no outing :-)