Posted: 7/21/2026 1:23:51 PM EDT
[Last Edit: Boognish][Edited]
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I was considering giving some public lands a try this dove season. My son is getting to the age where he can go with me and wants to hunt. What has been your experience like? I am considering the spots around granger lake and Holland as that’s a fairly easy drive for me. I definitely am not going opening weekend and would probably try to go during the week later in the season. I don’t have dogs or a boat. Is it worth trying? Are you able to go onto the properties outside of season just to see what they are like (and not hunt). Any advice is appreciated. Also I don’t mind driving a bit as long as there is camping nearby (I’m in the south Austin area). I looked at drawn hunts too. It seems very unlikely to get one since there are only a few spots and hundreds to thousands of applicants for some hunts. Thanks! |
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I’ve participated in the public land dove hunt the last three seasons at various locations in north Texas and central Texas. Most days were take my shot gun for a walk and not see anything to shoot at experiences. Some days maybe shoot a few times at birds and take home 1-2 birds if I was on point. One day last year I ran out of shotgun shells and had to go back to the truck to get more and ended up limiting out by 9 am. It’s a good excuse to get out, see new areas, get some steps in and enjoy the outdoors. It also is cheap at $48 bucks a year. I avoid opening weekend, it’s way too crowded and I’d rather pay to hunt private land with less pressure if many folks crammed in on opening day. On public land Light comes about and you see a hunter stationed every 20-30 yards along a fence line and everyone has an individual mojo dove or decoy spread setup. That many mojo dove in a field looks silly. Further one dove will fly down the fence line and about a dozen shotguns a will empty. Wear eye protection, you will get peppered opening day. |
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I did it for a few years here and there. My experiance is it was very crowded but mostly ok for about a week and after thqt the extreme pressure push the birds away to other areas. Also the lands are mostly leased farm fields and they do not do anything based on the hunt season so it's possible they cut and bail or cut and clear what ever is being grown too far ahead of opening or too quick after so there is nothing to attract the birds. They are managing the fields for their crops and harvest and not for the dove season so sometimes there are no birds despite it being a "dove field". I did have some good days on public dove fields however, but know your season will likely be quite short unless you know a lot of different fields to go to, public and private. |
| Thanks for the tips. Yeah, I was thinking that this would be something I'd try later in the season, or maybe even during the winter season during the week where it's not as crowded. Sounds like it might be hit or miss. I might scout out a couple of areas to see what it's like. Looks like if I camp at one of the parks along Granger Lake that would be a good location to check out a few spots. There are spots along the lake as well as a few within an hour or so drive from there. |
Touched by the Fickle Finger of Fate!
Joined:
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TX, USA
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I hunt at the LBJ Grasslands when I hunt. There are days I never see another person, especially during the week. Of course that also means no pressure on the birds to move. The best time to hunt is when a cold front pushes the birds down from Nebraska and Kansas. If they don't fly go fishing. I was taught by dad as a kid in the ‘60s that we take fishing poles when we dove hunt. |
Getting old ain’t for sissies.
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I've hunted Granger in the past, my first experience was right after an entire week of rain and I pretty much hunted a swamp. I did get birds. Not as much as I would over a cultivated field, but I did get some shots in. Granger is not very well known and a pain for some folks to get to. Wait a week and then go on a workday. There will only be a couple people about. |
| Thanks y'all. I might try Granger here in a couple of weeks. Also I didn't think about LBJ Grasslands--I was looking at where that is and I actually have family not too far from there. Might be a good place to check out during the winter season around Christmas time. Appreciate all the tips! |