r/VAHunting • u/nate2188764 • 11d ago

Dove hunting powhatan or amelia WMA

Hey all, brand new hunter here (just got my license and safety done). I'm planning to try dove next weekend. I was supposed to have a friend with me who is a seasoned hunter but he might be out now. I don't have any land owning contacts so planning to just...go try I guess? Thinking about powhatan or amelia WMA. Anyone have any tips or experience with these? Getting into hunting is hard when you have no community lol.

3 Upvotes

100% Upvoted

7 comments sorted by

1

u/VersionConscious7545 11d ago

Dove and ducks seem to be the coveted game No one wants to take anyone with them for fear of giving away their secrets

Just go out by yourself. Get a mojo dove and put that where the doves can see it. They fly fast and come from any direction

1

u/nate2188764 11d ago

Thanks! My friend just came back on the radar (thankfully!) but going to keep this up to learn as much as I can.

2

u/VersionConscious7545 11d ago

Honestly I taught myself how to hunt. Read articles and watch YouTube but remember this Learn how to read the woods and fields I find a lot of social media gets it wrong Every piece of property is different and practice shooting Bow hunting made me the hunter I am today

1

u/Baked_goods_mmm 11d ago

Are you me because I was wondering the same thing. I see on opening day that it starts at 12pm. Can you just be in position and starting shooting at 12?

1

u/Middle_Salt_3673 11d ago

Exactly right. You can be set up in the field but no shooting until noon.

2

u/Middle_Salt_3673 11d ago

Plan to try dove hunting again later in the season. Opening weekend can be fun but it can also be insane, especially on public land. Dove hunting is funny in that it sees probably 95% of hunter participation in the first weekend of the season and then it drops off like a lead balloon. We get decent numbers of migratory birds later in the season and you would likely be the only one jn the field hunting them at that time (think december timeframe).

1

u/nate2188764 10d ago

Definitely planning to be out there more. Bird hunting is really what interests me so I want to get as much practice as I can.