But any good goose guide will tell you that forecasting geese is not an exact science. Searching for clues As a rule, many guides will set out to hunt a spot only after he's seen geese gather in that field for at least two consecutive days. Generally, if a gaggle is left undisturbed it will feed in a particular field for three to five days. Something instinctively tells them that consistency means death. Kuykendall also pays special attention to the size and pattern of feeding groups, then mimics this with decoys the next day.
Some guides try to anticipate the feeding field based on a gaggle's nighttime roosting spot.
Seeing thousands of geese fly in the opposite direction of a field with 500 white windsocks the next morning is a humbling experience. The slightest change in wind direction can alter their pattern. It's no wonder the snow goose population is eating itself out of habitat and headed for a crash. Kuykendall and I saw thousands of geese on several different fields that day. Back at Knolle Farms, our party had dwindled to two, plus the guides and me.