Los Gauchos Outfitters

A chill buffeting wind blows across the open land as a wavering line of birds rows steadily upstream against the flow. From their high vantage point, the world is simple; grass, sky, horizon and wind. In this vast country the line of birds somehow adds the spark of life to a great empty vista. Friendly black and white forms appear spread out on the grass ahead, and the birds turn toward them. On the ground, the wind is almost a gale and the volume of air makes the fence wires sing and even the short green grass ripples like water. It's predawn in winter and in the northeast, the sun now gives a faint suggestion to foretell its appearance. Shooters lying flat on the turf between decoys are covered with grass-colored netting; their heads inclined slightly, their watering eyes locked on the approaching flock. For them, the world has been pared-down too. Geese!

Burrr-oww, burr-oww, burr-oww", guides mouth-call as the undulating line makes for the impostors.

Surreptitiously, the gunners finger safeties and shift slightly in nervous anticipation. Soon the birds approaching downwind are close enough to hear their buzzing chatter; the call is strange and unfamiliar. It what seems like an eternity, the birds set their wings and drop their feet-committed. It's still dark enough for muzzle-fire as guns open up and birds along the line begin to drop heavily to the ground. From the sky, the remnants of the flock squeal in alarm, as their pinions rattle noisily in pull-out. A few wounded geese fall far out over the field, while up-close, walking cripples are dispatched and the jubilant hunters holler congratulations.

Although this narrative could easily describe a field shoot for geese from Saskatchewan to Siberia, the fact that it took place during the month of July indicates geography in the southern hemisphere, specifically South America. This is the classical Argentine hunt for upland geese; the ashy-headed and Magellan. And as an added bonus, our outfitter Los Gauchos, provide shooting for ducks and perdiz in the afternoon as well.

We were gunning southeast of Buenos Aires in the province of the same name. It's here on the vast Atlantic coastal pampas that wheat fields and pastures rival those of the North American west in size and scope. Everywhere the enormous country is flat or gently rolling, punctuated only now and then by shelter belts of eucalyptus and pine. And like the Russian steppe or Dakota prairie, the wind periodically reminds all who really owns the land. Cattle are the mainstay of the pampas economy, and omnipresent with cattle, Gauchos. On large estancias the cattlemen encourage the hunting of geese which they believe compete with their animals for forage. In current beef market, the birds probably represent much more income per hectare in dollars from traveling hunters than the same land if used only for cattle.

Every year the flocks of geese gather from their southern breeding grounds in Patagonia to make the migration northward where they find the less-harsh climate on this part of the pampas to their liking. Because of the proximity of the Atlantic, winters are moderate. The hungry grazers are also fond of the expansive fields of pasture grass and winter wheat and also depend on the many shallow ponds for a safe nights roost, away from marauding Zorro Gris. And each year hunters from the north migrate south for a rendezvous with the birds. Is there a better way to beat summer heat and get a "goose fix" before the season? And as most goose hunters are waterfowlers in the broader sense, they can enjoy duck hunting in the afternoon after geese in the morning. For those who also appreciate the rise of upland birds over pointing dogs, the perdiz hunting offered is a welcome addition.

At the first hint of light, long lines of geese stream out from the water to huge tracts of grass where their nightly fast is broken. Shooters lying in the decoys when the flocks arrive find the action fast and furious. Although the birds distribute themselves out over thousands of hectares to feed, our outfitter called appropriately Los Gauchos, had scouted some very favorable locations. When the droppings carpet the ground around the decoys, you know this is "it"; the congregation. Argentine goose hunting can also be shooting for numbers; everyone firing at once to increase the collective bag. If that's not your forte, a group can collectively decide to take individual turns so that there is absolutely no doubt "who shot what". That's not to say there won't be plenty of back-ups shots when the point man finishes, there's always time for seconds, thirds and even fourths. Because the birds in Argentina work in close, often right over head. It's not at unusual to have a small group land in the decoys while the guns are waiting for a larger mob behind to come in. In the openness of the setting, the flocks can be seen coming a long ways off. What with that and the abundance of birds, excitement on the morning shoot runs very high.

After all this frenetic activity, it's a bit of relief when the action does trickles down and finally stops after a couple of hours. We stand up, stretch, and take that much appreciated steaming cup of coffee. On the ride back to the lodge, even the most ardent gunner can nod off.

While this South American hunting is almost identical to goose hunting up north, the birds taken are not actually true geese. They come from a different tribe, the sheldgeese. They share a characteristic look with other shelducks and geese around the world. Probably half the bag consists of the four to five pound ashy-headed goose. To describe this goose, the sexes are dressed exactly alike; reddish brown breast, white belly and a clean gray head. The other species taken, the larger Magellan or upland goose, exhibits sexual dimorphism- males and females are totally un-alike and were even thought to be different species at one time. The striking male Magellan goose is brilliant white all over, with black bill, feet and barring on the breast. The female is more like a larger version of the ashy-head, except the head is the same rusty brown as the breast. All of the Argentine sheldgeese have white shoulder patches adjoining iridescent green. When a large flock comes in to land, the flashing white makes quite a show in the morning sun.

For several years Los Gauchos has worked very hard to develop goose, duck and perdiz hunting in this scenic land. In fact they've been so successful, the company has just opened a new eight-person lodge in a location central to the hunting fields. Situated off a main north-south road, it's on the outskirts of the town Coronel Pringles. The site is about an hours drive northeast of Bia Blanca, where the short flight from Buenos Aires reaches the coast. From the lodge, the days goose hunt is usually an hour or so away on paved roads.

After a hard day afield, tired sports can gather to tell stories around the welcoming fireplace in the comfortable open-raftered dining room. There is also a variety of savory hoer devours prepared from, what else, wild goose. It's a very relaxing way to remove the chill. Then at around 8:30, a five-course meal is served. Despite the best intentions, diets are forgotten. A welcome noon day spread also follows the early morning foray for geese; the central location allows shooters to return to the lodge by 12 for a sit-down meal served hot. Hunters can clean-up before eating in adjoining rooms, there's plenty of hot water. The beds are very good and after lunch, an hour-long nap is almost a Los Gauchos tradition. And if the morning hunt for geese has not worn you out, the hours until sunset will be spent walking behind a pointing dog in pursuit of perdiz (spotted tinamou) or over decoys and water shooting ducks. It should also be noted; the setters, pointers and retrievers at Los Gauchos are far above average.

We had one especially memorable afternoon on the endless wheat stubble surrounding a white hacienda on a large estancia. Two guns, a dog, and handler made up each group. The weather was perfect; light wind, sunny -a few puffy clouds in blue. And it was mild enough for just a sweater.

When we sent off from the ranch yard, the presence of an Aeromotor windmill, made it looked a bit like eastern Montana. A ways on past the hacienda, a grove of eucalyptus made it look a bit like Australia. Hidalgo the English setter was on point almost immediately out to the yard.

After that, the dog seemed find at least one perdiz in the high stubble every 500 yards or so. It was a pattern to be repeated all afternoon. The setter was picking the birds up from quite a distance and sorting them out nicely. Several of the first birds were obviously young and stayed glued to the cover until the shooter was within feet.

Then the little brown buzz bombs would zing wildly out across the prairie. Their speed in the soft breeze made them a more difficult target than might be expected over open ground. Several, perhaps older birds, were obviously wise to the game. They'd run slinking ahead of the dog in long slashing tacks. One particularly savvy tinamou made a series of zigzags until the dog finally pinned him along a barbed-wire fence. Then Senor perdiz, flushed straight towards loafing cattle on the other side- the only obstacle within miles. This bird had obviously inherited the "rogue ruffed grouse" gene. I had counted the relocations by Hidalgo before that fence-line flush; seven.

A very nice piece of dog work, indeed. No matter how prepared we were it seemed the always well-hidden birds never failed to startle on flushing. Even though the dog is pointing and you know the bird is there... These birds are fast getting up; any hesitation by the shooter is likely to cause a hitch-fault.

Then we continued on in an easy manner, the dog working, the birds holding; with the outcome clear. All uncertainty gone, this was fun! In fact several times shooting opportunities were missed playing "after you, Alphonso".

Although the birds seem abundant, in Argentina, the 10-bird bag limit is adhered to strictly. Perhaps that's why the birds are abundant.

As we walked back to the vehicle in the last rays of a fading day, it had been more than enough. Watching the dog work alone had been worth the outing. The bag was one bird shy of full complement- Senor "bad grouse" had been counted coup.

On the much regretted and unavoidable last day, a duck marsh within 30 minutes from the lodge was chosen to allow maximum time for a half-day hunt. In the dark, headlights showed wisps of ground fog drifted by the breeze - a duck day.

In the time-before-the-sun, decoys were placed while shooters sequestered themselves into rush pockets on the wetland shoreline. In only minutes the first birds flew by in the dim mist and shots rang out. The marsh then became alive with crossing ducks. Most of the birds came out of the east, silhouetted against the dawn.

Small flocks, pairs and singles, all seemed to work the blocks or gave sweeping passes. It was frenetic shooting, as now brown pintail, then teal, then rosy-billed pochard appeared over the decoys. Most of the gunners just shot ducks, but some tried to sample the different species; there are three kinds of teal alone and they aren't easy to sort out.

The speckled teal looks similar to and behaves just like my northern favorite, green-winged. Drake cinnamon teal are unmistakable in good light, but when backlit, looked just like another of the trio, the handsome cappuccino teal. These beautiful ducks with their chocolate head cap do look like coffee and chocolate cream. It was easy to spot the pochards cruising by in direct, single-minded flight-they fly like divers everywhere. And the southern shovler has the unmistakable Pico Grande profile .Southern widgeon were also added, identified by their nasal whistle. About the only resident birds we failed to collect were the so-called tree or whistling ducks, they had apparently migrated further north. At the end, the duck strap was quite impressive, 6 different species.

We could sum up the whole Los Gauchos experience in one word; diversity. Not only for the species seen, but for the type of hunting offered. One afternoon we even shot some picazuro pigeons while chasing ducks on a playa lake.

It not too common in South America to find this type of quality field shooting for geese in the morning and upland perdiz or duck hunting in the afternoon.

So if you are a hunter who hates hot summer and wants to kick-start the season, go south young man.

Los Gauchos Outfitters is a relatively new company, but a very good one in spite of its newness. It was founded just two years ago by George Criddle, a young Texan with a passion for waterfowling, and his Argentine partner, who comes from an influential family in Bahia Blanca and speaks excellent English after four years at the University of California.

Los Gauchos offers excellent shooting for geese—their specialty—and very good shooting for Argentina ducks and doves. Los Gauchos offers stand alone Argentina dove hunts in Cordoba, but only ducks, Magellan goose hunting, Ashyhead goose hunting, Perdiz, and pigeons at their flagship Argentina hunting lodge in Bahia.

George Criddle has the advantages of youth and enthusiasm—he is only in his mid-30's—but he has another advantage too…he is a pilot for American Airlines, which means that he makes frequent trips to Argentina and is able to carry with him all the elaborate equipment necessary for successful waterfowling. For example, he just took delivery ghillie blankets, and Final Approach goose hunting blinds to cover up his goose shooters.

These comfortable chairs, and three-dimensional camouflage blankets are far superior to ordinary camouflage cover-ups. They cover the whole shooter from chin to foot, and make him look like a pile of dirt. George has 12 green blankets for use in wheat fields and 12 tan ones for use in harvested sunflower fields. He has also ordered 38 Hardcore goose decoys. These are custom-made full-body decoys that are hand-painted to look like the real thing, and are copied from detailed photos of ashy-headed and Magellan geese. They are the finest and most expensive goose decoys on the market, and will be the finest decoys in Argentina bar none.

In addition, George will have Final Approach "One-Shot" bilnds, which enable the shooter to sit up, with the advantages that he can shoot better than if he were lying flat on his back, and the goose hunter can keep perfectly dry. George claims very credibly that he has more money invested in quality waterfowling equipment than any other goose hunting outfitters in Argentina.

George is also a major player in the Argentina duck hunting business because he baits heavily and does extensive pre-hunt scouting. He uses spinning wing Mojo duck decoys and species specific duck decoys, as well as maintains a kennel of fantastic Labrador retrievers.

George and his partner have a brand new Argentina bird hunting lodge near the city of Colonel Pringles. It is a basic place—brand new, clean and comfortable, and more than adequate to fulfill the requirements of all but the most demanding clients. There are five double bedrooms with very comfortable beds, beautiful private bathrooms—and even central heating! There is also 24-hour Internet access available in the business center.

This Argentina goose hunting lodge has a large social/dining room with a big fireplace, big comfortable chairs, and a big dining table. George's cooks serve up appetizing Argentine dishes such as steak and pasta and dulce de leche, as well as game dishes such as escabeche of Perdiz, duck stroganoff, and brochettes of pigeon breasts with sliced onions and red peppers. George keeps a limited supply of Benelli waterfowl hunting shotguns for shooters who do not bring their own. George employs men who have years of experience as goose hunting guides and scouts.

They scout vast areas daily, and place shooters only in the best fields the following morning. Really good scouting is the sine qua non of outstanding Argentina goose hunting, or Canada goose hunting—or goose hunting anywhere else in the world for that matter. Another salient feature of George's operation is his outstanding bird dogs. By and large, Argentine bird dogs are a sorry bunch of mutts—most of which should be shot—but George's dogs are the best that I have ever seen in Argentina, and a sheer delight to shoot Perdiz over. He purchased them from a renowned Uruguayan dog breeder and trainer, who has the best bird dogs available in South America. All the Perdiz are wild birds.

Now I will tell you about some unforgettable days with Los Gauchos Outfitters:

The first morning I shot in a field of harvested sunflowers with Robert "Big Boy" Bonev and Skip "Lord Hog" Hoagland. Our Argentina hunting outfitter, George Criddle, arranged us on a line about 15 yards apart, lying out on comfortable foam pads, flat on our backs. Behind us was a trio of Argentina hunting guides—and George. Together they kept up an impressive chorus of loud calling. All around us was a spread of shell, windsock, and silhouette snow goose decoys. It was a cold, overcast morning with a 15 mph wind at our backs. Perfect conditions!

The first flock came in at precisely 8 am: a wide wave of brown birds and snow-white birds, wings working in perfect unison, heading straight for us just ten yards off the ground, until they were all over and around us and the guns roared again and again and again, filling the air with a storm of shot and smoke, and heavy goosebodies thumped the earth whompwhompwhompwhompwhomp! and cries of exultation arose.

Soon the sun arrived from the land where day begins, and it smeared the ivory-white breasts of the males a hot incandescent pink as they approached us. Again and again, we let the birds come in until they were right off the gun muzzles, and again and again we sat up to salute them and again and again the guns roared and again and again heavy birdbodies smote the earth and cries sounded out. George and the bird boys kept up their chorus of cajolery and more and more birds came in and we let fly the lead and sent them tumbling.

This is a scenario I have experienced a thousand times, but each time it fills me with adrenalin and makes me tremble. I was using Remington Nitro-Magnum 2 ¾" #2's, a wickedly authoritative goose hunting load that enabled me to reach and knock down birds at 50 yards and beyond. Pure pleasure!

Everything worked to perfection that morning. The birds decoyed perfectly and we all shot brilliantly. We got 164 geese between three shooters. It was, in the words of Herman Melville in MOBY DICK, "top-gallant delight." It was one of the top goose hunting mornings in my whole life. When I am enjoying a great shoot like this I often think of that saying by Gandhi: "Live each day as if it were your last," and that is precisely what I did that day.

Such mornings are rare indeed in this mortal life, but the next morning was even better: we got 175 Ashy head and Magellan geese.

I should emphasize that such mornings are exceptional, and that shooters booking with Los Gauchos cannot routinely expect mornings like those two. In fact, the following morning we got just 30 geese. There was a 50mph wind and the birds simply did not fly very well, and the ones that did could not hear our goose hunting guides calls.

I should also be noted that in the Province of Buenos Aires geese are considered a plague, and there are no limits on them. However the birds are not left for dead, Los Gauchos donates cleaned ducks and geese to shelters, schools, and old folks homes on a regular basis.

Back at the lodge in the evening we celebrated with aperitivos by fireside: slices of chorizo; marinated breast of duck and goose; and thin-sliced prosciutto. Then we migrated to the dining table for milanesa de pollo napolitana (breast of chicken with a melted cheese and tomato sauce) and panqueques con dulce de leche, meaning, crepes filled with caramel custard, and plenty of fine malbec.

Ah, those wonderful days with Los Gauchos!

Argentina and Chile are well-known waterfowling destinations, but Uruguay is an undiscovered gem that no one is hunting. I recently returned from an outing with Benelli where we tested a host of new shotguns. Uruguay was our destination, because no matter what the weather, you're going to get birds, and lots of them.

We hunted with George Criddle, an experienced American outfitter who operates Los Gauchos Outfitters. Criddle has hunting operations in several South American countries but swears the duck hunting in Uruguay is second to none. He isn't kidding.

Hunters are lodged in a comfortable estancia (ranch house) about a three-hour drive from the capital city of Montevideo. Accommodations are very comfortable and meals and service are absolutely five-star.

The guides are knowledgeable and experienced, and the dogs are well trained. Better still, you hardly have to travel more than a few minutes from the lodge to be shooting over the area's many potholes. And the quality of the duck hunting is simply incredible.

While ducks are the main quarry at Los Gauchos, hunts booked earlier in the season allow for opportunities to combine ducks hunts with perdiz and pigeon hunting.

What sets Los Gauchos apart from every other such operation is location, location, location. It sits just off a paved roadway only two minutes from the intersection of three major wintering area for Ashy-headed and Magellan geese as well as thousands ducks.

From that vantage, the Los Gauchos clients gain easy access to hunting areas. Guests at other estancias, located as many as 15 miles from major roadways, are often required to take a hour's drive to get to the good roads-double that if the back roads are mucked up by rain. Furthermore, Estancia Los Gaucho's location makes it the only lodge in the region that can offer goose, duck, dove, Perdiz and pigeon hunting all within an hour's drive.

He describes the goose hunting as high-volume shooting for Ashy-heads and Magellan that can be good to spectacular, depending on the conditions. In fields of cut wheat and sunflowers, hunters sit in chairs camouflaged with ghillie blankets and shoot over decoys. Unfortunately, rules and regulations in Argentina as well as mother nature have caused Los Gauchos to take goose hunting off our Argentina hunting packages. Our lodge in Santa Fe though provides excellent waterfowl and wingshooting from a luxury lodge and area that is not affected by mother nature.

Duck hunting is from dry blinds, or natural cover among the reeds on the edge of water or from ground blinds in cut cornfields. Species that hunters can collect include rosy-billed pochards, yellow-billed pintail, cinnamon teal, silver teal, speckled teal, chiloe widgeon, red shovelers and possibly white-faced tree ducks, white cheek pintails, and black-headed ducks. Los Gauchos provides decoys and Labrador retrievers.

English setters and English Pointers produce "above average" Perdiz hunting in pastures and the foothills of the Sierra de la Ventanas mountain range. There are also some low volume shoots for pigeons and doves (2 to 8 boxes), mostly near roosts. In total, Los Gauchos has access to well over 70,000 acres of varied terrain for all their shoots.

Criddle says he spends up to $10,000 a season on supplemental baiting, which is legal in Argentina and Uruguay. He also prides himself on running the business with the efficiency expected of any American-owned and operated facility in South America.

The Los Gauchos Santa Fe Lodge is an hour and fifteen minutes from the airport in Santa Fe, Argentina. It features four double-occupancy bedrooms with private baths. Groups are limited to six shooters, individual hunters are welcome, and exclusive use of the lodge can be arranged as well. Amenities included a private business center with phone, fax, and high-speed internet service. A live-in chef prepares meals. Hunt packages are 4 to 4.5 days, with clients arriving on Sunday evening in time for dinner. The season for ducks runs from April 15-Aug. 15 in Argentina and May 1-September 15 in Uruguay.