Have a trip planned to dove hunt in Argentina last week of January 2025 with MGW Outfitters!

Looking for recommendations on gear to bring and any experience with MGW (Laundry service, food, shells, gifts, etc.)

The following gear list I have:
- Hunting Attire - Jeans, hunting pants, shirts, etc. hiking boots.
- Recoil Shirt/Pad
- Any specialty booze we may want, getting it from Duty Free.
- Cash
- Med kit
- Good attitudes

Are snake boots needed? Bug spray?

First time to Argentina so we are looking forward to it. I believe they have all US plugs, so adapters are not needed.

Jan is summer - so lightweight clothes and a good hat, shooting glasses and ear protection. I wouldn't bother with boots, other than maybe hikers. Just pack a pump Off spray. Duty-free is limited selection - so pack a favorite if it's you have to have it. You;ll need adaptors for the airport charging to/from ...or a charger pack.

We went to Cordoba for a 4 day hunt with a different outfitter. We saw one snake the entire time and it was a boa. They guide and bird boys said they don't see a lot of snakes. Laundry service was a little slow so I was glad I had 3 changes of hunting clothes with me.

Shooting gloves. Orvis makes (or used to make) a nice set of thin leather compliant gloves. You'll shoot so much you can barely touch your barrel, it's nice to not get burned, plus the recoil after 1000-2000 rounds a day can beat your hands up a little bit.

Spend some money on good ear protection, over the ear low profile, or molded in-ear ear plugs. Ear-inc is a great company that makes all different styles. They don't protect your hearing as well as over the ear muffs but when it's hot, wearing over the ear muffs all day gets old.

Take hats, shirts/t-shirts, other small gifts from the States and give to bird boys as tips at end of trip.

I went last year, we flew to Tucuman with David Denies. 10/10 experience.

Bring a lot of cash (several thousand), gloves, sun glasses, electrolytes, light long sleeve shirts, sun screen, hats, hiking boots (no snake boots needed), and electric ear plugs (don't do over ear, gets in the way when you shoot). Our outfitter supplied slip on recoils but I had lightly padded shirts. The recoil did not bother me that much but I did start to hunt left handed for funsies. Local wine is great, and their beer is okay, but don't overserve yourself. It adds up.

I would also suggest something to go over your face. The amount of gun powder that gets in your face and mouth will be noticeable towards the end of your hunts. We gave our bird guys our gloves and hearing protection as well as cash in tips. The bird guys were reloading with tapped gloves and probably wouldn't ever spend money on nicer gloves or hearing protection, so it is appreciated.

The going rate is about $1 a shell. I killed 1,400 Doves in 3 hunts. I skipped morning hunts and chose to sleep in. My buddy killed over 1,700 in one day. Birds will not be retrieved despite what they say. They are eaten by the wildlife or the hog farms you hunt over.

I recommend to spend a few days in Buenos Aires. It's an amazing place.

theJonatron said:

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I went last year, we flew to Tucuman with David Denies. 10/10 experience.

Bring a lot of cash (several thousand), gloves, sun glasses, electrolytes, light long sleeve shirts, sun screen, hats, hiking boots (no snake boots needed), and electric ear plugs (don't do over ear, gets in the way when you shoot). Our outfitter supplied slip on recoils but I had lightly padded shirts. The recoil did not bother me that much but I did start to hunt left handed for funsies. Local wine is great, and their beer is okay, but don't overserve yourself. It adds up.

I would also suggest something to go over your face. The amount of gun powder that gets in your face and mouth will be noticeable towards the end of your hunts. We gave our bird guys our gloves and hearing protection as well as cash in tips. The bird guys were reloading with tapped gloves and probably wouldn't ever spend money on nicer gloves or hearing protection, so it is appreciated.

The going rate is about $1 a shell. I killed 1,400 Doves in 3 hunts. I skipped morning hunts and chose to sleep in. My buddy killed over 1,700 in one day. Birds will not be retrieved despite what they say. They are eaten by the wildlife or the hog farms you hunt over.

I recommend to spend a few days in Buenos Aires. It's an amazing place.

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I'm going early March. What do you suggest to do in Buenos Aires?

They have a great food scene and have some of the best bars I've ever been too. Tres monos is a hipster place but they have amazing mixed drinks.

I also enjoyed their famous cemeteries and botanical gardens.

You could also catch a "football" game and museums.

I never once felt unsafe and I went out by myself when I couldn't sleep one of the nights we were there.

My write up from going David Denies at the La Dormida Lodge this spring.

https://www.2coolfishing.com/threads/argentina-dove-hunt-w-videos.2729990/

I had cash to cover tip. They gave us a rough idea of the standard tip in the email packet so I got cash just for that and I paid the balance of my ammo and other fees (get a massage if your arms/shoulders are tight, well worth the money to help your shooting) on my credit card.

Make sure to get gloves and the ones I got were the standard. We had yeti water bottles each day and I wish I had brought some lemon-lime type Gatorade mix to pour in. Wear Texas style dove shirts, something light weight and quick dry; don't be the idiot wearing a green fishing shirt. Remember these birds get shot ALOT and even though there are millions, you still don't want to spook them. For a white guy with green eyes, I tan well so I didn't need sunscreen, but my brother did. For sure you don't need boots, we were fine in sperry style shoes, you probably would of been fine in tennis shoes; remember, its gonna be warmer than you think. I bird hunt a lot and I have custom ear plugs (electronic and plain) and its for sure the way to go. You don't need to spend $2k, but look on Amazon for some of those ones you can mold yourself, or heck, just take a bunch of foamers. And you want a good recoil pad. Our lodge sold the Caldwell ones and the price was reasonable. My brother bought some shirt with a built in pad and it didn't last a day, he bought a real pad from them that night.

As jon says, don't go crazy on booze, you are there to hunt; you can get drunk at home for a heck of a lot cheaper. I like light beer with lime and salt and they didn't have lime, so if you like it that way, be sure to contact your rep before your trip and see if they can have some at your lodge. The food is fantastic, I think I took more pictures of the food than the hunting. And if you like cigars, the lodge has real Cubans.

Many people say to give your field assistant little gifts. I brought a small backpack and a three pack of cheaper safety glasses that I left along with a cash tip.

We are planning a 2026 trip to their Santiago del Estero Lodge for decoying pigeons plus doves.

Feel free to ask questions and I'll try to answer. Hope you guys have a blast.

Just got back from a month in Buenos Aires.

Try and get a reservation at Don Julio. If you have a group of 6 or more, ask if the wine cellar is available. If they are able to seat you in the cellar, bring a blanket.

Arandu in the Recoleta neighborhood is a great store for leather goods.

I actually enjoyed visiting the Cementerio de la Recoleta. We didn't pay for a tour guide, just the entry fee and then walked around the grounds.

La Biela Recoleta was my favorite cafe and coffee shop. Great outdoor seating with close proximity to a park that has a weekend market.

Caught a polo match and a Boca Juniors game while down there. Polo was a gentile affair, Boca Juniors is not advisable if you're not up for some shady adventures.


Overall, great city, really enjoyed my time there. You could eat at a Michelin Star restaurant every night of the week.

Shooting gloves for sure

I will echo to spend several days in B.A. coming or going. We also spent an extra night in Panama on the return. First afternoon of first hunt I saw a mountain lion inside of 50 yards. They call it "puma." Also duck hunted and fished the Amazon. Good times. We took a private charter from B.A. directly to the lodge. All of the roads suck once you're out of the city. You're going to kill as many birds as you desire, so I place the emphasis on the lodge and hospitality. Also, they serve lunches like it's Thanksgiving and more like a snack at dinner. It's just their culture.

We just got back a couple of days ago.

Buenos Aires was fun, but to be honest: it seemed quite similar to Mexico City, and between the two, I'd probably recommend Mexico City over BA.

In BA, we did:

• Private City Tour
• Avenida Bookstore
• Recoleta cemetery (similar but larger/nicer than New Orleans)
• La Cabrera (food)
• Fogon de Asado (food)
• San Telmo market (hidden in the depths...very cool)
• Cueros shopping - got some custom leather jackets for $150... Preta
• El Aljibe Tango Show and Dinner - food was meh, but show was fun

In Mendoza

• Horseback riding in the lower Andes (~6100 ft peak)
• La Madrid Vineyard lunch and tour
• Central Park walk-about

Met some hunters in BA airport boarding to DFW that got back from Patagonia and did dove hunting. I believe I heard that the "green" guy had shot 200 doves and someone else 1000+.

CenTexAg19 said:

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Have a trip planned to dove hunt in Argentina last week of January 2025 with MGW Outfitters!

Looking for recommendations on gear to bring and any experience with MGW (Laundry service, food, shells, gifts, etc.)

The following gear list I have:
- Hunting Attire - Jeans, hunting pants, shirts, etc. hiking boots.
- Recoil Shirt/Pad
- Any specialty booze we may want, getting it from Duty Free.
- Cash
- Med kit
- Good attitudes

Are snake boots needed? Bug spray?

First time to Argentina so we are looking forward to it. I believe they have all US plugs, so adapters are not needed.

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We're going fly fishing in Patagonia (Argentina) in January and we need adapters. I'd check again to be safe.

I see you're talking about outfitters in Argentina, and I couldn't resist chiming in. I've hunted extensively down there, from David Denies to MGW and many others. While most have their strengths, after years of long flights and internal travel, I finally found what I'd call the white unicorn two years ago: a place just a couple of hours from Buenos Aires where, at one lodge, I got to see millions of doves, pigeons, hundreds of ducks, quail, and even hunt a water buffalo. I still have green parakeet, axis deer, and hog on my list. Look into AWS Lodgeit's worth checking out. Just a heads-up: if you're going in January, be prepared for the heat. It's like Miami, but without the beach. If you've been to Argentina often like I have, you'll know the worst part is the internal travel. For instance, going to Crdoba… never again.