Heat and fog were definitely the theme around Christmas and New Year’s here in good ol’ South Carolina, and our post-Christmas hunt was certainly no exception. Changing up the scenery, we headed northeast of Columbia to family friend’s property where my dad and some pals have a weekly duck hunt. It has been a year or two since I’ve been able to hunt there, and this one was a fantastic way to come back.
With all of the rain the region has gotten in the past few months, water levels are extremely high and many of the roads are simply not drivable. That also means that the pond levels are a foot and a half to 2 feet higher than normal… Yes, I think you can see where this is going.
The Mr., the old man, and I got up bright and early the day after Christmas (only slight wine hangovers still lingerings), loaded our gear and headed out. Once all of the hunters had arrived, everyone strapped their guns to their backs, loaded gear in the sleds, and made the trek to the ponds.
Two groups of hunters were supposed to go into a particular pond with two blinds, with plenty of space for us all. Ben, the good Samaritan and tallest hunter by a few inches, opted to be the first one to walk into the water. The corner of the pond where he walked in is the deepest part, and we anticipated the water tipping into our waiters at least a little bit. Hey – the high was still around 80°, so we really weren’t concerned about getting a little wet… That is, until Ben took one more step and the water was suddenly at his armpits. Uh-oh. I am by no means a short girl, but when Ben and I hug, my head is even with his chest. That means the water was up to my chin where he was standing, and let’s just say no one really felt like taking an actual swim in our waders. Crap. There was just no way we could all get across there safely. Have you ever tried to swim in full waders? And then duck hunt for 2 hours? I didn’t think so.
On to plan B. There is a dike that separates two of the ponds that typically has a few inches of water over it. With a little bit of tree and brush cover, we figured that would be as good of a place as any to try and salvage the hunt. With just a few minutes before legal hour, we hurried down this dike and got set up. Like I said, the pond was high – the dike was still knee deep in water and just wide enough for a car to drive down it, with an 8 foot ditch on either side. Needless to say, maneuvering that in the pre-daylight hours was tricky, and putting out a decoy spread would have been tough.
See what I mean? If you didn’t know it was there, you’d never see it. Anyways, [already] long story short, we stopped and set up behind some brush, knelt down in the water, and waited. With so much fog, it was close to 7:15 before we saw the first duck, even though we could hear the ring necks circling above us and the occasional squeak of a wood duck sneaking by.
Honestly, I think the poor weather helped us, considering where we were set up. If it had been a bluebird day, they would have seen us a mile away and flared. Not this time, fellas! Safely hidden behind the thick blanket of fog, we were ready and waiting for them to come in low. Sure enough, the ducks started coming in, zipping into view seemingly from nowhere, and then back out of sight as quickly as they came. We were going to have to be extra watchful, and extra quick on the draw.
Spotted! My first shot (naturally) knocked me a bit sideways, and I almost took a tumble into the ditch. Thankfully, one arm caught me and I managed to sit back up with only a wet sleeve and minimal water in my waders. Honestly, the water felt pretty good. [Not something I thought I’d ever say on a December duck hunt, huh?] In the next hour or so, John and I knocked down 5 ducks. Not too bad! Another group of hunters set up in an adjacent pond, and we’d heard more than a few good shot volleys coming from their direction. We had no idea just how good their hunt was until a shout across the pond let us know we could move in to their blind – they had all limited out. Excellent! One more precarious walk on the path of doom, and we were back in business.
Little did we know, those guys had a fantastic spread out, and the ring necks were pouring in there like it was payday and they were getting their Christmas bonuses. Not. Kidding. Within 5 minutes each of us had a pair of ducks on the water. I walked through the corn to pick up one of mine, and I swear I could have grabbed one ringneck out of the sky – he wanted to land just about on top of me. Within another 10 minutes, we both limited out. A big thank you to the guys who let us move in there – It. Was. Awesome.
It was a fantastic hunt to finish off the holiday weekend, to say the least!
Any time you limit out on a hunt is superb, and hunting with these two crazy fellas was icing on the cake. I might be a little late, but I hope you and yours had a very Merry Christmas!
New Year’s weekend hunts: coming soon.