As I mentioned at the end of yesterday’s post, we had another great hunt yesterday morning. While our harvest wasn’t as varied as it usually is (we ended up with mostly ring necks and a few mallards), we got to see some pretty incredible sights. We were covered up early on, unfortunately before legal hour, but it remained fairly steady throughout the morning with ring necks buzzing us like nobody’s business. Remember when I talked about the sound ring necks make? Get’s your adrenaline going before you even see the ducks! Anyways… Around 8:30, we could see 3 ducks working into the pond that didn’t look (or sound) like ring necks. Once they got about 80 yards out, I noticed the unmistakable shape and color of a bull redhead’s noggin. Two drakes and one hen. Oh man, how badly we wanted those ducks. Unfortunately, after a few minutes of trying to work them into our decoys, they got close enough to another blind for the hunters in it to shoot at them, and we were out of luck. Both drakes were knocked down, but then hen got away. Oh how I wish that could have been us! But congrats to the other hunters… I guess…

That wasn’t the last bit of excitement we had, however. Way off in the distance to our right, we noticed a huge flock of ridiculously large white birds. As first, we brushed it off as a flock of cranes, or maybe something else we regularly see around the Lowcountry. Dare I hope it is a flock of snow geese we can take a shot at…? But oh no. Once they got a little closer, we could tell our theories were quite wrong. The giant wing spans and huge black feel made the birds’ ID quite obvious- swans! That’s when we heard another hunter yell, “It’s swans!! Don’t shoot!” Don’t you worry, kind sir. I would prefer not to endure $1000s in fines, potential jail time, and loss of my hunting license. It was still really cool to see such a large group flying over, listening to them honk for several minutes since they were flying so slowly. I was even able to take some video of them flying. (Pardon the quality of the video, and some of the photos- they are just still shots from my video camera.) Enjoy!

Part of our harvest- 4 hunters limited out

Dixie made some great retrieves

Swans!

When in doubt, move on out! That was my motto for our hunt last week. After the first spot we went to proved to be a futile effort (a pond called the “secret hole”… apparently so secret, the ducks didn’t even know it was there), we decided to make a move around 8 am. We hadn’t pulled the trigger the whole time leading up to then, so we figured, what the heck! Our next stop proved to be a little more successful, scratching out a handful of ducks over the next hour or so. Then, it shut off again! What to do? Move on out, I say. Move on out. By the time we came out of our third blind, we were only 3 birds shy of a 3 person limit. Even though it can be frustrating having to move around so much, it is nice to change up the scenery, and it gives you a little more variety in terms of the types of shots you are able to take. All in all, another successful hunt!

We had another awesome hunt this morning, so stay tuned for more on that tomorrow! (Just as a teaser, I was able to get a video of 10-12 swans flying over us.. eek!)

Happy Sunday, all! This weekend was such a fun one in terms of hunting. Saturday morning was chilly and beautiful, and, despite a slow start, turned out to be a great hunt for everyone. There were definitely a lot of firsts. There were 3 others with us who had never been hunting, and it was a great experience for them. We all bundled up and headed out, separating between two ponds. Like I mentioned, the morning started off pretty slow in our pond, but the other blind ended up knocking down 4 teal by about 8:30. Not too shabby for 3 newbies! I know it was such a good feeling for each of them to come away with some birds. On the other hand, we only had 1 blue bill by then, and I had yet to pull the trigger. I guess that’s why they call it hunting! My trigger finger was getting antsy, so I wasn’t quite ready to call it a morning. Luckily, several big flights of ducks came over around 8:45, and we had our opportunity to get in some good shooting. Prine, pictured here, is only about 7 months old, so we have been trying to get him as much hunting experience as possible to keep up his training. Yesterday morning was no exception, and he really impressed us. I knocked down a duck that landed about 65 yards away, and, with a little direction, Prine made a great retrieve. And, what do you know? It was my first red head! Even though it was a hen, I was super excited.

After the hunt, we walked over to another pond that is never shot, but instead used as a reserve for the ducks. It is such a beautiful setting, and is a great sanctuary for them. And let me tell you- there is no shortage of ducks over there, as you can see below! I could stand there all day and watch them, listening to the different sounds of the different ducks. From whistling widgeon to quacking mallards, its an amazing sight and a treat for the ears, whether you hunt or not!

Such a pretty sunrise

Hidden in the phragmite

Prine pup

Hen red head

Old duck blind

Look at them all

That’s right- the title of this post does not lie. Unfortunately, I was not the one who made the amazing shots! Yesterday morning (Wednesday) was yet another awesome shoot. My dad, Sandy, and I each got our limits, and we were finished by about 8:30. But… I must ask… Do you ever have those mornings where you just cannot hit the easiest birds? The ones to which even the most novice shooter would say “Oh, wow, that was easy” after? I must have missed 3 or 4 birds that were 20 yards away from me. Pie shots! I might as well have jumped out of the blind and grabbed them. Then, just when I think I won’t hit anything all day, I smoke a duck overhead at about 45 yards. Ultimately, though, I did get my limit. Sandy, on the other hand, shot like a champ! As soon as birds started flying, he was on his game. I had just shot a ring neck and sent Dixie my dad to go pick it up (hehe, it’s like having 2 bird dogs! Love him) when I hear two consecutive shots go off, and two big splashes. Sandy had just shot a double. And if that wasn’t enough, with his very next shot, I hear two more splashes. One shot. Two ducks. Now you tell me- how often can that happen?! I immediately went over to give him a high five. At least someone was shooting like a rockstar. Of course, there is always dead-eye Otis. My dad is one hell of a shot, and I never miss an excuse to brag on him!

My bag included 3 mallards, two ring necks, and a blue bill. My dad and Sandy had similar bags. We had a few minutes of downtime in the middle of the hunt, so I snapped some silly photos. Enjoy!

Oysters the night before the hunt

Dixie watching some ducks on the water

View from behind the blind

Essentials

Can you see me in all my camo?

Oh wait. There I am.

My limit

Favorite of the morning! Thanks, Dixie…

Most people don’t get excited when their alarm goes off at 5 am (unless you are my dad) and they go outside to find that it is 45* and cloudy/raining. In fact, I think most would much rather jump back in their warm bed and sleep for another few hours. Not duck hunters! When I woke up Wednesday morning, I was even more excited than usual. It was one of those days I like to call “duck-y,” when the windy weather has moved in and it’s cool, extra cloudy, and looks like the sky could open up at any minute. I absolutely love the way ducks fly in the wind, even though it makes hitting shooting them a little more sporty! While the cloud cover made it too dark to see until nearly 10 minutes after legal hour, 6:47, I could hear the sound of ring necks (more scientifically, ring-necked ducks) flying all around us. Duck hunters- you know what sound I am talking about. Like a jet off in the distance, except its a duck 50 yards away. In the wind, when those ring necks set their wings and glide, they even look like little baby jets. Whether its a group of 4 or a group of 40, you can almost always hear them before you see them. Add that sound to mallards quacking, teal squealing, and a medly of other ducks squalking their breed’s signature tune, and you have yourself quite a morning symphony.

Over all, the hunt was a success. Between the 3 of us in the blind, we ended up with 6 ring necks, 3 blue bills, and 6 mallards. Not too shabby! Sorry for the lack of pictures… Between the ducks flying all around us, and the rain picking up towards the end of the hunt, my camera was hard pressed to make it out of the blind bag. Here are the few I was able to snap. Enjoy!

“Duck-y” morning view

That is one thick blanket of clouds

Part of our harvest

Ring-necked baby jets

Wow. That is really all I can say about this morning’s duck hunt. I have been looking forward to this day for weeks, and it was well worth it! My dad and I hunt every Wednesday during the season at a great spot in the heart of South Carolina, and it rarely disappoints. We also hunt there with a good family friend, Sandy. He is a lot of fun to have in the blind!

The morning started off nice and cool, about 40* at 5 am- perfect duck weather. After coffee and donuts bright still dark and early, we loaded up our gear and headed to the blind around 6 or so to put out decoys. Since legal shooting time wasn’t until 6:30, we got to sit and listen to the ducks flying around us, quacking and squeaking and making all of the various noises that different ducks make. You would be surprised at how many people think all ducks just quack! Listening to the ducks in the dark really gets your adrenaline pumping, and you can’t help but grip your gun in anticipation. You can’t quite gauge how far away they are until you hear one light on the water, and then you can barely make out the ripples it’s landing makes. I can’t quite decide if it feels like seconds before the sun to come up enough to see, or if it feels like an eternity. You wait quietly, patiently biding your time until the moment arrives.

Finally, it was shooting time. Guns loaded, we all kept our eyes sharp for the slightest movement within range. For a bird with a brain the size of a walnut, they sure are smart enough to know where a blind is and what one means. For nearly 15 minutes, we watched ducks fly into the pond, cup up to land on the water, and then flare off about 80 yards from the blind. By the end of those 15 minutes, there must have been 75 ducks rafted up, floating together at the other end of the pond. But, I guess that’s why they call it hunting! Sure enough, ducks started to come closer and closer to the blind. Then- BOOM! It really heats up around the blind. The next thing I know, we have 6 ducks down and in the bag, thanks to some savvy shooting and some great retrieves by Dixie. The most exciting part for me was exactly what I had knocked down- 2 drake mallards and 1 hen mallard. Despite all of the duck hunting I have done, I have never shot a drake mallard, much less two within 5 minutes of each other! After a minute or two of high-fiving and general excitement, it was back to business for the rest of the morning. Shooting would speed up and slow down, but a mixed bag of birds flew, and that’s exactly what we came home with. All 3 of us ended up with our limits by about  9:30. The different species we killed included mallards, ring necks, blue bills (lesser scaup), ruddy ducks, and one hen red head. Each species makes different noises, and certainly flies differently, so it is always neat to see how they come in and determine how you will have to take a shot to knock one (or more!) down.

After such an exciting morning, I unfortunately forgot to take pictures of the final headcount before Sandy left with his loot. I did manage to get some good shots during the hunt, though! I know- it should be the opposite, with more “after” shots- next time, I promise! But, until then, I will leave you with this morning’s photos. Enjoy!

Just before sunrise

Decoys, sunrise, and a glimpse of a duck whizzing by at the top of the frame. (Sorry for the blur!)

At last we can see clearly!

Fall colors

First two in the bag! Drake and hen mallards.

Here come Dad and Dixie with my 3rd mallard!

Weapons of choice.

Duck blind staple.

Dixie was ready for some more action.

Such a beautiful morning

Best hunting pals 🙂