[Note: This post was supposed to go up last Friday, but was delayed due to some epic technical issues… All fixed, now!]
This weekend. This weekend marks the end of duck season. And what a duck season it has been! I have two hunts, maybe three left, and plan on getting the goody out of each one! We had some slow times thanks to an (unusually) balmy winter, but right into January the cold weather finally arrived. My next two hunts were in some chilly, chilly weather, and they were… Awesome.
Can you believe we are almost halfway through January? And that there are just a few short weeks left of duck season? I know! I feel like it just started. That’s probably also why I am just now posting about our post-New Year’s hunting (at least that’s my excuse). I kept thinking it was “just last weekend” but that’s clearly not the case!
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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.
Did the holidays absolutely fly by for anyone else? Seriously, did Christmas and New Years even happen? If it weren’t for some awesome hunts (with photos to prove it), some great gifts and gear, and the terrifying memory of a bad hangover (thank you, Castaways), you’d think they never happened! But, like I said, I have photos to prove it.
Oh, and quail.
But! I completely forgot to tell you about seeing a deer in my last post. Crazy! In the middle of the duck hunt, I looked across to the bank of the pond and thought, ‘Wow, did someone bring a Great Dane as their bird dog?” No kidding – a nice sized doe was trotting past the pond. Odd, and the first time I’ve ever seen a deer while duck hunting.
The fun doesn’t stop there, either.
Well, the second split of duck season is officially (well) underway, and I must admit… I LOVE IT. Despite this insanely warm December weather we’ve been having (because who wants to have to bring a Thermacell in the duck blind, right?), even the slow mornings are so much fun.
Can you believe Christmas is only 10 days away? Where has December gone? Where has 2015 gone? Craziness!
Know what else is crazy? Hog hunting. Specifically, hog hunting on a small island in the ACE Basin where the brush and marsh grass are so thick that you can hear a hog 15 feet away from you but you can’t see him and you just hope your trigger finger is fast enough to still be the predator instead of becoming the prey. That sounds [a touch] dramatic, but I KID YOU NOT.
It. Was. Awesome.
Can you believe that it is already DECEMBER? Seriously! Where did November go? Whizzed past in the blink of an eye, if you ask me! And, since November is, in fact, over… Well, so is the first split of duck season here in South Carolina. Luckily, I was able to duck 3 times during that time, and it was quite a successful adventure!
Or, that time I came eye to eye with a 10-point buck and free-handed it him at 90 yards.
Wait, what? I know. I KNOW. Let’s back up to the start of the weekend. Be prepared: this one’s a doozy.
It’s the weekend, friends! Who’s excited? This cooler weather has definitely given me a boost to want to get back in the woods/ out in the field. Last weekend, I did exactly that – my first Estherville dove hunt of the season!
