The pursuit of fish and game is a recipe for failure — it’s just the nature of chasing animals that have adapted to avoid getting gotten, and thankfully so. After all, we need more of them to survive than we harvest so the cycle can continue.{/span}
While hunting isn’t a contest, it certainly is a challenge, and we make mistakes. Deer and elk detect the slightest scent change, and turkeys react to movement like Neo in “The Matrix.” Grouse and woodcock live in nearly impenetrable places that require a good dog to help locate, and even then, you’re lucky if you can see anything long enough to get off a shot. Squirrels “tree-top” like the wind and dart into the safety of a hole. A 20-pound king salmon in a river is like trying to land a school bus.
Well, duck season begins in a couple of days, and they present their own laundry list of obstacles that hunters need to overcome. They’re on constant alert for avian and mammalian predators, and their gregarious nature offers them safety in the form of many eyes looking for danger. Oh, and they fly really fast.
Given the wide knowledge base of gear, dogs, guns, boats, and more, I’d like to offer a few tips from 40 years of having done pretty much everything wrong in this sport at one point or another with hopes of helping you put a few more quackers (not crackers) on the table.
Mistake: Not finding birds “before” the hunt.
Correction: While work and family pull at us from every direction, any time spent looking for ducks prior to the hunt is beneficial, just remember to look during the times you plan to hunt. Waterfowl don’t spend all day in one spot, so what’s there at noon might not be there at 5pm, or 7am the following morning. And when scouting, don’t just look, but listen. They’re as noisy as a grade-school cafeteria. Once birds are located, observe them a while to see where they may be trading, and at what times, remembering that there are often late-morning movements, especially on cold days later in the year.
Mistake: Owning only one watercraft (usually a function of keeping a marriage happy).
Correction: Own several, specifically a duck boat, a canoe, and perhaps a small stealth craft or kayak, or even a layout boat. I love a good canoe more than most, using it to reach small water and floodings where my larger boat can’t navigate, or even dragging it a ways through the woods to the water’s edge. Kayaks offer even more unfettered access and are easy to transport, though can’t haul near the gear. I’ve found that my canoe holds plenty, and can go pretty much everywhere a kayak can. So I start out early to mid-season in a 15’ Mad River, then move to the duck boat/motor when migration peaks and I need to deploy more decoys in open water, or cover a lot of water to find birds. Then, I go back to the canoe late season when things freeze and I’m on a creek or something very small and shallow.
Note of safety. Canoes and kayaks are tippy (kayaks more so in my opinion), and with too much gear or an unruly retriever, can cause you to embrace the water horizontally. As with all watercraft, wear your life vest at least while under operation.
Mistake: Not keeping the boat, blind, and hunters hidden (and making a blind with a roof that casts a huge dark shadow on an otherwise shadow-less shoreline), talking too loud to your buddies, pointing with your hand where birds are, and looking straight up when birds pass over.
Correction: Take extra time to ensure the boat/blind blends in with the natural vegetation. And restrict sound, movements, and bright flashes of color — like your face, or hands when they point to a duck (just use verbal clock positions) — or the yellow Lab sitting on the bow. All will scare ducks faster than you can say … a bad word.
Mistake: Using too many or too few decoys.
Correction: Understand waterfowl biology at various points in the season. Early season birds still in family groups aren’t pressured by weather or diminishing daylight, and don’t congregate in large flocks in preparation for migration. So go smaller with your numbers from the opener through the first couple of weeks. As more ducks gather later in October, add more decoys (I normally use a few dozen as migration builds), and more if necessary, as numbers peak, especially when hunting larger lakes and the bay. These bodies of water offer ducks more options to land, so additional decoys help get the attention of passing birds and convince them that your spot is where the party’s at. On either end of that peak migration, ducks hang out in smaller groups, so adjust accordingly.
Mistake: Using brightly painted decoys during the early season.
Correction: Since ducks in our area typically haven’t completed the second molt to get their breeding colors until mid-season or later, use dull or dirty decoys, and more hens than males. It looks natural. Then, as you begin seeing and shooting more birds with color, gradually mix in newer-looking decoys until they make up your entire setup.
Mistake: Missing ducks because of shooting at birds out of range, or shooting behind.
Correction: We all miss ducks and geese. As the saying goes, there’s a lot of air around every bird. But two of the main reasons hunters miss (other than lack of practice or coordination) is from shooting at ducks out of effective killing range, and shooting behind a bird; often, the two are synonymous. The first is remedied by understanding ranges and — here’s the kicker — being disciplined to “not” shoot. It can be so difficult after finally getting a duck “almost”within range to hold your fire, knowing it might get shot by the guy down the shore. That’s a great way to cripple a bird, or just be a jerk. So use your farthest decoy as a marker, placing it within shotgun range and remembering not to shoot at birds beyond that.
Shooting behind happens typically from stopping your swing, or miscalculating how fast a bird is going. Think leading a receiver when throwing a football, remembering that it’s better to miss in front of the bird than behind so you at least gave the bird a chance to fly into the shot string.
Mistake: Hunting with an undisciplined retriever.
Correction: Regardless how well trained your furry companion is, at the very least, he should know basic obedience to sit still and keep quiet. If you got him from a reputable breeder, he’ll pick up a duck and bring it back … eventually.
Mistake: Not knowing what you’re shooting at.
Correction: Learn. With the amount of available material, as well as a good mentor, there’s no excuse to not know what you’re shooting at (or worse, have already shot).
Mistake: Being a lousy duck and goose caller.
Correction: Practice constantly, watch videos, ask questions, listen to the birds. Even if you’re tone deaf, with enough practice, you can sound like a duck or goose. And you’ll know you’re doing it enough if your wife hires a moving company without telling you.