Fred Unlimited

Confident from taking four ducks on Tuesday, and thinking there might be more on Thursday due to colder weather in the north, I thought I might have a chance of reaching my limit of six, but it was not to be.

My third day of duck hunting was a different day, in that it wasn’t raining, but was considerably colder. I was still with my mainstay mentor Bill, but Joe didn’t make it to this draw (his first miss of the season), and Gene joined us, as he had hoped to do on opening day. Some waterfowl hunters are fairly easy to identify on sight, sometimes even when their driving down the road. I’m not just talking about the "Ducks Unlimited" duck-head silhouette you see as a window sticker. My partner Gene painted his entire truck camouflage. And if that doesn’t give him away, there’s three brass ducks mounted to his hood.

My 9 spot in the reservation system was still a good number, but we weren’t able to get into the same pool that we did on Tuesday, so I was in another new area, with different terrain. Gene and I walked through a picked cornfield to get to our spot, and Bill took his boat. We set up in a thick patch of cattails in about 10 inches of water, at the edge of an open pool.
As we headed out to the site there were still stars in the sky. The nearly full moon was setting in the west just as they sky was starting to turn pink in the east. Eagle Bluffs is very picturesque this time of day.
Overall there seemed to be fewer ducks in the air than Tuesday, at least where we were. But we did have some come in to our decoys. My shooting didn’t improve much, but I was successful in getting two, and Gene got five, and Bill got three in five shots. I’m hoping no one kept track of how many shots I fired to get two.
My introduction to waterfowl hunting was a great experience. Being completely ignorant, coupled with the fact that my hunting partners averaged 20 years my senior, made me feel rather youthful. I transformed from a worn-out, middle aged Dad to a bright eyed kid eager to learn.

When I was in college, I wrote a report and did a presentation about Eagle Bluffs and wetlands management for a Rural Sociology class. In true undergraduate-learning fashion, I never actual went to Eagle Bluffs during my research for this report, even though it was only about 15 miles away. I have been out there a few times to bike ride on the service roads, and a couple times with the kids to show them ducks or see an eagle. I now have a new respect for what this close-to-home area has to offer.

Waterfowl hunters seem to see people as either waterfowl hunters or not. It’s different than say, rabbit hunting, where maybe you do it occasionally but don’t really consider being a "rabbit hunter" part of your identity. I think this is because waterfowl hunting requires enough of a level of knowledge; skill and preparation to a degree that if you’re probably not going to dabble in it occasionally, you’re either in or you’re out.

That being said, I do really hope to get a chance to go again this season. But as for this weekend, the ducks are safe as far as I’m concerned. There are venison recipes yet to be made, and this is opening weekend of firearms deer season.