Perfect Pickleweed Pothole

MLBob Furia

MLBob Furia

Well-known member
Although it's usually a pain, over the past few seasons I have had good luck with making that decision to pick up and move to another spot - even though it's going to eat up a lot of time & effort.

Yesterday was no exception. I set off to hunt a slough I like - leaving home later in the morning in hopes that it would be open. We have had daytime temps in the high 30's over the past few days; but last week after the snow, we had a string of nights in the low teens with no wind. Lots of melt the past few days and temps at night the past few days had been better - but still at or just below the freezing mark. If there was thick ice, Plan B was to hunt the main stem of the River and see what was there.

When I got to the ramp, I could see the slough was still iced-out. Thin, but still locked up with probably 1/4" or less all over. Before heading to a ramp on the main stem, I took a look with binoculars back as far as I could see. A nice group of mallards sitting in a little hole in the ice made me decide to break ice back into the slough, jump them out, clear out a hole for myself, & hope they returned later. After an hour spent breaking ice & setting up (+soaked with sweat from slogging through ice & shoreline mud!), I settled in. Around noon, I watched a dozen mallards circle and come down in a pocket 400 yds away, a pocket that I knew held no more water than a few shallow pools left when the river level dropped last week. Then, another group came down in the same spot. Made the decision to pick it all up, jump them out, and see what might work where they were bent on going.

As I came back through the channel I had broken in the ice and looked back into this pocket, all I could see were heads and necks looking up over the cover - Bingo! It looked like a pickleweed convention. Out they all came and headed off. I beached the boat down the shoreline a way and grabbed my sack of pickleweeds, gun, and a seat. Another trip to get the dog and 4 more decoys for the little puddle of water I found back there, and I was set. Fortunately there was a stand of small sycamores and willows to hunker down in, and the Al Hansen "sit still and don't move" method worked like a charm.

Groups of birds returned to drop into that little hole at 3 different times during the afternoon. Here, I must confess that I shot poorly, whiffing completely on the first group, and taking just one bird out of each of the second two groups (I'll excuse that to the decision to take the Ruger O/U that my son shoots - he left it for me to clean when he returned to school Sunday, so I figured I'd hunt it instead of my SxS). But I have got to say that I experienced the most enjoyable hunt of the year. Just watching them decoy perfectly over & over to the setup of 13 pickleweeds and the few decoys I had set out was worth the price of admission. What a kick to stumble on the ideal conditions that the pickleweed stick-ups were made for!

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Sorely tempted to return today, but I'm going to let it rest and head back tomorrow and see what it looks like.
 
Sounds like you earned those birds Bob. I'm glad you listened to the little voice telling you to move. Those pickleweeds look incredibly real. I've only seen the pictures you have from the neck up. How do they go into the ground? Congrats on a great day. Jim Jr.
 
Those do look great! Thinking I may have some saltwater grasses that would fit the bill nicely. Good luck on the next adventure.

.
 
Interesting. Looks like a dead calm too. Nothing in your spread was moving? They must have wanted to be in there bad.

Ed.
 
Ed,

There was a good breeze from the South (...rt in the picture) for most of the afternoon that made the decoys in the shallow pools move. But you are right - for whatever reason those ducks wanted in that little hole. My decoys weren't any special magic, but it's good to know they completed the picture of a safe haven where the birds wanted to be.

Just one of those times when it all comes together, and keeps us looking forward to the next adventure ;-)
 
The only thing wrong with this whole post is that Bob is out there shooting ducks and I am inside busting my butt for my employer. Other than that, great hunt, Bob. Bet these pickleweeds are a lot lighter to carry back in to a remote spot if one needed to.

BTW, That looks like it could double as a spring turkey hunting spot too.
 
A picture is worth a thousand words...Looks like I will adopt your idea and knock a dozen out this year to hunt in the tall rice stubble here in the Texas Prairies...Nice hunt!

Regards,
Kristan
 
I had actually never heard of pickleweeds till I ment bob at his home last spring. Bob does great work on everythig but the [ickleweeds and the purpose behind them I thought were amazing!
were
 
What a great thread, Bob. I enjoyed this like reading a great duck hunting book. You did what so many people are not willing to do----change---make a difference. Fantastic pictures. By the way, do you always carry a sack of pickleweeds for just in case? What a marvelous idea. I could just picture you sitting there on an old rotten log or stump. Glad you got into them. That hunt will make your season, I'm willing to bet!
Al
 
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