Tag-alongs Tuesday

I am wondering just how many times Bob's rig has been sculled upon by hunters thinking they are real birds. Myabe he has to hunt with an airboat flag flying overhead for safety. :>) :>)
 
I am wondering just how many times Bob's rig has been sculled upon by hunters thinking they are real birds. Myabe he has to hunt with an airboat flag flying overhead for safety. :>) :>)
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That's close to reality at times. Two stories.
1. I was out sculling the backwaters of Muscamoot Bay around here and spied a raft of birds around the bend. We sculled on them and when I got close enough, I realized (to my embarrassment) that they were DECOYS. And to top it off, these were customers of mine and the dekes were E. Allens. The fellas got a chuckle out of that.
2. Had another customer who needed to replace some decoys. He heard a noise while hunting the edge of a lake and thought it was a deer. All of a sudden, several gun shots ran out. Some fella had foot-sculled (foot sneak) on his rig and blasted a couple of the decoys to oblivion. Yes, he was a bit embarrassed too.

Lou

Bob..........great looking birds. I'm a bit partial to Coots. I have several coot dekes and scull on those pesky buggers often. Way too much fun.
Lou
 
I am wondering just how many times Bob's rig has been sculled upon by hunters thinking they are real birds.
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My favorite is when the clowns out cruising the river bank shut the motor down at 50 yds. and hunker down in the boat. Whenever that starts to happen, I make sure to make my presence known in a hurry. Have even scrambled up the bank to intercept folks a few times when I've watched them cut the motor and head into the bank up or down river from me, so I can make sure they don't end up behind me shooting into the decoys.

Two incidents do stand out: - A "foot" scull by a young rabbit hunter - I didn't know was there until his gun went off right behind my boat blind as he "water swatted" one of my decoys. The air was turned blue that day. Poor kid just stood there stammering, "I'm sorry; I'm sorry." Scared the c#%p out of me, so I returned the favor.

- On another occasion I watched a guy carrying a compound bow come walking up the bank of the slough where I was hunting. He spotted the decoys a long way off and proceeded to do a masterful 30 minute stalk. Since he never headed behind me, I let him get all the way to the edge of the shoreline and at full draw before I spoke up. In both cases, I imagine that these would-be duck hunters probably had no federal or state stamps, nor had they thought out how they were going to retrieve anything they might have killed or wounded out on the water. I made sure to point that out to both of them. Folks sure will do some asinine things just to take home a duck.

Now it's only fair to point out that real duck hunters may do ODD things in order to kill a few ducks.... odd, however, is not the same as asinine. We do need to be prepared to explain that distinction to wives and/or girlfriends. ;-)
 
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Now it's only fair to point out that real duck hunters may do ODD things in order to kill a few ducks.... odd, however, is not the same as asinine. We do need to be prepared to explain that distinction to wives and/or girlfriends. ;-)
MLBob
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When I leave for the hunt at 3:00am my wife is more likely to use the term asinine, although I can't understand why??

She did recieve a call from the local cops one morning. My truck and trailer were at the boat ramp and they were calling as a welfare check. They asked if I had made it home the previous evening. My wife said yes I had and was out hunting this morning right now. They replied that they couldn't imagine any one going out on a day like that and were sure I had only been hunting the day before. It was snowing and blowing and I was not bothered by sky busters that day. :>)
 
My uncle told me this story years ago. He was hunting on a foggy morning and was sitting on a low bank behind a bush. A hunter came wading along the shoreline and when He got even with my uncle, he saw the decoys. Before my uncle could say any thing the fellow up and shot at the decoys three times. My uncle was dumb founded and said " Didn't you realize they were decoys when they didn't fly" The fellow turned around and looked over my uncles head by three feet. He never saw my uncle and with a surprised look on his face like he heard a ghost took off running. My uncles response was " You never have seen any thing funnier than a guy running as fast as he can with waders on along a shore line."

 
bob, curious where you got those color plates of the coot, the ones you appear to be using as reference?
 
Bob,
As always, your work is impeccable. I could never bring myself to shoot over your decoys.... too beautiful.

Dave, my wife uses the word "obsessive" to describe my hunting habits.
I prefer passionate.
 
bob, curious where you got those color plates of the coot, the ones you appear to be using as reference?
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I have a copy of The Birds of America down in the shop - a collection of Audubon's color plates.

It's a volume I have found invaluable for coming up with painting schemes that are effective on gunning birds - accurate detail without ultra-realism (if that makes sense?). The way he depicts a number of birds is also very conducive to adapting to the general shape of a frond). All in all, real "capture the essence" stuff.
 
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