Woke up at 3:00am on New Years Eve, very tired from a long day on Friday but contemplating hitting the water one last time for 2016. Checked the weather on my iPhone and then finally dragged my butt outta bed at 3:15.
Winds were east & blowing pretty good, and with them forecasted to turn southeast and increase, not good weather to hunt MS Sound like I did Friday. So I headed to a part of Mobile Bay that is relatively sheltered where I saw some birds last week while windshield scouting on the way to work.
Headed down river & out into the bay. Winds were stiff but tolerable. Barely. And more northeast than the southeast forecasted. And stayed northeast and even calmed about mid-morning, Coulda hunted Miss. Sound after all, oh well.
Anyway, go to my spot, set up and settled in by 5:35, shooting time is 6:18. Set my alarm for 6:10 and laid back in the boat. The wind is whistling through the blind and gadwalls are chattering all around me. That makes the 3:00 am wake up worth it (the Good)
About 10 minutes before shooting time, I'm watching the decoys when 2 redheads swim through and out of sight.
Right at shooting time, about 50 gadwalls land about 100 yards away. From then until when I left at 9:30, flock after flock of gadwalls flew in from open water of the bay to the south and landed with this bunch or went past me to the groups that were on the water from before daylight. One or two came close enough to take a shot. Even when I did shoot, the rafts either picked up & plopped right back down or just sat on the water. Couldn't get a single gadwalls to decoys. very frustrating. (the Bad)
On the Good side, at about 7:00, a small flock of about 8 birds come zooming into the decoys. Took me a second to realize what I was seeing but then I realize its PINTAILS!!! I fold a nice drake on the first shot (the Good). Swing over onto a second one and hit him twice. Looked like he was going to drop but then picks up and flies out of sight over the open bay before I can reload and anchor him (more Bad). Good Lord I hate losing birds.
About 8:00, a single diver cruises into the decoys, first one I have seen since the pair before daylight. Turns out to be a great looking drake redhead (Good). A little while later a few more flocks of redheads cruise over the decoys but I blow the shot (more Bad).
I picked up around 9:30 and did some scouting. Found a lot more birds, a lot more. As in hundreds (Good). Just have to find some that will decoys.
Turns out we have a lot of ducks (well gadwalls at least). More than I have seen in many years. But getting them to actually decoys is very hard. Seems like they have become as wary as a flock of old snow geese who have made the migration 10 times Especially when they are in flocks of 8-20. Singles tend to be suckers, but flocks of ejamacated gadwalls are almost impossible.
One very strange note is that I have not killed a single bluebill this year, have only shot at one. No drake buffies either and only 1 hen buffy. I have never gone the whole first half of the season without shooting them. Most years these two species make up a 1/4 to 1/2 of my total bag. We just don't have any down. Very strange.
Overall, one of those very frustrating but rewarding mornings, guess we gotta take the bad with the good:
View attachment 12-31-16A.jpg
Winds were east & blowing pretty good, and with them forecasted to turn southeast and increase, not good weather to hunt MS Sound like I did Friday. So I headed to a part of Mobile Bay that is relatively sheltered where I saw some birds last week while windshield scouting on the way to work.
Headed down river & out into the bay. Winds were stiff but tolerable. Barely. And more northeast than the southeast forecasted. And stayed northeast and even calmed about mid-morning, Coulda hunted Miss. Sound after all, oh well.
Anyway, go to my spot, set up and settled in by 5:35, shooting time is 6:18. Set my alarm for 6:10 and laid back in the boat. The wind is whistling through the blind and gadwalls are chattering all around me. That makes the 3:00 am wake up worth it (the Good)
About 10 minutes before shooting time, I'm watching the decoys when 2 redheads swim through and out of sight.
Right at shooting time, about 50 gadwalls land about 100 yards away. From then until when I left at 9:30, flock after flock of gadwalls flew in from open water of the bay to the south and landed with this bunch or went past me to the groups that were on the water from before daylight. One or two came close enough to take a shot. Even when I did shoot, the rafts either picked up & plopped right back down or just sat on the water. Couldn't get a single gadwalls to decoys. very frustrating. (the Bad)
On the Good side, at about 7:00, a small flock of about 8 birds come zooming into the decoys. Took me a second to realize what I was seeing but then I realize its PINTAILS!!! I fold a nice drake on the first shot (the Good). Swing over onto a second one and hit him twice. Looked like he was going to drop but then picks up and flies out of sight over the open bay before I can reload and anchor him (more Bad). Good Lord I hate losing birds.
About 8:00, a single diver cruises into the decoys, first one I have seen since the pair before daylight. Turns out to be a great looking drake redhead (Good). A little while later a few more flocks of redheads cruise over the decoys but I blow the shot (more Bad).
I picked up around 9:30 and did some scouting. Found a lot more birds, a lot more. As in hundreds (Good). Just have to find some that will decoys.
Turns out we have a lot of ducks (well gadwalls at least). More than I have seen in many years. But getting them to actually decoys is very hard. Seems like they have become as wary as a flock of old snow geese who have made the migration 10 times Especially when they are in flocks of 8-20. Singles tend to be suckers, but flocks of ejamacated gadwalls are almost impossible.
One very strange note is that I have not killed a single bluebill this year, have only shot at one. No drake buffies either and only 1 hen buffy. I have never gone the whole first half of the season without shooting them. Most years these two species make up a 1/4 to 1/2 of my total bag. We just don't have any down. Very strange.
Overall, one of those very frustrating but rewarding mornings, guess we gotta take the bad with the good:
View attachment 12-31-16A.jpg
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