The "X"!

Curious about the bag on the shore as well? Actually kind of looks like a rock.
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Well, Jon, I quickly found out that it must have looked like a rock to the ducks, just like you thought. It made no difference to the ducks.
One thing I found out was that this island was holding 100s of sandhill cranes. They sure made a lot of noise when I shagged them off their favorite roost. When the sun came up, some of them would fly right over the island and nothing seemed to be out of the ordinary for them, so I knew all was well. I quit using a motion wing decoy because it spooked the cranes and geese. Things are much better now.
Al
 
Awesome photos...Love it...Hope the wife knows where your going each time...That looks like it could be dangerous situation quick...

Regards,
Kristan
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Thanks, Kristan. I'm glad you enjoyed the story and pictures. As for dangerous, the Rio Grande is noted for that. Areas of loose sand that makes you think there is "quicksand" where you are stepping. Other areas of clay like material that want to keep you from extracting your foot and leg out. What I don't like is the fluctuation of water levels and the constant changing of the main channel.
Last week, I tried to get over to an island. I took one step too many, ( I always use a walking stick for support) and darn near got swept away. Wet boots are no fun but I was lucky. I do carry a cell phone with me but realize that it won't work when submerged in muddy water. Bev knows where I go along with both land owners. I much prefer 6 to 8 inch deep water!
Al
 
Thanks for sharing Al. I'm amazed at how cold it is there in comparison to here in Southern, NJ.
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Thanks, Mike. One thing that people might forget is that I am hunting ducks/living at an elevation of 4,600 feet. The air here is thin and cannot hold in heat. We very seldom have clouds and they will hold in the warmer temps. However, with that being said, we normally don't have much of a cold spell---maybe two to three weeks. Next week our day time temps are supposed to be in the middle 50s with lows in the mid 20s. It is very common to see temperature swings of 40 or more degrees a day. In the summertime, it could easily get up to 100F or higher but at night it will drop back down into the 60s. That makes for some comfortable sleeping.
Al
 
Al,

It is good to see Chili in the field. She is very patient with her pupil.
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Good to hear from you, Paul. I know how busy you are now. I needed Chili to hunt with Habi again just because it was important for her to pass on to the youngster some of her hunting techniques----like how to sit in the blind and never move. I think the youngster is learning. By the way, Chili was thrilled to be going and with that thick coat of hers she was just fine. A couple of milk bones seemed to help, also.
Al
 
Nice story and photos! It's always a memorable experience when it all comes together the way we script it. My buddie calls it "buying the package".
 
Tim, how is the point guard doing at State?
Al


He is doing good but the team lost a couple games after that big win against NM. It's strange that they lost 3 out of 5 in that time frame but beat the best team they played in that stretch. It's too bad that unless they win the conference tourny again they won't have a chance to go to the Big Dance. Maybe had they beat MN they would have a chance but Wolters was out that game. He makes the team so they didn't stand much of a chance.
He is originally from St Cloud so I suppose MN can claim him a little. :)

Tim
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Great photo's Al. You really do get temperature extremes where you are, I can remember some of your summer photo's and stories and it seems like it's pushing 100. It's been real mild again this winter on the East Coast, so I didn't have any cold duck hunting days this year. But good for you for sticking it out! Dogs look great!
 
Nice story and photos! It's always a memorable experience when it all comes together the way we script it. My buddie calls it "buying the package".
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Thanks, Tom. Glad you liked it. By the way, it is fun to see it come together. Glad that front was moving through Utah and Colorado.
Al
 
Tim, how is the point guard doing at State?
Al


He is doing good but the team lost a couple games after that big win against NM. It's strange that they lost 3 out of 5 in that time frame but beat the best team they played in that stretch. It's too bad that unless they win the conference tourny again they won't have a chance to go to the Big Dance. Maybe had they beat MN they would have a chance but Wolters was out that game. He makes the team so they didn't stand much of a chance.
He is originally from St Cloud so I suppose MN can claim him a little. :)

Tim
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Funny that young man didn't go to St. Cloud and or St. John's.
Al
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Great photo's Al. You really do get temperature extremes where you are, I can remember some of your summer photo's and stories and it seems like it's pushing 100. It's been real mild again this winter on the East Coast, so I didn't have any cold duck hunting days this year. But good for you for sticking it out! Dogs look great!
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Hi Greg,
You are very lucky---maybe, to have another mild winter. We were supposed to have a warmer winter but it sure didn't materialize. Yesterday was colder and windier. I think the temp was somewhere around 5F. By the time I finished delivering a cord of wood in the afternoon it had gone up to 40F. Next week it will be warmer.
Deserts are well known for temperature extremes and one must be careful that you prepare for them.
I found out that carrying some of those large milk bones pays off in big dividends. Habi was getting cold so I gave her a couple of them and that really helped. She was already wearing the parka/vest.
Al
 
Great stuff Al. I loved the hen mallard head on the drake body. I also get bored and play around with what I put out as far as decoys. I think too many people put way too much emphasis on the "perfect spread" when in reality, the real spreads are usaully NOT perfect. The realism in decoys continues to get more and more life-like and I even saw (think it was in Mack's Prairie Wings) that a manufacturer was selling Blackduck /Mallard Hybrid decoys. This is what we find in real life and I try to teach my boys that the decoy paints don't have to be perfect........because the real birds sometimes aren't. I am waiting for our first winter storm (2-5 inches) which will start this afternoon. I will be in the marsh first thing in the morning, Saturday and Monday too hoping I find the "X" myself. Again, good stuff.

dc
 
Great stuff Al. I loved the hen mallard head on the drake body. I also get bored and play around with what I put out as far as decoys. I think too many people put way too much emphasis on the "perfect spread" when in reality, the real spreads are usaully NOT perfect. The realism in decoys continues to get more and more life-like and I even saw (think it was in Mack's Prairie Wings) that a manufacturer was selling Blackduck /Mallard Hybrid decoys. This is what we find in real life and I try to teach my boys that the decoy paints don't have to be perfect........because the real birds sometimes aren't. I am waiting for our first winter storm (2-5 inches) which will start this afternoon. I will be in the marsh first thing in the morning, Saturday and Monday too hoping I find the "X" myself. Again, good stuff.

dc
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I try and mix my decoys with old and new. Every time I observe a flock of mallards swimming around I have yet to see two ducks that look alike. They are all different in varying degrees.
I have been following this storm you are talking about. We had some really bad winds that day when half of Arizona was heading for west Texas. Looks like your area got some snow. You should have some new ducks to look at. Good luck, Dave.
Al
 
When there's too much water in Arkansas, that's when it's time to bum a hunt off of Al.

Ed.
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That is a good one, Ed. I thought Arkansas was too dry this year. Did they finally get the H2O they needed? By the way you could have joined me yesterday. It was 11F where I hunted and the only pictures I took were of a big flocks of robins. The Rio was jammed with ice. I tried in the afternoon, same spot, saw a few ducks but no shooting. It was 50F and I only had to wear my shirt. No jacket necessary. Weird weather. I'll be trying the private ranch this morning to see if I can change my luck.
Al

I did not like breaking ice to set out my decoys. It marks the very first time that I would actually walk on top of it for a ways, then break through again. Too dangerous for me.
That afternoon I had to go out two times to move my decoys out of the way of huge sheets of ice that began moving downstream. Thankfully it was not too thick then.

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Yeah Al it's always something. Too dry, too wet, too warm, too cold. Early in the season it was the tail end of the drought and only one place I could hunt barely had enough water to float a decoy. We stated getting some rain in late November. Then right around Christmas and for a couple of weeks it was perfect and we were really hammering them. Then it started raining more often then not. The last trip I made up there I got my 4WD truck stuck in this morass of a parking area we have and needed a big tractor to pull it out; killed 3 birds in 3 overcast drizzley days that reminded me of my time in the PAC NW. Since then they've gotten 5 more inches of rain and I can see that many of the rivers in Eastern Arkansas are over the 75th percentile in flow as measured by the USGS. Generally that means few if any ducks for us as those river valleys are shallow, wide, and vast and there's just too many places ducks can be that people can't get to when the water gets that high. My last trip is this weekend. It looks like you've got more than enough water where you are.

Ed.
 
Nice pictures Al! The drake wigeon are very pretty. They're kind of spotty in the areas I hunt, so I don't see many of them.

Looks like the dogs had fun in the slush!
 
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