Todd Duncan Tennyson
Well-known member
It was pretty slow at work yesterday and they asked for volunteers to go home early
I had Kaden in the crate in the car to walk on my breaks and at lunch, and we like to do fetches and practice out along the river.
It was shaping up to be a really nice day, sunshine and high blue skies. After my break at 0815hrs I volunteered to “split.”
About 10 minutes later they said “Go home” So I got Kaden back out for another hour of running bumpers and practicing the “stay command” and a little bit of short blind retrieve work.
The sky was so blue, and the day so nice, I figured it would be a good day to take the red boy and the Bomber down to the river.
I could pull plugs for a steelhead and he could get used to being in the boat. It would be totally new to him, and soon he will need to comfortable doing the boat ride and all, but in the dark and in the rain to boot.
I took the propane heater “the dog burner” just in case.
Alex used to wave his soaking wet tail in front of it
and it would steam and always singe some hair off the end of that big black fan of his.
I hooked up the boat and pulled it out in front of the house to let about 100 gal of rainwater spray out the back of it. One of my neighbors came by and remarked that he’d seen me running the new dog, and that we looked to be a good fit, working hard at working hard.
“You going to hunt this late on a sunny day?” I said, “naa, we are just going to practice running the river and pull a plug for a winter steelhead.”
“Well congrats on the new dog, I am sure he’ll live one hell of an adventure with you” he remarked.
“I hope so” I agreed.
Just before we left, Kaden said, “you know, sometimes a dog gets a break on his first real adventure,
could you grab your shotgun?”
I said, “you know Kaden, you are right, why not?”
I grabbed the Old 12 Ga O/U and a box of shells.
I really didn’t have any decoys for that place on the river, I had about a dozen canvasbacks and some goldeneyes and a 3 spools of ganglines and some plate weights.
Heck, I didn’t even have my calls. I am a lousy caller anyway, so that might have been a good thing.
We rolled to the river and launched the bomber.
Kaden explored it all.
From stem to stern.
I set out the big grey wool blanket so he wouldn’t have to have his belly on a cold aluminum surface.
We tried casting and he was very interested in it. He asked, “do you want me to go after that toy fish on the end of your line like I go after the toy duck we threw this morning?”
“No Kaden, you settle in and enjoy the sun”.
I answered.
“Hmm, I don’t get it,
but I will do what you say.”
He took up a position of command near the bow.
he continued to explore his new boat.
He seemed to enjoy knowing that this was “his”
all of it.
The blue sky
The river
The boat
The old shotgun in the corner
And the decoys and long lines.
He seemed to realize that it was important and something to be glad about.
I said, “you know Kaden, this is a big job, and it will mean a lot of hard work.
We are going to have to be a team.”
“I am ready for this” he said.
“This is why I am here with you”
“I was sent here for you & we are going on our mission together”
I nodded in agreement
and smiled at the boy.
I was growing tired of pulling plugs and decided to hit a spot that I busted some wood ducks and wigeons at a few weeks back.
We motored in quietly and I told Kaden to grab me a goldeneye decoy.
He gave me a canvasback.
I said “no Kaden, the one with the white spot on its face and the greenish head. I wrapped it in burlap and mastic and painted it myself”.
“Oh here you go” he handed it over.
We ran a short set and stashed the boat as best as we could.
We waited and the red boy wiggled and paced in the boat with his young nervous energy.
I laughed at him and lit up the Propane heater, and he put his head on my leg and relaxed and seem to understand that we were where we needed to be.
I didn’t have my calls and the water was smooth like glass. I grabbed a goldeneye home made burlapped deek and tied it to the end of a long line and threw it out to use as a jerk rig in case we had a fly by.
I make my best drake mallard whistle and Kaden lit up and was on hi alert. I said “easy boy, I have to do this so that the ducks will come here”.
After about 30 minutes, a pair of Wigeons carved in.
I told Kaden
“steady”
One peeled off and committed to the diver rig.
Cupped her wings and let her flaps down and I mounted the old 12 ga and shot.
Kaden was excited and asked what to do, so I got him on the back of the boat and had him mark the spot and he exploded into the water and did what God allowed him.
It was as though he’d always done it.
I said “good boy Kaden, good boy!”
As soon as he connected with the bird I gave him the special whistle I always give him when he connects with a fetch or a blind retrieve.
He came back to the boat and I helped him on.
Gave him lots of “Good boy” and lots of love and praise.
He was wide eyed and tripping on his tongue,
Tail beating the sides of the bomber as it were a gong.
I laughed at him in his joy.
We rolled up the longlines and pulled the weights.
I figured it was a good idea to end on a good and positive note for the day.
We spent a while and drifted along with the pull of the river with the motor off..
I remembered Ol’ Alex first duck, and how we chased it in a marsh for 45 minutes through the thickest tules and muck on earth and I laughed a little, and smiled to know I had a new boy to teach me how to live.
The geese flew across the tulip fields and into the sunset across the water.
We arrived at the launch and I had the boy sit on the bow.
I gave him his bird and he walked to the truck with it as though he was the “Red King” of the river.
The launch guys all mentioned that he seemed pretty happy, and noticed that Ginger had stayed home. “Where is the old hound dog?” they asked.
I said, “guys, she’ll be 14 on Pearl Harbor day, and she waits for us to come home to go for our walk later today”
One of the guys that is always there at the launch said, “we’ll you’ve been right with her, and taken her out plenty. She was lucky to find a man that gave a damn.”
We shook hands..
They all congratulated the boy on his good day, and I smiled as we pulled the Bomber up and out of the canyon.
Kaden was proud and I was proud for him.
For a moment he was
“The young red king”
of the river.
I had Kaden in the crate in the car to walk on my breaks and at lunch, and we like to do fetches and practice out along the river.
It was shaping up to be a really nice day, sunshine and high blue skies. After my break at 0815hrs I volunteered to “split.”
About 10 minutes later they said “Go home” So I got Kaden back out for another hour of running bumpers and practicing the “stay command” and a little bit of short blind retrieve work.
The sky was so blue, and the day so nice, I figured it would be a good day to take the red boy and the Bomber down to the river.
I could pull plugs for a steelhead and he could get used to being in the boat. It would be totally new to him, and soon he will need to comfortable doing the boat ride and all, but in the dark and in the rain to boot.
I took the propane heater “the dog burner” just in case.
Alex used to wave his soaking wet tail in front of it
and it would steam and always singe some hair off the end of that big black fan of his.
I hooked up the boat and pulled it out in front of the house to let about 100 gal of rainwater spray out the back of it. One of my neighbors came by and remarked that he’d seen me running the new dog, and that we looked to be a good fit, working hard at working hard.
“You going to hunt this late on a sunny day?” I said, “naa, we are just going to practice running the river and pull a plug for a winter steelhead.”
“Well congrats on the new dog, I am sure he’ll live one hell of an adventure with you” he remarked.
“I hope so” I agreed.
Just before we left, Kaden said, “you know, sometimes a dog gets a break on his first real adventure,
could you grab your shotgun?”
I said, “you know Kaden, you are right, why not?”
I grabbed the Old 12 Ga O/U and a box of shells.
I really didn’t have any decoys for that place on the river, I had about a dozen canvasbacks and some goldeneyes and a 3 spools of ganglines and some plate weights.
Heck, I didn’t even have my calls. I am a lousy caller anyway, so that might have been a good thing.
We rolled to the river and launched the bomber.
Kaden explored it all.
From stem to stern.
I set out the big grey wool blanket so he wouldn’t have to have his belly on a cold aluminum surface.
We tried casting and he was very interested in it. He asked, “do you want me to go after that toy fish on the end of your line like I go after the toy duck we threw this morning?”
“No Kaden, you settle in and enjoy the sun”.
I answered.
“Hmm, I don’t get it,
but I will do what you say.”
He took up a position of command near the bow.
he continued to explore his new boat.
He seemed to enjoy knowing that this was “his”
all of it.
The blue sky
The river
The boat
The old shotgun in the corner
And the decoys and long lines.
He seemed to realize that it was important and something to be glad about.
I said, “you know Kaden, this is a big job, and it will mean a lot of hard work.
We are going to have to be a team.”
“I am ready for this” he said.
“This is why I am here with you”
“I was sent here for you & we are going on our mission together”
I nodded in agreement
and smiled at the boy.
I was growing tired of pulling plugs and decided to hit a spot that I busted some wood ducks and wigeons at a few weeks back.
We motored in quietly and I told Kaden to grab me a goldeneye decoy.
He gave me a canvasback.
I said “no Kaden, the one with the white spot on its face and the greenish head. I wrapped it in burlap and mastic and painted it myself”.
“Oh here you go” he handed it over.
We ran a short set and stashed the boat as best as we could.
We waited and the red boy wiggled and paced in the boat with his young nervous energy.
I laughed at him and lit up the Propane heater, and he put his head on my leg and relaxed and seem to understand that we were where we needed to be.
I didn’t have my calls and the water was smooth like glass. I grabbed a goldeneye home made burlapped deek and tied it to the end of a long line and threw it out to use as a jerk rig in case we had a fly by.
I make my best drake mallard whistle and Kaden lit up and was on hi alert. I said “easy boy, I have to do this so that the ducks will come here”.
After about 30 minutes, a pair of Wigeons carved in.
I told Kaden
“steady”
One peeled off and committed to the diver rig.
Cupped her wings and let her flaps down and I mounted the old 12 ga and shot.
Kaden was excited and asked what to do, so I got him on the back of the boat and had him mark the spot and he exploded into the water and did what God allowed him.
It was as though he’d always done it.
I said “good boy Kaden, good boy!”
As soon as he connected with the bird I gave him the special whistle I always give him when he connects with a fetch or a blind retrieve.
He came back to the boat and I helped him on.
Gave him lots of “Good boy” and lots of love and praise.
He was wide eyed and tripping on his tongue,
Tail beating the sides of the bomber as it were a gong.
I laughed at him in his joy.
We rolled up the longlines and pulled the weights.
I figured it was a good idea to end on a good and positive note for the day.
We spent a while and drifted along with the pull of the river with the motor off..
I remembered Ol’ Alex first duck, and how we chased it in a marsh for 45 minutes through the thickest tules and muck on earth and I laughed a little, and smiled to know I had a new boy to teach me how to live.
The geese flew across the tulip fields and into the sunset across the water.
We arrived at the launch and I had the boy sit on the bow.
I gave him his bird and he walked to the truck with it as though he was the “Red King” of the river.
The launch guys all mentioned that he seemed pretty happy, and noticed that Ginger had stayed home. “Where is the old hound dog?” they asked.
I said, “guys, she’ll be 14 on Pearl Harbor day, and she waits for us to come home to go for our walk later today”
One of the guys that is always there at the launch said, “we’ll you’ve been right with her, and taken her out plenty. She was lucky to find a man that gave a damn.”
We shook hands..
They all congratulated the boy on his good day, and I smiled as we pulled the Bomber up and out of the canyon.
Kaden was proud and I was proud for him.
For a moment he was
“The young red king”
of the river.
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