Got into Ducks Last Year, Tell a Story or Give Advice!

[Davyalabama]

Toooooooooo many stories over the course of "never enough" years doing it. I started going with my dad at 4 with a bb gun, moved up to a 12 gauge with #8 lead a year or so later, then to #4's. Started with paper hull shells, trying to keep them dry in the rain and salt/foggy air.

Stories:
anything from bluebird days killing the stew out of them;

a foggy day that was so foggy couldn't see past the decoys, but could hear them whistling by, so went out past the decoys in waders and shot our two limits (20 ducks) in just a little bit;

watching my lab swim almost half way across the intercoastal canal after a wounded duck-----got the boat to go get them both;

an old admiral used to duck hunt, on calm days the ducks would raft up on the Gulf of Mexico/America, he would have a couple hughey's go round them up and bring huge flocks down the intercoastal between those two copters, lol funny seeing all those ducks being rounded up by those two;

One day we stayed out too long, huge waves on the intercoastal, it was so bad, the lab went to the back of the boat.

I know everyone is telling you to get a lab------------I'm going to tell you to get a good friend/mentor/older guy that you can talk to and enjoy. There is a lot of time in a duck blind to just talk; to be mentored; to learn life. Use this time wisely my friend.

 

[MarkOrtiz]

That's awesome! Do you mostly hunt from/at the duck club now?

A dog is a tempting idea! How much do you end up training her on a daily basis?

The duck club was really nice because it was 5 minutes from my driveway to the check in station. This year the migration was terrible, so we didn't hunt the club as much and scouted around and found some other lakes and areas to hunt. I don't think we will do the club next year and see what we can do in the other places.
With the dog training can be anywhere from 15 minutes to an hour. Most of the time we just go out on the back side of our acre and make her stay in her blind, throw a few bumpers out for her and then have her retrieve them from over small hills and in brush. She loves playing find the bird where we go hide a dead quail somewhere on the property and then walk her through the general area (within 50-75 yards) to see if she can pick up the smell and find the bird.

As far as advice, scout areas, hunt the weather, movement in the decoys makes a huge difference, and learn to call. We go out 2-3 times a year with my neighbor who has been doing this for over 50 years. He can pick out a duck, identify it and grab the right call for it. Those bird will turn and come right in to his calling. It is really cool to see that happen. I've been getting better and have learned some tricks, but nowhere near where he is with it. It does make a difference though.

 

[MDR]

Old man I used to bird hunt with told me to never leave my gun when picking up decoys. I've killed many birds packing up in the morning just because I chose to make a few extra trips.....

1000x this. Apparently I am a slow learner and do this often. Had a group of canadas so close above my head I could have hit them with a stick....gun was back in the blind.

 

[KurtR]

Thats what the dog is for i dont leave the blind and if we are picking up decoys we take the L and birds win that day

 

[kwackkillncrew]

never give up....never surrender! I am always nervous when people bring dogs where we sea duck hunt, too many sea lions. I had a pack of them give me hell last year when i was trying to pick up decoys on my paddle board.

 

[bigsky2]

Two votes for a dog. Might have to be two dogs, one for me and one for the wife. She loves mini aussies. Which seems to be a trend these days.

Can a lab that lives in a suburban home be ok in -20 F temps with running water, ice and snow? Honest question, seems like those temps would be tough on even the hardiest of dogs.

One thing I'd suggest is to put your dog out in his kennel on days when its cold (assuming you have a dog house in the kennel). My wife quit her job to stay home with the kid two years ago and now our lab is in the house almost all day. I've noticed its definitely made him softer when I take him duck hunting in cold conditions, and he doesn't tolerate it nearly as much as when he used to be in his kennel all day while we were at work. Next year I'm going to make sure he spends more days outside in cold weather to get him acclimated.

 

[need4sneed]

I’ve always felt that scouting is the most exhilarating part of duck hunting. I love chasing down flocks of birds from miles away - eyes peeled, looking for the tornado - pinning down the feeds, the waterhole, the loafing pond, the roost, the point, the island. Setting up the chess match of where to be, how to setup, how to hide. Praying for nasty weather and big wind.

Hunting over a well trained dog working birds is one of the greater joys in life. All the sweeter if it’s your dog, a relative’s or a friend’s.

A plucked, skin-on, puddle-duck breast is pry the best eating in all sporting.

 

[Fetty Wapiti]

I love duck hunting, it helps save on the dog food bills!

 

[kwackkillncrew]

I love duck hunting, it helps save on the dog food bills!

thats why i like elk hunting.

 

[schroej]

Once or twice a year, I like to head to my local refuge on a quiet weekday afternoon and still-hunt like I would for big game. Maneuvering between the tules is fun. Ive even snuck up on ducks in open water by moving impossibly slow. Don't get me wrong, seeing a flock of birds commit and come in feet down is a great feeling, but sometimes it can be really fun to try to sneak up on ducks with a leafy suit on.

 

[Cant hit em]

If you get a dog , game over addiction


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[Poser]

I'll be a bit of a contrarian here. First, let me say that duck hunting with a good group is super fun. Launching a boat into the Mississippi River at 4:30 in the morning on a frigid morning is intimidating AF. My personal favorite is flooded cypress bottoms, though I have known a few unfortunate drownings in those situations. I've gone a handful of times since moving to Colorado, but the public land options around here for duck hunting are rather meh, though there isn't a lot of competition.

Overall, having grown up around the MS flyway and having been exposed to some various duck camps in the Mississippi Delta, SW Tennessee and Arkansas, I'd confidently conclude that, at least based on my exposure, duck hunters as a sub user group are my least favorite subset of hunters. Know it alls, condescending pricks, gear snobs to the next level, grown versions of frat boys (or maybe even just active frat boys).... and, even worse, the rich version of all of those types thrown in a room. Bump it up a level to the true rich man's clubs where you have SEC football on the big screen in the duck blind, a bloody mary bar waiting for your return and an employee to clean your ducks for you. AND, almost none of the guys at this level even eat duck. Many of them have never eaten it even once and will look at you sideways at the mere mention of cooking some to eat. Oh, and they are all fat, everyone of them. The obesity rate amongst duck hunters in the Southeast is effectively 100%.

 

[Macintosh]

Like any endeavor, choose your friends wisely. There are a few good apples in every bushel.

 

[GARLICSALT]

LET EM WORK!!!

 

[OneGunTex]

I hunt all sorts of critters all year round, and I tell everyone this - the best mornings I've ever had when I didn't kill anything were duck hunting. Just watching the sun come up, sipping a cup of coffee, talking with your buddies is the greatest.

2 best memories: hunted a public playa lake as a big blue norther was rolling in one afternoon. 4 of us used our layout blinds as gurneys to haul in 12 dozen duck & goose decoys most of a mile. Was brutal. But then right on schedule the wind swung around, picked up to 25mph, the temp dropped 30 degrees, and the birds just came bombing in. Ducks, geese, cranes, it was wild. Then the sun went down, we realized how cold we were and had to haul all that gear back! Exhausted but so so worth it.

The other one is my dog's first retrieve. Just a bluebill on a tank pond, but watching it "click" for him after a LOT of training was awesome. Sorry not sorry - get a dog.

In my experience knocking on doors and getting permission is easier for ducks than any other type of hunting. Best thing I did for my marriage was find a place I could reliably hunt <1hr from my house. I can get up, hunt the morning flight, and be back before she gets out of bed on a Saturday morning or in time for church on Sunday. I get my fix, and it doesn't feel like I'm gone so much.

 

[WanderingWapiti]

I know everyone is telling you to get a lab------------I'm going to tell you to get a good friend/mentor/older guy that you can talk to and enjoy. There is a lot of time in a duck blind to just talk; to be mentored; to learn life. Use this time wisely my friend.

That is good advice for not just duck hunting.

 

[Davyalabama]

I hunt all sorts of critters all year round, and I tell everyone this - the best mornings I've ever had when I didn't kill anything were duck hunting. Just watching the sun come up, sipping a cup of coffee, talking with your buddies is the greatest.

I can still remember mornings with my dad, 100 or so decoys already out way before daylight, the two of us leaned back against the blind, bioluminescence in the water turning the lapping waves green, watching satellites pass over, one drinking black coffee the other hot chocolate because he's so young coffee isn't allowed yet................time

I can still remember my first duck kill with my granddad's model 59 with a fiberglass lined barrel. Bluebill, left to right. That gun is relegated to the safe now, but it sure is a nice swinging and pointing gun. I killed a pile of ducks with that gun.

 

[WanderingWapiti]

I can still remember mornings with my dad, 100 or so decoys already out way before daylight, the two of us leaned back against the blind, bioluminescence in the water turning the lapping waves green, watching satellites pass over, one drinking black coffee the other hot chocolate because he's so young coffee isn't allowed yet................time

I can still remember my first duck kill with my granddad's model 59 with a fiberglass lined barrel. Bluebill, left to right. That gun is relegated to the safe now, but it sure is a nice swinging and pointing gun. I killed a pile of ducks with that gun.

Man, this brings back memories with my dad, albeit not hunting, but surfing, While a completely different topic, a good reminder for me to call him a little bit more often. Some great memories that already feel too distant.

 

[VomSteinbruch]

I am an upland hunter who happens to love waterfowl hunting a lot. I'll take a real duck hunting over a preserve upland hunt where the birds were put out an hour earlier.

2025-26 was the first year I didn't hunt the ducks or geese. I lost access that I had to a WMA adjacent property.
Hope to do it resume it this year.

 

[BucksNBulls]

I've been duck hunting for 35+ years. For me, it's all about the dogs. I have 5 right now that I rotate. If I couldn't have some good dogs for some reason, I'd stop duck hunting the same day.