2015-2016 Season Log

[Rick]

Date: 12/29

Time: morning

Location: Mudhole

Cloud Cover: cloudy

Wind Direction and Velocity: NEN light

Temperature: 40s

Barometer: 30.08 rising

Moon phase: waning 81%

Special Notes:

Waterfowl Activity: Not a lot moving high or low, but enough spoons and bluewings around to keep us interested.

Waterfowl Responsiveness: Not great, as much of what flew seemed to know us.

Hunters: 2, WFF's own Darren and his friend, Mark

Guns:

Malfunctions:

Dog(s): Peake failed to find two chipped spoons that would have helped set a new blind record.

Special Equipment: spinner and mmm

Curses: Only the big ducks or gw bunches' failure to show.

Kudos: Pleasant day in pleasant company, and they hit most of what came.

Birds By Species: 5 bw teal, 2 gw teal, 1 mallard and 8 (thank you very much) shovellers

Photo Ops:

Lagniappe:

[Ericdc]

Tough in little chenier this morning too. Imagine less folks hunting to stir em and no wind.

[Ericdc]

Nobody hunted my blind up here

[Ericdc]

We can't buy a spoon at my field. They are the most skittish of all.

[Darren]

"Most" of what came is about right Could have had maybe a couple more on the early ops to round out the 18 and likely a speck but was a great morning regardless. thanks again Rick

[DComeaux]

Ain't a darn thing wrong with a spoon. Matter of fact, Blake and I have been seeing some nice looking drakes we'ed like to get our hands on.

Why are there no pictures with your report?

[Rick]

Why are there no pictures with your report?

Didn't take any.

[Ericdc]

Spoon shame

[Rick]

Had we found them all and set a new blind record, that would have been photo worthy.

[Rick]

Ain't a darn thing wrong with a spoon. Matter of fact, Blake and I have been seeing some nice looking drakes we'ed like to get our hands on.

Why are there no pictures with your report?

Pretty sure I've seen those same ones and find myself most mornings wishing and hoping for at least a chance at one of them and maybe a few of their friends.

They be looking for big open floods where they won't bump their noses, like the one across Dolza from you. Y'all will have to settle for lesser-billed greenheads.

[Rick]

Date: 12/30

Time: morning

Location: mudhole

Cloud Cover: heavy with a bit of rain early on

Wind Direction and Velocity: NNE moderate to light

Temperature: 51

Barometer: 30.12 rising

Moon phase: 73% waning

Special Notes:

Waterfowl Activity: Saw what should have been enough big ducks for a sweet hunt early on, but the east end was apparently covered in little ducks.

Waterfowl Responsiveness: High big ducks would break pretty and get banged out by our east blinds or Cherry Ridges 7 to the north time after time after time. Same with the only geese we got to work. Just an extremely frustrating morning.

Hunters: 2, Ben and Jude

Guns:

Malfunctions:

Dog(s): Peake thankfully found them all today.

Special Equipment: spinner and mmm

Curses: I'm used to having birds banged out by other blinds, but it's been a while since this many pretty chances were boogered.

Kudos: Nice guys who took good advantage of what managed to get where it needed to be.

Birds By Species: 7 gw teal, 3 mallards, 2 shovellers and 1 wigeon

Photo Ops:

Lagniappe:

[Ericdc]

That's tough about the boogering, I remember it happening to us a good bit. Southerly winds get us bad. North winds we get them.

[DComeaux]

I'll send a silencer salesman out you way next week.

[Rick]

Date: 12/31

Time: morning

Location: mudhole

Cloud Cover: heavy

Wind Direction and Velocity: NE strong

Temperature: upper 40s

Barometer: 30.22 rising

Moon phase: waning 64%

Special Notes:

Waterfowl Activity: As sorry as it's been on our end this year, with nothing but a precious few locals stirring - while the east end of the marsh hammered little ducks.

Waterfowl Responsiveness: Was slow enough that I called to a crazy high speck flight and somehow broke a pair out that dropped like grays - only to have the gang follow them down and sweep them away. Guys were excited to see them all coming, but I'd seen that act far more than enough times to know how it would most likely play out.

Hunters: 2, father and son, Ronnie and Dillon

Guns:

Malfunctions:

Dog(s): Peake slept the morning away.

Special Equipment: spinner and mmm

Curses: no birds

Kudos: nice folks who were smart enough to pull the plug at 9. I didn't argue.

Birds By Species: 2 bw teal, 2 gadwall and 2 shovellers

Photo Ops:

Lagniappe:

[Ericdc]

Slow up here too: we hailed at some specks this morning and had same thing happen as you. Although we did get 1 single in right.

[Ericdc]

Speck calling is reallllly fun

[Rick]

Date: 1/1

Time: morning

Location: mudhole

Cloud Cover: heavy

Wind Direction and Velocity: NE strong

Temperature: mid 40s

Barometer: 30.32 rising

Moon phase: waning 54%

Special Notes: Scheduling mix up found me taking a long time client instead of family, which turned out a good thing for family.

Waterfowl Activity: The mudhole continues to be a dead zone, while more easterly blinds remain strong. Precious few teal seen, and the only big ducks are "locals" that know what we're doing and where they're going. 6 of our teal came from one flock.

Waterfowl Responsiveness: Have apparently educated everything in the neighborhood.

Hunters: 2, Jim and Noel

Guns:

Malfunctions: Yours truly forgot to reload after the first teal volley.

Dog(s): Easy morning except for a gray he tracked a hundred yards or so only to have it fly off.

Special Equipment: spinner and mmm

Curses: No birds.

Kudos: Nice guys, and their sick guide manage not to puke or soil his britches.

Birds By Species: 2 bw tea, 6 gw teal, 1 mallard and 1 ringneckl

Photo Ops:

Lagniappe:

[Rick]

Date: 1/2/16

Time: morning

Location: mudhole

Cloud Cover: heavy

Wind Direction and Velocity: NE strong

Temperature: low 40s

Barometer: 30.39 rising

Moon phase: 46% waning

Special Notes:

Waterfowl Activity: Same lack of traffic as the past however many days, and "local" population has been running a piloting service for what we do get to break down.

Waterfowl Responsiveness: Frustrating to break mallards and lose them to the pond hoppers. And to break down an impossibly high speck and lose it to an anxious gun.

Hunters: 2, Jim and Dennis

Guns:

Malfunctions:

Dog(s): Easy morning, but Peake looked miserable in the weather and made me wish all the more that the pup was ready to spell him.

Special Equipment: mmm and spinner, the later off much of the while to help trip locals

Curses: Take your pick: lack of traffic, local pilot ducks or one of the guys jumping the gun on a speck I'd work hard to draw.

Kudos: Nice guys, and we had a good time regardless.

Birds By Species: 1 gadwall, 4 gw teal, 3 mallards and 2 ringnecks

Photo Ops:

Lagniappe:

[Rick]

Date: 1/3

Time: morning

Location: mudhole

Cloud Cover: cloudy

Wind Direction and Velocity: NW nil to light

Temperature: mid 40s

Barometer: 30.26 steady

Moon phase: waning 36%

Special Notes:

Waterfowl Activity: no flight to speak of, mostly local birds that know the drill

Waterfowl Responsiveness: Feel like we were very fortunate to trip up what we did.

Hunters: 2, Adrian and Mark

Guns:

Malfunctions:

Dog(s): Easy morning

Special Equipment: spinner mostly off , mmm

Curses: just the lack of traffic

Kudos: We were blessed to get the shooting we did, but Adrian set the tone early by saying, "In case I forget to tell you, I've had a blast." Believe that attitude must hold him in pretty fine stead in life. And Mark was a fine fellow, too.

Birds By Species: 2 bw teal, 1 gadwall, 4 gw teal and 5 mallards

Photo Ops: Mark and Adrian:


Peake with a backdoor mallard:


Lagniappe:

[DComeaux]

Good hunts my friend. It's good to see the ducks and the smiles.

[Rick]

Pretty sure those guys would be smiling with or without. But "with" sure makes me feel better.

[Rick]

Date: 1/4/16

Time: morning

Location: mudhole

Cloud Cover: finally saw the sun

Wind Direction and Velocity: nada to light northerly

Temperature: low 40s but seemed much warmer without wind

Barometer: 30.22 rising

Moon phase: 27% waning

Special Notes:

Waterfowl Activity: What waterfowl activity? Guys missed a couple teal in the dekes early, and that was it for them. Thought we'd scratch for a spooky long time.

Waterfowl Responsiveness: Both pintail ops came from sooo high I felt silly calling, and a speck bunch headed north to the rice, which usually makes them wasted wind, spun to the call and came straight in.

Hunters: 2 Alan and Zeke

Guns:

Malfunctions:

Dog(s): Peake hasn't been working much lately but is still acting old and worn out. And making me feel guilty about not having his relief ready.

Special Equipment: spinner and mmm wasted today.

Curses: Don't ever think it can't get much slower.

Kudos: Nice folks who didn't bitch about the tough morning.

Birds By Species: 4 pintails and 2 specks

Photo Ops: Sprig from out back:


and another out front:


"Enough with the camera, just take the damn bird."


Parking lot action:


Lagniappe:

[Deltaman]

Rick, even on your slow days, you are able to put those guys on some quality birds!!!!! Nothing quite as pretty as watching Pintails drop down from where Ezekial saw that wheel

[SpinnerMan]

Birds By Species: 4 pintails and 2 specks

That would be a great day for me. A drake pintail and a speck, both very high on my "I want one" list. It comes from spring snow goose trips where we had good numbers of both in range on multiple occasions and nothing you can do but watch the show.

Great pics

[Rick]

We were just plain blessed to have anything more than the two fluffed teal ops this morning. Not at all sure what we need, but if the pot's not stirred pretty soon, we'll be disappointing even the easily pleased folks.

[Rick]

Date: 1/4

Time: afternoon

Location: Thornwell middle blind

Cloud Cover: clear

Wind Direction and Velocity: light northerly

Temperature: low 50s?

Barometer:

Moon phase:

Special Notes:

Waterfowl Activity: Geese were bodied on the farm to our west with little leaving our way. Ducks were AWOL.

Waterfowl Responsiveness: Had good luck turning what specks gave us a chance, but what few of those there were bumped off the location when they saw the call was coming from what they plainly knew was a hot spot. Did our little good on specks that came with a flight of blues to the SSC.

Hunters: 1, play hunt with PJ, a fellow who leases a blind from us.

Guns:

Malfunctions: My barrel and brain were crooked: shot once and missed then got tangle-brained trying to pick something better and didn't fire again.

Dog(s): Young Marsh finally got his geese thanks to PJ dropping a pair. He broke when they crashed close to the blind, but delivered both promptly to hand, as though the big birds were nothing new.

Special Equipment:

Curses: Would like to have shown PJ more game.

Kudos: Passed a fine time anyway.

Birds By Species: 2 specks

Photo Ops: Marsh's old man forgot the camera and missed the one-time-only chance to record his first geese.

Lagniapp/be:

[DComeaux]

AWWWW! no pictures of his first speck retrieve.

[Rick]

Nope. PJ had a smarter-than-me phone, though, so we at least got a shot of PJ and what were also his first specks.

[Rick]

Date: 1/5

Time: morning

Location: mudhole

Cloud Cover: clear

Wind Direction and Velocity: NE light

Temperature: low 30s

Barometer: 30.4 flat

Moon phase: 19% waning

Special Notes:

Waterfowl Activity: Saw a few more teal than yesterday, but again very little but local big ducks

Waterfowl Responsiveness: Again it seemed like everything working the marsh knew it too well and our best bet was breaking mile high trafficking birds, of which there were next to none.

Hunters: 2, father and son, Sheldon and John on the later's first duck hunt

Guns:

Malfunctions: Had an O/U that was acting up.

Dog(s): Peake's really showing his mileage and acting all used up unless working a scent trail.

Special Equipment: spinner and mmm

Curses: Badly need some sort of wind or weather change to stir the pot. Ours was the marsh's big hunt, and that's not good.

Kudos: Nice folks who could have done much worse with what we were given.

Birds By Species: 2 gadwall, 5 gw teal and 4 mallards

Photo Ops: A mallard we had to close the distance to by boat after what should have been a slam-dunk op as it landed:


An easy-for-me one, but the guy doing the work seemed to question the notion of having get back in the cold water to deliver it:


Finally did:


Lagniappe: One of my all time favorite guests was in camp and informed me of another's passing. Fob James, a past Alabama governor, is now 83 and a much less robust version of himself, on the left, when I first met the seemingly inseparable pair of he and the late David James, no relation, on the right:


What made the pair so endearing was their close lifelong friendship and the rapport that had grown from it. Each addressed the other formally as "Mr. Jones" or "Jonesy," and the easy banter between them reminded me of the old American Sportsman shows where Bing Crosby and Phil Harris bird hunted together. Neat as could possibly be just to be in the gentlemen's audience. I barely knew David and morn his passing and can't imagine what it must be like for Fob.