Season log

[Ericdc]

Date: Jan 7

Time: hunted from 8-3 pm

Location: pit blind

Cloud Cover: clear

Wind Direction and Velocity: NNE 10-15 mph

Temperature: 19 and rising to 30 when we left

Barometer:

Moon phase:

Special Notes: ice was thicker than I expected

Waterfowl Activity: nothing early then lots of migrating snows and a few specks moving around. Not many ducks at all except some big groups migrating south

Waterfowl Responsiveness: specks decent

Hunters: Eric dakota Johnathon

Guns:

Malfunctions: another beretta a400 hanging up. 2nd one I've seen this year so that.

Dog(s):

Special Equipment: Mojos on remote

Kudos: fun day, didn't scratch, good food.

curses: couldn't open up enough water for ducks and "should have shot" on some specks that might have provided our limit.

Birds By Species: 3 specks

Photo Ops:

Crime scene on ice



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[Ericdc]

Date: Jan 14

Time: hunted till 2:30 (nowhere else to be, enjoy the time in the field)

Location: pit blind

Cloud Cover: heavy fog to partly cloudy

Wind Direction and Velocity: light NE to calm to 5 mph N

Temperature: 50's to 70's once fog lifted

Barometer:

Moon phase:

Special Notes: first time to bring good friend Mike, who used to duck hunt a lot but hasn't in a few years.

Waterfowl Activity: a few ducks and a few specks

Waterfowl Responsiveness: ducks good in fog, specks better after fog. Excited clucks to get specks attention then sparse clucks and ucka uck to finish

Hunters: Eric Ridge Shack Mike

Guns:

Malfunctions:

Dog(s):

Special Equipment: Mojos on remote after fog lifted

Kudos: we shot very well (including 4 out of 4 on specks) and Ridge and Shack each got a wigeon drake to mount.

curses: gads wouldn't finish and specks are getting very skiddish, need new birds bad.

Birds By Species: 7 specks 3 wigeon 1 pintail 1 spoon

Photo Ops:

Shacks very well behaved lab Delta




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[DComeaux]

Nice wigeon! I really like those birds.

[Ericdc]

Nice wigeon! I really like those birds.

They were pretty coming through the fog.


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[Rick]

Pretty sweet way to spend the day.

[Ericdc]

I did not hunt today because I was worried our blind would flood again with last nights rain after only being pumped out yesterday evening. So when I woke at 3 to check radar and saw a lot of color I went back to bed.

2 of my guys went and killed a few mallards but our water is bad high.

Being so close to a river, it's not draining off as fast because the boeuf river is so high.

Tomorrow's forecast calls for sun and a good 10-15mph wind and im looking forward to it.


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[Ericdc]

Been too long, but thankful to be back after them this morning and the next 3 days to close out the east zone duck season.

Weather forecast is decent too


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[Rick]

Good luck with it.

[Ericdc]

Date: Jan 26

Time: hunted till 2:15

Location: pit blind

Cloud Cover: clear

Wind Direction and Velocity: WNW and W back and forth 5-15 mph

Temperature: 40's to 50's

Barometer:

Moon phase:

Special Notes: 2 of our members last hunt of the season. Glad they ended on a good one. 1 speck 1 pintail drake and 1 shoveler drake to be mounted.

Waterfowl Activity: pretty good on ducks all morning and decent on specks before 9 am

Waterfowl Responsiveness: real good for late season. Shot all our specks feet down, and one standing about 15 yards from it in duck decoys.

Hunters: Eric Ridge garrison glynn

Guns:

Malfunctions: I had 2 Remington nitro Steels misfire. Have had a few more do that during the season. Bought them last fall.

Dog(s):

Special Equipment: 2 Mojos on remote

Kudos: we shot well including killing all 5 in a group of mallards. Great time, beautiful day.

curses: last hunt of year with 2 buddies...but no curses really

Birds By Species:

6 specks
10 mallards
3 pintail
3 shovelers

Photo Ops:










Happy garrison







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[Rick]

Sweet hunt, that.

[DComeaux]

Awesome hunt Eric.

[Ericdc]

Thanks, very happy to still be able to finish specks over a mixed decoy spread and lots of slick water.


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[Ericdc]

Date: Jan 27

Time: hunted until 2:30

Location: pit blind

Cloud Cover: clear to high clouds with sun still kinda getting through

Wind Direction and Velocity: dead calm to light W to 10-15 SW

Temperature: 31 to 50's

Barometer:

Moon phase:

Special Notes:

Waterfowl Activity: not as good as yesterday but a decent flight still, specks stayed in a big group NW of us.

Waterfowl Responsiveness: tough in dead calm conditions.

Hunters: Eric Kevin Ridge dakota

Guns:

Malfunctions:

Dog(s):

Special Equipment: 2 Mojos on remote

Kudos: good time and good food

curses: no wind until 9 or so and lost a mallard drake. We don't have a dog but pride ourselves in not losing birds. We go after cripples as soon as they hit water but this one fell too far out to get to before he made it to cover.

First hunt since 2nd split started that I haven't killed a speck (I think)

Birds By Species:
4 mallards
2 gadwall
3 teal
1 pintail


Photo Ops:




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[Ericdc]

Date: Jan 28

Time: hunted till 1:20 (had 6 ducks and 2 specks at 11 am. Had 11 ducks and 4 specks at 1 pm) our blind in right weather will produce in middle of day.

Location: pit blind

Cloud Cover: clear

Wind Direction and Velocity: SW 5 mph to 15 Mph WSW

Temperature: 30 to 55

Barometer:

Moon phase:

Special Notes: got Kevin his first specks of the year.

Waterfowl Activity: ducks started slow but got better as morning went on. Geese big roost west of us that gradually got up and moved our way all morning.

Waterfowl Responsiveness: specks very good ( including breaking a group of 50 and losing them to our stubble on north end of field, where they would prefer landing) enough singles and small groups to get our 4. Broke specks with hard clucks and finished with softer clucks.

Pintails decoyed beautifully given silent treatment, mallards worked good had to stay with em though.

Hunters: Eric and Kevin (the man that got me started in waterfowling)

Guns:

Malfunctions: Remington nitro steels are misfiring more than I've had with any other shell. Bought 3 cases last year..kept in my bedroom. Borrowed Kevin's black clouds today and they shot fine.

Dog(s):

Special Equipment: 1 mojo with remote

Kudos: beautiful day, picking out drakes.

curses: lost 1 pintail

Birds By Species:
6 mallards
4 pintail (lost 1)
2 teal
4 specks

Photo Ops:

Black belly

Kevin cooking breakfast

Mid morning lull nap



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[Rick]

Another example of perseverance (which I'm lacking these days) paying off. Good goin'.

[Ericdc]

Another example of perseverance (which I'm lacking these days) paying off. Good goin'.

Thanks. Yes, perseverance and also hey, we are on vacation and don't have anywhere else we'd rather be.


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[Ericdc]

Date: Jan 29 last day of duck season

Time: hunted till noon

Location: pit blind

Cloud Cover: clear

Wind Direction and Velocity: SW to NW 10 mph

Temperature: 30's to 50's

Barometer:

Moon phase:

Special Notes: got to meet a speck

Waterfowl Activity: Tons of geese moving into area. Not many ducks today

Waterfowl Responsiveness: specks very good, ducks not that good

Hunters: Eric Clayton dakota chase

Guns:

Malfunctions:

Dog(s):

Special Equipment: Mojos on remote

Kudos: specks and we shot well

curses: not many ducks

Birds By Species:
8 specks
2 wigeon
1 teal
1 gadwall

Photo Ops:





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[Rick]

I'm officially envious.

[Ericdc]

I'm officially envious.

We had a good closing week after about 2 really tough warm rainy weeks.


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[DComeaux]

That speck swimming around you guys was awesome, but strange and unusual, especially this late in the season. I wonder if it's not looking for one on your strap.

[Ericdc]

It came in by itself a good while after we shot our 8th bird and swam to each speck decoy trying to make a friend.


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[Ericdc]

Last 2 specks yesterday.


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[Darren]

Love the swimming speck, a unique individual for sure. Thanks for sharing this season. I'll probably be looking for some input on a few things from the Louisiana field hunting contingent on here during this offseason

[Ericdc]

Love the swimming speck, a unique individual for sure. Thanks for sharing this season. I'll probably be looking for some input on a few things from the Louisiana field hunting contingent on here during this offseason

Thanks. I don't know if what works up here will work down there with all the pressure there but I'm pretty confident in our setup. Might add a few more goose decoys next year.


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[Ericdc]

Note: a new blind was placed just SW of us this year maybe 1/4 mile away. Apparently these guys don't mind sky busting at snows when I'm working ducks of specks...and trust me they can see what I'm working, but I resisted the urge to holler at them since we seem to kill way more birds than they do.

It's made our duck hunting more challenging because they hold over 100 acres of slick water, and the ducks body up away from their blind when they are hunting and not hunting. However there are many times that ducks work that big water and then pop over the tree line and come straight in to our spread. For the most part the ducks do not like their setup and we pick off quite a few birds that initially broke down over their water.

It's not a huge problem though and I'm thankful they don't try to call off birds I'm working, and we don't call at birds over their water until they cross the trees and get over our water.


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[Ericdc]

One of my blind partners brought a couple buddies this morning for a speck hunt. It worked out.



Can't help but feel good and a little proud about shooting specks all year over what most would say is a duck spread.


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[Rick]

Guess so.

[Ericdc]

Date: Feb 4 east zone youth day 2

Time: hunted till 10:15

Location: pit blind

Cloud Cover: clear to mostly cloudy

Wind Direction and Velocity: light NE to calm to 5-10 mph E

Temperature: 29 with some skim ice in the stubble

Barometer:

Moon phase:

Special Notes: brought my wife and our nephews from her side of family

Waterfowl Activity: lots of geese and a few mallard pairs and pintail. 1 big batch of shovelers that didn't get shootable and 1 good group of teal that came in fairly good.

Waterfowl Responsiveness: specks wanted in the stubble, have been going there all week I'm sure. Big ducks wanted to be in a secluded place.

Hunters:Colin and hunter

Guns: my browning gold and my buddy's browning gold

Malfunctions:

Dog(s):

Special Equipment: 2 Mojos on remote

Kudos: they got to shoot and connected, specks put on a visual and audio display going in about 100 yards north of us in big bunches.

curses: specks wouldn't work

Birds By Species: 2 green winged teal

Photo Ops:

Dog(s):

Special Equipment: 2 Mojos on remote

Kudos: they got to shoot and connected, specks put on a visual and audio display going in about 100 yards north of us in big bunches.
Had extra help when it was time to pick up

curses: specks wouldn't work

Birds By Species: 2 green winged teal

Photo Ops:

Sweet wife


That's a wrap!


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[Rick]

You sure you're not going to take a last stab at the specks next weekend? You know the vindictive bastages will be sitting on your blind if you don't...

[Ericdc]

You sure you're not going to take a last stab at the specks next weekend? You know the vindictive bastages will be sitting on your blind if you don't...

They will im sure but we've packed it all in and farmer going to pull boards Monday.


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