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2019-2020 Season Log
Posted:
Mon Sep 16, 2019 3:59 am
by Rick
Right up front (where it's easy for me to copy), here is the template I will be using:
Date:
Time:
Location:
Cloud Cover:
Wind Direction and Velocity:
Temperature:
Moon phase:
Special Notes:
Waterfowl Activity:
Waterfowl Responsiveness:
Hunters:
Guns:
Malfunctions:
Dog(s):
Special Equipment:
Curses:
Kudos:
Birds By Species:
Photo Ops:
Lagniappe:
Re: 2019-2020 Season Log
Posted:
Mon Sep 16, 2019 4:04 am
by Rick
Date: 9/14/19 Sat
Time: morning
Location: mudhole
Cloud Cover: clear
Wind Direction and Velocity: easterly nil
Temperature: nice to not so
Moon phase: full
Special Notes: Was a much better aerial survey count than last year’s but very few birds seen by self in our area.
Waterfowl Activity: East blinds were in so much more business early on than we were that they should have been finished before we really got underway. Most of our birds were initially high and hauling south.
Waterfowl Responsiveness: Used the extra loud, teal cut Stanley Deceiver start to finish and got to break a lot of flights I’d not have called to a few years back by staying on them long, long, long and LOUD, LOUD, LOUD.
Hunters: Spencer from last year and new to me guy, Chris
Guns:Malfunctions:Dog(s): As always, Marsh was plainly put out by our leaving ducks on the water but didn’t whine and did a fine job when boated to flotant birds.
Special Equipment: 2 customized mojo mallards and my jacked-up Mallard Machine dipper-splasher, hereafter known as “SOS”.
Curses: None at all from the mudhole, especially considering our spooky slow start.
Kudos: Birds worked well enough that we ended up being first out by over an hour.
Birds By Species: 18 blue-wing teal (lacked presence of mind to check sex ratio)
Photo Ops: Marsh back from the flotant with number 18:
011a.jpg
Lagniappe: Nothing profound, just sweet to be seeing birds work again.
Re: 2019-2020 Season Log
Posted:
Mon Sep 16, 2019 4:10 am
by Rick
Date: 9/14 Sat
Time: afternoon
Location: SC
Cloud Cover: clear
Wind Direction and Velocity: East moderate
Temperature: hot
Moon phase: full
Special Notes: morning party only shot 10, but saw “a lot” of high birds
Waterfowl Activity: were set up just after 6, and saw our first game shortly after
Waterfowl Responsiveness: Hailed the heck out of high flights with the Deceiver and got shooting at most everything we saw, though some of them worked the pond well away from our poor hide for a good while before finally giving in.
Hunters: 5, Mike, John, Jeremy, Glen and new to me, Wayne (Mike’s BIL)
Guns:Malfunctions:Dog(s): Pond was super sticky once-plowed clay that wore bug down.
Special Equipment: Drew’s baby Mojo and dove spinners
Curses: Started out with four lively cripples down well out on the first volley and thought we might kill the bug with heat exhaustion right there.
Kudos: After that mess, the guys shot the best I’ve seen them manage on their first hunts.
Birds by Species: 26 blue-wings (once again failed to sex them)
Photo Ops: Mike, Wayne, Jeremy, John and Glen (and some nosy dog)
016a.jpg
Re: 2019-2020 Season Log
Posted:
Mon Sep 16, 2019 4:13 am
by Rick
Date: 9/15 Sun
Time: morning
Location: mudhole
Cloud Cover: clear
Wind Direction and Velocity: Easterly moderate
Temperature: still hot
Moon phase: still full
Special Notes:
Waterfowl Activity: considerably lower than yesterday.
Waterfowl Responsiveness: still good to SD
Hunters: 2, Gary and Gene from the camp’s “way back when”
Guns:
Malfunctions: My old Montefeltro was hang-firing just enough to screw me up.
Dog(s): Marsh had a good morning
Special Equipment: SOS
Curses: Not nearly enough birds for my guys to succeed.
Kudos: Had a nice visit.
Birds by Species: 10
Re: 2019-2020 Season Log
Posted:
Mon Sep 16, 2019 4:20 am
by Rick
Date: 9/15 Sun
Time: afternoon
Location: SC
Cloud Cover: partly with rain cell that eventually clipped us
Wind Direction and Velocity: northerly to southerly with cell's passage
Temperature: hot to cool when wet
Moon phase:
Special Notes:
Waterfowl Activity: very little moving
Waterfowl Responsiveness: fortunately good
Hunters: 5, same as yesterday, only with Lance subbing for Wayne
Guns:
Malfunctions:
Dog(s): easy afternoon
Special Equipment: 2 spinners
Curses: no birds
Kudos: they killed everything that came
Birds By Species: 4 bw teal
Re: 2019-2020 Season Log
Posted:
Mon Sep 16, 2019 7:32 am
by DComeaux
Nice start.
Re: 2019-2020 Season Log
Posted:
Mon Sep 16, 2019 11:36 am
by Rick
Date: 9/16 Mon
Time: morning
Location: mudhole
Cloud Cover: partly
Wind Direction and Velocity: sweet easterly breeze
Temperature: not bad with the breeze
Moon phase: still BIG
Special Notes:
Waterfowl Activity: very little moving high or low
Waterfowl Responsiveness: Thankfully excellent.
Hunters: 3, grown father and son, Don and Matt, and a pal,?
Guns:
Malfunctions:
Dog(s): Marsh had to be called off a long track north of the blind for fear of reptile.
Special Equipment: SOS
Curses: just the lack of game
Kudos: After that first long chipped bird, the guys shot great and saved their own hunt.
Birds By Species: 10 bw teal
Re: 2019-2020 Season Log
Posted:
Mon Sep 16, 2019 11:54 am
by DComeaux
Sweet!
Re: 2019-2020 Season Log
Posted:
Tue Sep 17, 2019 11:18 am
by Rick
Date: 9/17 Tue
Time: morning
Location: mudhole
Cloud Cover: cloudy and hazy
Wind Direction and Velocity: SE moderate
Temperature: saved by the breeze
Moon phase: still big
Special Notes:Waterfowl Activity: Not good, but certainly better than yesterday.
Waterfowl Responsiveness: SE breeze had them working right into our faces, which was a big help for our new teal hunters.
Hunters: 2, Dave and Christine
Guns:Malfunctions:Dog(s): Marsh did a fine job on some could-have-been-gone birds well out on the flotant.
Special Equipment:Curses: Wish we could have shown them more game.
Kudos: Most grateful for what we had and how pretty they worked.
Birds By Species: 14 bw teal
Photo Ops: Dave and Christine with their first teal:
002a.jpg
Re: 2019-2020 Season Log
Posted:
Tue Sep 17, 2019 11:42 am
by DComeaux
Rick wrote:Date:
Curses: Wish we could have shown them more game.
Birds By Species: 14 bw teal
I would love enough activity for the possibility of 14 BW. The mud hole, it does it's thing with help from the pied piper.
Re: 2019-2020 Season Log
Posted:
Tue Sep 17, 2019 11:48 am
by Darren
great hunt for anyone, much less those new to gunning teal.
Re: 2019-2020 Season Log
Posted:
Tue Sep 17, 2019 2:41 pm
by Duck Engr
Sweet first hunt! Have you been keeping up with male to female ratio?
Re: 2019-2020 Season Log
Posted:
Tue Sep 17, 2019 4:14 pm
by Rick
Duck Engr wrote:Have you been keeping up with male to female ratio?
Today was the first time I remembered to: 12 drakes and 2 hens.
Re: 2019-2020 Season Log
Posted:
Tue Sep 17, 2019 5:38 pm
by Rick
DComeaux wrote:...the pied piper.
That's been bugging me, because it's really more like the mad squawker. Mostly I'm just fussing them long and loud, and sometimes it works.
Re: 2019-2020 Season Log
Posted:
Wed Sep 18, 2019 11:32 am
by Rick
Date: 9/18 Wed
Time: morning
Location: mudhole
Cloud Cover: cloudy
Wind Direction and Velocity: SE moderate
Temperature: warm enough to make breeze a blessing
Moon phase: still big
Special Notes:
Waterfowl Activity: Saw a fair number of mostly high teal, along with the usual mottleds and woodies.
Waterfowl Responsiveness: Dave put the gris, gris all over me with that "pied piper" stuff, as my breaking average was weak.
Hunters: 2, brothers Brian and Camron
Guns:
Malfunctions:
Dog(s): Marsh is the man.
Special Equipment: SOS
Curses: Birds are getting stale and/or I'm losing my touch.
Kudos: Guys were pleasant company and shot well
Birds By Species: 12 bw teal (2 hens and 10 drakes)
Re: 2019-2020 Season Log
Posted:
Wed Sep 18, 2019 1:05 pm
by Duck Engr
If 12 is a bad day of squawking I need to work on my squawking.
Re: 2019-2020 Season Log
Posted:
Wed Sep 18, 2019 3:04 pm
by DComeaux
Rick wrote:DComeaux wrote:...the pied piper.
That's been bugging me, because it's really more like the mad squawker. Mostly I'm just fussing them long and loud, and sometimes it works.
I'm going to let lose in the morning and probably embarrass myself. I'll just tell em Rick told to me to.
Hopefully they'll not be many hunting around us, because I plan to give it hell.
Re: 2019-2020 Season Log
Posted:
Wed Sep 18, 2019 3:24 pm
by Duck Engr
DComeaux wrote:Rick wrote:DComeaux wrote:...the pied piper.
That's been bugging me, because it's really more like the mad squawker. Mostly I'm just fussing them long and loud, and sometimes it works.
I'm going to let lose in the morning and probably embarrass myself. I'll just tell em Rick told to me to.
Hopefully they'll not be many hunting around us, because I plan to give it hell.
We’d appreciate a video or two if you can slip a bug in your hunting partner’s ear.
Re: 2019-2020 Season Log
Posted:
Wed Sep 18, 2019 3:54 pm
by Rick
Helps to have no shame. I tell my guys before hand to get ready to listen to the guy everyone in the marsh wishes would park the call in his arse.
(Did have one BIG bunch break down and take the tour of most everything west of Clyde's blind while I hollered away before turning and coming straight into the wind to us - only to get blown out by Ed or Isaac's shooting just outside the mudhole. Could have cried.)
Re: 2019-2020 Season Log
Posted:
Thu Sep 19, 2019 10:54 am
by Rick
Date: 9/19 Thur
Time: morning
Location: mudhole
Cloud Cover: raining
Wind Direction and Velocity: nil
Temperature: too hot for a rain slicker
Moon phase:
Special Notes:
Waterfowl Activity: lots of woodies and what looked like it might have been enough teal
Waterfowl Responsiveness: excellent
Hunters: 1, Tom long time friend of camp w/membership
Guns:
Malfunctions: Boat's electronic ignition quit working while I was boating Marsh to flotant birds from our second volley, and the pull start wouldn't recoil, thankfully after cranking the boat. So we called it quits and packed up while the motor was still running.
Dog(s):
Special Equipment:
Curses: Dead boat.
Kudos: Happened with a fellow who gets to go a lot and knows "shit happens".
Birds By Species: 4 bw teal
Re: 2019-2020 Season Log
Posted:
Thu Sep 19, 2019 12:31 pm
by Duck Engr
Had it been a “once a year” client would you have tried to continue the hunt under Rick-power around the mudhole and attempted to get them an alternative ride from the marsh?
Re: 2019-2020 Season Log
Posted:
Thu Sep 19, 2019 2:19 pm
by Rick
I offered Tom that option, but think he'd had enough of the rain, anyway.
Re: 2019-2020 Season Log
Posted:
Thu Sep 19, 2019 3:26 pm
by Ericdc
Rick wrote:Helps to have no shame. I tell my guys before hand to get ready to listen to the guy everyone in the marsh wishes would park the call in his arse.
(Did have one BIG bunch break down and take the tour of most everything west of Clyde's blind while I hollered away before turning and coming straight into the wind to us - only to get blown out by Ed or Isaac's shooting just outside the mudhole. Could have cried.)
I could not deal with that day in and day out like you do. Especially when you work so hard to break them down.
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Re: 2019-2020 Season Log
Posted:
Fri Sep 20, 2019 7:14 am
by Johnc
Rick wrote:DComeaux wrote:...the pied piper.
That's been bugging me, because it's really more like the mad squawker. Mostly I'm just fussing them long and loud, and sometimes it works.
Word on the street is that they responded beautifully for first few days but now turn around immediately and fly other way especially to mallard call
For past two days
Why—-you tube
Re: 2019-2020 Season Log
Posted:
Fri Sep 20, 2019 11:35 am
by Duck Engr
Johnc wrote:Rick wrote:DComeaux wrote:...the pied piper.
That's been bugging me, because it's really more like the mad squawker. Mostly I'm just fussing them long and loud, and sometimes it works.
Word on the street is that they responded beautifully for first few days but now turn around immediately and fly other way especially to mallard call
For past two days
Why—-you tube
Sounds like the regular season. Educations are happening faster.
Re: 2019-2020 Season Log
Posted:
Fri Sep 20, 2019 11:43 am
by Rick
Johnc wrote:Word on the street is that they responded beautifully for first few days but now turn around immediately and fly other way especially to mallard call
For past two days
Why—-you tube
Cadence wise, I've been breaking them down and around just as I would high, recalcitrant big ducks, only with extra high pitched (as opposed to "ringing") hails followed by every-hen-on-the-pond teal kack "come-backs" once they've bobbled, and finally a "Momma" or assembly kack series to keep them on line coming in. Did have a bunch bug out when I started calling this morning, but they were the first to seem put off by the call - and there's no telling how many times they've been by my pond this week...
Re: 2019-2020 Season Log
Posted:
Fri Sep 20, 2019 11:51 am
by Rick
Date: 9/20 Fri
Time: morning
Location: mudhole
Cloud Cover: heavy
Wind Direction and Velocity: southerly moderate
Temperature: warm
Moon phase:
Special Notes:
Waterfowl Activity: Fewest birds of any sort, except squealers, seen to date.
Waterfowl Responsiveness: Had one bunch seem to push off the call, but great luck getting most everything else to work pretty - thankfully.
Hunters: 2, Tom from yesterday and brother Mark (who we blamed for the dearth of game)
Guns:
Malfunctions: Newly repaired boat starts fine but still not stopping as it should.
Dog(s): Easy morning with just one bird on the flotant.
Special Equipment: SOS
Curses: no game (ours was the "big" hunt for the area)
Kudos: nice guys and a nice time
Birds By Species: 7 bw teal (5 drakes and 2 hens)
Re: 2019-2020 Season Log
Posted:
Sat Sep 21, 2019 1:22 pm
by Rick
Date: 9/21 Sat
Time: morning
Location: mudhole
Cloud Cover: light/partly
Wind Direction and Velocity: Easterly strongest to date
Temperature: nicest to date
Moon phase:
Special Notes:
Waterfowl Activity: Not at all what I'd hoped for a weekend and very slow starting.
Waterfowl Responsiveness: Thankfully first rate, giving us "in your face" gunning.
Hunters: 2, long time regular father and now-grown son, Jim and David
Guns:
Malfunctions:
Dog(s): Marsh remains the man, doing a fine job of tracking down "stoned" birds that were only upper wing broke.
Special Equipment: SOS
Curses: Not enough ops after they'd worked much of the missing out.
Kudos: Still a nice time with nice folks.
Birds By Species: 14 bw teal (10 drakes, 4 hens)
Re: 2019-2020 Season Log
Posted:
Sun Sep 22, 2019 10:15 am
by Rick
Date: 9/22 Sun
Time: morning
Location: mudhole
Cloud Cover: clear
Wind Direction and Velocity: easterly moderate
Temperature: comfortable in the breezw
Moon phase:
Special Notes:
Waterfowl Activity: Next to nothing moving, but did see our first spoon since last weekend.
Waterfowl Responsiveness: Thankfully excellent with what was within earshot or spinner sight mostly coming to die.
Hunters: 2, father and son, Steve and Jason
Guns:
Malfunctions: east spinner has hard-wiring issue and had to be put on a mojo battery
Dog(s): Marsh lost a cripple I was sure I'd finished at the edge of the pond and didn't put him on for an hour or so.
Special Equipment: SOS
Curses: Just not enough birds for our purposes, and I didn't kick about quitting early to feed the boy.
Kudos: Nice folks and a pleasant time.
Birds By Species: 8 bw teal and 1 gw teal
Re: 2019-2020 Season Log
Posted:
Mon Sep 23, 2019 10:33 am
by Rick
Date: 9/23 Mon
Time: morning
Location: mudhole
Cloud Cover: clear
Wind Direction and Velocity: easterly mod
Temperature: ok
Moon phase:Special Notes:Waterfowl Activity: Seemed like what was out there was on me, judging by how little shooting I heard from Isaac and Cherry Ridge guys.
Waterfowl Responsiveness: could not have been better
Hunters: Just the bug and I
Guns: Malfunctions: still couldn't find the short in hard-wiring to my east spinner
Dog(s): Marsh had a little fun hunting up three in the weeds, but all three were defunct, and he wasn't too pleased with letting so many pass while I worked at the spinner problem after finishing.
Special Equipment: SOS
Curses: Would have been nice to have more guns in the blind, and the wiring problem's still there.
Kudos: Nice to be able to clean up our mess, work on my Go-devil and learn I can't fix the spinner wiring in place.
Birds By Species: 6 bw teal (all drakes)
Photo Ops: The things you see when you can't shoot any more:
003a.jpg