2025 Preseason...

[Darren]

Can vouch for that teal flight from the 1 time I hunted Gabe's blind in regular season, unfortunately without Gabe.

Will also never forget the mysterious calls before LST echoing out of that treeline, some kinda wild commotion I'd not previously heard.

[Rick]

The ghosts of Jean Lafitte's crewmen who were buried with the treasure they'd hauled in there for him. Still pissing and moaning about it.

[Rick]

Pretty sure most of that pond 's flight comes off "the body" of broken marsh west of my current spot, as the guys spoke of them "coming around" the location treeline in front (west) of that blind - and on down Issac's run. It's a flight I've watched from my current blind during the regular season but played hob trying to break. Maybe just not getting loud enough.

Perhaps another seasonal milestone is my having woke up thinking about that flight and how I hope to break more of it. Time to start September teal prep in earnest.

Though there are days or winds when the chain of broken marsh my pond's a part of is a teal passer (read: "er" as a hard "a"), as the old Cajuns would say, there are more others when the flights are nearly all west or north of me and for the most part beyond my reach. I've experimented a bit with squeezing their pitch out of the cutdown that's my loudest call with some success, and will work much more on that when the September season opens - and there are only friends and family along to embarrass myself in front of.

But I've also been thinking that intermittent spinners should be better teal attention getters - and holders - than continuous ones, just as they've most certainly seemed when I've flipped their switch on and off to draw squealers working over otherwise too distant marsh to be moved by continuous spinning. To that end, I've purchased a couple timers that I plan to install and begin entertaining the neighbors with this weekend, as I play with differing spinning cycles.

[Darren]

Always tinkering with something, only one way to find out !

re: traffic

Burns me up to go out on our lease and put eyes on so many bluewings passing high and low alike during Sept and no matter the flashing wings and screaming calls, have a miniscule response ratio to show for it. Wad last year on opening day showed they MIGHT/CAN do it just as pretty as you could want, but far too many others never blinked for the call.

The fact that it's a set-your-watch-to-it north to south "migration" flight pattern at least tells me I'm not just being ignored for kicks, but rather they've got somewhere else already in mind, so no hard feelings

[Rick]

I've generally found the high and hauling ones require a lot more work early on than after they've had a chance to settle down.

Took Call for a ride out to our blind this morning to clear pathways for our spinners' wiring and flat forgot the splasher's. Good news being that a wad of a couple dozen blue-wings headed due south over the blind at what I find workable altitude. Bad new being that I could smell where another meaningful alligator that had laid up near the blind, so we still didn't get them all. Grrr.

Saw several trucks with trailers parked along the ag lands south of Klondike, but whatever their occupants were doing (teal prep or dove hunting) wasn't pushing much to the marsh, as a tour of our better teal blinds encountered none.

[Rick]

...I've also been thinking that intermittent spinners should be better teal attention getters - and holders - than continuous ones, just as they've most certainly seemed when I've flipped their switch on and off to draw squealers working over otherwise too distant marsh to be moved by continuous spinning. To that end, I've purchased a couple timers that I plan to install and begin entertaining the neighbors with this weekend, as I play with differing spinning cycles.

Didn't happen over the weekend, but I got the timers installed (in a manner they're easily bypassed, if need be) and, through some trial and error, preliminary sequences set that I hope will either do or provide further direction. "We'll see..."

[Rick]

Been hearing that Wayne, my blind's nearest Cherry Ridge neighbor, has been talking about moving, which had me a bit worried about whether that and his seniority might lead to a change in my own situation, as he'd been in what's now my blind before moving to where he's been since when its previous occupant retired from guiding some seasons back. Was relieved to see him at the marsh this morning and learn he was heading to the North blind that's been our "go-to" for squealers on mornings when ours were dead and the better blinds still occupied.

That makes the spot he's leaving an "extra blind" that only he or I are apt to sometimes slide into if lack of pressure leads to its immediate area attracting more birds. Which should be a boon for me both in terms of increased traffic between holding areas and freedom to call trafficking birds I'd been passing on out of courtesy to he and his parties. Naturally, there's some "we'll see..." to how that will go, but it's a lot more encouraging than learning I have to move again.

Also encouraging has been the number of woodies trying to drop into the pond-scaped portion of our hole while Call and have been working on breaking up the black dirt blocking his access to the pond's south bank. Haven't, however, seen a teal anywhere, rice or marsh, since those zipping over the blind last Saturday.

[Darren]

Good news on the non-move, hope the added flexibility pays off. Got report of Delacroix area birds that were thick one day, gone the next. High suspicions that the cool snap bumped them, and didn't backfill just the same, just as has long been my observations in past years.

No cool snaps next week so just have to hope pressure this weekend north of us (Missouri) and shortening daylight moves more in.

[Rick]

Heard today from a fellow whose farm is holding scads of teal that "You wouldn't know they were there, if you didn't know they were." So it could well be yours are just dug into spots, as well.

Left the wild child at the house this morning and got the blind hosed down with the relatively clean rain water in it before pumping that out and adjusting the blind's new anchorage to insure water settles at the pump's location under my seat. No more pit water stank in our tank, thank you. Also blocked crippled ducks' and the dog's access to the boat hide's interior with 2"x3" wire fencing. No more arm wrestling the later with the former to keep him from leaving a trail of muck through the boat on his way back to his stand, or worse getting a pad blistered by its exhaust pipe. And no shortcuts to what falls behind our island, gots to go around it.

Should be out there at LST again in the morning to try and beat troublesome breezes while running my gizmo's hard-wiring, and am thinking I may get to see some birds weekend ag land hunters' preparations push our way to test it on...