Regular Season

[Ducaholic]

Now or never. No one can say the weather other than the lack of precipitation has not been forthcoming.

Been outside today? We got precipitation. Think Baton Rouge set a new record for rainfall for the calendar date.

Not near enough here to allow us to access areas that would normally have water by this date. We are still extremely dry despite the last few rain events. 1.5 - 2.0 inches at a time just won't do it.

[Ericdc]

We are still very dry across the whole state as of Tuesday.




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[Darren]

Now or never. No one can say the weather other than the lack of precipitation has not been forthcoming.

Been outside today? We got precipitation. Think Baton Rouge set a new record for rainfall for the calendar date.

Not near enough here to allow us to access areas that would normally have water by this date. We are still extremely dry despite the last few rain events. 1.5 - 2.0 inches at a time just won't do it.

its skewed toward lower half of the state too, bulk not reaching where you need (and north of you to flow down to there).

[DComeaux]

The gauge at the Refuge read 3 inches as of two PM today, and Creole showed 5 inches. We're in-between the two, and from watching the radar all day it looks like our lease may have had heavier rainfall than the refuge. I'll be headed down that way in just a bit. Not sure yet If we'll hunt in the morning. We'll be watching the radar.

[Rick]

We caught enough down here to have gone from thinking of pumping again to wondering how much of the mudboat will fit under its hide when the runoff gets there. That and if my little truck will even make it to camp. Ran through the deepest water over the parish road, late yesterday just to be sure I still could then and marked its high point at that time as reference, and "we'll see..."

[DComeaux]

Date: 12/5/2025

Cloud Cover - Heavy, low overcast with an occasional light sprinkle early

Direction and Velocity: NNE 5 to 10

Temperature: a cold 45

Moon phase: full but we couldn't see it

Waterfowl Activity: pretty much void of fowl

Waterfowl Responsiveness: N/A

Hunters: Me and Blake

Malfunctions:

Dog(s): Remi. I need some birds on the water for her in a bad way.

Special Equipment:

Curses:

Kudos:

Birds By Species: DNS

We had zero opportunity to shoot and may have seen 50 ducks from LST to 9 am. We had a water rise of about a foot with this rain. It is currently at a perfect level. I sent a text and asked that they hold it where it is. we'll see.

[Darren]

Just bizarre

Got a good report from yesterday morning at the burns, mixed bag. Blind apparently been doing pretty well there this season

[DComeaux]

I was told just a bit ago that little pecan was loaded as well as a piece of managed marsh to our west about a mile and a half or so from our blind. No one has been hunting either. Both will be loaded with hunters in the morning.

[DComeaux]

Date: 12/6/2025

Cloud Cover - Heavy, low overcast

Direction and Velocity: N to NE light to moderate at times

Temperature: 48

Moon phase: full but we couldn't see it

Waterfowl Activity: pretty much void of fowl

Waterfowl Responsiveness: N/A

Hunters: Me and Blake

Malfunctions:

Dog(s): Remi. I guess I can use this time as patience on stand lessons. Seems to be working. I really need to get her on some birds.

Special Equipment:

Curses:

Kudos:

Birds By Species: DNS

We waited until 8:30 for the rain to quit and made the trip to the blind. We sat until 11:00 or 11;30 and saw maybe 10 ducks in that time. We'll try again in the morning.

[DComeaux]

Date: 12/7/2025

Cloud Cover - Overcast with fog. Visibility about 150 yards clearing later

Direction and Velocity: NE light early to east moderate later

Temperature: 57

Moon phase: saw it briefly through the fog and a hole in the overcast. Seems to be declining

Waterfowl Activity: pretty much void of fowl

Waterfowl Responsiveness: N/A

Hunters: Me and Blake

Malfunctions:

Dog(s): Remi. She did well on her retrieves this morning. We need more birds on the water.

Special Equipment:

Curses: Only the lack of fowl over the last three days.

Kudos:

Birds By Species: 3 GW

Very little shooting heard this morning with what seemed to be every blind occupied in the area. A group hunting the managed place to our west scratched this morning. The guy that sublets on this place isn't hunting there due to lack of fowl. All limits or decent straps came from north of Hwy 82 with the majority being teal and spoonbill, with a few gadwall. We had only two bunches of teal appear over the decoys this morning.

I got out of the blind this morning to stretch my legs and have a look around. I took Remi with me to let her burn off some energy and I took a few pictures.

Blake in the blind.

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Panoramic shot from east to west. The water's edge was on the outside of the hay bales last weekend.

20251207_072335.jpg

I bought 5 dozen decoys last week and added these hollywood's to the spread. Waterfowl hunting is a mental illness.

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[Rick]

"Waterfowl hunting is a mental illness." Yet, we claim it's therapy...

[Darren]

DC: "There are no ducks around"
Also DC: "I just went buy a bunch more decoys."


We get it, have done the same, and undoubtedly would again.

It looks good!

[DComeaux]

DC: "There are no ducks around"
Also DC: "I just went buy a bunch more decoys."


We get it, have done the same, and undoubtedly would again.

It looks good!

Anticipation of the second split. What bothers me is the lack of food to hold birds and the stagnant or non existent migration of new recruits who are unaware of this fact.

[MARSH BEAR]

DC - feel your pain, our hunts have been similar to yours. We are holding ZERO ducks in our marsh. The grasses in our marsh are the best we have had in years, but nothing in the ponds. The first weekend was decent, but very little since then. We normally have teal, but see very few now, the few grays we see don't want to commit, with or without spinners. So I ordered more shotgun shells yesterday

[Ducaholic]

That's funny

[Darren]

After so many years in a row of strong production, wild to hear that MB's struggling.

Hope it picks up for all come Dec 20.

[Duck Engr]

[DComeaux]

DC - feel your pain, our hunts have been similar to yours. We are holding ZERO ducks in our marsh. The grasses in our marsh are the best we have had in years, but nothing in the ponds. The first weekend was decent, but very little since then. We normally have teal, but see very few now, the few grays we see don't want to commit, with or without spinners. So I ordered more shotgun shells yesterday

Blake and I talked about it and were thinking of running spinners for the second spilt to see if would help bring in the few we did see. We use spinners for teal but haven't for big duck season in many years. You just made up my mind. I'm not going to deal with the hassle of those. It's just one more thing to lug around after an unproductive hunt.

We saw more ducks at the beginning of the season compared to now, though our take doesn't show it, and the more is still extremely pitiful. We never did see the high V's coming from the north as most years and there are many miles of marsh east and west of us, south of 82 that is void of waterfowl. The evenings at the camp used to be taken up by standing outside watching waterfowl flights. It's now eerily quiet and empty.

From the reports I'm seeing the small wad of Louisiana's migration ended up on the lower east side of the state. We just don't get enough to go around anymore. We'll have to wait and see where that wad ends up next year.

[Ducaholic]

You should try them especially on sunny days...

[DComeaux]

You should try them especially on sunny days...

Well damn....You're going to make me carry my ancient spinners to the blind and give it a try. Blake will be happy.

[Rick]

You'll be breaking out the Mallard Machine next.

[Darren]

We're doing awfully well with the green wings this season........no one's even thought about a spinner on our lease. And we def are not the X for preferred teal habitat hunting 1 ft or more deep ponds......but they just come on into the decoys, bank for the call.

We used to try them here and there in regular season, no discernible effect.

[DComeaux]

You'll be breaking out the Mallard Machine next.

I lost one support arm years ago and haven't used it. I need to bring you the motor and cabling I have reaming. I'll never use it. You could make another splasher. I think I had offered this to you a few years ago and forgot about it.

[Ericdc]

We're doing awfully well with the green wings this season........no one's even thought about a spinner on our lease. And we def are not the X for preferred teal habitat hunting 1 ft or more deep ponds......but they just come on into the decoys, bank for the call.

We used to try them here and there in regular season, no discernible effect.

You must be on the Y then.


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[DComeaux]

If they don't ride this, they're not coming.

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[SpinnerMan]

We pretty much lost all of our snow. It looks like a short term blast followed by warming up. I'm not sure I have the motivation to hit the fields in this artic push. It's been a very rough year on all fronts. Having fired but a single shot to no effect since opening day, I'm not sure I'm up for hunting in the arctic cold which normally would have gotten me excited. I hope it sends a bunch down your ways.

[DComeaux]

Blake and I drove down to the camp early this morning to empty the crab traps we baited after the hunt last weekend and to winterize the camp. I don't think the temps will be a big issue down there, but better safe than sorry, and we really don't have that much exposed plumbing. As we headed south out of the slip, I noticed some big wads of teal trading east and west further south. As we took the ditch, we jumped a 6 or 8 bird flock of gadwall.
In the 15 or 20 minutes we took to run the traps I saw very little moving in this very ducky weather, though the winds were NNW 25 to 30 with the temperature dropping. I saw nothing running back in. We did see a couple of flocks while driving in just west of Pecan Island early. Something we hadn't seen this year. The part of the early morning trip through rice country and the mid-morning return trip were void of fowl. It's so disheartening.

We did have a good haul of crabs, though. Traps are baited and we'll be back this Friday morning to get those. We have a boil planned for that afternoon at the camp.

12 14 2025.jpg

[Ericdc]

I hunted in GC a good bit in 2021 season and it always seemed the marsh would shut down on days like today, but we did real well on the warm days. Or when it wasn't super cold at least.


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[Rick]

Yet, when I remember hunting Pecan Island '83, it was hard north winds that made pirogue travel a bitch for this northern import that sent pintails sailing low, low over the marsh like waves of bec croix: the very best of times there...then.

[DComeaux]

Yet, when I remember hunting Pecan Island '83, it was hard north winds that made pirogue travel a bitch for this northern import that sent pintails sailing low, low over the marsh like waves of bec croix: the very best of times there...then.

There's sheet water in the cow pastures just past rollover on the north side of 82 with nothing on it. All places usually holding lots of fowl in years past are empty. We've lost a very big part of our waterfowl migration.