Shootin' the breeze -
My alarm went off at 5:00 a.m. My first thought was "why the heck am I up this early!" But, then it dawned on me, it was duck season and my hunting buddy would be here in less than an hour. I staggered into the kitchen, praying I had hit the delay brew button on the coffee maker and the coffee was ready to go. I had! That piping hot cup of Joe was what I needed to jumpstart my morning. I collected my gear (gun, ammo, decoys, calls) but where was my hat. Think...It's too early to think! Oh yea it is in the sleeve of my coat. Finally, I was ready. I set the alarm and locked the door. Where the heck is Rick?" He's supposed to be here by 6:00. Hold on! It was only 5:45-still not awake.
Rick arrived shortly after six. I threw my gear aboard and was greeted by Zeus, Rick's three-year-old black Labrador retriever, with the customary licks of excitement. The car was silent as we travelled toward our desired location, as if we both knew we were both too tired to carry on any sort of coherent conversation. We arrived at our spot a little after 6:30; we were now racing the sun that was coming up fast. We must have flown into where our blind was and set 50-odd decoys up in record time. I, for the life of me, can't remember setting them. Everything was quiet. You could hear the water slap the rocks below us. Zeus had curled up, eagerly awaiting the arrival of our quarry. Then, out of nowhere a faint "quack". I thought my mind was playing tricks at first, but then Zeus' ears perked up and Rick leaned over and whispered, "You hear that, Ed." "Sure did, hold on while I call," I said. I placed my call and blew, "Quack, Quack, Quack," three short blasts from my call. Then, I stopped and waited, straining to hear the reply-my heart pounded. "Rick, it's coming from that smaller gully behind us," I said. "That's the same gully where we got that drake mallard, last week" Rick replied. "Maybe it's the hen we missed?" I thought. We slowly moved to the gully trying not to alarm the duck we'd just heard. I made another blast from my call and again a reply. "There is definitely a duck here Rick" I said with confidence. "It sounds like it's a hen too." For those who do not know, hens are usually the ones that make all the noise; the female makes 80 to 90 per cent of all sounds made by ducks. But, if on the odd chance the drake does make a sound, it is never a quack. It is more of a low humming noise, one of those sounds where you have to hear it to understand).
We crept slowly into position. "I can't see anything," Rick exclaimed. "There, there she is," I say. With that Rick and I lock onto her. And, simultaneously fire! Bird Down!! Our first duck of the day!!
"Fetch it up," said Rick. With that Zeus leaped into the cold water, zoned in on his target. In less than five seconds, Zeus has made it to the downed bird and is turning back with a nice hen mallard in his mouth. When he reaches the shore, Rick is waiting for him. "Release!" Rick said, as Zeus sits by his friend. With bird in hand we celebrate.
The high fives and praise for Zeus's retrieve were short lived when I noticed that one of our decoys did not right itself when we tossed it out. "Gotta fix that, before more birds come in. They'd be sure to flare off seeing that," I said. With that I creep out to our spread and slowly wade my way out to the upside-down decoy. I had it almost in my hands when a flock of six ducks (three big blacks and three green-winged teal) head directly for the decoy spread, to only stop just outside of shooting distance. I've been made. Darn. The ducks flared off and I was left holding my head low. All Rick could do was laugh at me. Zeus looks at me, as if to say, 'you dumb ass, we could have gotten at least three out of that mess', I felt like an idiot!
Three hours passed without a single bird and I spent that time reliving the fatal faux pas I made. How was I ever going to live this one down? Rick looked impatient and suggested we move on to another location. But, I (wishing to redeem myself) pleaded for just a little more time. "Rick, let's give it one more hour, If we see nothing we'll pack up and leave. Sound good?" Rick looked at me and said, "Okay, one more hour."
I sat there praying for another flock to rectify my mistake. Minutes felt like hours, as I sat there contemplating what a stupid mistake it was to move my decoys in broad daylight. When, a single black duck flew right overhead. It seemed to be cruising at Mach Three. "He's outta here," Rick stated. "Hold on, get your gun ready, if this works we'll have a shot," I said, praying I would be right! I reached down for my call, placed it to my lips and fired out a comeback call. I didn't have half of it out when he turned and started heading towards the decoys. With the same speed he headed towards us. "He's coming Ed," Rick whispered, "I'll be damned!" The duck was just shy of shooting range when Rick decided he'd join in on the calling and gives a series of three faint quacks. It worked! The black prepared for a landing, cupped his wings and laid out his landing gear. He was within 20 yards of us. "It's now or never Rick, take 'em," I whispered. With that we stood up and fired. I missed, but Rick didn't! Our second duck of the day was in the bag. And, I rectified my mistake. Thank-God!
Ed Smith is a conservation officer with the province of Newfoundland and Labrador. He writes from Conception Bay South, NL.
Check Ed's outdoor network site: newfoundlandwaterfowlers.ning.com
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