Breaking in a Newbie

[the spank]

Took my buddy Dan, a duck and goose hunting virgin down to a neat little rice marsh not far from home this morning. Was a cold still morning, heavy frost and ice in the harbour at the launch ramp. Reports of another year with high water levels preventing a bumper wild rice crop didnt have me holding much faith for my first outing there this year. Blasting along in the pre-dawn dark confirmed there was little to no rice as the marsh appeared more as a bay as opposed to a marsh with channels through the rice beds as we scooted along to set up in one of the many cedar blinds constructed there. We set up a mix of decoys, mallards, widgeons, ringnecks and 4 Canadas, alot more than my usual 2-8 decoy spread that I usually run in this locale. First light saw flock after flock of Canadas lifting off surrounding area beaver ponds and settling in to the northeast corner of the marsh but very few ducks worked the sky. A few mallards and teal came along and set in with the Canadas. I finally figured we'd best get the Canadas out of there as they were going to draw everything away. A quick run in the ole Triton DS and away they went. A few ducks started working the area and the first to commit were a pair of ringnecks which we took down at about 10-15 yards with one shot each. Dan was stoked! I lent him my Browning Silver as he doesn't own a gun compatible with steel. It was good to see him crack that ringneck down with the borrowed gun, obviously it was working for him. Then a few minutes later we heard a single goose calling away flying from the northeast headed southward. I got on the SMH and turned him our way and called him right down, wings cupped and committing to the 4 ghg floaters, calling back at me all the way. I told Dan "Take Em" and he hammered him clean at about 10 yards out. His first goose on the heels of his first duck! Now he was really stoked! He couldnt believe you could call a goose in like that and have it want to land in the decoys. A half hour later saw another single Canada flying by , headed back to the beaver pond he had left earlier, I called and called to it a half mile or so off and watched as it circled the pond twice and then not finding his buddies, turn and fly out to us. Thirty yards out and talking to each other all the way it set its wings, dropped hard to the ghg's and went belly up at the report of Dan's second shot 15 yards out! We collected another 4 ducks( 1 mallard, 2 buffleheads, 1 more ringneck) emptied our guns on and missed a pair of blacks and shortly after 4 teal and headed home. What a great morning. Cleaned the birds and they are marinating right now and headed for the bbq tonight! Dan wanted to know if we were going out again in the morning, LOL, guess my new gf is taking a backseat to the waterfowl again.....damned ducks and geese!! :rof::rf:

A few pics:

Dan's first duck.... a ringneck

Dan's first goose...a nice Canada

Part of the spread..

Goose #2...

The blind...

Last shot of the day....from what I can tell dan opens his eyes long enough to shoot and that's it!:rof:

 

[Grouse Man]

Looks like you guys had a fantastic and memorable day! Great work.