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Post by esshup on Oct 15, 2011 15:11:43 GMT -5
 5 Mallards, 2 woodies. Had a lone goose do a high fly-over, not close enough. We probably could have had more, but there were some issues with the young dog that required bringing in the 1st string, so about 4 groups of 2's and 3's flared off while the issues were trying to be resolved.  Know of any good lab trainers within an hour or 2 of South Bend? I know it's too late to use the dog for this year, but next year watch out..... Need retrieveing and blind drills. Also, the charging/operating handle on my 1100 disappeared after the 2nd group of ducks flew by. I had to jamb my pocket knife in the action to open it to get it unloaded, although it worked fine with it gone. Note to self - bring spare maintenance parts along, they don't do any good back at home.  I had forgotten just how early a 3:30 a.m. wake up was. ;D All in all it was a pretty good day. Back at it tomorrow. |
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Post by duff on Oct 15, 2011 15:33:17 GMT -5
Nice job! I will be up there next Thurs-Sun to give er heck.
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Post by Decatur on Oct 15, 2011 15:42:35 GMT -5
Cool!
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Post by troutline on Oct 15, 2011 19:47:39 GMT -5
Nice job. Going to the Kank Sunday 15 pick.
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Post by esshup on Oct 15, 2011 20:31:34 GMT -5
Good luck guys! With the changing weather pattern I think it;kk pick up next week.
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Post by featherduster on Oct 16, 2011 13:59:12 GMT -5
esshup: assuming your dog has had basic obedience training taking a starter dog hunting is in my opinion the best thing for the dog. If the dog is not gun shy then at least it will learn how to ride in a boat,behave in a blind and if you can drop ducks where the dog can see them you can work with the dog under real hunting conditions.
Your hunting buddies will need to help you and everybody will need to be patient with the training, the payoff is next year a well trained dog that's a part of the team.
We hunted the KANK on opening day in 7K, what a night mare of a blind to get to in the boat with broken oar locks. We had to spin the blind around 1/4 turn to face it to open water and even though we shot well we lost 4 ducks in the twisted mess of buck brush that neither man nor dog could penetrate.
You can't praise a good dog enough when a job is well done.
GOOD LUCK!
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Post by duff on Oct 16, 2011 18:20:09 GMT -5
How much water did you guys get up there in Laporte Co? I will be staying at my m-i-l by Hudson Lake Thurs-Sun. My bil has a great spot but needs water as of last week. At any rate he told me there are plenty of geese!
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Post by esshup on Oct 16, 2011 20:55:30 GMT -5
Featherduster, My dog minds well, but she doesn't have the desire to retrieve like my other Springers did. My buddy's young dog wouldn't retrieve a duck, and she needs better manners. He needs training as well, he'll tell the dog half a dozen times to do something, even tho the dog has an e-collar on and knows what he's telling her. She just ignores him. He will bring out both dogs, but doesn't keep the older dog in check, if the young one does grab a duck or bumper to bring it back, the older dog goes out and takes it from the younger one, and he won't keep the older one on a lead, or just take out one at a time (for training). The younger one stayed home today, and we did pretty well. For some reason, all the woodies that we shot today were Drakes, all 9 of them (3 shooters). We ended up with 5 Mallards as well, and we packed it up at 11:00 a.m. The woodie decoys and a wood duck call worked. We had a pair land about 1/4 mile away, and one of them was answering the call. We probably had 40 Woodies fly by, I can't believe how they can scream by and not make a sound. Here's today's take:  I tossed one of the Drakes for my Springer when I got home, and while she did retrieve it, it was by one wing. I realize that she hasn't been exposed to very many birds at all, and she seemed more excited by the bird than by a training dummy. I'll work on retrieving drills with her with fresh dead birds before giving up and sending her out to a pro.  Here's a Hen of the Woods that I found and split with a buddy. 15 3/4#  |
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Post by featherduster on Oct 17, 2011 5:17:31 GMT -5
DUFF: we are still dry, small potholes are dried up, there are a good number of geese however the duck numbers seem to be about average for this time of the year.
I would say that if your spot has not been hunted and has water you should be fine.
esshup: congrats on the ducks and I am sure you will be able to work out your dog problems.
That is a nice looking hen however..... when I see them turning white on the edges I think it is past prime and may taste bitter.
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Post by esshup on Oct 17, 2011 23:04:16 GMT -5
Featherduster, Thanks! The pedigree is there, and she's from field stock, not show.
I found it (the mushroom) the day before, but a buddy has been bugging me for some, (he's never seen them) so I let it grow for another day and had him find it.
I cooked a bit of it tonight and it was O.K., but I think you're right, another day or 2 and it would have been too late.
It wasn't there on Monday afternoon, and I didn't look again at that spot until Sat around noon. It was picked Sunday around noon.
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Post by duff on Oct 18, 2011 5:55:43 GMT -5
Hen of the woods KILLER! Can't believe you would brag about killing a hen! LOL!!! Sorry couldn't help it.. Most of the duck hunter sites I go to there are a few that bash anyone with a hen in the pic....With the big mushroom in the pic it was just too fitting...Good job.
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Post by goosepondmonster on Oct 18, 2011 7:59:11 GMT -5
Looks like a good haul on both days. I'm still hoping to try my hand at duck hunting when the season opens up in the southern zone.
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Post by esshup on Oct 18, 2011 9:17:16 GMT -5
duff, when they're in short supply, you take what you can get! ;D
Good one!!
I hate working hard for birds, knocking one down and then not retrieving it. After hunting with good dogs for over 20 years, I can't see how one finds birds without one. Opening day, one dropped just behind us, over the top of the ditch in the tall grass. We looked for a good 1/2 hr, and the young dog couldn't find it. When he came back with the older dog, the dog literally found the bird within 3' of where we were standing, buried under the long grass.
Hunting over a good dog is a real joy.
We lost a bird due to the dog breaking when the ducks got close. One was wounded, but a 2nd shot couldn't be gotten off without hitting the dog. The bird ended up flying far enough that it was lost.
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