2013 Season Final Best Ever

[sondance]

I hunt in SE AR. It has been hit or miss all year. In terms of number for total birds it was one of our worst. We might scratch out a 1000 depending on what happened yesterday afternoon and today. But, personally it turned out to be my best season ever.

I have been taking my son routinely since he was 6. He absolutely loves it. He never shot as he wasn't strong enough to shoulder his shotgun. He has become proficient with a call and extremely patient regardless of the conditions. He has always helped set up and pick up decoys and drives the Ranger. This year he is 10 and went every time I struck out. Opening weekend was cold, windy and rainy yet he sat there and never complained blowing his call. As the season progressed, due to our lack of normal success several members went to NE AR where they were consistently killing birds so I made the decision to let him finally shoot last Sat and Sun. There were too many people shooting 12's on Saturday for him to get a reasonable shot. Sunday the three of us broke off to go somewhere just us. It was a easy hunt on a ditch bank where I killed them pretty good the week before. I was convinced he would kill his first duck. Nothing.... No ducks. They had left. We didn't fire a shot.

I was traveling for work all week and got home late Thursday night due to the weather. They were all in the bed. My wife asked me the next morning if I was going to take my boy hunting? He had said all week he wanted to kill his first duck. I REALLY did not want to go as I had a lot to do and honestly didn't think we would do anything but it was the last weekend so I sucked it up and went. We got up there late and it was cold. I turned the water on to my trailer and the pipes had burst. Great I thought, this is a sign. I had planned to go to a pot hole pond just off the MS River as it offers close in shooting however several camp members were going there and I wanted him to get some easy shots so we decided to go to another pot hole figuring the deeper water wouldn't be frozen

I was wrong. We got there before light and I had to break 1-1/2 ice. I am thinking this ain't good. I pitched out 4 magnum mallards and a mojo. Right at legal shooting time you hear the other guys wearing them out. I see the ducks landing in the one small area of open water. We made the decision to pick up and move there. It's like 7:30 now and we haven't fired a shot. I am disappointed. We get set up with 2 mags and the mojo. I see a small flock and tell my boy to call at them. 2 gadwalls break off and are coming to us. I tell him to get ready. They are about to light and I call the shot. His 20gauge roars and down comes the gadwall. I was so stunned and excited I missed my bird. Now I don't have a dog. The ice is thick and the water is deep where his bird fell. I wear waist high wader by the way. Come hell or high water I am recovering this bird. I break ice with a stick while pulling my waders up as high as they can go. I need about 3 more steps. But, I go for it. Water rolls in my waders and I get the bird. My stones are now frozen and shrunken but regardless it's a perfect day. He kills another (Hen mallard) misses a couple of greenheads and we wind up with 5. I am thinking this is awesome but the birds are slow. My buddies limited by 9-9:30 and we are seeing birds fall into the hole they were in so we decide to move around 10. I let him ease up to jump shoot. He misses 3 times but I took a teal. So we have a half a two man limit

Over the next two hours the birds return 1-2 at a time. We wind up with 11. The last one fell in the middle and I am walking around trying to figure out how to retrieve it. I am about 40 yards away, directly across from him when I hear him start calling. I look up and a gadwall dive bombs to his right about 30 yards out. I see him stand up and dust roll him. The bird is flopping and he starts to shoot again but I tell him to hold up as his head is clearly under the water.

We wind up with a 2 man limit 10 gad's, a teal and a hen mallard. I don't know that I could have dreamed of a better day when your son shoots his first duck unassisted, calls birds in himself and limits out. It made the less than stellar season the best ever. I guess it's going to be on from here on out

[novacaine]

Awesome. He will definitely remember that hunt.

[three11]

That's what it's all about!

[RedEyed Duck]

Thanks for posting and a big congrats to dad the the little man as well!

[Faithful Retrievers]

Congrats! That's what its all about right there.

[missed mallards]

That's awesome!

[Curtdawg88]

That is awesome! Congrats to the little man and to you. I think you need some chest waders