We fired up the engines in the inky dark. A heavy chop blanketed the bay. We cinched our jackets tight against the wicked wind and faced the stern so we could breath. Then it was headlamps and knee deep muck, marching, lugging decoys and cut branches, to build a blind. As night gave way to, Read More
Bucking in circles like a rodeo bull, her enthusiasm belied her age. I was scrambling around the cold garage looking for duck hunting gear that hasn’t been used much lately. The temps started to drop, from a high of 20 F, as soon as the sun dipped below the mountains. Waterfowl was our game when, Read More
“Are we almost home?” “My stomach hurts.” “I think I might throw up.” My brain was beginning to tell my lips to start moving in response to the first question, when I heard the convulsions begin. Going from sixty to zero in quick order, I pulled into the barrow ditch. Cold winter air hit my face, Read More
Ducks flew by the hundreds. They were closer to the cruising altitude for commercial airlines than our decoys. But the sky gave us a show that was more memorable than many of the ducks I’ve brought home. After shooting light we spent nearly a half hour soaking in the view. The dog, shotgun’s, calls, decoys, Read More
Tears streaming down her face, I agreed to head back to the car and and hang out for the last 20 minutes of shooting. The sound, and even the thought, of shotgun blasts had her terrified. We had never had this problem before and the two younger kids were unfazed, simply wanting to shoot, Read More
Bucking in circles like a rodeo bull, her enthusiasm belied her age. I was scrambling around the cold garage looking for duck hunting gear that hasn’t been used much lately. The temps started to drop, from a high of 20 F, as soon as the sun dipped below the mountains. Waterfowl was our game, Read More
“Dada… um… what… um… what are we going to doooo today?” It was a good question. We’d been batching it for a few days and the seams were starting to show. Three consecutive days of no mom, no nap, and long hours hunting in the elements had combined with the post-Christmas hangover to produce, Read More