Free: Contests & Raffles.
Any private access is a great thing. Seems odd, but you mention not many ducks this time of year. What kind of habitat is it? Birds are on their wintering so spots right now so if is good ground there should be plenty coming and going. Mudflat, gravel beach, marsh? Get creative in hiding and got out on the low tide. Work back with the water and you should be able to pattern any birds real quick. If there are only a few birds due to bad habitat this could be a once and done till another group moves in.
High tide, preferably in the am, and wind is the recipe for my spot. Birds typically fly out to feed after high tide. Granted, we have hunted this spot for decades and no longer even go if the conditions aren't as above. So maybe we are missing out on something... In my experience you are pass shooting birds that come and look at your decoys. Very rarely do they commit.
Any advantage to using a boat, or is it more hassle than it is worth?