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Author Topic: 2014 Duck/goose season with Amber  (Read 18460 times)

Offline lokidog

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Re: 2014 Duck/goose season with Amber
« Reply #30 on: December 30, 2014, 09:25:53 PM »
Wow, guess I haven't gotten out for a while.  Took a couple of shots today, no pics, here's the story.

I missed a Harlequin today....   :bash:  I saw some mergs and other unidentified ducks while picking up styrofoam and other garbage off the SE beach so I climbed the very steep hill and zoomed home for the gun and Amber.  When I got back, they had already swam up to my access point and I could see that there were six Harlequins, five of them were drakes along with a dozen or so Common Mergansers.  I waited until they (Harlys)dove and belly crawled to the edge of the grass above the beach.  Unfortunately, the tide was out so they were a long way away.  They worked their way behind some rocks and dove again so I bailed over the edge and belly crawled across the beach.  The mergs saw me and slowly moved away.  I got to a big rock only forty yards from the Harlequins.  They came a little closer but I could not shoot since they were all bunched together.  The mergs moved back in and I got a shot at a single drake Harlequin, and it dove.  When it popped up, it flew, I shot, it dove, same thing happened again but then when it popped up, there was another one next to it then they dove and just swam out of range since I didn't want to shoot two.  Amber fetched a merg that I hit with my first shot as collateral damage apparently.  I watched them swim out away from me so I hurried up the hill once again (my chest still hurts, I think I need more aerobic excersize   :rolleyes: ) and zoomed home to get the boat.  Unfortuantely, by the time I launched the boat and motored around the island, they were nowhere in sight when I got out there.  I looked until dark but only saw a bunch of Scoters.  I did have a pair of Bufflehead fly by while I was drifting looking for sign, so I dropped one and couldn't pull the trigger on the second one.

Apparently there is a little bump on the back of the Nova triggers that can catch on the trigger assembly and prevent the trigger from moving.  Luckily an easy fix with a file has it working again.

Offline lokidog

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Re: 2014 Duck/goose season with Amber
« Reply #31 on: January 08, 2015, 08:33:10 PM »
Got a Bufflehead and nice drake Oldsquaw last Saturday.

Yesterday, I got a drake Mallard right after shooting time, knocked down four Red-breasted Mergansers out of a flock of fifty or so (my first ones of these that I know of), and two Buffleheads.  The Buffles were funny, one swam into my decoys so I shot him, as the dog was swimming out to get him, several more landed within five feet of her.  To my surprise, she stayed focused on the dead bird, grabbed it, and kept coming back even after I dropped one of the other ones that finally realized it was not a duck they were next to and took off.  Then, when she was fetching that one, two more Buffles came and landed nearby for a minute as well.

Oh yeah, forgot about one of the mergs.  Thought it was dead so tossed it with the others and then went out to meet Amber with the last one as she came back.  I heard a noise and watched the bird go rocketing into the water and dive away.  Too bad for him I still had the gun in my hands.   :chuckle: 

Sorry for the crappy cell phone pic, I need to start bringing my decent camera.
« Last Edit: January 09, 2015, 10:57:56 AM by lokidog »

Offline lokidog

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Re: 2014 Duck/goose season with Amber
« Reply #32 on: January 09, 2015, 11:08:02 AM »
Called in a hen Red-breasted to my decoys shortly after missing a dumb shot on a mallard, it had already passed me, live and learn.  The mallards took off out of the bay before light, I think they heard me crunching gravel on the beach.  It is amazing how quiet it can be.

As I was thinking about leaving, I saw three hen Common Mergansers swimming down the shoreline towards me.  I was hoping they would line up for a multi kill swat but no luck.  When the lead one got in front of me at about 15 feet, I swatted the farthest one.  The two closer ones took off and I dropped each with my next two shots.  The second was stone dead, the third dove, popped up and dove again when I tried finishing it.  I sent Amber after it.  Then I noticed the first had regained its composure and was swiming away, too far out of range.  Well, Amber lost track of the one after it dove again and kept heading away from shore so I called her back to fetch the second one.  We then boogied around to my dinghy to try to find the two.  An hour of searching and no luck, I don't know how they could have gotten far enough away for me not to see them, especially since it was almost dead calm this morning.  I was glassing (while drifting) and heard an Oldsquaw flying by, just in time to grab the shotgun, rack a round and drop her. 

Still frustrated that those two mergansers didn't come home with me.   >:(  All looked like solid hits at less than 20 yards, I think I'm switching back to 4's for the shoreline hunts, a few more pellets might help and I keep my shots less than 45 yards anyways.




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Re: 2014 Duck/goose season with Amber
« Reply #33 on: January 09, 2015, 11:23:37 AM »
you are a MERG slayer this year!  :chuckle:
In archery we have something like the way of the superior man. When the archer misses the center of the target, he turns round and seeks for the cause of his failure in himself. 

Confucius

Offline lokidog

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Re: 2014 Duck/goose season with Amber
« Reply #34 on: January 09, 2015, 11:35:19 AM »
I saw a flock of 300-500 the other day, plenty to go around.   :chuckle:

Gotta collect enough for the summer get-together.   :drool:

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Re: 2014 Duck/goose season with Amber
« Reply #35 on: January 09, 2015, 12:18:55 PM »
Nice. I only saw one merganser today. Looks like they're heading back your way.  :chuckle:
Maturity is when you have the power to destroy someone who did you wrong but instead you breathe, walk away, and let life take care of them.

Offline lokidog

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Re: 2014 Duck/goose season with Amber
« Reply #36 on: January 13, 2015, 06:43:02 PM »
Brought the gun with me on the way to work today.

Offline Cougar125

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Re: 2014 Duck/goose season with Amber
« Reply #37 on: January 17, 2015, 08:04:09 AM »
Beautiful pair Loki! 

Offline lokidog

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Re: 2014 Duck/goose season with Amber
« Reply #38 on: January 17, 2015, 10:39:16 AM »
Thanks.

So today I decided to try to ambush a Harlequin.  I got down to the beach, where I have been seeing them in the evenings, and found a nice pile of driftwood to hide in.  It was a bit windier than I was hoping since last night was calm.  This beach gets a bit stirred up when wavy so the birds will often feed farther out from shore.  Well, the tide was a fairly high low near dawn so the water was about six yards away.  A hen bufflehead came by but I passed on her.  Eventually, I saw a flock of Mergansers out in the bay heading toward shore so hoped they might come by.  Before too long, I could tell they were heading away from me.   :(

Then, I saw three Harlequins about 90 yards down the shore feeding and heading in my direction.  They were one drake and two hens.  They would dive and surface closer each time.  They hit 40 yards and dove.  They popped up about 35 yards and I had to wait for the drake to clear the hens.  I sat up, he lept into the air, boom, drop and dive... pop up, boom, dive... pop up, boom, dive.  He popped up again swimming hard to shore about 15 yards away.  I had told Amber to stay as I did not want him roughed up.  The bird went out of site on the other side of a rootwad so I got up to see what it was going to do.  I figured I would wait for it to go up the shore a little and then run over and grab it.  Unfortunately, I didn't see Amber jump out from the pile, but the bird did.  He made a U-turn and dove back into the water so I sent Amber after him.  He popped up but she didn't see him and I didn't want to shoot over her and deafen her.  The bird dove again and I stepped sideways, he came up and no boom, damn safety... dives again.  I shot three more shots trying to swat him as he dove and swam away.  All I ever saw of him again was about 1/2 X 1 inch of his head and then he disappeared into the waves.

I waited a while hoping he might come back into shore before I headed back to my beach access area, but no luck.  I did see three Harlequins, two hens and a drake, that took off when I approached.  I don't know if it was the same birds.

Harlequin tag notched for the season.   :bash:  I can't afford to have another duck mounted this year anyways I guess....

Back to trying to get Mergansers for the summer get-together.   :tup: 

Offline lokidog

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Re: 2014 Duck/goose season with Amber
« Reply #39 on: January 17, 2015, 11:34:37 PM »
Update on the Harlequin.  Well, I decided to go down this afternoon to see if the Harly came ashore, dead or alive.  Amber and I took a three mile plus walk, up and back and did not find anything along the high tide or the driftwood lines.   :(    Well, we did find more of the giant octopus that we saw part of this morning, too bad I already have too much crap in my freezers or it might have made some good halibut/ling bait.

Offline Cougar125

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Re: 2014 Duck/goose season with Amber
« Reply #40 on: January 18, 2015, 12:45:26 AM »
Sucks that you lost him.  :/  Maybe next year I'll swap hunts with ya.  Harli for some mergs.  :)

Offline lokidog

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Re: 2014 Duck/goose season with Amber
« Reply #41 on: January 18, 2015, 10:32:40 AM »
Unfortunately, for me, there are lots of other guys with better opportunities at Harlequins.  Unless you want mergs for a chance at me getting a nice Harli....   :chuckle:

Offline BOWHUNTER45

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Re: 2014 Duck/goose season with Amber
« Reply #42 on: January 18, 2015, 11:03:04 AM »
Nice ...I need to get me one of those squaws  :tup:

Offline lokidog

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Re: 2014 Duck/goose season with Amber
« Reply #43 on: January 22, 2015, 11:41:19 AM »
Brought the gun with me on the way to work today.

Repeat this picture for another pair on MLK Day

Here's the photo, I forgot that I had a real camera with me that day.
« Last Edit: January 24, 2015, 10:53:38 AM by lokidog »

Offline lokidog

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Re: 2014 Duck/goose season with Amber
« Reply #44 on: January 22, 2015, 12:16:04 PM »
Went out this morning, with the rain forecast I figured it would be more productive in a blind than finishing a metal roof.   :o

I set up a bit closer to where I see most of the ducks in the bay hoping I might be able to pull some mallards in.  I could hear a few out on the edge of the water when I set my dekes up at low tide last night.  I put out my string of six mallards, an additional pair and two of my new floater goose decoys, even though I have not seen a goose out here for weeks.  Well, I got in this morning and it was not quite as comfy as I thought it would be, the dog took up more room than I had anticipated so after some reorienting I settled in.

In the first forty minutes of legal shooting, I had one hen Bufflehead land in the decoys but let her live, to the annoyance of Amber.   :chuckle:  I also saw about two dozen Mallards fly by and drop into the pond that I can't hunt.   :(

Then a hen Merganser came and landed in front of me.  Boom, flipped her over.  I made Amber wait on the retrieve for two reasons, one to teach her patience and to wait for my release of her, and two, because other ducks will often pop up and fly around, especially after the first shot of the morning.  Well, nothing came close enough for a shot, so I just sat back and waited.  I was ready to send Amber, who was vibrating like she was plugged into an outlet, so I peeked out the front of my "blind" to see if it was clear.  My heart leapt as I saw a bird by my two goose decoys about 25 yards away, dang, just a white seagull... wait, what, a Snow Goose?  No Way!  Sure enough, boom, sent my load of 4's.  I swatted it again and then sent Amber after it.  I thought I would have to argue with her to go after it since she could not see the goose and had been glued to the Merg for the last five or ten minutes.  She looked where I pointed and went and fetched her first goose, only my third Snow and the first adult.

She retrieved the goose so I sent her after the Merganser, as she swam past the decoys, a little hen Bufflehead landed within ten feet of her.  The Buffle finally flew away after I stood up to take the Merg from Amber.  A little bit later, I noticed five hen Mergansers working their way down the shoreline toward me.  They pulled up in front of me so I dusted two in the first shot , dropped another with my second shot and had a fail to fire on my third shot, the trigger would not pull.  I sent Amber to retrieve the birds, which she did just fine.  I tested the trigger and it clicked, so I don't know what happened there.

It turned out to be a nice morning weather-wise as well.


 


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