TOO Waterfowl Chronicles

[bowhunter1023]

After hunting with Leo that day, I'm convinced he either doesn't feel cold or likes it absolutely frigid!!!

 

[Kaiser878]

We were chuckling because I never saw him shiver once..... and I was bitching about my hands being cold.....

Saw lots of divers today also while goose hunting and checking traps... ringers, blue bills, red breasted mergs...... to bad we can't hunt em.... Leo would a loved to wrap his mouth around those.

 

[bowhunter1023]

I'm bumming already...

We had a great season (per our standards being novice hunters in SE Ohio learning on our own) and I have little doubt that next season will be even better. We've learned a lot about how to hunt our blind in the last 3 seasons, so we are much more effective when we are there. The new spot we picked up has the potential to be absolutely amazing for a few hunts each season. Plus we should have a boat and that will make a big difference in where we can hunt. I also have my eye on 5-6 private spots I hope to land. If we get 2-3 of those, we will be set for the coming season. The more deer hunting sucks, the more I love bird hunting. I'm almost to the point where I could give up the vast majority of my deer hunting in favor of birds and it might very well happen this season. Wings whistling overhead and cupped ducks in you lap is just as exciting as shooting a deer AND you get to experience that multiple times in a day sometimes, let along a full season of chances for it to happen time and time again. I'm in love with waterfowl hunting right now!

 

[jagermeister]

Good recap Jesse. I'm sure you guys will have a successful 2015 duck season. Just from stories and pics on TOO, it's easy to see you guys have made some serious strides since you began waterfowling.

My 2014 season was what I would call average. We had some really good hunts but I don't think we ever had one of those 'are you kidding me' hunts as a group. My second split opener was one, and was absolutely incredible, but that's a whole 'nother story... No time for that right now. North Dakota 2014 was once again an amazing and successful trip and I look forward to doing it again next year. My dog Betty had her first "real" duck season and she did a phenomenal job for us. She had some hiccups along the way of course, but there were a bunch of proud papa moments in there too. She racked up 92 retrieves this season and I was proud of every one. I was hoping she'd hit the millennium mark but it leaves a goal for next year I guess. The weather just didn't really cooperate for us up here in the LEMZ this year. An early hard freeze in November sent a big slug of birds south of us and we never really rebounded from it. We still manage to get our fair share of ducks for the game strap but they definitely made us work a little harder.

On a side note... For anyone sitting on a freezer full of ducks, I've found my new pressure cooker to be the cat's ass for cooking duck. It's easy and super quick. It's like getting crock pot results but in only 10-15 minutes. I made some kick ass duck soup/stew a couple weeks ago.

 

[AMiller]

On a side note... For anyone sitting on a freezer full of ducks, I've found my new pressure cooker to be the cat's ass for cooking duck. It's easy and super quick. It's like getting crock pot results but in only 10-15 minutes. I made some kick ass duck soup/stew a couple weeks ago.

What is the make and model of the pressure cooker. I cook most my duck in a crock pot and it's an all day event.

 

[jagermeister]

What is the make and model of the pressure cooker. I cook most my duck in a crock pot and it's an all day event.

Mine is a Presto 16-qt pressure cooker. It's a little bigger than you need for just cooking ducks but I will be using it for canning too. The extra space really doesn't effect how you cook, it just takes up a little more room in the cabinets.

 

[AMiller]

I may pick one up

 

[JPN]

I went over to our pond today to check/clean out the wood duck boxes. This is the second year we've had them out, the first year there was no sign of them using them. To my surprise the first 2 I checked actually had feathers and pieces of eggs in them! Pretty cool to see them actually working. The third box had a regular birds living in it, there was even a dead one in it. I've got two more boxes on the other end that I didn't get to because there is a Spring flowing into it and the ice isn't as thick. The four wheeler came pretty close to going though, so I'll save those for another day lol.
The first box had probaly 5 eggs in it...
f
The next one had a lot more, I'd say at least 10 or more

 

[bowhunter1023]

Very cool Justin!

 

[jagermeister]

Good stuff. Hard to tell from the pics but they do appear to be wood duck eggs. Keep monitoring them each year. A lot of times these nest boxes are used more by hooded mergansers than wood ducks. Hoodie eggs are more round and lighter in color. They'll actually lay their eggs right with wood duck eggs, resulting in momma wood duck rearing brothas from anotha motha. Lol. Add fresh cedar or pine chips each winter and make sure they have a way to climb out. Keep up the good work!

 

[JPN]

Good stuff. Hard to tell from the pics but they do appear to be wood duck eggs. Keep monitoring them each year. A lot of times these nest boxes are used more by hooded mergansers than wood ducks. Hoodie eggs are more round and lighter in color. They'll actually lay their eggs right with wood duck eggs, resulting in momma wood duck rearing brothas from anotha motha. Lol. Add fresh cedar or pine chips each winter and make sure they have a way to climb out. Keep up the good work!

I tried looking up pics of woody eggs and Im pretty sure that's what they are. We put wire mesh up to the hole for them to climb out and I put pine chips in today. My next project is going to be making some of the mallard nests, the ones that look like a tunnel. Do you or anyone else have any experience making those?

 

[jagermeister]

I tried looking up pics of woody eggs and Im pretty sure that's what they are. We put wire mesh up to the hole for them to climb out and I put pine chips in today. My next project is going to be making some of the mallard nests, the ones that look like a tunnel. Do you or anyone else have any experience making those?

Yea I've made a few and have observed countless others over the years. IMO they aren't really worth the time or expense. I've seen more mallards nest in landscaping than I have in those man made tubes. Not sure why that is.

 

[switchhitter]

yep they nest in mt day lilies every year

 

[bowhunter1023]

Drove up the river today and saw several groups of bufflehead. There is also a massive swarm of ducks I can't identify hanging out on an open patch of river amongst the ice. They are wood duck size and blackish grey. I can't see much variance in color amongst the group either. There must be 300-400 in this group.

 

[jagermeister]

Drove up the river today and saw several groups of bufflehead. There is also a massive swarm of ducks I can't identify hanging out on an open patch of river amongst the ice. They are wood duck size and blackish grey. I can't see much variance in color amongst the group either. There must be 300-400 in this group.

I'd have to guess gadwalls.

 

[Hortontoter]

My first thought was coots. But, I'm sure Jesse knows what a coot looks like. Gadwalls are a likely candidate.

 

[bowhunter1023]

Gadwalls for sure. Too big to be coots. Thinking back to the gadwalls we killed, that's the right size and color.

Thought it was cool seeing the buffleheads. Very pretty duck. Definitely not a duck we get to see much of around here.

 

[jagermeister]

Buffleheads are very cool little ducks. And they drop into decoys of there own kind like no other duck I've hunted. Fun to shoot.

 

[JPN]

Can on the river today. He let me walk right up to him





And a pair of red heads

 

[bowhunter1023]

Very cool dude. There was a flock of 50-60 of one or the other in Marietta yesterday. I just caught a glimpse, so I'm not sure what exactly they were. Very pretty birds!