I had hoped that the wind would cooperate and we would get Phil and Gary into their first old squaws. We arrived at the lake just at legal light and despite the strong south wind, the worst possible wind, there were birds everywhere. Old Squaws swarmed the lakefront like black flies in early spring. It was enough to get the boys giggling like school children.
We rushed to the trucks, throwing on our waters and gathering the decoys. Hurriedly we ran two long lines of mixed bluebills, bufflehead and goldeneye tethered to heavy anchors needed to hold the blocks in place with the strong south winds. The lines held strong as we waited in anticipation. But this was hardly the morning that plague the dreams of the avid duck hunter; with the warm, bright sun cutting the bite of a brisk wind hitting your face.
Bird after bird, drake after drake skirted the wrong side of the decoys, testing our patience as they stayed just yards out of range. There was no shortage of birds in the area, they just didn’t want to play. As if out of no where, a drake buffy pitched the spread and as we all fumbled to take aim, Gary took the drake. Logan fought the serf to make the short retrieve and returned the bird to hand. Somehow in the confusion, a new greenhead gear drake bluebill decoy was harvested…
We watched as each flock played the same tune, taunting us with every pass. We tried with mixed success, fighting the surf to close the distance between hunter and quarry. Waves were strong and at one point while heading back to shore a wave took me out at the knees and I ended up going for a swim. This was the first time I was appreciative of the sunny conditions.
Throughout the day we did have some chances and managed to get a number of birds, however that long tailed drake eluded us. As the time to pick up drew near birds were all around. Flocks of redhead and bluebills could be seen in the distance, while the white winged scoters and old squaws continued to tease us.
We packed up that afternoon with only four birds in the bag; three hen squaws and a drake buffy, but after been treated to a week of great hunting it made the end bitter sweet. Logan worked great this late season and retrieved nearly 40 birds in the last 3 days of hunting the big water. What a great way to end the season sitting in the blind with Phil, whom I started the season and Gary, who is quickly become one of my closest hunting companions.
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