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20 Articles

If Nothing Don't Happen

“SEEMS IT AIN’T HARDLY a duck hunt if something don’t go wrong,” the old man said, as we both stared at our duck boat, drifting across the vast reservoir with nobody on it. I had been last off but didn’t think such a big heavy boat with a massive blind would move after being run ashore. Blinds are kites, though, and the key words there start many stories: “I didn’t think.” Boat owner Mike Miller did a half-mile sprint in heavy waders to catch it on the far shoreline of a bay, right before it would hit the big water. Soon after, we needed old man John’s talents as a lifelong marine mechanic when the gear shift cable broke just as darkness fell and the wind picked up violently. He somehow…

If Nothing Don't Happen

IT TOOK ME begging my father to ask Mr. Jeff if he could take me hunting. Mr. Jeff used to be an employee of my father and had known me since I was a baby. At that time, Mr. Jeff was a caretaker for a beautiful property that attracted hundreds of ducks and geese alike. Mr. Jeff was more than happy to have me tag along. For my adventure, I bought a cheap pair of kid's camo bibs, a camo t-shirt, and borrowed my sister's steel-toed horse boots for my first hunting trip. I took out my youth model Remington 1100 20-gauge that had wooden stocks and a blued barrel. I had just turned twelve, four days before this cold, Martin Luther King, Jr. Day of 2009. That morning we met Mr.…

Waterfowling During the Time of COVID-19

BIRD NUMBERS ARE booming, and hunter numbers are on the rise. Awesome news for the waterfowl world. Then…COVID-19. While bird numbers were not affected, the virus prevented things like annual bird banding and the 65-yearlong U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service waterfowl breeding population and habitat survey. Ouch. Springtime hunts were suspended for non-resident hunters in many states, and while this didn’t have a direct effect on many waterfowlers except those chasing snow geese, it did show how seriously many states took the virus and the efforts they were willing to go to in order to prevent the spread. While the overall effects of what the virus has done to hunting numbers remains to be seen, early signs, in most states, show a serious influx. So much in fact, that several states requested…

Waterfowling During the Time of COVID-19

A HELPING HAND An ecosystem considered to be one of the world’s most biologically productive, Maine has the largest block of undeveloped forest and wetland habitat east of the Mississippi River, making it a critical component of the Atlantic Flyway. Recently, DU partnered with The Maine Coast Heritage Trust on a pair of projects. First, through a North American Wetlands Conservation Act grant, the trust, DU and other partners, Pond Cove Island has been purchased and will be transferred to the Maine Department of Agriculture. The island contains 37 acres of intertidal wetlands. Second, DU has partnered with U.S. Fish and Wildlife to restore 320 acres of coastal marshes. BUY YOUR CANADIAN STAMP ANYWAY! COVID-19 has crippled waterfowl hunting in Canada. With the border closed, thousands of non-resident hunters have been forced to…

2,300 miles long the Mississippi River runs. With a watershed of 1.5-million square miles, it's the most heavily used migration corridor in the U.S. 1.6 million is the number of acres DU and its partners have conserved in the Mississippi Flyway. 25% of Maine’s total area are wetlands. 73 years is how long the Central Flyway has been officially designated. 18 times was the magic number the Michigan Department of Conservation caught the same black duck drake. 27 years, 7 months—the oldest banded mallard on record.…

DURING A RECENT conversation with a veterinarian friend of mine, the topic of fat puppies came up. She commented on how a chubby three-week old is fine, but not a roly-poly 8- or 10-week old. She explained that by the time we pick up our new retrievers from the breeder, we should have a nutrition and exercise plan in place while stressing that chubby might be cute, but it’s unhealthy. The damage, of course, comes later in life if the overfeeding and under-exercising become established norms. Most of us don’t run into that with young dogs because they are by nature, movers. But it’s worth paying attention to because they don’t stay young forever, and the lifestyle they adopt is the lifestyle we provide for them. If that involves more calories…

Waterfowl BAND REPORTS

1 HUNTER: Avery Cummings, Sussex, NB BAND #: 1256-45613 SPECIES: Wood Duck (D) BANDED: 08/27/2019 LOCATION: Near Ferrisburg, VT RECOVERED: 10/08/20 LOCATION: 1.3 mi N of Lower Millstream, NB 2 HUNTER: Wyatt James Olson, Aberdeen, SD BAND #: 2047-53735 SPECIES: Mallard (D) BANDED: 08/23/2012 LOCATION: Peachview Farm Wetland, Yorkton, SK RECOVERED: 10/10/2020 LOCATION: Crow Creek Dainage, about 16 miles north of Groton, SD 3 HUNTER: Justin Wray, North Huntingdon, PA BAND #: 1058-08131 SPECIES: Canada Goose (M) BANDED: 07/21/2010 LOCATION: Akimiski Island, James Bay, NU RECOVERED: 09/23/2020 LOCATION: 1 mi NNW of North Rose, NY 4 HUNTER: Chris Kepker, Independence, IA BAND #: 2227-18382 SPECIES: Mallard (D) BANDED: 09/04/2019 LOCATION: Near Middle River, MN RECOVERED: 10/18/2020 LOCATION: 1 miles NW from Independence, IA COMMENTS: My first season duck hunting and my first mallard. 5 HUNTER: James Vanpelt, West Babylon, NY BAND #: 1045-40797 SPECIES: Blue-winged Teal (D) BANDED: 08/14/2016 LOCATION: Jansen, SK RECOVERED: 09/27/2020 LOCATION: Babylon, NY 6 HUNTER: Travis Ward, Sparta, MI BAND #: 1176-11521 SPECIES: Lesser Scaup (D) BANDED: 03/24/2018 LOCATION: Nauvoo, IL RECOVERED: 10/28/2020 LOCATION:…

Waterfowl BAND REPORTS

Jetpack Jackpot

EVERYONE MISSES, most often shooting behind a bird. The most common excuse is that the duck must have had some artificial power source, like a jetpack, to propel it safely through our pattern of pellets. Sometimes truth proves stranger than fiction. Steve Nienhaus described the events associated with his band tale as rather unremarkable. He and his hunting partner, Phil Chalupa, were standing in the shooting holes on opposite ends of their 24-foot blind on a bluebird day with light west winds and clear skies when Steve glimpsed a solo greenhead gliding overhead. “We both got down, I called briefly, and the bird turned directly into our decoys.” As it was on his side, Nienhaus stood and fired. His first shot was “slightly behind,” but he quickly recovered and dropped the…

Jetpack Jackpot

THE GUYS HAD a good morning with the Canadas! In the 1930’s, Canada geese were not common like they are now on every golf course and executive-center pond. In those days, two major concentrations were near Cairo, Illinois and on Lake Mattamuskeet, North Carolina—which was once drained for farmland. But in 1934, the U. S. Government bought it as a refuge, and it reverted to the largest lake in North Carolina. Today, the geese stay in Maryland, but Lake Mattamuskeet holds thousands of tundra swans. The area in Illinois once called “Hunting at Cairo,” like Lake Mattamuskeet, no longer hosts a goose concentration, but back then hunters ringed Horseshoe Lake near Olive Branch and Miller City, Illinois with pits and blinds. Eventually, the geese also started using Crab Orchard Lake to…

Canine Equipment

SWEET DREAMS Fitted with a comfortable Home Base and removable Travel Pad, your dog will love Yeti’s TrailHead Dog Bed. Offered in a stylish charcoal color option, this pad features a cushy pad and pillow booster designed to provide maximum recovery and comfort for your adventuresome pooch. All materials are easy to clean, and the waterproof bottom prevents any dampness from seeping through. yeti.com | $300 READY FOR LIFTOFF An innovative design, SportDOG Brand’s Launcher System lets you control the launch of birds and training dummies from distances up to ½-mile via the easy-to-operate, included remote control. The process is simple load a bird or training dummy into the launcher basket and the transmitter sends a signal to the receiver. The unit is compatible with most brands of bird launchers or throwers, and…

Canine Equipment

Zander’s Impala Plus Nero

WANT A GOOD shotgun for couch change? Check out Zanders’ Impala Plus Nero. Made by Istanbul Silah in Turkey’s capital of Istanbul, it packs a lot of features into its 7-pound frame, like a big bolt release and safety. In case you are wondering, Zander’s Sporting Goods, located in Sparta, Illinois right by the magnificent World Shooting Recreational Complex, has been a major distributor of sporting gear since 1962. At the last Shooting, Hunting and Outdoor Trade Show (SHOT 2020), I found that about 60 percent of the shotguns came from Turkey, a salute to its rapid expansion. Turkish labor costs are far below many other parts of the world and Turkey is well situated for raw materials. All of this makes for Impala’s low price tag. The Impala is built on…

Zander’s Impala Plus Nero

MANUFACTURER: Istanbul Silah, Istanbul, Turkey IMPORTER: Zander’s Sporting Goods, Sparta, IL 62286 call 800-851-4373 www.shop2.gzanders.com ACTION TYPE: Inertia-operated semi auto GAUGE: 12, 3-inch chamber TRIGGER: Single 5 lb. 14.5 oz. average of 5 pulls BARREL: 28-inch blued with vent rib also 24-, 26-and 30-inch depending on model SIGHTS: Removable bar-style fluorescent front STOCK/FORE END: Black synthetic, also available in camo LENGTH OF PULL: 14 ¼ inches DROP AT COMB: 1 5/16 inches DROP AT HEEL: 1 5/8 inches CAST OFF: ¼ inch OVERALL LENGTH: 49 ¼ inches WEIGHT: 7.0 lbs. METAL FINISH: Matte black, camo, carbon fiber depending on model ACCESSORIES: Owner’s manual, five choke tubes, choke-tube wrench, sling swivels, safety lock SUGGESTED RETAIL PRICE: $449.99 Nero (test gun) to $799.99 depending on model…

SHOOT WHERE YOU LOOK!

Makin’ your shotgun shoot where you look is easy. Find a good safe backstop and set up a 24-inch square target at or slightly above eye level and mark a one-inch dot in the center. Carefully measure exactly 16 yards and fire three aimed shots at the target. Then measure from the center of the impact of the three shots to the marked target’s center. For every inch it’s off, you need to correct your stock 1/16th inch. One inch low and two to the left means you need to raise the stock a sixteenth and add 1/8-inch cast off (moves your stock slightly to the right), which can be easily accomplished with Impala’s shim set. In our test, the Impala shot 4 ½ inches high and a scant ½-inch…

SHOOT WHERE YOU LOOK!

Cajun Gator Chaser

CHURNING THE WATER of a Louisiana Bayou, Dale Bordelon was in hot pursuit. Dropping his paddle mid-stroke, he fired a shot with explosive effect. When he saw the crippled duck pop up, he was relieved. "That gray duck was barely alive, so I wrung its neck," Bordelon said. "The alligator turned it loose and kept on going." While chasing cripples is part of any duck hunt, recovering a wounded gadwall from the clenched jaws of an eight-foot alligator is extraordinary. Having the guts to chase it down in a dugout pirogue is downright incredible. Bordelon was hunting from a blind with his son, Hunter, and friend, David Roy. His other son, Cody, was in a nearby blind. When they shot into a flock of gadwalls, one fell 50 yards away. Jumping into his…

Cajun Gator Chaser

Starting Pup Right

I’VE WRITTEN MANY times about how important it is to have a training plan in place as soon as you bring your new retriever puppy home, but what I’ve never touched on is a couple of easy-to-overlook behaviors that start out as little tendencies, only to bloom into something much bigger. While it’s totally understandable to dream big when you pick up a new pup, to the point where daydreaming about triple blind retrieves is common, it’s the seemingly insignificant stuff at this stage that makes all of the difference later. With any sporting dog youngster, you’ll see glimpses into behavioral issues when they are eight weeks old that portend future action on a larger scale. Some of these things you’ll want to train out of the pup, others you’ll want…

Starting Pup Right

Hunting Dog Hazards

RED ROSE is a fox red British Lab who has proven to be very biddable and trainable. She has wonderful drive and loads of style. Rose's pups have proven to be excellent hunting companions. For nearly 20 years, Bill Gibson has studied, trained and learned how to apply low-force training methods from masters in the United Kingdom, Ireland and U.S Bill and his dogs have won Team and Gundog Challenges in Northern Ireland He has also served as a judge for the British Field Trial Society of America. A retired law enforcement officer, Bill is the Director of Gundog Operations for Mossy Oak GameKeeper Kennels AT GAMEKEEPER KENNELS we train Labrador Retrievers to be a “hunter’s best friend for life.” Our dual-purpose retrievers are not only hunting dogs but companions that thrive…

Hunting Dog Hazards

A DIY Birthday WISH

WATERFOWL HUNTING IN North Dakota should be a bucket list trip for every waterfowl hunter, but it is not for the faint of heart. The ultimate goal is to have epic hunts every day like we see on television or social media, but let’s be real—things don’t always work out like we want them to. The stressful, hell-bent scouting trips that make you want to rip your hair out because you can’t get permission are the same ones that can make or break your trip. But, with some luck and a little bit more determination than the next guy, success is achievable. October in North Dakota should be bone chilling cold with a north wind—the perfect combination for waterfowl hunting. However, when we left Kansas City, Missouri to head North, it was…

A DIY Birthday WISH

Gun Dogs I Have KNOWN

CAESAR, LIVIA, ROXIE, GAUGE, BRODIE, JAKE AND ELLIE these are the names of gun dogs I have loved and hunted over for the last 39 years. They are all random names chosen by me at various times of my life. These names all differ, but their purpose was the same—to bring back fowl that I shot. The dogs included two English springer spaniels, two Chesapeake Bay retrievers and three Labrador retrievers. Some were like rockets, powerful and explosive, while others were more like rocking chairs, slow and smooth, like my first dog—Caesar. Caesar was a male English springer spaniel that I transitioned from family house pet to a gun dog that I could take out to the Nevada desert to chase quail and dove. Although he wasn’t a firecracker, he did…

Gun Dogs I Have KNOWN

SOONER Than Later

IDEALLY, HITTING THE highway to chase feathers for a few days with a good friend doesn’t include dodging 18 wheeler crashes, or your guide’s truck bursting into flames, or folks rushing home because of family getting hit with Covid 19. But not much about the 2020 “it”-show was ideal, and it seemed the most difficult of years would push its nefarious intentions to the bitter end. In mid-December, Sure Shot Game Calls owner Charlie Holder started firing texts announcing an Oklahoma duck and goose hunt, with his usual notice. A week later, right before Christmas, we rolled out in a rental truck, and I was gleeful, having just lost out on a dream trip to Mexico due to a Corona eruption there. At my side was Keith Buswell, an adventure photographer…

SOONER Than Later

Swinger Spaniel

IT WAS IN that moment—as I stood on the rocky ledge above the pond in the late October sunshine, fully nude–—that it hit me. I needed a dog. Badly. Forty yards away, three fat wigeon were floating belly up in the middle of the pond. I’d blasted them from a rising flock thirty minutes earlier, and for the last twenty-nine minutes, I’d been trying to figure out how to get them to shore. I was wearing waders, of course, but those don’t do a lot of good when you discover the water is neck-deep. The wind was no help either, as the drifting duck corpses had managed to snag on the only patch of reeds in the dead center of the pond. Various strategies involving fenceposts and stones and human hair had…

Swinger Spaniel

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