T Bone
Well-known member
This hunt has been a long time in the making. I promised my boys ages 8 and 6 I'd take them waterfowl hunting this year. I'm not a hardcore duck hunter by any means, I'd rather go big game hunting, chukar hunting with my gsp, or predator calling.....but none of those lend to easy outings with the youngsters.....
The targets were ducks, geese, and a swan. We were out at Stillwater refuge near Fallon Nevada. We would sit on a travel zone hoping to pass shoot the birds. From last year I learned the benefits of using non-steel shells, so the night before the boys and I dropped by Sportsmans Warehouse. The choices were Remington Hevi-shot, Federal Tungsten, or Kent Matrix. The boys liked the packaging of the Kent shells in size 1 shot so those left with us.
4:00 am the alarm sounds and I get the boys into the truck. They are jacked and climbing the walls. I tell them to go back to sleep as we have an 1.5 hour drive ahead.
On the way out we run into dense fog. We arrive and I get the boys dressed in as many layers as possible and we slog through the mud to our secret spot....The fog is thick and I can hear ducks, geese, and swans flying but can't see them. A couple geese were so close that I could hear that creaking noise from their wings, but I couldn't see them. The boys are cold so we slog back to the truck to warm up with hot chocolate and hot oatmeal.
We get warm and go back to our top secret spot. The fog starts to lift. Two drake mallards whistle by, I shoot once and miss before they dissapear into the mist......The boys are dissapointed. They expected them to explode in mid-air....
The fog burns off completely and birds are flying, a big group of swans heading right to us. They boys are holding still hiding in the sage brush. The group of 10 birds flies right to us. I jump up and swing on the biggest bird in the group and shoot and the small bird behind it folds up and augers into the mud behind us!
The youngest is yelling "You got him!" "You got him!"
The swan is up and running in the no shoot zone and beyond that the refuge. I clear the chamber, put the gun in a bush and I'm off to the races. Within 80 yards I catch up and immobilize him with a well timed kick.
It's a very small juvenille tundra swan, but I'll take it!
The boys insist on packing it back to the truck.
There are lots of ducks and geese flying, but the boys want to go home and show off the trophy. We stop for a bite to eat on the way home and both zonk out after eating.
It means much more with the kids in tow!
The targets were ducks, geese, and a swan. We were out at Stillwater refuge near Fallon Nevada. We would sit on a travel zone hoping to pass shoot the birds. From last year I learned the benefits of using non-steel shells, so the night before the boys and I dropped by Sportsmans Warehouse. The choices were Remington Hevi-shot, Federal Tungsten, or Kent Matrix. The boys liked the packaging of the Kent shells in size 1 shot so those left with us.
4:00 am the alarm sounds and I get the boys into the truck. They are jacked and climbing the walls. I tell them to go back to sleep as we have an 1.5 hour drive ahead.
On the way out we run into dense fog. We arrive and I get the boys dressed in as many layers as possible and we slog through the mud to our secret spot....The fog is thick and I can hear ducks, geese, and swans flying but can't see them. A couple geese were so close that I could hear that creaking noise from their wings, but I couldn't see them. The boys are cold so we slog back to the truck to warm up with hot chocolate and hot oatmeal.
We get warm and go back to our top secret spot. The fog starts to lift. Two drake mallards whistle by, I shoot once and miss before they dissapear into the mist......The boys are dissapointed. They expected them to explode in mid-air....
The fog burns off completely and birds are flying, a big group of swans heading right to us. They boys are holding still hiding in the sage brush. The group of 10 birds flies right to us. I jump up and swing on the biggest bird in the group and shoot and the small bird behind it folds up and augers into the mud behind us!
The youngest is yelling "You got him!" "You got him!"
The swan is up and running in the no shoot zone and beyond that the refuge. I clear the chamber, put the gun in a bush and I'm off to the races. Within 80 yards I catch up and immobilize him with a well timed kick.
It's a very small juvenille tundra swan, but I'll take it!
The boys insist on packing it back to the truck.
There are lots of ducks and geese flying, but the boys want to go home and show off the trophy. We stop for a bite to eat on the way home and both zonk out after eating.
It means much more with the kids in tow!
