THAT ONE PERSON WHO ALWAYS SHOOTS A DUCKLOAD
You most certainly know a guy or have a hunting buddy who seems to hit the birds each time they pass over or land in front of him. He is usually the one who knows every speedball Mother Nature throws his way. And he tends to have answers to the toughest ducky conditions and comes back into the blind with a duckload.
The probability is, your buddy has some of those critical traits that set him apart from the ordinary weekend duck warriors. These might not be the bottom line, but I’m sure some of these do make a difference in the blind and sets your buddy apart.
And that leaves you wondering what makes him such a good duck hunter. You bet you have branded gear than his, got imported realistic decoys far better than his lot, the best shotgun out there on the market, and yet again you miss the deal most of the time while he never seems to lose the beat.
FIELD EXPERIENCE
That comes with time and devotion. For sure you cannot compete with that unless you make a reasonable investment of time and resources in the field to reach that level. Good duck hunters know their game. Kill is not the only thing on their mind. They have many equations to solve. They try to understand the game through their observation and study of the flight patterns, ducks’ reaction to hunting pressure, and weather conditions. In response, they formulate a placement strategy for the blind, decoy spread, and selection of reliable shot loads. All these make a difference. Pulling the trigger is the easiest part that comes in the end as a conclusion of all this knowledge and experience. Whether it’s time to pull or not, depends on how much you know your game.
EQUIPPED WITH WHAT MATTERS
I’m sure the person we are talking about isn’t a techno freak and he might also care least about his gear. However, if you take a closer look, he will have at least all the prerequisites needed for a successful shoot. For instance, while you take advantage of your electronic duck caller, you’ll notice he just pulled out a homemade lanyard with just a few duck calls. While you’re particularly conscious to conceal yourself in an expensive Ghillie suit, you’ll see he just ensured the duck blind is made with the exact plantation available in the habitat. At the end of the day, he saved money, looked and sounded real, and packed a good duckload.
TALKING THE DUCK SH*T
While your electronic duck caller has all the sounds of the world’s ducks species, it doesn’t know ‘when’ to speak the duck’s language. Remember your buddy who just pulled out his homemade lanyard? He knows exactly it’s a good time to use a hail call when he spots a flock of high flying birds or makes subtle chuckles to finish them off in the pothole. When to call and what to call, timing is of the essence here. And probably the most important thing to know is “when not to call”. Abandon your electronic caller and try to learn how a duck speaks while flying and roosting. Know about the quacking and whistling species. More than a duck hunter, try to be a duck whisperer and your chances of becoming a good duck hunter will open up.
FLEXIBILITY
This is by far the most important and prominent trait of a good hunter. See if that goes with your inspiring buddy too. He might be very flexible in his approach towards setting up. If you accompany him over a week, you’ll notice that yesterday he set up by a small marsh, and jumped off to the nearby scarp channel to see if there are any chances the next day. Over the weekend, you’ll find him on open waters with a much larger spread and even a floater or two to make it more exciting. Trying new things is name of the game when it comes to duck hunting. What worked last week might not work over the next week. Spice things up. Doing the same thing every time you’re out there and expecting a different result is what your buddy might strongly disagree with.
MAKE SELF CORRECTION
I can go on, but then we can easily lose the point. I don’t want you to fall down the black hole of an inferiority complex here. But there is a reason your buddy is a good shot. You likely have some of these characteristics but there is always room for improvement, we all know that. And take that as an advantage because not much of to-be-hunters have the honor of accompanying good hunters from whom they can learn duck hunting hands on. Observe, ask questions, and show a keen interest in what he did and what is he about to do. This will only result in more enjoyable days afield in times to come. And that might be a time when others see you as a person who always seems to come back with a duckload, no matter what.