I went with a group of 10, we rented a houseboat. Left town Thursday at 6PM and drove to Venice and slept in our trucks until we had enough daylight to run scout.
We scouted Friday and saw thousands of ducks in one hole. Found others sporadically around the wma.
There were a lot of boats running around stirring the birds. Don't seem to be many folks with binoculars.
Got our butts out of bed at 1:30 AM Saturday morning. Left houseboat by 2:15 AM. Arrive at hole we marked at 3:45 after rough ride on Mississippi River (25 mile an hour winds). Find that someone had put out decoys in the spot we marked, but no boat there. Decided didn't want a gun fight, so we moved to a point of grass some 150 yards away, which was so shallow, we had to drag the boat about 50 yards and it ain't no light boat. Person with decoys out shows up 45 minutes later to hunt.
Set up and killed our limit between daybreak and 11AM. Could not get to 5 birds we knocked down due to shallow water and sticky mud. Back at houseboat by 1:30 and off to lunch. Short nap before the other 7 of the remaining thundering herd got back and made too much racket for the dead to sleep. Cooked steaks, ate and in bed by 8.
Up at 1:30 AM Sunday. In boat running by 2:30. Ran to another spot, but when I tried to go through one gap that I ran multiple times last year, found it silted up and had to get out and push boat back to deep water. Found another cut, cut see water running through it. Hit it at full plane and slid about 40 feet and came to a dead stop. 2" of water. Decided to pull boat about 35 yards to a grass point and set up decoys. Most birds stayed about 80 yards out passing a deeper water slough, but we knocked down 10 birds, but only were able to find 7, including a nice drake grey duck that I knocked dead 30 yards from the boat. Never saw it move, but the young guy doing the retrieving did not see him and mud was too deep and sticky for an old man. Pushed boat back out into deep water and ran back to the houseboat.
Hit the restaurant for lunch, then back to take a shower, pack load boat and head back to Georgia.
Arrived at midnight last night.
We scouted Friday and saw thousands of ducks in one hole. Found others sporadically around the wma.
There were a lot of boats running around stirring the birds. Don't seem to be many folks with binoculars.
Got our butts out of bed at 1:30 AM Saturday morning. Left houseboat by 2:15 AM. Arrive at hole we marked at 3:45 after rough ride on Mississippi River (25 mile an hour winds). Find that someone had put out decoys in the spot we marked, but no boat there. Decided didn't want a gun fight, so we moved to a point of grass some 150 yards away, which was so shallow, we had to drag the boat about 50 yards and it ain't no light boat. Person with decoys out shows up 45 minutes later to hunt.
Set up and killed our limit between daybreak and 11AM. Could not get to 5 birds we knocked down due to shallow water and sticky mud. Back at houseboat by 1:30 and off to lunch. Short nap before the other 7 of the remaining thundering herd got back and made too much racket for the dead to sleep. Cooked steaks, ate and in bed by 8.
Up at 1:30 AM Sunday. In boat running by 2:30. Ran to another spot, but when I tried to go through one gap that I ran multiple times last year, found it silted up and had to get out and push boat back to deep water. Found another cut, cut see water running through it. Hit it at full plane and slid about 40 feet and came to a dead stop. 2" of water. Decided to pull boat about 35 yards to a grass point and set up decoys. Most birds stayed about 80 yards out passing a deeper water slough, but we knocked down 10 birds, but only were able to find 7, including a nice drake grey duck that I knocked dead 30 yards from the boat. Never saw it move, but the young guy doing the retrieving did not see him and mud was too deep and sticky for an old man. Pushed boat back out into deep water and ran back to the houseboat.
Hit the restaurant for lunch, then back to take a shower, pack load boat and head back to Georgia.
Arrived at midnight last night.
