Sherri’s Corner – Ducks at Dawn

Waking up hours before dawn, putting on layers of clothes, making coffee in a thermos and heading out to the field to set up decoys and blinds before first light doesn’t seem like a whole lot of fun to some people. But for me duck hunting has been part of an annual tradition for me for years and not only does it bring together old and new friends, it also supplies me with meat that I have endless recipes for. (My favorite recipe is a duck soup that one of my very dear hunting buddies from Iowa shared with me many moons ago)

This year my first central Saskatchewan duck hunt was with a group of 3 other guys whom I’ve never hunted with before which is always a great thing, seeing how other people do their setups, the equipment they use and the different accessories they have that make the entire experience smoother and more efficient.

Our initial setup was for Canada geese, however the reason it’s called “hunting” is because these set ups don’t always pan out for what we want them to do! The ducks on the other hand, were coming in like crazy so we all took advantage of that and almost limited out with a total of 30. We got out of the blind a couple times to readjust decoys which did bring in a few geese (13 shooters to be exact) Once everything quieted down, we decided it was time to pick up and head back.

Walking back to get truck had me thinking that instead of getting 4 more hours of sleep, I forfeited those hours to come out and sit in a stubble field in the dark in hopes that the birds would come in. That made me realize that sometimes hunting isn’t about hunting at all, it’s about the people you share it with and the general camaraderie that this hobby provides. We all told stories in the blind and with a new crew, all of the stories were new too! I also learned a handy way to collect our shells after the hunt with an extendable automotive magnet (sure saves you from digging them out of the dirt!) And when everything was said and done, we all went for breakfast and coffee before cleaning the birds. All in all, it was a great morning with great guys and I can’t wait to do it again!