What's love got to do with it? Thats a funny question to ask when you're talking about subsistence waterfowl hunting in rural Alaska. But for the past couple weeks that question has been running through my mind and I think I'm beginning to see the connection.
Over the years I haven't spent much time or put much effort into waterfowl hunting but this year I had made a decision to change that. In this part of Alaska we have two seasonal opportunities to take waterfowl, one in the fall and one in the spring beginning in April. So in March in preparation I bought my first shotgun, a Mossberg 500 12 gauge. Now just to be clear this isn't the first time I've used a shotgun, every time I needed one I had friends or family I could borrow from and to be honest I never felt like I needed one. Most of the birds I've hunted before were taken with a .22, when I was a young boy my dad gave me a .22 rifle. I would go out onto the tundra and would return with Ptarmagin, to this day that's still my preferred method of hunting small game.
Not only was I armed with a shotgun this time but with some new tactics as well. My previous method of waterfowl hunting was to hike and try to get close enough for a shot or to wait on a ridge by the river as the sun began to set and the birds would fly low enough for a good shot. Last year one of my younger brothers had started using decoys and calls while sitting in a blind. In talking with him about my desire to put some real effort into duck hunting he said he would show me the ropes. So after work one evening we headed out to his “spot”, it was a blind he had made on the edge of the river. He put out his decoys and we hunkered down in the blind as he began to call. We hadn’t been waiting long when a mallard came flying right on in and dropped down amongst the decoys. My brother pops up with his shotgun and bam it was all over for that drake! Right at that moment seeing that duck come flappin on in in response to that call I was hooked! I'd caught the bug! The tides weren't right and soon the area we were in was too shallow so we didn't end up with any more birds that night but I had seen the light! That night I ordered my own duck call and began to plan my own “spot”!
Fast forward a few weeks, I'd been practicing my calls, found a good spot, built a blind, gone out a few more times, got one duck, went again with my 10 year old daughter and got skunked but began to learn the times and tides for that area. One of the things you gotta know about me is I love strategy, puzzles, and with this new type of hunting I was loving it. After these few weeks of learning I felt confident enough to invite a friend who hadn't tried hunting ducks with decoys and calls.
So we headed out to the blind, I also brought along my six year old son who was confident he could sit in that blind being still and quiet for a few hours. After a short hike we made it to the blind, sat down, and began to call. The weather was great, tide was right, and as I called we talked about life, family and plans for the future. Best of all I was able to call in a nice Mallard for my friend who got it with one shot! He hung around for a bit but had to head back for work but it was my day off and I was in it for the long haul.
My son and I sat there for the next hour or so, I was able to call in a few and got a Pintail and a Mallard. Then as we were sitting there calling, two giant Tundra Swans flew in and landed about 50 yards from the decoys. During subsistence waterfowl season we can hunt Tundra Swans. So I sat watching them and began to mimic their gentle hoot. At my call one of them began to slowly make their way towards the decoys looking a little confused. I continued to hoot softly and that swan came right on in among the decoys. I sat there shotgun in hand, it was right there in front of me, I could easily take it.
It pretty quickly realized there was something wrong with those ducks and paddled back to it's mate. Why didn't I pull the trigger? Well I had heard over the years that swans are one of the animals that mate for life, meaning they pick one mate and thats it. I had decided that the only way I was going to shoot a swan was either finding one that was alone or if someone was with me taking both at the same time. So I let it go, I can't tell you I wasn't tempted because I was and to be honest there are plenty of ways I could have justified it.
Not too long afterwards three pintails drifted into my decoys and they were so clumped up I was able to get em with one shot. My son was pretty proud, we got one more Mallard that day and called it quits.
What's love got to do with a day of duck hunting? It's seen in a brother who's willing to teach and that brother giving the same opportunity to a friend. A dad choosing to spend the day with his son. A hunter not pulling the trigger. A father bringing food home to his family. A God that blessed me with a beautiful day!
What's love got to do with it? Plenty, and it’s found in the choices we make every day!
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