[captainduckhead]

I was in my shop last night finishing up the last few decoys in my rig that needed repainting. I was eye balling the 18 Oldsquaw decoys that I started and promised myself that I would finish before next season, at the same time I was thinking of the Brant decoys I've always wanted to make. Don't get me wrong here, I love puttering, and carving decoys and improving my rig every year, but I was thinking about some of the people that I take hunting. They show up at the ramp with coffee (sometimes), their shotgun and shells. I show up with my boat full of decoys that I carve and paint by hand, my dog, my boat, snacks, coffee, duck calls, and energy. I was thinking how nice it would be to be that guy just one time. To have someone set the 100+ decoys, run the boat, control the dog, pour the coffee, shoot the woundies, pick up the decoys, pluck and clean the birds. I often wonder what it would be like to just be able to sit there, listen to someone elses stories, and simply shoot the bird as they came in. Then in the evening take my limit of plucked, cleaned and bagged birds home with me, and take a nice nap on the couch. I wonder if these guys even know what goes on to make these hunts happen. I Also wonder if these guys would hunt if they had to do all those things for themselves?

 

[Willie]

Back when I was in school, I worked on charter fishing boats in the summer and often thought the same thing.

 

[Tangier Island Slacker]

You need better hunting "partners." I like bird hunting in groups, but if that garbage were commonplace I'd be by myself.

 

[Smackaduck]

I take lots of guys everyyear and its pretty much like that. Unless its my normal partner, I do most of it.

 

[wackemstackem]

Yo, CDH when you takin me huntin :rofl:

Save your energy on the brant deeks.Their fly into anything

 

[captainduckhead]

Do you Strong Islanders venture this north. We're dangerously close to Canada

 

[wackemstackem]

How close are you to the northern Main border

 

[captainduckhead]

Several statese separate us from Maine. I live on the border of Northern NY and Southern Ontario Canada, right on the St. Lawrence Seaway about 20 minutes from Lake Ontario. Right now it's actually colder than hell, seriously Satan Just called and said so.

 

[Broozer5]

Captainduckhead- I have wondered the SAME exact thing to myself more than once this season. How I get to clean up the boat and organize things everytime we leave. My friends get to drive home and put up their gun.
I did get one of those hunts this year where EVERYTHING was up to the other guy, and I hated it. I felt like something was wrong, and like I needed to do something.
But i do sympathize with what you are talking about.

 

[captainduckhead]

The worst is this, I took a youngster hunting one day last year. He was about 20 years old, and grew up in a non hunting family. So we got ready to pick up and I recruited him to carefully stack the decoys in the plastic tubs that I use. Keep in mind that I actually used the word "CAREFULLY" I even emphasized it. My decoys mean alot to me I make them all by hand and it takes a ton of work to keep them nice. So I'd pick up a few and take them ashore and place them neatly on the ground, and go get a few more and so on and so on. Well I looked over one time and he had this bin all full of decoys, he picked it up and shook it like a farmer does to a bag of grain when he needs a little more room. I winced a little but didn't say anything, because it wasn't too big a deal. Well he decided that the bin was full to capacity, and he very roughly picked it up and tossed it very roughly into the bow of my boat, launching it about 5 feet, it landed with a hell of a thump luckily onto a pile of canvas and rope that I had. I said "Hey there be careful with those" which was not at all what I wante to say. and he replied with something to the affect that they are just cork, and wooden decoys, they are meant to take a beating I was just imagining what my father would have done and said if he were in my shoes at the time.

 

[water_swatter01]

I don't feel right letting someone else do all the work. Besides I like the dirty work. I'd rather do dirty work than watch t.v. Anything that gets me outside. :thumbsup:

 

[captainduckhead]

Good point. I enjoy it too, I was just griping.

 

[olddkguide]

Hey Captain, I got tired of that stuff too. Finally came up with a solution a couple of years ago. When a take a rookie now , I always pick the most miserable weather day possible. It makes em or breaks em. I'm sure you would agree we have enough bluebird skybusters out there already. Make it tough on the new boys, they are younger than us, they learn to play the game right or go home.

 

[captainduckhead]

I did that once, I was bringing a couple guys back to the dock and it was blowin' a real gagger, we had 4 and 5 foot swells which I didn't think was terrible. Well this guy leaned down and puked in my bilge. Man that was gross, by the time we got to the dock he was actually crying real tears.

 

[olddkguide]

Now that's what I'm talking about. Did it make him or break him?

 

[Rat Creek]

You don't really want to be the guy who just shows up. :no:

Really all you need is someone who appreciates the effort you make. I also love puttering around with projects and enjoy it, but must admit that I am bothered by someone who takes it for granted. We all know those people, and I even bring a couple with me.

Thankfully, the diamonds are the guys who have done all the work before and they notice that your decoys are in perfect repair, and that the blind is brushed nicely, and that you made it easy for them.

And honestly, this is also why I don't do guided hunts. I like the planning and work. Beats the heck out of TV. :thumbsup:

 

[Ringneck]

Gave up the guide thing about 3 years ago. After getting 5-6 hand carved blocks blasted every year and the 'goober' saying 'at least it was cork and won't sink' I had all I could take of it. I hunt with my brother now and we swap off boat driving and picking up decoys. Loading is a team effort and decoy shooting has been greatly reduced.

 

[ncduckkiller]

I don't guide but do take a lot of different people out and have also gone out with a few. The thing that sticks in my mind is the fact that i have certain ways of doing things and other people may set up their things differently. I like to have people ask what they need to do instead of just tossing dekes around with no rythme or reason. I like to explain the why of what I am doing so they get a understanding of what is going on. After a while it gets old to explain everything and take a lot of extra time to talk when I could be working and getting it done. I believe that a lot of people feel that it is easier to just get it set up and let the other relax and stay out of the way. Maybe not the best way to go about it but definitely the quickest. I will continue to explain things as long as the hunter has the desire to learn. NO DESIRE/NO HUNT. Sometimes you fake the questions to show interest and sometimes learn things anyway.

 

[jehler]

I own a 24' blind boat with a 200 optimax on the back full hard shelled camoed blind that I anchor out for the entire season moving around from spot to spot depending on wind and conditions. I own the marine radio the gps the life vests etc. a 14' and 12' tender filled with around 7-10 dozen decoys, mother lines etc. every year I cut down 10 or twelve trees to camo the blind, trimming and stapling branches to the blind to try and best match the shoreline of the lakes we hunt. I spend god only knows how much money on spark plugs oil gas lower unit and motor maintenence trailer's and registrations. This year two things really made me smile. First my brother and his buddy wanted to start hunting divers with us asked if they could buy anything or help out, I said more decoys is always nice and than you can have some of your own to hunt with also, They both buy a dozen ghg life size bills(cheeeeeep), then make the comment to me that the magnums were just to much money :rofl:
second thing that made me smile was a kid that has been hunting with me for years, I let him hunt the boat without me so he could take his buddys out hunting. I go hunting one morning and talk to some guy at the ramp who asked how I'd been doing, seen us really pounding them monday and tuesday, well I hadn't been hunting mon or tue so I call the kid up and asked him, sure enough he hunted the boat four times, I asked him from here on out to call me and clear it from now on. You know what he say's, WHY? I was speechless.

 

[mashin_da_ducks]

I'm not that old yet and havent really been hunting for a long time but i already have a group of 8 people. We share storys on the bad days to where it makes the bad days seem like good days. So i recommend finding a group of people that you like with the same idea of hunting as you do and hunt together. Believe me it makes hunting a heck of a lot better. :thumbsup: