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The reverse migration is in full swing!!! The spring breeding colors on the returning ducks makes it worth the effort to keep an eye out alone. We've seen mostly divers and geese since the ice went out. The puddle ducks won't be far behind. A lot of what is here now is just resting and grabbing a quick bite and a drink. But some will stay. I had a hen hooded merganser standing on the top of one of my Woodduck boxes the other day, and have seen several drake mergansers on the lake. The goose and i got several new Woodduck boxes out for this year. No new mallard tubes, but we will get them out next year. Can't wait to see if they get used.

Well it's officially only hours away. Good luck to everyone who's hunting this year. Be safe. That waters cold. Those shotguns bite hard. Nobody wants to hear a horror story about someone here on the boards or anyone in the state for that matter. After all, it's just a duck, not worth getting hurt over. Most importantly HAVE FUN!!!! Enjoy the sunrise in the blind. Take a kid or a friend who's never been in the duck blind. Try a new spot or slew. Chase a band. But most of all enjoy yourself and the season. I realize that we have had a pair of early goose seasons and a youth waterfowl hunt, but this is the big one. Please share your experiences. Share pictures. Stop by and tell stories with as much or as little details as you feel like sharing. We will enjoy your successes and laugh with you at fails.

Ok, let's hear the stories good or bad and see some pictures. The season has officially started !!! I opened the season on Bastic Bay, Lake of the Woods. There was a flock that was flying the creek at 6:15-6:25am for a couple days so I figured they were as good a target as any considering I had no decoys to deploy. 5:45 found me walking across the neighboring resort parking lot kayak on my shoulder and away we go. I was well clear of the resort and campers by legal shooting light and slowly working my way up the creek.... Had 4 pairs work up the creek from the lake well above tree top level at about 7:15am. By 7:30 I got happy feet and started back toward the main lake and the rice fields at the mouth of the bay. When I reached open water I found geese returning from their morning feeds about 1/2mile off shore. Bummed I headed back up the bay to get out of the kayak and track down a hot cup of coffee. At 9:30-9:45am as I am hoofing the kayak back across the parking lot... You guessed it, the flock of 12birds I had seen the previous two days flies down the creek at no more than 15' off the surface of the water. Snookered again....

I got a Facebook bump today with photos from 10 years ago. They were pictures of me and my buddies, with piles of geese around us from successful early season field hunts. Boy, did the memories come rushing back! I was in college at the time at UND. How I graduated in four years with a degree still boggles my mind. We literally spent a minimum of four days a week either scouting or hunting. It was an incredibly irresponsible, exciting, fun and unforgettable time of my life (that's me, second from the left on a pretty regular hunt for our group): Field hunting was literally all we did. Didn't matter the time of year or what we were after -- if it meant getting ducks and geese, it happened in a harvested field of some kind. The lone exceptions were a diver hunt to Stump Lake (back before it connected to DL) and our annual "defecate Duck Shoot," so nicknamed because we'd hit a random pond and whack whatever came by. Well, life goes on. Friends moved away, and I soon found myself 75 miles south and in new territory. My first few years were spent getting to know the area. I actually had a few decent field hunts, too! It was exciting times again (me with my first solo limit in the new town, circa 2009): Then, son No. 1 came along. Wow....just, wow. I love him dearly. More than I could ever have imagined, but he quite literally turned my world upside down, especially when it comes to hunting. I no longer hunt every weekend from September to January, and when I do my days are primarily limited to half-day excursions. And my waterfowling has completely changed. I can't remember the last field hunt I was on. With time such a rarity, scouting runs are few and far between. My field decoys and layout blinds are no doubt covered in dust and home to God knows how many critters. I find myself, almost unequivocally, hunting water for both ducks and geese. I know this is frowned upon in my neck of the woods, especially with everyone worried about "busting the roost." However, I know that I can grab a bag of decoys and my dogs, run to a pond just before first light, and have a good chance at birds while still being home before noon. Just can't say the same about field hunting. It's gotten to the point where I'm actually playing with the notion of selling all my field stuff. It's just taking up space, and I likely won't be using any of it for years....if ever again. Plus, the competition for fields in North Dakota is incredibly fierce, whereas the myriad ponds and sloughs are virtually untouched. I feel like I'm merely taking advantage of severely underutilized resources. So what are your thoughts? Anyone experience anything similar? And should I sell all my field stuff or just keep it in the attic in case, one day, I get the chance to go again? (Mandatory shots of the wirehairs waiting on some more ducks to decoy):