kids first duck.

[wyldewal]

I had my 12 year old son out for his first youth duck hunt this year. He had a blast, lots of shots and even a couple ducks. After a few (practice shots) he helped us bring down a big goose. And then he was on his own for the flock of redheds that came in. One shot and he drops his first duck. I was so proud. On sunday morning we tried again. I think he was up before me. After a few more(practice shots) he knocked down another one. A flock of teal came in and he picks out the merganser . But it dosen't matter, when your that young, a ducks a duck.

I can't even discribe how I felt after the day was done and he said to me "I can't wait until next weekend". I think we've got another one hooked.

I'll post a picture as soon as I get a chance. And I want to thank outdoorran for coming along and helping us watch the sky.

[tearin' lips]

Congrats, sounds like a super time. Those are memories that he will never forget! I'd love to see those pics!

[WalleyeWeasel]

Congrats little fella !!

[mille lacs muskie bum]

This was the first year that i out grew the youth hunt and it was always a blast. The youth hunt was only open on saturday though.

[sjuduckhunter]

Nice work on the Kid's first duck, but I hope you teach him to read and follow the laws thoroughly. I hate to be the spoiler in a great moment, but the youth waterfowl hunt is only ONE day long. That would have been Saturday only, and I hope you the parent weren't hunting geese because the youngster is supposed to be accompanied by a NON HUNTING adult.

People, read and follow the laws because it really agrivates me when people don't. I hope I am not the only one who does this, but when I see people breaking the law in the field, I call TIP. That is what TIP is for. The officers can't be everywhere, and just because they are not doesn't mean the laws don't apply.

Please read and follow the laws.

[Mark Christianson]

I am assuming that since the original poster lives in Wisconsin, he took his kid hunting in Wisconsin.

For anyone out there about ready to blow a nose gasket that he took his kid hunting for ducks today, read the Wisconsin regs for the Youth hunt here:

http://dnr.wi.gov/org/land/wildlife/hunt/waterfow/youth.htm

[Fish&Fowl]

The youth hunt is what first got me hooked on ducks. I liked sitting out in the blind when I was younger watching and taking it all in, but once you can pull that trigger that's when it clicks. Congrats on the successful hunt, glad to hear we might be adding another member to the clan!

[Rost]

Congrats! I can't wait to get my daughters out some day! Not only will it give me some quality time with them, it will also give me an excuse to buy another shot gun!

[Nova]

Great to hear you got the kid out and he had a good time. That first duck is something they never forget. My boys still talk about there first duck. Congrtas to the boy and good lob to you for getting another kid hooked on a great sport.

[kc0myy]

This will be my 4th year hunting. I can remember my 1st duck a mallard drake. I got it about after a box of shells . Thoses are fun times. Also you got him hooked on duck hunting now get him hooked on wood duck houses and hen house.

[wyldewal]

Thanks biglackbass for the link. I forgot to mention that I was hunting in Wisconsin. I know the rules are a little diferent between the two states, And that's one thing I was trying to stress for my son. Always know the rules.

[outdoor ran]

Wal, thanks again for letting me be part of a very special weekend for you and your son. The look on your face and the kids when he knocked down this first duck was priceless. He must get his shooting skills from his mom. He shoots to good to have gotten them from you

Sjuduckhunter. Your the one who needs to read and follow the rules. Everything they did was legal. Wal and I follow the rules to the T. Thats the way we were taught and the way we teach our sons. Can't a guy even share a great moment with us without someone jumping down his throat You might want to call tip and let them know you were wrong on this one!

[wyldewal]

Here's the pictures of the first duck.

I don't know who's got the bigger smile, me or him.

[OUTDOORNUT]

Quote:

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After a few more(practice shots) he knocked down another one. A flock of teal came in and he picks out the merganser . But it dosen't matter, when your that young, a ducks a duck.

[Crappiechaser]

The youth waterfowl hunt is a great thing!! I took my little bro out for his first duck hunt and he had a blast. His first shot at a duck he got a nice mallard and he was so excited he didnt even shoot again at the flock for a follow up shot. Then after half a box of shells shot up he got two bluewinged teal. We both had a great time out duck hunting. I never thought it would be that much fun hunting without a gun.

[deacon]

Report from ND youth hunt

What a weekend. First a couple of word to describe each day. Saturday's word "lightning", Sunday's word "awesome".

Weekend trip to Stutsman county started with some scouting Friday evening. Did find a couple of feeds, the first had about 50 geese and a few hundred ducks, ok but not great. The second feed had a lot more ducks and looked very good, however was turned down for permission to hunt. Accepted this but still hard to believe someone would turn down permission for one kid during the youth hunt. So be it, "grumpy".

Saturday

Waking up at 5:15am reminded me of why I like pheasant hunting. But my son got right up and was ready to go, was glad to see his excitement. We were set up well before shooting time and a few ducks we buzzing over our heads already. So were the misquitos, thank god we had some spray. The first couple of mallards landed right is our decoys, both were hens so no shots taken. There was a few of problems, first no wind, second the mallards were first headed to a pond within about 500 yards for a drink. We waited patiently as no geese were flying yet and very few ducks were providing good shots. My son took a couple of shots but no luck. So we decided to go for a little walk. Then to our surprise, "CRACK", lightning right over our heads, I had never been so scared in all my life I hit the deck and by the size of my son's eyes he felt the same! We started to bolt for the truck in a sprint. Longest 500 yards of my life. After a few minutes of catching my breath I knew we needed to pick up quick or risk being stuck in the field. Picking up went fast but I can tell you the thought of lightning was definitely on our minds.

After safely getting out of the field we counted our blessings and just sat in the truck on the road knowing we were lucky not to get hit by lightning nor stuck in the field. Just as we pulled on the road my son said "good thing you signed those papers", in his wisdom he as referring to my will. Once the rain settled down we got out of the truck and removed the 3lbs of mud on our boots and proceeded down the road to jump a couple of small ponds (no roosts). Joe had a hard time hitting anything with his first couple of shots but did end with a 3 for 3 on the last pond we hit. Realizing we were just lucky to be alive and well we quit at that point to go enjoy breakfast at the local cafe. Yum, yum.

Next brought a well deserved nap. After a 2 hour siesta, of course we had a snack and headed out for a malt. This now being about 5:30, we proceeded to begin scouting for the next morning, though I did not feel very confident things would go so well. However, after picking up our ice cream within 10 minutes we noticed many flocks of mallards headed in a particular direction. We drove in the general direction and knew where ever we were headed there were going to be lots of ducks and hopefully we could gain permission. Both concerns ended up being true. The ducks were feeding in a pea field and I can honestly say I have never, and I mean never in my 35 years of hunting seen such a large feed. Conservatively I would guess well over 10,000 ducks in the field and pond! It was unreal. Two problems, first getting permission, which proved to be no problem, second getting on the "X" the next morning after the rain on Saturday. This could mean a long walk carrying all our equipment. Luckily the wind had begun to blow again and this was helping dry things out. We did prop our malt in sundae cups in the field so we would know if there was any rain over night.

Sunday.

We woke at 5:15am once again but with not the same enthusiasm as opening day. I did go outside and noticed it had not rained over night, a few stars could be seen in the sky and a strong west wind was blowing. However, the temperature had dropped quite a bite from the prior day, upper 40's. My son was not as quick to get going, in my mind I felt this could be the hunt of his life so I encouraged him to get ready as we had about a 30 minute drive to the field. We arrived to find the field had dried out and we did not have to carry our gear about 3/4 mile, but we had prepared to this Saturday night in case this was not the situation.

Setting up was a breeze as we only set up 10 full body geese decoys and 10 duck silhouettes. My son sat in the truck most of the time as the wind was cold and would pierce right through your clothes. The conditions were perfect, a small patch of grass was right in the middle of the "X" and the strong wind would allowed us to set the decoys that would produced an approach by the ducks right over our heads. We waited in the truck for the first few flocks to arrive and the days light allow us to identify the ducks once this happen we parked the truck over the hill about 500 yards.

As we approached the decoys we could see flock after flock in the distance. Most of the ducks were headed to the slough to a drink of water. Some circled by us and even a few landed in our decoys. After some discussions with my son on identifying the drake mallards and when to take shots. It became the greatest, quickest, and most enjoyable hunt of his life. We had ducks around us constantly after 7:10am. Joe was able to identify the drake mallards, yet most of their heads showed little color. His day shooting started much better as he bag a nice drake on his first shot. No calling or flagging would be necessary on this morning we were definitely on the "X" and a few hundred mallards were always in the air circling us. It was "Awesome!" The youth hunt allowed me to work with both my son and dog. My son learned duck identification and our dog learned to hold this position until commanded to retrieve the downed bird. After Joe bagged his first drake, I recalled he missed his next couple of shots and these would be his last misses of the day. His next 4 shots he down three more mallards and a drake pintail. Joe sure would have like to shot some more but he understood limits and that he was finished shooting for the day. It was only 20 minutes after his first shot as when I got to the truck the clock read 7:37am. We took some pictures and walked over the hill and could easily see a few thousand ducks on the pond. It was time once again for breakfast. Yum, yum.

The only disappointing fact of the weekend would be that we did not see another youth hunter. I would strongly encourage others to take advantage of the youth hunt in feature years.

[fishinalot]

I took my kids out Sat, but no ducks!

Although last year my 9 year old shot at and killed the 1st 2 ducks he ever fired a shot at! Honest to God! I can't say I know anyone thats done that. He was pretty proud of himself.

[sjuduckhunter]

My appologies for overeacting, and nice work on the legal birds! I think the youth hunts are VERY important. I assumed with the focus of the site on MN that you were hunting MN. By assuming I sure made an (Contact Us Please) out of myself just like the acronym for the word implies.

The message still applies though. Everybody please follow the laws and don't be afraid to turn someone in who isn't following the law. They NEED to be busted so the rest of us can continue to hunt legally.

MJ

[sachem longrifle]

Looks like you are on the st louis river

[B@ssmaster]

Saturday was my son's second Youth Day hunt. Bagged his first honker after an awsome duck morning. He needs to work on his accuracy a bit, he went through two boxes of shells. Kept me entertained. Gotta love those smiles!