Veteran duck hunters, please go easy on me. My first duck hunt was Dec 31st.

Two of us killed 3 spoonbills that morning. Since my buddy didn't want em, I brought em home and filleted the breast meat away from the bone, rinsed the meat and put it in a bowl of icy salt water to soak. Next, I looked up the spoonbill on the Internet to find out more about the duck. I learned that they are considered "poor to fair" table fair because up to 30% of their diet contains animal matter (leeches, fresh water shrimp, snails, etc...)

With this knowledge, I went back to the kitchen and prepared a marinade with milk, Italian Dressing, Worchestershire sauce, lemon juice & garlic powder. I butterflied the breast halves and let the meat soak for 48 hours in this mixture.

After removing the meat and patting it dry, I sliced bell peppers, onions and jalepenos, and folded the meat around the vegies. Finally, I wrapped em in bacon and grilled em to Medium done. After sampling the medley with a little Stubbs BBQ sauce, I decided I would be in for a real treat if I ever kill a "tasty" duck like a teal. My family liked it, too. (I'm convinced you could make coyote flank taste good after such prep.)

Ok, so I picked up this new black lab pup yesterday (49 days old) and picked up a copy of Wolters "Water Dog." I suppose a new Benelli and duck boat are next. Man, I'm hooked bad. I've hunted just about everything else under the sun in my lifetime, but that duck hunt was something special.

Any tips from the pros here? BTW - I wouldn't know a gadwall from a widgeon. I do know what a mallard drake looks like, though. LOL!!!

Make sure you learn what a pintail and canvasback look like. They have different season then the rest. Pins are fairly easy to spot they fly so high they carry oxygen and look like they have a foot long tail in the air. Cans still look like red heads to me. Luckily I have never seen any reds locally. We shoot them on the coast.

But you have already learned the worst thing about duck hunting. VERY ADDICTIVE! 5 years ago my budy asked if I wanted to duck hunt with him, I said no cause there aint enough there to eat. I went anyway. Now I look forward to it every year. Next year I hope to get my deer during bow season so I can get to the ducks quicker.

IN ADDITION TO DUCK UNLIMITED THERE SHOULD BE CHAPTERS OF DUCK HUNTERS ANOYMONUS. IT IS A DISEASE BUT IT SURE IS FUN WELCOME TO THE CLUB. WAIT TILL YOU TASTE SOME GRILLED TEAL WITH BACON AND JALAPS.

Welcome to the duck hunters brotherhood! I am pretty much ate up with it to! Things I can suggest a new guy............
1) if hunting public, no need to post what lake you hunt! Keep it secret and do not be a Barney!
2) Throw the Water Dog book in the trash, much better books out there
3) Hunt as much as you can with a veteran duck hunter! Knowing how to ID ducks in flight and how best to set up a decoy spread in very important!
4) learn how to use a duck call! In the field is not time to practice! Get a CD and practice in your truck driving to work....
This should get you going, good luck!

Welcome! Do not eat spoonies..LOL.....It reminds me of a hunt I had back in college, three fraternity brothers wanted to go duck hunting bad, so they convinced me to take them...I did, but not to one of my good spots, but to a spot that did hold a lot of ducks, but they were mostly spoonies, mergansers and some ringnecks and bluebills....We had a heck of a hunt, all of the four species were killed. They wanted to cook them that night..I never said a word to them...but the next day they said they cooked them wrong because they tasted bad.....I told them a week later

I too enjoy Duck Hunting, crisp mornings, and shooting at something traveling up to 65 MPH can be addicting.

I am no pro and will never be but these ideas are some good ones though. As for waterdog, I would use the book. It may be a little outdated but I used it on my pup and it is already hunting with me and I haven't picked up a bird in about 10 hunts now. I didn't use it to train a competition retriever. I used it to train a duck dog. He is 6 months and 3 weeks old now. To me all this stuff comes with the breed. You just have to make them realize what they have and how to use it. Just my .02!! Good luck!!!

P.S. He is retrieving on quail and dove. He was flushing coveys for me this last weekend in the panhandle.

My advice...get out and hunt as much as you can this season. If you can get out with guy(s) who have hunted more and can ID birds in flight, that is a huge plus.

Being able to identify the birds in flight, and on the water, is the most important aspect of this great sport.

Thanks for the advice, all. Keep it comin. Also, invitations from willing mentors are always welcome!

Well Scott,
Something else we have in common, I see.

My buddy got me into duck hunting last year. I loved it so much, I too went out and bought a "duck dawg" in Mar. I trained her as far as I could and sent her to a pro for a few months. Here's some pics http://www.code2go.com/hunter

I'll second what TxHeat said and 86 that Waterdog. Very outdated. Although, to be honest, that's what inspired me to get my dog. After watching the DVD, I figured "how hard can it really be, right?"

Get Smartwork I and II by Evan Graham. Great books. Also, there are some good ones by Lardy, can't think of the Titles though. There's others too.

Get with area training clubs. They're a lot of help.

Also, check out http://www.retrievertraining.net/forums and http://www.refugeforums.com/refuge/forumdisplay.php?s=&forumid=9.

Hope that helps.

Great..........aint nothing better than a man and his dawg! Great photo's! If I may ask, what pro did you send Hunter the wonder dawg too, fell free to PM me if that works best, thanks!

TexasHeat,
Thanks for the comment on the pictures. I need to post some more pics of this hunting season. I think I have more pictures of my dog than I do my kids.

I sent Hunter to Angie and Tim Becker of Tioga Retrievers. She's a great trainer and I couldn't be happier.

I hope to send her back after hunting season to finish up her senior level training and possibly pursue her SH title.

Here is a site that will help you ID ducks too.
http://www.npwrc.usgs.gov/resource/tools/duckdist/duckdist.htm

Duck hunting is alot like real estate,it's all about location.Scout as much as you hunt if not more. Find out where the ducks wanna be and get there early and set up.
Next,camoflague.Ducks have incredible eyesight and your face looks like a spotlight on a bright sunny morning so wear a camo mask of some kind.
Always let someone know where you are hunting and about when to expect you back.Carry a cell phone in a drybox or in a ziplock bag with you just in case.
Most of all,have fun.
Howard

the drak side has not taken you over yet, you can still get out. its like buying a boat its nothing but a black hole you keep throwing money in. ducking is great but it takes lots of work, first find the closest place to your house and work out from there. local lakes are good places to start looking, you can check fed land and state land as well. this alone will keep you buzy till next season. just becareful when out on the water, and try and take a bud if not let someone know where you are at all times. good luck with the rest of the season.

Scott,

Waterfowling is a great sport. For me, it has become my favorite form of hunting. Regarding identifying waterfowl, to help accelerate what your friends can teach you and what you can learn before you get in the blind, I'd recommend that you order a small book that you can carry afield with you called, "The LeMaster Method - Waterfowl Identification Book" by Dick LeMaster.

This is an awesome book as it allows you to actually ID the ducks before and after you harvest them. It has life size images of waterfowl bills that allow you to actually place the bill of your harvested duck on to see what you actually have... It also shows you what they look like in flight so that you can avoid shooting waterfowl not in season. Cost only $7.95 at Gundogs. See: Gun Dog Supply: LeMaster Method

Also, I often hunt not too far from Waco so if you want someone to trade hunts with, contact me directly via my profile.

Congratulations on the Lab pup. They are the best! I recommend that you attend a free training day with Big D HRC (Hunting Retriever Club) Call or email Bart Hege the HRC President for more information.

I have a 3 year old that came out of a litter from one of his stud dogs (Jiv-the big red machine) and I can't say enough about what a wonderful pet and hunting dog she is. See: Go West Retrievers

Thanks for sharing your first waterfowl hunt with us as well as your recipe. Keep the reports coming...

Enjoy!

BlueMoon

Very good info, all!! I really appreciate it. Thanks for taking the time to share what you know!!

Might be willing to trade a South Texas hog hunt in March or April ($375 value) for a premier duck hunt or two now. Let me know if you're interested. Thanks!