Opening Day-Duck Season

   5:30 A.M. comes pretty early when you sit around the table sipping Bourbon and laughing with the boys until Midnight. But once you rub the residual effects from your eyes upon awakening...you remember it is opening day and excitement takes over. For me, this was especially true because I am breaking in my new dog Genna. This was to be her first official duck hunt. I had trained her from the blinds with shot and call and dummies. Nevertheless, you want to see how the dog performs under game-time conditions. Suffice it to say she performed admirably. The shooting of the guys in the blind...not so much.

   The conditions were good. The birds were there. The hunters were perhaps rusty. It ain't easy to get the lead when the ducks are screaming by with wind behind them. It is a tough pass shooting challenge. We knocked a few down but missed a few. Said misses lead to good natured critique and jokes which passes the time in the blind. It is all part of waterfowling. The wood ducks on my tailgate are testament to a few accurate shots.

   The evening before the hunt found the Club Members around the dining room table. We dined from Spode sporting motif plates I donated to the club which you can see in the photo.This china  classes up the table setting a bit. The table topics ran to off season fishing, some Obama bashing,rail bird hunting, haggling and arguing about blind assgnments for the morning and how to distribute hunters with dogs so each blind had  a retriver. The approach of "Sandy" was also of interest and the World Series also got some air time.

  Genna was a delight in the blind and I think she has loads of potential. I hope to get another day of huntng in before this short firat season closes. Stay tuned.