Wood Duck season in KY ran from 9/21 to 9/25. Due to work and the amount of travel time to may favorite spot, I had to wait until the weekend to get out there, so it was Saturday (9/24) before I was able to hunt.

I launched my duck boat at a ramp one bay over from where I like to hunt on Barkley Lake, one that I have hunted many times during the early season over the past 10 years with much success. I motored to the area, and then beached it on the bank near the back of the bay. I sat up in the usual spot, in some buckbrush that was kind of on a point where the feeder creek of the bay swings right by it. The water level was a bit higher than what it usually is this time of year, which made it perfect. I pitched out three decoys, two wood duck males and one hen, about 10 yards out from me in the feeder creek channel. I had the whole bay to myself, dead quiet, and a picture perfect morning on the horizon. On a side note, the ThermaCell insect repellent has to be the greatest invention ever for warm weather hunters....I didn't get one mosquito bite, versus past years where they have tried to carry me off!

I was all set up and ready about 10 minutes before shooting hours. In the past, the birds usually started swarming me and the decoys about 5 minutes too early, so I was on high alert and listening closely for the sound of whistling wings. Shooting hours came, and I had yet to see anything at all. After a few minutes, I was starting to wonder if I would ever see anything, because normally by then I had at least seen several. Then, all of sudden, out of nowhere a loud whoosh of wind was heard as a wood duck dive-bombed the decoys and sat down about 10 ft from where I was sitting. It was a hen, and she was so excited to see some other ducks, even though they were fake. She kept talking to them, trying to get a reaction, but the plastic ones said nothing. After a minute or two of talking, she decided to jump up and go elsewhere for some socializing...she got up, and as she was heading away, I dropped her with one shot at about 30 yards. Now, normally I'm a pretty fair shot during the regular duck season, but wood duck season tends to find me a bit rusty with my shooting skills. When that first duck fell on the first shot, I was feeling pretty dang good about myself! I started to walk out of my hiding spot to retrieve the first bird of the day. As I made a few steps, out of the corner of my eye I saw another wood duck making a bee line to the decoys. I quickly shouldered my gun and made a fast shot at about 30 yards, and missed. The duck then quickly made a change of course and was now crossing me at 40 yards, to which I put a good lead on it and dropped it. Now as I said before, I'm usually an awful shot during the early duck season, so I had never dreamed I could pull off such an amazing crossing shot with no practice whatsoever! I now had two birds on the water, which was my limit. I had finished wood duck hunting for the day, in a matter of minutes. I was a bit disappointed that the hunt was over, but then again I was pretty happy with my results.

I retrieved the first downed bird, and then made my way to the second. The second bird was across the feeder creek, so I had to cross it. The feeder creek was under water and not visible, but I knew about where it was at. Well, to my surprise, the feeder creek no longer had the gradual sloping banks that I recalled from years past. Instead, I quickly learned that it had changed to vertical sides! It was like stepping off a ledge, and there was no stopping the forward progression once that bad step was made. I did my dangedest to shift my weight backward, but there was nothing I could do at that point. I went down and up to my neck in water, gun, and all, and partially filling my waders with water. I was not too happy about that. It was as if all the goodness I had enjoyed that morning was suddenly overshadowed by wet britches, two wet cell phones, 8 now useless shotgun shells, and a waterlogged shotgun. Luckily one cell phone was an AT&T Rugby and it never missed a beat. The other phone, the work phone, was a Blackberry, and it apparently does not like water. It died immediately, to which I then got that sick feeling thinking about how to explain that one to the boss. After shaking the water off, and saying a few choice words, I then started to make my way around the feeder creek/ravine to get to my second duck. I finally got to the bird and was still grumbling about being all wet and thinking about how I was planning to fish the remainder of the day in those same clothes. Then, low and behold, all frustrations quickly disappeared as I picked that bird up to see the greatest glimmer of joy that all duck hunters hope to find. It had a band on it! It had been about five years since I had acquired one. I was extremely happy from then on. I packed up my gear, got in the boat, and then spent the remainder of the day fishing with a smile on my face and couldn't think of a more perfect way to start the fall hunting season, well other than the fact that I was still soaking wet and stayed that way until around noon...

I had planned on going back on Sunday for some more action, but the weatherman talked me out of it. I had spent enough hours soaking wet as it was.

Here are some pictures:

http://a3.sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphot...74620467_n.jpg

http://a1.sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphot...95244436_n.jpg

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http://a7.sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphot...64069963_n.jpg

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http://a2.sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphot...20307184_n.jpg

http://a6.sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphot...82381753_n.jpg

The banded bird was hatched this year, and banded about 7 or 8 miles away by the KDFWR on 8/15/2011