Happy Friday, sports fans!
I’d like to take a moment to introduce you to the four experienced duck hunting guides we have working here on the farm.
The first is Devin Carr. Originally from the Sonoma Valley region of California, Devin has been with us for five years. Anyone who has been out with him will tell you, he takes his hunting business very serious. He said the first month before Christmas that the birds were “on fire.” Then, just last week, he was “feeling depressed” because the birds were gone elsewhere. As he said, “the fields looked like the Dead Sea.” Then, a cold front came through and pushed fresh ducks down. After that, the harvest count was as good as the last day of the 2019/2020 season. “We limited out each day!” Devin reported.
Then I spoke with my son-in-law, Phillip Davis, who told me what he finds unique about his favorite field, which is the one right next door to The Elms Lodge. That’s the field where his groups have killed both sexes of every species of waterfowl native to this area. It’s like the who’s who of ducks: mallard, pintail, gadwall, cinnamon, green and blue-wing teal, spoonbill, widgeon, and even the less common canvasback, ring-neck, and bluebill. Phillip’s hunting groups have also harvested snow, speckled, and blue geese all from the same pit blind. On one particular morning they even took the rarest bird of all, a golden-eye. “Unfortunately, everyone shot it at the same time, so it was too torn up to have mounted,” Phillip told me. He also reported that these different species haven’t all shown up at the same time but rotate through the area throughout the season as they follow their individual migratory patterns.
My youngest guide is Zach Jones, a man of few words. When I asked him what he expected in the coming months, he said simply, “January is about to get good. I’m seeing lots of new birds and I expect the hunting to ramp up.”
Our fourth guide is Mike Land. He is a true professional who does everything it takes to put guests on the birds and insure they have a comfortable and enjoyable hunt. As one of our hunters put it, “You can hunt in your house shoes with Mike.”
Each of our guides are individuals who bring their own unique philosophy and perspective to the sport of waterfowl hunting. Our hunters love working with them!
That’s it for today. Don’t forget, I’m your Duck Diva and I call the shots.