Adventures Outdoors'
IN WISCONSIN
The Key’s to Jump shooting Ducks
By Rick Spoerl
It was an hour before the close of opening day 2007 and I was heading back to the truck. I finally scored my sixth duck. A drake blue wing teal would be the last duck of a limit which included two drake wood ducks, one drake mallard and two green wing teal. I killed these birds without a boat and three of them without any decoys. This is jump-shooting.
I arrived at the parking lot of a southern Wisconsin public hunting area at 7:00am. Two hours prior to the 9:00am opening my dog Xena and I headed out to the familiar spot along the winding river to start out with some wood ducks.
Not only had I hunted this spot many times, but I also fought thousands of mosquitoes during the summer on several scouting trips. Scouting had paid off again as I packed up to leave at 9:06am with two fat drake wood ducks. The acorn crop was good this year along with lots of rain and great habitat conditions.
My next stop was over to a small pond slightly off the river where my brother in-law Bob was hunting. It’s surrounded by cattails and doesn’t have much food in it but the ducks occasionally use it for a resting spot. We keep in touch with radios and Bob along with my Dad and Uncle that were hunting farther up river keep in close contact with duck reports. Bob already had three mallards and two wood ducks.
As I arrived I met a couple friends that sneaked into visit Bob since their flooded spot in the woods wasn’t producing yet. Bob had a small eight decoy set of mallards, wood ducks, and a green wing teal placed in the pond. Our friend Jeff’s son needed some shooting, and after a couple misses finally scored on two green wings and a blue wing teal. We sent him back to the river where he would have a better chance at wood ducks. Again after a couple misses he finally put his two wood ducks in the bag. My Dad and Uncle also finished their two bird limits in woodies.
A mixed flock of two Mallards two wood ducks and two teal flew into the spread. They came in quick and when we stood up they left even faster. I hit the drake mallard on the third shot and the dog made a fantastic retrieve.
Bob took a walk with his dog to check out some flooded timber and two green wings started working the area. After playing the musical duck call each time they flew over they finally committed and I shot a nice two shot double.
Things quieted down at about noon and at one o’clock Bob had left with five birds and Jeff and his son left with five. My Dad and Uncle went into town for lunch and after two hours of looking at wood ducks I to went to town for a sandwich.
When I returned at 3:00pm I only needed one duck and I headed out to the marsh two complete my limit. As I walked down the trail I spoke to a lot of successful hunters and began watching how the birds were flying in. The majority of ducks were teal and they were coming into the marsh from only a couple areas. It was about a mile and a half from the parking lot when I reached the spot. A couple misses at the fast flying teal and I finally caught up with an over head shot on a blue wing that sent me and the dog back to the truck with my six bird limit.
The keys to my limit were scouting, than moving to other areas where other species could be shot and finally studying how the birds were working the marsh. Jump shooting ducks is fun for me because I’m usually moving around and seeing different things. Wind and decoy placement aren’t as important.
I do take a couple decoys with me in my back pack and usually wear waders. And most important, I always bring a dog. Follow these keys to jump shooting and you to will shoot a limit next opening day.