Lowcountry Wood Duck Hole

[Mills Morrison]

In SC Lowcountry. Note our duck blind in the last photo

[charlie cleveland]

nice duck pond you got there...there should be a big catfish or bass in that pond too...charlie

[Mills Morrison]

It is too far off the river for fish, unfortunately. It is a drain that runs through Dad's property. He has a dike going across it with a spillway to regulate the water level. It drains right down when you take the boards out of the spillway and then it is a great area for deer and turkeys. The big oak tree you see is a magnet for wildlife when the acorns fall

[David Dwyer]

Mills
That is a nice "hole" I have a similar one, an old rice mill pond that is also a drain,but I can flood it from the river. I finished the season there yesterday with four woodies and two green wing.

[David Dwyer]

This is Pepper, my Irish lab, with the last duck of the season, a male greenwing.
We had a pretty fine duck season here with these last two freezes pushing down a good number of birds

[Gary Carmichael Sr]

Great looking dog david, Gary

[Mills Morrison]

Great looking spot David!

[Mills Morrison]

I really need a 12 gauge with open chokes rather than a 10 gauge 32" full/full.

[David Dwyer]

Mills
A DHE 30" steel improved & mod works for us. I recently purchased one for all the "boys". We get a lot of teal, ringnecks and woodies and a fast open choked gun helps.
David

[Mills Morrison]

I am looking to add on to the duck gun arsenal this year. Actually, I have a real beater of a GH looking at some new barrels cut from 32" to 30.5", so hoping it will be more open, with still enough weight to swing.

[Russ Jackson]

Great pictures from both you Fellows ,wish we had Duck Hunting close to home ,I would love to give it a try ! David ,Your Pup is Beautiful ,and a new one on me ,exactly what is an Irish Lab. is it actually a different Breed from our Standard Lab.?

[Mills Morrison]

Here is another tradition of ours, showing the results of the hunt to Grandma

[Russ Jackson]

Absolutely Wonderful :bowdown:! I remember when my Daughter was little ,She would grab the Pheasants by the neck that I shot while training Maggie and Chip , and carry them while we were training and race in the house with them to show her Mom when we got home ! Great Days !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[David Dwyer]

Russ
She was raised and trained in Ireland and came here as a 2 1/2 year old last August. They are quite different from American labs:smaller(50-55lb) calm and steady . They are trained with positive reinforcement , never see an electronic collar. They do not have the "fire" of an American Lab, more of a soft calm retriever. I live with her 52 weeks of the year and hunt with her 6 weeks ,so wanted a girl that was easy to live with as well as a trained duck retriever.
David

[John Dallas]

+1 Dave - We now have our second Lab imported from Britain. We got each of them as pups. I've done the training. They are the best. Our prior dog ("Tar" in my avatar) had something aver 1300 retrieves and 80 trips to Detroit's Children's Hospital

[Russ Jackson]

David ,Very interesting ,by the way ,She's a beauty ! There is a lot to be said about a calm Dog ,My Maggie came from Dick Belding's line of Brits ,she was a Big Long Legged Britt ,weighed in around 65 Lb. in Her prime and was as calm in house as can be but had a lot of desire in the field but was a slow hunter and fantastic on grouse ,I was quite spoiled ,I bred her only once to get a litter and Chip was the closest in temperament but really never quite came up to His Mothers ability but was quite a pleasant Fellow to be around ! Russ

[David Dwyer]

John
I was just discussing with my wife , a "retired" pediatric nurse, what a great therapy dog Pepper would make. She also "catches fire" when retrieving ducks then the switch throws and she is sleeping on my feet. They are wonderful animals. I grew up with Brits but all ours were wired. They were great pheasant dogs though.
David

I love dogs, its people that can be a problem.

[Rich Anderson]

I love dogs, its people that can be a problem.

Isn't that the Gods honest truth.:bowdown:

[Destry L. Hoffard]

This is a nice thread, good work Mills.

I used to shoot a more open choke gun at ducks but these days I stick with fuller and fuller for the most part. Open chokes are fine but when you have to shoot at a few high ones to finish the limit gimme the rifle choked model.


DLH

[Mills Morrison]

Full/full is a bad combination for flooded timber wood ducks. As much as I prefer full/full. I also prefer open marsh where full/full is almost required, so maybe I should stick with that.

[Rich Anderson]

Mills I see your problem right off. Way back in the day when I hunted ducks and geese I used to hunt a beaver pond that was just across from where I lived. The perfect gun was a Remington 1100 20ga with skeet chokes. The Mallards came in feet down and the shooting was fast and close.

Your more open areas (here we have some mgt units on Saginaw bay which is big water) you need more choke.

The solution is multiple guns suited for the venue you are going to hunt. It's no different with Grouse. I have the early season guns and use a more tightly choked gun for late season. The simple anser is more guns Mills more guns.

[Mills Morrison]

Awww heck. I guess I will just add on to my arsenal.:rotf:

[Mills Morrison]

Here is another photo of this pond from a past year when the water was higher. The reflection of this old oak tree in the water makes this spot beautiful and unique

[Rich Anderson]

How many acers does your father have? Seems like a good place for some Quail mgt.

[Mills Morrison]

He has 1200, the majority of which is somewhere between the swamp you see in the photos and high pine woods. He has a lot of mixed hardwood/pine woods which is great for deer and turkey, but not that great for quail. He has tried to get quail without much success.

[wayne goerres]

I am all for increasing your arsenal to increase its versatility. (In plain English more guns)

[charlie cleveland]

lovely duck pond for sure and that big old tree is something else...sounds like your dad s place has a lot to offer in hunting except for the quail...quail was my favorite bird to hunt at one time..i only get to shoot at pen rasied now...probly ten years or more since i sighted down the gun barrel at a wild quail... charlie

[Mills Morrison]

Dad even tried pen raised, but wound up providing a buffet for the varmints. Coons, hawks and other critters seem to like hardwoods and Dad has plenty of those. Turkeys and deer love hardwoods though

[Rick Losey]

Mills

great looking spot - I love the oaks.

[Mills Morrison]

Thanks for all the compliments.