What a great classic picture Steve! I found a pic of my third big Can taken up here in 2011. Didn't realize it was THAT long ago. Damn. This was a big one also. Got a goose the same day. This is a great duck gun. 30" #2 frame VH12 with a stout wrist. Doesn't mind stout loads. I'd highly recommend this kayak also. It's a 14ft kevlar "Poke Boat" made in Kentucky(?) and only weighs 23# and is very stable for a kayak.

I have been a dedicated duck hunter here in NH for more years than I care to remember, but have never shot a Can. I really wish that I could as I would add it to the wall. I have always read that they are the best eating duck. Can any of you "Can" hunters comment on that?:corn:

Well Steve, back in the 60's or 70's down here in the Chesapeake there were the best eating bird. But as with any other bird it all depends on what they have been eating. Back then they would concentrate heavily in the upper Susquehanna River flats and would feed on bay grasses and they were delicious. Now, not so much as the grasses are gone and they feed on various invertebrates which gives them that fishy taste. They still are a handsome bird.

Steven and Daryl,
Everyone has a favorite table duck.
Back in the early 1900's the market hunters could sell a canvasback in the Chicago markets for $2.....consider that a new vehicle back then cost about $200. Someone must have thought they were pretty good!
Both cans and redheads are exceptional.
Best Fishes,
Steve Kleist Ely, MN

Thanks guys. Here in NH our best eating duck, according to me, is our early season wood ducks that have been feeding on acorns. Very nice.

Got into a woodie shoot several years ago, and when we cleaned them, I found 16 acorns in each one of them, from gullet to crop. All the tops of the acorns had been removed. I can't remove the tops with my fingers, They are very adept. Does anyone have a guess on how much food that represents? A day, week, month?

Canvasbacks are the best eating diver in my opinion and one of the best overall ducks to eat. A northern corn feed Mallard is still hard to beat in my book. When you read about the old market hunters targeting canvasbacks they always wanted the ones feeding on wild celery because they were the best eating. I have shot several overtime here in Minnesota and South Dakota but there numbers in our flyway are down compared to what they once were. I live about an hour from Heron Lake which around the turn of the century was one of the premier Canvasback hunting destinations in the country.

Natural ebbs and flows are very complicated. About 20 years ago Lake St Clair, between Detroit and Windsor Canada was invaded by a small mussel called a zebra mussel. They were very effective at clearing the water because they are filter feeders. As a result, water clarity improved substantially, and two things happened. Number one the Musky fishing in Lake St Claire has become spectacular. Secondly, Great Lakes Canvasback shooting has become substantially better, because natural plant life has improved substantially, and the cans are now feeding on the grass rather than mussels.

John, maybe some time you and I can drag Destry across to the lake and have a duck hunt of it. I've had some great shooting over there at times and always had a good time regardless of the take.

I don't know the exact answer to that because in a good acorn year the Woodies will be constantly feeding on them. I have been miles from a pond and have flushed wood ducks both off the forest floor and out of the branches of Oaks.