Do you remember your first bird, species?

What/who got you started?

What keeps you at it?

Started duck hunting in Tennessee in 75 or 76. Couple buddies and I started pond jumping and it took off from there. First duck in TN was a black duck, there used to be quite a few back then.

First duck in TX was a Hollywood. I had never seen one until that day. I was like it's true, everything is bigger in Texas.

My son and dogs keep me going. It's not as easy as it used to be.

I've been waterfowl hunting for 13 or 14 years... Serious duck hunter for 7.
Started goose hunting with my dad when I was 12 or 13. Killed my first duck(woodie drake) at 13 or 14 with a 10 gauge jumping ponds.

The excitement of watching birds works keeps me going. I'm only 26 so I figure I still have a lot of early mourning stumbling around in the dark waters setting out deks and waiting for them wing beats.

Shot My first duck in 1975 pond jumping. Started Hunting the River in 1980 when I was 17. Learned it on My own. Only Hunter in My family.

1975


1980


1980 First Band

shot first duck in the mid 1980's, jumped from a dam, it was brown, no idea what kind then and can't remember enough about it now.

first over decoys was a greenhead

best friend got me in to it, I still hunt with him

First duck was a Mallard hen when I was about 10, used to hunt with my dad under a burlap sheet and no decoys.

I started going to the blind with my dad at 5. 7 was my first year to duck hunt. Only killed one duck that year...probably the nicest looking gwt that I've ever shot. Glad to have a picture of it, but wish I had a mount.

Been hunting for 18 years now. Got serious about it about 7 years ago as a freshman in college

I started going duck hunting with my dad on my now deceased great-grandmother's private 50 acre lake when I was 6 years old. Started hunting at 10 years old in 1992 and my first duck killed was a bluebill with my 870 pump action 20 gauge. I still use that gun to this day. Grandmother died in 2005 and with her went the lake. It was sad to see the lake go. Now I have to settle for pond hunting and dealing with the yahoos on public lakes.

Started last year.

This forum made me wanna try.

Green wing drake right at first light, first time going.

I keep going because #1 I like hunting anything. #2 something about cupped up ducks gets me going.

Over 30 years. I worked at the Elm Fork range when I was 16. I shot there after hours and hunted Lake Lewisville on the weekends or when I skipped school. I hunted with my Grandfathers Auto 5. And I hunted lots of private north of DFW. Asking permission was easy for a kid. Almost no one turned me down. Not sure on my first duck. I seem to remember a hooded merg, but I am sure my first duck would have been a mallard. Lots more of them around these parts back then.

Gray duck, Dec 2007

Since the 15th.

1st Duck was a Cinnamon Teal in 1982 while hunting the creek behind the house. Which is a drainage into the Arkansas River. They were flying into roost in the evening on a beaver pond and I shoot him landing while waiting on dove.

Most of my duck hunting has been around the Arkansas River with birds coming from or going to its lakes and tanks in SE Colorado, but I have also hunted Ducks in Georgia (Wood Ducks), Africa, Argentina and this is the second year here in Texas.

My uncle Butch was the one who really got me started. Lots of early mornings putting out Goose and Duck Decoys in cut corn/milo fields. I have actually shot a lot more Mallards over standing decoys in a cut field than I have coming into a tank or body of water.

This will be my 6th year, started with my dad my sophomore year in highschool. He didnt care too much for it and rarely goes now but I've been hooked since. My first bird was a bluebill hen. Took me 5 years to finally get a mallard. Only one in my family that really duck hunts.

Since '99. So, going on 13 years now.

This is my 33rd year. Started in '79 back in Green's Lake. First bird was a bull sprig. Moved to Austin from Galveston in '85 to start school at Sipville. Found the rivers and reeservoirs more to my liking and threw rocks at the trashducks, skeeters and stinky marsh from " back home". I know some of you guys like the coastal marsh and more power to ya.

Do you remember your first bird, species?

A Drake Woodie, 1956, 56 seasons ago

What/who got you started?

A friend who's parents owned a small weekend farm on the IL River near Havana, IL. They wanted me to try something different than hunting pheasants.

What keeps you at it?

Gun dawgs, the love of what they do and the magic they work.

I started dove hunting in high school and did my first duck hunt sometime between Sr year and Freshman year of college. Back then it really didn't mean much too me...I was more into chasing girls and going to parties than hunting. I always liked the idea of it I just could not wake up and do it very often back then. After college I moved to CA and probably did not hunt a single time in the 4 years I lived there...when I moved back in 2003 I did some duck hunting with my buddy Ray and went on a goose hunt with my dad. That's when I got hooked but I still knew nothing about hunting really. Back in Oct 03 my dad made me get on his DU Chapter committee...I knew nothing...now I'm the Chairman for the last 5 years (this is my final year by the way).

Around 2005 I took Garrett on his first duck hunt on some crappy place he had access too...it was the blind leading the blind but from there we started really learning a ton when we went out on our own...I figured out that there is a bunch of skill and knowledge that goes into this....you can't just show up on any water hole and toss a few deks and expect ducks to pour in...that's all I knew before that..haha because before then people I went with did everything and told me exactly what to do...kind of like you would to a little kid I guess and I didnt really care enough to learn. During that 05-06 season I learned things I didnt know I didnt know before that partly due to this site and also because I started hitting up every person I knew that duck hunted and asked them dozens of questions. I think I got on this site the next year in fall of 06 and from there its been a once or twice a week deal for me since.

A few weeks ago after I started getting sick of all the people asking for handouts to duck hunting spots I went back and looked at my first posts. Thank god I was not one of those people asking for places to hunt without offering anything in return. I guess by then I had already learned hunting spots are few and far between and no one is going to just give them away.

So I've been doing this for a while but only really had that duck fever since 2003.

27 years of duck hunting Texas and Mexico and moved in to Oklahoma last year. Oklahoma was a fun trip. Can't wait to get back up there.

By the way I have not clue what kind of duck I first shot. My dad was always a meat hunter type...he would shoot one or two and he would just be done. He knows all the ducks and which ones he liked to eat but it was never a trophy type thing or a push to get limits. I only remember taking pictures a few times but have no clue where any of those are.

I think a lot of guys have ton of ego or something to prove and it shows with all the tailgate limit pictures people always want to show...as if that makes them a good duck hunter. I probably got caught up in that when I first started really getting into it on my own...I think everyone does...had to prove that I was able to get ducks to people I guess.

Now I'm not impressed by anything other than people that just go out and do it for fun. If you are not loving every part about duck hunting, being out there, watching a dog work, laughing at buddies that get their trucks stuck, getting stranded out on a lake, etc...then you should pack it up and quit hunting. No one really gets paid to do this and those that do will tell you it's not worth it unless you love it.

Odd that's there's not a single Freshman or Sophmore post.


Guess I should have answered.

First bird was a banded woodie drake I was 8 maybe 9?. I shot it on some flooded field just off a river while my uncle was peeing and another guy took 3 shots and missed so I cleaned up the mess. Well kinda, the bird sailed and swam up the creek, good thing we had a dog and a good one at that. He disappeared for what seemed like 15 minutes only to return with the bird.

That first hunt is what got me started

I keep at it because its fun, a challange, multiple species, bands a good time with friends and I like to shoot.

1974 Flatonia, Texas. Remington single shot 2 ga with 7.5 lead shot Storm widgeon I remember every feather. I can't rememeber what I had for lunch but I remember that bird. My dad was an extreme bird hunter and that is why I got into it. We never hunted ducks or geese together though. I was too young at first and then he died. My friends and I tore up the Katy, Bernard prairies back when there was actually birds there.

I started with my dad and brothers when I was 7. Shot my first teal back them. I started hunting with my best friend in 1984 we are still at it today. I keep going because camaraderie of friends and the challenge of the hunt.

i converted from deer to waterfowl in 05. First waterfowl was a giant canada goose in michigan.

first duck was female green wing teal

first duck in Texas was a hen canvasback hunting with Trout Killer.

my dog keeps me going. and my fiance. and my friends. and the ducks.

I spent all of 2007 season trying to get a duck with no success. My fist duck was a teal in September 2008. It was on a hunt with Garrett and Marc in Eagle Lake.

My first big duck was a hen Mallard on a solo hunt with my young dog in 2008.


I had no idea what I was doing but got lucky when she presented a passing shot and I took her with one shot.

That season I also shot a Canvasback, Pintail, a few Gadwall, and my first limit was a limit of Teal during regular season.