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Its not
uncommon to step outside in the month of October and hear the sounds of
Ducks and Geese emanating from practically everywhere. To actually
search out the places that waterfowl reside is another matter. When you
do find them in this part of the country, it can be “Sensory Overload”.
There is one word that typifies waterfowling in Northern New York and
that word is diversity. Having had the opportunity to travel the
United
states in search of prime waterfowling , it has become increasingly
evident that we New Yorkers have among the best there is to offer.
The month of October begins the season in upstate New York
and with vast amounts of backwaters already flooded it is home to
perhaps the largest diversity of puddleducks in the Atlantic Flyway. It
is not uncommon for U.S. Fish and Wildlife surveys to find that
Jefferson and Southern St. Lawrence counties are number one in the
Atlantic Flyway for Mallard production. In addition to the great
Greenhead numbers, the avid waterfowler can find other species such as
the  Blue and Green Winged Teal, Gadwall, Widgeon, Ringnecked, Black,
Shoveler, Pintail and Wood Duck-----and these are just a few. What is
even more uncommon is that there are many locations in this region that
allow the avid waterfowler to encounter all of these birds throughout
the course of a single days hunt.
During mid-October in 1996 I was accompanied by two duck hunting friends
and outdoor writer Ruben Perez. Our mission, to film
an outdoor segment for the television program “Cabin Country” and
to also record the experience for “Wildfowl” magazine. Honestly,
my hope was to find conditions conducive to hunting Mallards and Black
Ducks. My plan was unfortunately thwarted by low water conditions
leaving my favorite backwaters high and dry. Plan “B” was to hunt the
more open river channels for a more mixed bag of ducks. The ability to
adjust and be flexible led to a very exciting day on the water.
A mere thirty decoys were neatly set on the waters surface
and after doing the necessary openings for the TV program, it was time
to get down to business. With hardly any time to settle in, a brace of
Blue Winged Teal buzzed the decoys and a nice drake was dropped and then
neatly recovered by Ruben’s chocolate lab Winchester. Winchester, a
Master Hunter made the retrieving look easy as we did our best to give
him a serious workout. We hammered on our Haydel duck calls and
countless Mallards spun from the altitudes to check out our rig. Even
the most savvy waterfowlers would have been impressed by the number of
ducks tolling to the call, and on this day the Widgeon (Baldpate)
decided to join them. Birds worked to typical Mallard routines as well
as the one, two, three whistles being provided by our group.
Our group let many birds pass as we burned the necessary tape to make a
fantastic waterfowling program. Wood Ducks rocketed up and down the
channel all morning and Randy Sherman collected a beautiful drake for
Ruben to photograph. Jerry Sherman (Randy’s brother) was in what we
call a shotgun groove and was cleaning up on the F-16’s of the marsh
(The Green Winged Teal). Flocks of 30-35 Green Wings would rip through
the decoys leaving us shaking our heads. I heard the word “Mark”
uttered from somewhere behind me and looked to see four Black Ducks
bearing down on the set. The birds were on a glide path that would take
them just outside the decoys. Gunners froze as we let the birds pass!
At sixty yards I gave them the five note demanding walk-down that
we call the “Saucy Hen” and all four birds locked-up and
turned. As they finished the slow arc of their turn we could here them
talking in flight, looking for more responses from the water’s surface.
Randy and I re-greeted the birds with the fast chopping of excited ducks
and you could literally see the Blacks strain their necks as they
watched the rig with a bird’s eye view. Low chuckles and feed chatter
committed the small group of Black Ducks and two of us stood to
collect. The Black ducks were big migrants (we call them Red Legs!)
that were fresh arrivals from lands just to the north. Their sheer size
made them look like small geese. The day was shaping up nicely!
Quality calling is a key to waterfowling wherever ducks are
found. In northern New York the ducks and geese seem to be even more
susceptible to good calling. There are two very important reasons that
waterfowlers in our region find it easy to call ducks. The first reason
is geographic location. Canada is just around the corner and as
migrant birds travel to the southern reaches, New York State is one of
the first states that they hit. Since birds have not had a great
 deal
of time to become educated to the calls of others, they are duped by
ours. The second important factor is fantastic production.
Wetlands with thick, rich vegetation are a common sight in this region.
When habitat is as good as ours, one cannot help but grow large numbers
of resident waterfowl. A great waterfowling season is always
spearheaded by large numbers of hatching-year waterfowl. When there are
large numbers of young being harvested, its the signal of a good hatch.
It just so happens, that these young waterfowl are also extremely easy
to call. This combination of reasons makes northern New York an
excellent proving ground for beginning waterfowlers. Success is a sure
way to build and keep interest in any outdoor activity. You should
however, remember to polish your skills before you head to meccas like
Arkansas and Louisiana (birds down there have a college education in
calling!).
The number of different species of ducks that will toll to a
Mallard call never ceases to amaze me. I had been momentarily
daydreaming when a Highball call shocked me back from whatever I was
thinking about. Looking due North I could see a group of larger ducks
approaching. At first glance they looked like hen Mallards but as they
closed the distance I coul d see that we were in the company of gray
ducks (Gadwall). Like many others, they had chosen this special day to
grace us with their presence. Randy and Ruben pinched out low mournful
notes on this bluebird day. When birds are committed like these, subtle
low-end work can seal the deal. At no less than 100 yds., the Gaddies
scooped air and descended as if their wings hugged an invisible barrel.
Remaining motionless the boys waited until the last available second .
At the words “Take Em!”, fingers slapped triggers, hands pumped actions
and spent steel shotshell casings bobbed like different colored soldiers
on the waters surface. “I will never forget that moment in time.” I
collected the spent shells (we try to leave the marsh better than we
found it), and Ruben sent Winchester on his last retrieves of the day.
I was sad that this would probably be the last day (this season), that
this particular cast of characters would spend together. I realized
however, that without the great sport of waterfowling we might never
have met. “How fortunate I am!”
The season is over now and I have lots of time to sit and
reflect on that day and many others. We went on to collect 20 ducks
this day and the variety was outstanding. Days end found that we had
accounted for nine different species on a single day’s
hunt. It made it even more exciting that we had burned this memory of a
lifetime into the reels of video, allowing us to share this treasure
with countless masses of sportsmen yearning to take the very same
adventure. What’s more, it is a lasting record of who and what we are
as sportsmen. For upstate New York it is simply an accurate
representation of what waterfowling is like in this corner of the
Atlantic Flyway. The beauty is that it occurs every fall. When the
leaves change and the air begins to crisp, the most magical time of the
year is quickly approaching. Remember, It arrives on The Wings of
October!
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