SWP's Diving Duck Hunting

Diving Ducks
Bull Whistlers (goldeneye) and other Diving Ducks are best encountered during the months of November and December. These hearty birds are impervious to cold weather and are challenging ducks to hunt. These birds were taken during the 1st week of December.

We Hunt Goldeneye "Whistlers", Bufflehead & Bluebills

The photos above illustrate typical Diving Duck hunts with the Seaway team. The Seaway team has always set the standard in offshore gunning. Our design and utilization of our boats as well as the rigging of our spreads is legendary in the Seaway region. You'll notice a classic mix of Goldeneye and Bufflehead with a few Dabblers and Mergansers mixed in. Our float location dictates the mix of ducks we shoot. Some float locations would yield a 50/50 split of dabblers and divers. We lay out the options for our clients so they may make an educated decision about what they will gun for each day. (The Seaway region is so diverse that many different hunts can be undertaken during the same trip - ask us for details!)

Our 20ft. float rigs make gunning the waters of Lake Ontario & The St. Lawrence River both safe and comfortable. Flexibility ensures success! Our custom rigs get the job done no matter where we float!

Bluebills & Redheads

Our good buddy Todd Wagner (Pa) holds a bull Redhead and Greater Scaup. While we do not target these birds daily (small limits)-our region is one of the few areas in North America where lesser and greater Scaup (Bluebills) congregate during the fall migration. When the right opportunity arises, the Seaway team is fully rigged to take advantage of these legendary diving ducks. Todd and his brother Judd gunned beautiful examples of both lesser and greater drakes with this drake Redhead thrown in the mix as icing on the cake.

The photo above is of our new friend Jack Osterlitz and his crew taking a classic mix of Goldeneye, Bluebills, Ringnecks and Mallards. This hunt took place during freeze-out conditions and is a prime example of what late season gunning can be like. Below Jon Roukous and Rick Caskinette illustrate the stable shooting platform that we provide for our late season gunning. Ducks approach our boats as if they weren't there. This gives our clients short-yardage shots at decoying ducks. When these birds commit - "It's pure magic"!

Frosty conditions mean spellbinding hunts for divers. SWP sees everything from Ringnecks to Canvasbacks fly our spreads. Our guides are true "Watermen" that log over 5,000 miles each season scouting for Divers. This is traditional gunning in every sense of the word!

Diver Duck Season---November through December