"Don't Shoot 'til I get Loaded!"

Being tall came in handy hiding behind a boulder, but it seemed really weird standing on cement hiding behind a rock shooting ducks. It was nothing like my limited experiences had been. This was the antithesis of what I watched on television! A duck blind camouflaged with marsh grass, a low hanging roof speckled with the multicolored leaves of autumn came to mind. The unmistakable foul odor of black swamp muck was the olfactory image of a truly ducky setting.

However, here I was on the break wall at Edgewater Park facing the city of Cleveland near the mouth of the infamous Cuyahoga River. The only river to have ever caught fire! I was closer to being in a concrete jungle than a classic waterfowl habitat. That being said, we were putting the feathered fighter planes down on the deck, one after another.

It was not my first time hunting the break wall, but I shot like a rookie! It was only the shear numbers of birds, coupled with the fact that my partner was shooting a Browning Citori double barrel that allowed me the opportunity to harvest the open water birds of winter! It was windy and cold as usual. The wind was out of the north west, which was not the norm for good bird numbers. Usually, the cold north wind that cuts through your clothes and stings you like a hornet is what brings in large rafts of ducks off the lake. The north wind is handy as well in bringing the birds right at you as they need to land into the wind. So while a north wind is bitter cold, it does line the ducks up for an easier shot. This day the ducks were quartering to us. I can use that as an excuse if I want to, however poor it might be! I have to admit, I did laugh at myself a few times! "How did I miss?!", but the only response I received was more laughter! I have since learned that the the only one to have never missed a duck is the one who never hunted ducks!

One of the truly memorable things about this trip was that I shot my first drake goldeneye. It was a beautiful bird. It was too bad we didn't have cell phones back then. I would have some pictures that would make your jaw drop! Pictures of liberal limits and multiple species of birds all fully plumed. We didn't even have water proof instamatic cameras back in the day. My hunting buddy, Larry (who believes himself to be a comedian) keeps reminding me of another memory that I have to admit, makes me laugh. We were standing behind the boulder drinking coffee and counting how many shotgun shells we had left of our two boxes each. I casually looked to my left and over the rock, and there was a flock of a dozen blue bills gliding right over the decoys! Without time to speak, I raised my 1100 Remington and unloaded my three rounds only to watch ALL of the little critters fly straight away! "Thanks for the heads up, BUDDY!" I know Larry thought I deserved that, but before I could explain my position the birds turned back toward us. At that moment I was fumbling with a shell as I was wearing thick gloves. It was then that I made the statement that has haunted me for 40 years, "Don't shoot 'til I get loaded!" I can still hear my companion's laughter. I remember hearing him laugh as he pulled the trigger! Why I said that I have no idea. It was a stupid thing to say, especially to Larry! It was in a moment of excitement and frustration. Larry dropped two blue bills from the flock. I did fire two shots and one of them was lucky enough to find its mark, but it didn't matter. The 40 years of teasing began. I laughed, but I am not sure if it was at my ridiculous statement or from watching my friend leaning against the wall laughing so hard that he couldn't catch his breath!