The Thrill of Victory!

With the cold north wind howling at our backs, the blue bill locked up and came coasting right at us. He was dropping fast. At 25 yards, I aimed at his feet and ignited the #6 shot shell. 

It was a good shot, but one that came with much coaching. It was my first season hunting ducks and all the different angles of approach made shooting difficult for me at times. My mentors, Larry and his Dad, were constantly teaching me about shooting, decoy placement, shot shells and boating tips. Boating is a skill that many duck hunters ignore, and that can cause life threatening situations.

All the way to the garage to get the boat that day, Larry was offering pointers. I listened intently. I soaked up information like a sponge. I was 19 years old and eager to learn. He told me that as windy as it was we might be limited as to where we could set up. He also warned me to be careful of the ice. At these temperatures the break wall could be pretty slick.  

As we launched the boat, it was apparent that the wind would play a role today. We had a difficult time controlling the boat at the boat ramp. It was cold enough to squelch the stench of the frozen fish carcasses that were pushed up onto the ramp by the waves. It also made walking a bit treacherous.  With 30-35 mph north wind, the ducks nearly had to land into it. We managed to load up without incident. As we carefully motored our way along the south side of the wall, we could see the waves crashing into the back side and rolling right over the top. That is where we would be standing, not good. It was dark, but the lights from the city allowed us to see the danger. Larry motored on ahead in our 12 foot semi-V. As we approached the end of the west wall, I could see that the waves were not rolling over top of the wall. "We'll hunt here." I heard Larry say over the roar of the crashing waves. We worked quickly and carefully to set our small spread of blocks from our little dingy. This was only made possible by the protection of the break wall and God himself!

There were occasional spots along the break wall where you tie your boat off. The wall was smooth and vertical for 54" above the water level where it flattened out for 5 feet then it went up 5 more feet, horizontal on top for 5 feet, and mirrored that shape on the back side. 

After the decoys were set, we slowly approached the wall. Getting out of the boat was an adventure in itself. We had to put our hands on the wall and time up our lift with the crest of a wave. The water was so rough that it was an easy short lift for me to hop up on the wall while on a crest. However, I didn't want to slip because the boat dropped right out from under me with the following trough. 

After getting to my feet, Larry tossed our gear and guns up to me. He tied the boat off and hopped up on the wall. "Get loaded", he yelled, "Its almost shooting time." I slipped on an icy patch and fell against the back wall. "Wow", I thought. "Going to have to be more careful."  From our perch I could see why we were not washed off of the wall. There was actually a secondary wall that branch off behind us. The second wall took much of the lake water's furious energy. All that we received was a misty spray which froze to our clothes and kept us warm. Unfortunately, it also froze under foot and on our guns. I periodically worked my safety and pumped my Model 37 Ithaca to make sure all was in working order. 

It was barely shooting time when the single blue bill met his demise. It was one of many to come. We watched a flock of 30 scaup approach a spread of dekes more than a half mile away. We saw some birds fall, the flock fly out, then heard the boom, boom, boom! Larry explained to the rookie hunter that the speed of the sound was slower, so the sound of the guns was delayed. The same flock came to the next spread, some fell, flew out, heard the shots, and over and over until there were only 2 ducks left. Here came the last two. I couldn't believe it. They came right in. Our scatter guns barked in unison and the entire flock was gone! "Dam! Can you believe that?" Larry took the words right out of my mouth. "I guess it's our job to thin out the dumb ones!"  He added. 

We timed the re-entry into the boat the same way we exited, with a wave crest. On this final return to the boat that day, I handed Larry the gear and dropped into the boat. I was more than relieved to make the drop knowing that it was the last time that day! I loved hunting "The Wall", but it scared me half to death every time!

When we retrieved the last two feathered prey, they were added them to the pile of 16 divers we had in the bottom of the boat. Most divers were 10 point ducks back then, and we could accumulate 100 points per day! 

We picked up the diver lines and fired up the "trusty" six horse Johnson. I remember thinking what an adrenaline rush it was, a struggle and a thrill that is tough to duplicate. As we rode the waves up and down to the ramp, we brandished the oars of victory!