| Kentucky Lake and Lake Barkley Outdoor Guide- Fishing, Hunting and everything outdoors...... | |
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| Kentucky Lake and Lake Barkley Outdoor Guide- Fishing, Hunting and everything outdoors...... | |
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Home Sporting Goods, Bait and Tackle Hunting Stories and Information Fishing
Stories
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Drastic weather changes often deliver great waterfowling experiences and our foursome from Tennessee was about to witness a major migration of ducks and geese over the boot heel of Missouri. It felt ducky, to say the least. Somewhere in the flat farming country was a flooded rice field where Parisian Eddie Shankle had a partially submerged pit surrounded by some 300-plus decoys. They danced in the wind that ripped over the prairies and sent temperatures plunging some 25 to 30 degrees in just 24 hours. Shankle had extended an invitation to me several times over the last few years but it seems my own waterfowling and fishing duties always got in the way of a trip. After non-stop fishing and duck blind duty for the last month or so I gave myself a busman’s holiday and made plans to head west in the wee hours of the morning where Missouri’s duck season had been in progress for about 10-days. Like most waterfowlers I get nervous when north winds blow and weather changes occur this time of year. I catch myself looking up in the sky for web-footed visitors who frequent the Deep South every year about this time. Rounding out the hunting party were pals Jon Paul Moody of Paris and Huntingdon’s Mike McLemore, three-time world champion duck caller. For me, hunting with a few buddies and not having to watch over my shoulder and assume guide duties was a rare treat. Shankle has been hunting the prairies for about three years and now offers guide trips himself. His “Duck Factory” guide service offers both duck hunts and late season shoots at snow geese throughout February when the massive movement of white birds head back north. In February regulations allow the use of electronic callers and Shankle says it quite a sight at times. On this early November morning it was ducks that dominated and riding the wind from the high heavens were flock after flock of mallards, greenwing teal, gadwalls, and other species we weren’t too sure about. The uncertainty was due in part to the mixing of ducks high and low over our decoy spread. Clouds quickly faded and a bright blue sky opened up with a glaring sun about to peak over the horizon. Some waterfowlers think foggy or rainy mornings are ideal duck days but most veterans of the swamp and mud know a clear day after the front blows through is just what the doctor ordered. Ducks just seem to work better; plain and simple. We hadn’t even reached the pit when Moody yelled and pointed to ducks hovering in the decoys. McLemore and I scanned the sky and swapped grins. We had seen a lot of sunrises and had a pretty good idea of what was about to take place. “Sounds like a refuge doesn’t it,” said Shankle, talking above the moan of his four-wheeler as it negotiated the muck while escorting us to the pit on a small trailer in water that looked knee-deep. “A few days ago it was hot weather and not many ducks but I think we’ve picked up some with this weather change,” yelled Shankle as we quickly disembarked and tossed guns and gear into the roll top pit surrounded by rice stubble. “Got a little more water than I’d like. Guess we got a lot of rain last night.” Four wind-driven spinning wing decoys were placed upwind in the spread. Shankle and his yellow Labrador “Lady” made a quick dash to hide the four-wheeler in a nearby field. As they splashed through the spread on their return ducks bombed them and darted just overhead, reacting to the lowlight movement where splashing mimicked feeding fowl. Missouri mallards quickly responded to our Tennessee calls and in minutes we burped our guns to big ducks hanging about 35 yards overhead. Two splashed down and before Lady could make a retrieve another grouped fell right in the decoys, jockeying over position about 10 yards high and not much more than that from my end of the pit. Three more ducks hit the water and Lady was on active duty. Two fat gadwalls helped hatch our goose egg and four mallards now made the soup thicker. A pintail slipped by and escaped, using the wind for a rapid ride before we could get a gun up. Not to worry; greenwing teal bombed us from the north like Japanese Zeros in a World War II dogfight. Teal are fast on any morning but especially when boosted by a 20 mile per hour wind. They almost took our caps off and were in and out before the blink of an eye. A quick bank to the south and they attempted a return run but curious mallards got in the way, running defense as they teamed up in descent. Such was the sky on this morning of a major migration. From the north came constant movement of new ducks in large numbers. Overhead ducks cork screwed in layers. The massive bunch of snow geese in the upper end of the field was a magnet. Honking constantly and sometimes leap frogging in the puddle water, their movement lured other geese and ducks to the field where we used our calls to pull birds into range. Several flocks of speckle bellies entered the picture too, often drawing our attention and goose calling efforts but it seemed the ducks always won out. After all, ducks in range over the decoys seem to be more appealing than uncertain descents of geese. Within an hour or so we had bagged our limit of mallards and attempted to fill in the gaps with other species such as teal, gadwalls and widgeons. Time after time Susie’s hovered right in our face, probably because McLemore talked sweet sounds to them in a way only he can do. The raspy lonesome hen sequences seem to serenade the ducks and the song of Judas had them fooled into a false sense of security. Two hours into the hunt and we were done, limits laying in front of the pit with Lady showing signs of fatigue. Still enjoying the spectacle above us, we continued to marvel at the new kids on the block who emptied air in response to our calls. Cameras clicked and I managed to shoot photos as Moody filmed video footage of circling mallards that seemed to know we were done hunting. Even when Shankle walked through the decoys chasing cripples, ducks often winged into gunning range showing little concern for the distraction. It was just a ducky day when the sky was full and things went right. It was a small payback for all those mornings when things go wrong. “That’s more ducks than I’ve seen moving through in a long time,” commented McLemore, as we began gathering up the gear. “And just look, the horizon is full of ducks and geese still coming. We’ve had a day to remember.” “Glad you guys got in on a good hunt,” smiled Shankle, ducks dangling from shoulder straps ready for photos. “What do you think of the setup?” We didn’t need to respond. A pile of ducks, tired dog, and big grins pretty much told the story. For more information on Shankle’s Duck Factory hunts, call him at 642-7355. From Paris it’s about a two-hour drive and if you’re lucky, a trip by the famous Lambert’s Restaurant, home of the throwed rolls, will round out your trip. If fact, make sure you tip your taste buds there at the Sikeston eatery, which has a well-deserved reputation.
Steve McCadams is a professional hunting and fishing guide here in the Paris Landing area. He has also contributed many outdoor oriented articles to various national publications. |
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