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Monday & Tuesday - Our journey began by flying out of Houston mid morning and arriving in Baltimore in the early evening. The temp was a balmy 78+ when we left Houston and was close to a 40 degree difference when the sun set that night in Maryland, never to reach much higher the rest of the week. We made a couple of stops for shells, then drove across the Chesapeake to head south down the eastern shore towards Chincoteague Island, Virginia. It was killing me to be driving in the dark as I knew I was missing the sights of some serious habitat in the dark. We arrived at the Refuge Inn on the island and checked in for what was basically a sleepless night anticipating the next morning. After checking in with the outfitter, we were assigned a guide, Capt. Matt Mason of Chincoteague, and loaded the boat heading out into Chincoteague Bay. Our hunt was to have three intervals. Early morning marsh blind for puddlers, mid morning offshore blind for divers, and my main objective, the offshore blind sitting in the eel grass waters where the Brant feed.
As luck would have it, my first shot to ever be fired in the Atlantic Flyway yielded a nice Black duck drake!!! We had been watching them all morning, and that sight alone had satisfied my thirst for the very elusive puddle duck prince of the Chesapeake Bay marshes. As they came into range, they started to sit just outside of our decoys as I would learn is their pattern. The way they flew in small groups and "disassociated" themselves with the other puddlers reminded me of our beloved Mottled duck. My aim was true, but not lethal and the bird fell wounded, head up and started for the marsh grass. In my haste to reload one shell for the finish, ( I only normally load 2) I stepped out of the blind, almost fell and put my shell in backwards!! How the hell it got like that I still don't know!! Craig fired and the big drake was still heading for the marsh grass. He jumped out and ran like a shorebird across the marsh pond and caught the bird. One dream of a Texas waterfowler was completed with the first decoying flock and the first shot. The rest of the morning only brought to us Mergansers, but I didn't care........one bit!!!
 
From there we opted out of the diver shoot and told the guide we wanted to go straight for the Brant blind. We did and saw a huge flock of them of 200+ right outside of our blind. Brant only feed when the tide goes out and the eel grass is easily had for them. He warned us of the wait, and wait we did. We had a flock about 10 minutes after he left but they just flew by and skirted us. As long as I live, I will never forget the beautiful call of the Atlantic Brant. The only thing I can say it sounds like is a small Sandhill crane. It sent chills down my spine as was the ever increasing cold wind starting to blow across Chincoteague Bay. And we sat, and waited, and waited. We decided to take naps, but every time it was my turn, I just could not do it. The Brant was the only reason we made the trip to Chincoteague Island. Finally the tide started to drop in the bay. Damn I've never seen water move like that. What was once open water all around just started disappearing making a huge bed of eel grass right in front us. And like clockwork, the little sea geese started to come. My wind burnt eyes and frozen toes started coming back to life as I heard the mysterious call of the little birds. While we watched a small group in front of us, Mark saw to his left what would be the flock of dreams for the three of us. They circled, and circled again only to keep coming closer, and on the last pass locked wings and started to sail right into the decoys. We learned something about Brant that afternoon. As they turned, we fired at what had to be only 20 yards or so, and with one volley, it was over that quick. We filled a 3 man limit of 6 Atlantic Brant. Shooting at those birds can be extremely dangerous because they are not, well let's just say "very smart". But we did it!! With well over 75 years of experience of waterfowling between the three of us, we all just harvested something we had only seen in pictures. In one day, the two birds I so desperately wanted for the wall were in hand, leaving us the next 3 days to "put icing on the cake". And as you will see......that we did.
 
Instead of heading back up the eastern shore for our Wednesday hunt, we stayed in Chincoteague and toured the Chincoteague Island NWR and did my next favorite thing..........go hunting for hand carved decoys in the history rich area!! First, the NWR. If you like marshland habitat........you hit the jackpot here!! We saw good numbers of Greater Snow geese, Swans, which are absolutely the most graceful birds in flight I have ever witnessed, and sat until dusk and watched the ducks and Canada geese pour into the refuge to roost. Non waterfowl related, I got a good picture of the wild ponies of Chincoteague. Yea........that's what I said, wild horses living on a barrier island!! Neat as hell!!! And last but not least, drove to the beach, and like a real yahoo, stuck my hands in the Atlantic ocean just to say I did. Almost forgot...........we saw some Sika (or Sitka) deer!! They look like little bitty elk!!
 
For those of you who know me, you know I have soft spot for hand carved gunning duck decoys. Chincoteague Island is famous for their share of carvers as well. If you're a student of decoy history, Ira Hudson is probably the most famous, but the living legend of Chincoteague is Cigar Daisey. Although he accepts visitors at his home, his decoys are a little on the high end, but I did get a Mark Daisey ( his nephew) gunning Brant decoy!!! We also bought 3 Bufflehead blocks right off the boat of Capt. Mason's rig. Signed, sealed and delivered!! But the most interesting stop we made was at Chincoteague carver Roe Terry's shop and house. We stopped anywhere we saw decoys for sale!! In short, Roe "Duc Man" Terry is one salty dude!!! He was gracious and let us in the back where he had wood chips flying by hand. Roe is a Vietnam vet and hardcore waterman.........and he acted like it too!!! He gave me the OK to take pictures of his shop, but would not sell any gunning decoys, only decorative or competition. We ended up the evening with seafood, as was our customary meal each night experiencing the local flavor of Chesapeake Bay and the Atlantic ocean. My choice for Tuesday...........Atlantic Swordfish. They even left a portion of the skin (like a shark) on one edge to show you it was legit!! We went and crashed at the Refuge Inn to arise early to head back up the eastern shore to freelance public walk in hunting.
Wednesday - While heading back up the eastern shore of Maryland Wednesday morning, we started getting snow flurries. As we got closer, the flurries turned into heavy snow. My first thought............dayyuumm!!!!!! We hunted an island that is a state WMA which I will not name out of respect for my host Mark. You see, public marshes on the eastern shore don't have a check in with a biologist.......it's first come first serve and considering this was the opener of the second split, we were willing to take the public "death march" to get to a good hole in the marsh. I will say this, upon reading up on the middle eastern shore island we hunted, it was a playground for pirates back in the day that ventured up into Chesapeake Bay. With the lake effect snow blowing, we trudged out into the marsh. The only other marsh I've seen like this is in Louisiana. You can walk along and with one misstep, you're in it waist deep!!! We got turned around as flash lights in a snow storm are useless as **** on a boar hog, so we opted for a different marsh pond. We set out the rig, and by legal shooting time, the snow stopped, but left quite a bit covering the ground. We did good though as the Maryland sky lit up with ducks and Canada geese. As par for the course for my trip so far..........first flock, big, giant Maryland Black ducks!!! As you will see in one of the pictures I took, these true Black ducks are big boys!!! Bigger than any northern Mallard I've ever seen. Laying there next to a Widgeon in the snow, you can see the difference clearly!! As the morning progressed, the pond started to freeze up clearly into our decoys. Twice, we had to move the frozen decoys to thawed water. To shorten this story, we each killed a nice Black duck, with kicker ducks as Widgeon, Gadwall, Mallards, and Hooded Mergansers. The bay and it's marshes are full of all three types of Mergansers!!! Highlight of the day......seeing 5 Swans at about 15 yards!!!! These were the wild variety (not sure what species) not the invasive Mutes. And last but not least for this hunt........................our host and friend Mark killed a banded drake Black duck!!!!!!! Yea baby!!!!!! We shot Black ducks two mornings in a row without killing one hen!!!! Our next destination, Salisbury to the world famous Ward Bros. Waterfowl and Decoy Museum, hunting for more decoys from local carvers, Oysters and Crab cakes, and a nights stay in historic St. Michaels heading back up the eastern shore for a diver/sea duck in an offshore blind out of Tilghman Island. We found another carver who let us into his shop and house. Man this dude was one wild mother!!!!!! I bought an old Bluebill out of his personal gunning rig, and he sold Craig what we later found out from a decoy appraiser, an estimated 110 year old body with a repaint of the Canvasback from none other than the famous Madison Mitchell...........!!!! Probably only second in notoriety to the famous Ward Bros. of Crisfield, MD. Craig..............you're one lucky son of a gun!!!!!!
 
Thursday - With a Black duck and Atlantic Brant already in hand to have mounted, for this day, we chose to hunt in an offshore blind for hopeful divers and passing sea ducks. With the season on Canvasbacks not open until the third split, we had hopes of shooting limits of Bluebill and Bufflehead. The sunrise was breathtaking as I looked out over rig that morning and got a good picture. Our guide set out the divers and sea ducks on rig lines. You'd kill yourself setting those things out on individual lines in 15 ft. of water!! Now I've killed every kind of diver you can get and know what they look like in flight.................but the first flock, fricking Surf Scoters!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Man those things are wild!!!! I got an awesome drake to mount!!! Jet black with dark orange feet and rainbow colored bill!!! The Scoters, all three species cruised out of the Choptank River all morning. We saw one real nice White Winged Scoter but way too far for a shot, and the Common are basically black with a yellow part of their bill............only saw them flying way out there though. We saw only one Bluebill as it takes brutal weather to move the divers, but did shoot some real nice Bufflehead, which by the way are kind of big deal up there!! Lots and lots of them!!! Finally, I saw what I thought was another flock of "dippers" heading our way. When the almost all white body shot by at warp speed.......I was kind of hoping for some Bluebill to show and the guide said........."You don't want an Oldsquaw?" My first thought.............."Ooooooddddddd ddddaaaammmnnnnnn!!!!!! How many people even get to see an Oldsquaw much less have a shot at one?? But they came and we shot, and we got some world class Long Tails!!!! My taxidermy bill is steadily growing by the minute!!!! I'll tell you this, you have not lived until shot at sea ducks. If you think you can shoot teal in Texas on a warm September morning which fly at light speed, and the ever acrobatic Wood duck twisting through the timber, sea ducks, especially Oldsquaw will humble you boys!!!! We did not lose bird as the guide goes out in his smaller aluminum boat to chase cripples. A sea duck will fall wounded in the rig and show up over 100 yards out next time he comes for air. What a way to wind up my trip to the mighty Chesapeake!!!!
 
Friday - We were to relax and sleep in on Friday, but decided to go public for resident Canadas on the western shore. It was kind of a wing and a prayer but we found a freshly harvested corn field to set up in the next morning. With lots of waste corn from the harvest on the ground, the geese we scouted left the reservoir for another field but the morning out was just awesome in hind sight!!
The Waterman, The Culture & The Food of the Chesapeake - I was impressed to see the how the locals depend on the famous bay for their living. Not all, but most waterfowl guides are oysterman, they crab, or guide Rockfish (Stripers) trips. One thing that was really special to me, is that all the Chesapeake has to offer for the waterfowler, the Canvasback is still the king. My God, how I would love to see the giant flocks of Cans and Bluebill in a layout boat on the Chesapeake!!! Unfortunately, they don't show up until very late December. But that is for next time!! The seafood I thought was very good. We asked the locals where to eat and every place they put us on was right on the money. The people were friendly and gracious, and I made a friend or two while I was there.
Chesapeake Bay................If tomorrow never comes, I know I will have made the trip of a lifetime. Mike Hruby |
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