Thanksgiving morning brought the first waterfowl hunt of the 2009-2010 season. Sam G guided for good friend Chris D and the action did not stop until the two finally had to call it a morning.
After some scouting the day before, hunter and guide decided to hunt a wooded slough that was holding some ducks located on the southern end of Lake Proffit. The two were in their spot at 6:30 a.m. the next morning, just 10 minutes away from LST.
After doing a little calling, two green wing teal dropped into the wooded hole, not 15 feet from the two hunters. The hunters were not prepared for the "early birds", but did manage to get a shot off as the ducks flew away. Sam G said "I hope that was not the only two ducks we are going to see." Twenty minutes later he would get his answer.
Around 7 a.m., wings could be heard cutting through the crisp morning air. A group of 4 ducks came over the top and circled around to land. Then, another group of 3 ducks came over the top and circled to come in and land as well. The two hunters unloaded on both groups, with Sam G scoring a kill and wounding another duck. The wounded duck would later be finished off by Chris D. "Its a wood duck! And it's a drake," Sam G said. as he picked up his first duck of the season. It would also be the first wood duck killed at the LG2 ranch and a beautiful trophy. While the two hunters were reloading, a group of 3 mallards flew over the top, but neither hunter could manage a shot. However, they would not have to wait long before another group of wood ducks came in to land. Sam G scored another kill from the group.
Around 8 a.m., the action had slowed a little bit. Sam G began calling and a single duck flew over. It circled back around and Chris D took two shots, but the duck managed to escape. Sam G began calling again and a pair of wood duck hens came to drop into the hole. Two shots equaled two birds, a good ending to the morning.
All in all, it was a great morning hunt. Great weather, good company, and plenty of ducks. Hunter and guide ended their morning with a total of 5 wood ducks. More should have been harvested but there was some "rusty" shooting, and the two had to call it a morning early because Chris D needed to head back to Fort Worth.
The two cold fronts this week should deposit more ducks in the LG2 area. Duck season starts back up when the split is over on December 12, 2009.
On Sunday morning, 12-20-2009, Sam G and buddy Andrew A harvested a couple of sandhill cranes. More would have been harvested had Sam G not made the rookie mistake of not loading his gun. He did not fire one shot at the first group that passed just 30 yards overhead.
