A rough, open-water sea duck hunt in Chesapeake Bay proves to be an action packed adventure
A SPRAY OF 35-degree salt water hits me in the face every three seconds. That’s about the time it takes for Wayne Radcliffe to climb a wave, drop into a trough, and begin the next ascent. He feathers the outboard throttle and quarters the bow as needed, never too much. The guy knows the water, and for the most part, he keeps us dry. But the Chesapeake Bay is choppy today, even for Radcliffe’s big center-console fiberglass boat. “Don’t worry, guys,” he says. “If it was too rough, we wouldn’t be out here.” A rogue wave breaks across the bow and rains upon a pile of scoter decoys. Radcliffe laughs nervously. “It’s almost too rough.”
But this is sea ducking, and getting out here has long been on my bucket list. I love boats, big water, longline decoys, and divers that come in low and fast. The best hunting for species like scoters and long-tailed ducks—the politically correct name for oldsquaws, which is still used by sea duck hunters—takes place a mile or more from shore. Running that far in winter, then settling into a layout boat for the hunt, is dangerous. Yesterday, the wind blew too hard to risk going out, and the forecast is the same for tomorrow. Today is our only chance on a three-day trip, and given how rough the Chesapeake is under a 12-mph north wind, I can see why.
HISTORY LESSON
Denne historien er fra December 2017 - January 2018-utgaven av Field & Stream.
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Denne historien er fra December 2017 - January 2018-utgaven av Field & Stream.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
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LIVING THE DREAM
After the author arrives in Maine’s fabled North Woods with a moose tag in his pocket, an adventure he’s been wanting to take his entire hunting life, reality sets in, and he learns a valuable lesson: Be careful what you wish for
Get the Drift
How to make an accurate windage call under pressure
First Sit
An icebreaker outing in a pristine spot produces the rut hunt of a lifetime
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The author finds a sense of place in an overlooked creek, close to home
A Hop and a Pump
Jump-shooting rabbits with classic upland guns is about as good a time as you can have in the outdoors
Welcome TO camp
Is there any place better than a good hunting camp? It has everything: great food, games and pranks, and of course, hunting. Shoot, we don’t even mind going to camp for grueling work days in the summer. Here, our contributors share their favorite stories, traditions, and lessons learned from camps they’ve shared. So come on in and join us. The door’s open.
THE DEERSLAYERS
Before you even claim a bunk, you need to eyeball the hardware your buddies have brought. In the process, you’ll see that the guns at deer camp are changing. What was walnut and blued steel may now be Kevlar and carbon fiber. The 10 rifles featured here aren’t your father’s deer guns. They’re today’s new camp classics
THE JOURNEY TO PIKE'S PEAK
Last summer, the author and three friends ventured off the grid to a remote fish camp in Canada. They hoped for great fishing, but what they experienced was truly something else
Stage Directions
When early-season whitetails vanish from open feeding areas, follow this woods-edge ambush plan
Rookie Season
A pup’s first year, from preseason training to fall’s big show
