Big Mat Posted September 16, 2012 Report Share Posted September 16, 2012 I was out for both flights saturday and this morning, few duck about. Learn another part of the marsh and how the tide coveres it. Another good weekend overall! Apart from all the midge bites up my hands, arms, neck and face! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
harrycatcat1 Posted September 16, 2012 Report Share Posted September 16, 2012 (edited) I was out for both flights saturday and this morning, few duck about. Learn another part of the marsh and how the tide coveres it. Another good weekend overall! Apart from all the midge bites up my hands, arms, neck and face! I thought I had got away with it Matt but I have just developed a flippin great lump from a bite on my temple from this morning edited to say before you say it ( despite their reputation) no it wasnt Dale or Steve it is an insect bite Edited September 16, 2012 by harrycatcat1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
silver pigeon 3 Posted September 16, 2012 Report Share Posted September 16, 2012 Went out for morning flight today and loads of duck moving, they mostly flighted right on first light along the tide line which at that point was a good 70 yards away!If the tide had of been 20 mins earlier i would have had some good shooting! This evening we had an associate flight and 1 of my associates had his 1st duck, a hen shoveller and was well chuffed. I had my 1st ever drake Gadwall, and it was a BTO ringed one, again my first ringed duck A good day all in all Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thunderbird Posted September 16, 2012 Report Share Posted September 16, 2012 (edited) This evening we had an associate flight and 1 of my associates had his 1st duck, a hen shoveller and was well chuffed. I had my 1st ever drake Gadwall, and it was a BTO ringed one, again my first ringed duck A good day all in all T'was me!!! My first Shoveler, in fact my first ever duck. Indeed well chuffed and a great associate flight by GWA, with the help of SP3 above. Bring it on Edited September 16, 2012 by Thunderbird Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spaniel Posted September 17, 2012 Report Share Posted September 17, 2012 well done nothing over me and the associate, but at least i can unload the beretta now, and we did have a good laugh Fingers crossed I have Tues, Thurs and Sunday available this week for evening flights, so i may bag a duck Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spaniel Posted September 17, 2012 Report Share Posted September 17, 2012 Never tasted Shoveller, i wonder how it compares to Teal Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thunderbird Posted September 17, 2012 Report Share Posted September 17, 2012 I'll let you know at about 6pm, going to share it with my lad, he loves most stuff I shoot. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wildfowler Posted September 17, 2012 Author Report Share Posted September 17, 2012 If you shot it on the foreshore then I'd save it for a 'friend'! Maybe put it in a game terrine or something, roasted they can be a bit rough! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Airforcehunter Posted September 17, 2012 Report Share Posted September 17, 2012 Shoveler in the states tastes like rotten fish thats been laying on the side of a Louisiana road for 2 weeks in 100F heat All jokes aside, we put it in Gumbo or stew, and thats about it, as it has a pretty strong taste Are Shovelers here in the UK seen as a wanted Duck? Only asking as the ignorant American, as you would be thrown out of an Arkansas Duck Blind if you intentionally shot a Shoveler BTW- In the States, Shoveler's are givin all kinds of great Nicknames...Any for them here in the UK? -Hollywoods (Cause there always Smilin') - Smileys - Shove Meat Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
anser2 Posted September 17, 2012 Report Share Posted September 17, 2012 Shoveller vary in the UK from being Ok to strong tasting . It depends where they have been feeding , but that is true for any duck. I have had uneatable mallard that have been feeding on crabs and teal that used to feed in a very dirty ditch that was used for farmyard run off that were to say the least pretty strong flavoured. However all can be made platable with a little work in the kitched , Problems only occour when you are unaware of the potential taste problems and just roast the birds. One trick I use a lot for wigeon when they have been feeding on salicornia seeds or zos is to put a cut onion inside of them when cooking. That will take any strong taste away. A mate soakes his in salted water for 24 hours before eating. Thunderbird I would get a pigeon or two out of the freezer to join it on the table as one shoveller between two people is a pretty small meat ration. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thunderbird Posted September 17, 2012 Report Share Posted September 17, 2012 I have soaked the meat overnight in a litte salted water and I'm going to try it later, but will have a few pigeons on standby too! The breast was only about the size of a smallish pigeon anyway so it's only an appetiser. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
silver pigeon 3 Posted September 17, 2012 Report Share Posted September 17, 2012 Airforcehunter, shoveler are on the quarry list and therefore ok to shoot. Where we shoot a duck in the bag is a good flight probably not like when you were back in america , last year was really tough and i went for a spell of 15 outings without firing a shot!! I eat a drake shoveler that i shot last year and soaked it in slightly salted water overnight, it was ok not as good as mallard or teal but edible. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Yoggy Posted September 17, 2012 Report Share Posted September 17, 2012 For me personally, although on the legal quarry list I no longer shoot Tufted. No matter what I do they always have a rancid taste. Shoveller, are borderline, so I strip the meat and have it curried! Teal, are without doubt my favourite, followed by Mallard and Wigeon. Pintail are nice, but look better in a glass case!!!!!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
activeviii Posted September 17, 2012 Report Share Posted September 17, 2012 Well done dunc, put a few cloves and black pepper corns in the salt water. it will add just a touch of flavour and get the earthiness out. Will have to see how my flight ponds pan out. not good at moment but the geese tend to fly after a bit of the white stuff. Im in 2 minds on joining next year but i have a bit to go at here for the moment. ATB Phil. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thunderbird Posted September 17, 2012 Report Share Posted September 17, 2012 OK here's the verdict. Soaked overnight in salted water. Marinade for half a day in a mix of maggi sauce and Thai sweet chilli sauce. Fried till cooked but still a bit pink. Absolutely delicious and not a million miles from Teal. Thumbs well and truly up Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Yoggy Posted September 17, 2012 Report Share Posted September 17, 2012 OK here's the verdict. Soaked overnight in salted water. Marinade for half a day in a mix of maggi sauce and Thai sweet chilli sauce. Fried till cooked but still a bit pink. Absolutely delicious and not a million miles from Teal. Thumbs well and truly up Nice one mate.....Will definately try that. [i really do need to become more adventurous with my cooking!!] Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wildfowler.250 Posted September 17, 2012 Report Share Posted September 17, 2012 Shoveler in the states tastes like rotten fish thats been laying on the side of a Louisiana road for 2 weeks in 100F heat All jokes aside, we put it in Gumbo or stew, and thats about it, as it has a pretty strong taste Are Shovelers here in the UK seen as a wanted Duck? Only asking as the ignorant American, as you would be thrown out of an Arkansas Duck Blind if you intentionally shot a Shoveler BTW- In the States, Shoveler's are givin all kinds of great Nicknames...Any for them here in the UK? -Hollywoods (Cause there always Smilin') - Smileys - Shove Meat I really want to get a drake shoveler. Never shot one before. As already stated, with any duck it depends what it has been eating. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Laird Lugton Posted September 18, 2012 Report Share Posted September 18, 2012 (edited) Was at John Muir Country Park this evening for my first ever evening flight. Sadly no ducks decided to come my way, however there was a great sunset and then about a mile long walk back through pitch black woodland whilst thinking of Anser2 and Harnser's interesting stories! The place was deserted, i didn't see another soul for about 3 hours. It was 9c and I was glad to have the thermals on. Heard and saw some skeins of geese but they were very high and I don't have any geese loads so they're off limits at the moment anyway. Interestingly as it got darker I would have been hard pushed to ID the birds anyway. I've been using an RSPB guide which is great in daylight....so that is something I need to work on before the next outing. Here's hoping for better luck on the next trip... Edited September 18, 2012 by Laird Lugton Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wildfowler Posted September 22, 2012 Author Report Share Posted September 22, 2012 Where have all the Wildfowl gone!?! Its difficult to go wildfowling when there are no ducks or geese to be seen! I went for morning flight today and it was dead. A couple of skeins of greys in the distance and literally a handful of teal and widgeon. I think i'm going to concentrate on the punt for a couple of weeks and hope things improve! I'm shooting the flight pond tomorrow so hopefully things will be better there.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
steve0146 Posted September 22, 2012 Report Share Posted September 22, 2012 Plenty down my way for a change. Saw several packs of mallard this week. One flight in particular must have numbered nearly 100. Saw plenty of widgeon this morning and bagged a brace. So far so good for my season. 4 trips out, 2 canada's, 2 widgeon and one blank flight. Best start I ever had. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aister Posted September 23, 2012 Report Share Posted September 23, 2012 three of us went for a bang yesterday morning on some fresh cuy barley where i had seen quite a lot of greylags and mallard working. the mallard came in early as usuall and they came in perfectly to the mojo which was sitting within arms reach of my mates layout blind, we shot 8 mallard and decided that was enough. we always keep the mojo close so that if geese decide to come we can take it down and cover it with barley because we have found that the geese really dont like it. the geese started to come but none were too keen to commit, then i got a phone call from another shooter phoning to see how we were getting on only to find out that they shot the same park the morning before grrrrrrrrrrr. we persevered and sat for a while since it was a nice day (too nice for fowling) and ended up with 9 geese between us. i think if we had more wind we might have done better but we really cant complain. this is a pic of where the fowl was coming from behind us, as you can see, nice morning as far as the weather was concerned. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
anser2 Posted September 23, 2012 Report Share Posted September 23, 2012 I always find mid September a lull time for duck. The homebred mallard have learnt safe places to get out of the way of most wildfowlers and the migrants have not arrived in any numbers yet. Give a few weeks and we should have plenty of duck again. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wildfowler Posted September 23, 2012 Author Report Share Posted September 23, 2012 I always find mid September a lull time for duck. The homebred mallard have learnt safe places to get out of the way of most wildfowlers and the migrants have not arrived in any numbers yet. Give a few weeks and we should have plenty of duck again. Yeah, we have the same on our marsh every year... To be honest this has been the best start to a season for a while, our marsh doesn't normally really get going until mid October... Hopefully our flight pond will be one of those 'safe' places tonight! The wind has got up so it should be an interesting evening. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wildfowler Posted September 23, 2012 Author Report Share Posted September 23, 2012 Well we found some of the duck! I got another tufted a teal and a widgeon, but unfortunately couldn't find the widgeon. The other guns dropped 7 mallard, 5 teal and a couple of widgeon. The greys came within 80 yards just to tease us... All in all a good flight, i just need to dry my gear of somewhere now as it was sheet rain from the second we arrived, and i cant hang it all in the workshop as i glassed the punt today and don't want the moisture in the air in there! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
silver pigeon 3 Posted September 23, 2012 Report Share Posted September 23, 2012 Had a fantastic flight tonight, watched the weather report with interest and prayed that the rain would come in like promised! I had hoped that the fresh water in the splashes would bring in the duck and it really did! I arrived a bit later than i wanted due to kids parties and was surprised and relieved to find no cars in the car park. I quickly grabbed the gear from the car and hiked to the splashes, when i arrived i put off a few teal and 1 mallard, got the decoys out and crammed me and the dog into a hole in the hawthorn bush. As soon as the flask came out a single teal dropped into the decoys, a quick whistle sent him vertical only to be dropped by the 1st shot, things were looking good. A lull followed where the rain eased and a couple of others fowlers arrived, along with Thunderbird who was out on a taster flight, after getting him set up on a splash 50 yards away i got back into my hiding place, i didn't have to wait long before a single mallard cleared the sea wall, and was turned by the call. A nice crossing shot later and a large hen mallard was in the bag along side the teal. After this ducks were on the move everywhere, and i let quite a few low birds come past unsaluted, a drake came over high and to the left and was missed with the first but taken cleanly with the second, geese moved down the main channel of the river a few hundred metres away and the noise was incredible, i made my way to the sea wall and watched as skein after skein of canadas came through, 3 of us all estimated there to be 300 - 400 in total. I hid away again and soon after 2 duck came over high, i called them in and they decoyed perfectly the right hand bird dropped first quickly followed by the left, the dog made 2 nice retrieves, i sat back and watched birds dropping into the splash and let them be as i had shot enough for 1 flight. I finished on 4 mallard and 1 teal for 6 shots. Sorry about the photo but as i took it teal were still dropping in and they were a lot more interesting for the dog Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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