Syracuse.com - Bad weather days are good days when it comes to duck hunting (includes video)

[HuntingNY-News]

Hogan said his favorite ducks to eat are mallards and teals. Watch video

John Berry/The Post-StandardEd Hogan and his dog, Mousse, on the lookout for ducks on Sandy Pond.

Ed Hogan readily admits he looks forward to bad weather.

“A good day for duck hunting, is generally a bad day for other people,” he said. “You like a nice stiff wind of about 20 to 30 m.p.h., and generally some snow or rain. It keeps the birds moving around.”

Hogan, of Fulton, and his hunting buddy, Mark Johnson, of Bainbridge, were hoping for some of that “good” weather recently during a morning hunt on Sandy Pond. The stiff northwest winds were present that day and the temperatures started off in the 20s and rose to the low 40s as the morning progressed. The weatherman’s prediction of snow showers, though, never materialized.

Nevertheless, the two harvested six ducks during the overcast morning, shooting from Hogan’s 19-foot duck boat, with its canvas blind and 150 horsepower motor. The end result was one hen greater bluebill, one drake lesser bluebill, one hen merganser, a drake goldeneye and a hen and drake bufflehead.

Hogan, 21, who’s attending college part-time at SUNY Oswego and Cayuga Community College, said it’s been a pretty good fall so far duck hunting.

“I’ve hunted over at Montezuma, along with Oneida Lake, plus a couple of backwater marshes,” he said. “I keep a log. I’ve shot about 60 birds so far this season. Things have slowed down the last two weekends, though. Most of my hunting has been at Sandy Pond.”

The two, who met in a chemistry class at SUNY ESF, were considering going out that day to hunt sea ducks (migrating long-tailed ducks and scoters) out on Lake Ontario. Generally, Hogan said, those birds are easy to shoot.

“They nest up in the tundra, and migrate through here,” he said. “They sit out on the lake and won’t come in toward shore. They’ll sit out there in 10-foot waves. They don’t even care. They come right up to the decoys and just sit down. You can start shooting and they don’t know what’s going on because they don’t see a lot of people. It makes for a grand fun time hunting them.”

However, that day the wind presented a problem for going out on the lake. Hogan, noting the sound in the distance of waves crashing against the shore were probably 6- to 8-foot high rollers, said that was something he didn’t wanted to deal with.

Instead, the two, zipped out of the Greene Point Marina at about 5:40 a.m. and set up the six strings of decoys for “diver” ducks — bluebills, buffleheads and redheads — along a small island in an area that was shielded somewhat from the wind. Hogan’s 4-year-old chocolate lab, Mousse, was on the boat to help retrieve the birds.

John Berry/The Post-StandardIt's more than just hunting ducks. Mark Johnson said he particularly likes preparing pancakes and sausage on Hogan's boat.

“She’s not the best dog in the world, but she does the job,” he said. “She’ll start whining as soon as she starts seeing ducks flying overhead. As soon as you fire a shot, she’s in the water.”

Hogan said he was taught to duck hunt by his father. He currently uses a 12-gauge Franchi shotgun. Despite having to endure inclement weather (“I once went out when it was minus 7 degrees,” he said.), he said his favorite part about the sport is the camaraderie.

“Apart from the hunting, I just sit here and talk and don’t have to be quiet. You don’t get bored,” he said.

Johnson, 23, of Bainbridge, who’s currently attending SUNY ESF, agreed. He hunts with a 12-gauge Browning shotgun.

“The best part is on the boat,” he said. “We have a grill that we usually cook pancakes and sausages on.”

Both hunters said they eat what they shoot, with the exception of the mergansers, which Hogan said bring a threat of botulism because of their fish diet. “Frankly, I don’t know if you can get it from eating them, but I’d rather not find out.”

Hogan said his favorite ducks to eat are mallards and teals.

He said he hopes to return to SUNY ESF either in the spring or fall and pick up a few more courses he needs to graduate with a degree in wildlife biology. He also hopes to do “just a little deer” hunting this fall.

“Frankly, each year I shoot the first legal deer that walks by me. I don’t care about whether it’s a buck or a doe,” Hogan said. “I just want to get one to eat. After that, it’s back to duck hunting. Some of the best duck hunting is during the deer hunting season because the marshes and bays are real empty because everyone else is out chasing deer.”

Life preservers required

From Nov. 1 to May 1, individuals in a boaters 21-feet long and smaller are required by law to wear a life preserver. It’s a safeguard for falling into the cold water this time of year and the deadly onset of hypothermia, which can come on a person in minutes. This past week, a duck hunter fell from a kayak while retrieving a downed duck at Sandy Creek and drowned. He did not have a life jacket on and his body was retrieved in about in six feet of water. During their recent outing, Ed Hogan and Mark Johnson both donned special, camo-patterned jackets that were specially designed to keep them afloat if they fell into the water. In addition to the traditional personal floatation device, other options include wearing an inflatable “belt pack,” which can be inflated at a moment’s notice by a CO2 cartridge that’s built into it.

John Berry/The Post-StandardThe two hunters took a total of six birds that morning. Here's three.

View the full article on The Syracuse Outdoors Blog