Almost time for NY 2014!!!
When I lived in the Richmond area I used to do a bit of waterfowling with varying levels of lacking success. What drove me to even try were my experiences in Upstate/Western New York. My cousin is big into waterfowling and got me hooked when my father and I ventured up there to hunt the late season opener for the first time maybe 8 or 9 years ago.
When I say "hooked", I mean it changed my life around and I began a six year obsession with waterfowl. I was going to be a duck biologist. No questions asked. I bought decoys, blinds, gadgets. Tried hunting in Piedmont VA. Didn't do well but always had a little fun and learned something.
Now I live in the Roanoke area and really have no access to waterfowling. I don't know the area well enough and don't have a partner to go with. I know there are opportunities out here, but I just haven't really taken the time to look.
But there is New York. That first trip almost a decade ago became an annual tradition. I live for this expedition. For one, I get to hunt with family. My cousin and I are close, but we see each other twice a year at best. My father hasn't joined me in a couple years, but my buddy goes with me now and we have an incredible time. Then there are the birds. Thousands and thousands of them. Finger lakes that hold every species you can think of.
We get to do some crazy things. Diver spreads with layout boats. Fields full of geese and ducks. Real scouting where you can knock on a farmer's door and more times than not get permission. Its just cool. I have witnessed 20-30,000 duck mornings and regularly see that many geese in a day. I've had 500 geese and 100 ducks work a field spread at the same time. I've hunted geese in the snow where they land on your foot bag. I've frozen my butt off and worked harder than many would to achieve the success that my cousin and his buddies achieve on a regular basis.
My cousin and his buddies are some of the best in the state. They just get it. Two of them are guides and a couple more help them out. They just started filming their hunts. They hosted Field and Clay Hudnall of Field Proven Calls and their crew last March and appeared on their "Abnormal Weather" DVD that just came out. And tonight they just aired on "Cabelas Northern Flight TV":
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pkTYfqixhrs (Andy is my cousin).
So to say that I am excited about the trip again this year is an understatement. I miss having the opportunities to waterfowl hunt that I did in the Piedmont, but if I can hunt NY for three or four days a year I am a happy camper! I've been told that the Cabela's crew might be there filming while we are up there. Just adds another neat aspect to what is always an awesome trip.
We leave in 8 days!! I can't friggin wait!!!!!!