7 Killer late-season duck tactics
Written by M.D. Johnson East. West. North. South. Throw a dart at a map of the United States during the month of January, and chances are good said dart has impaled a location where duck hunting is as challenging as it’s been all season. My point is, with less than a month to go before the curtain falls on the 2021-22 waterfowl books, “gimme hunts” have long become a thing of the past. You’re working for each and every bird. The details you overlooked in October are coming back to haunt you now. But while January ducks can be difficult, they’re not impossible. With a few tweaks and a major change here and there in your normal routine, you can start putting some weight on that duck strap again. Try these tactics. Invent your own. Do not — I repeat, do not — be afraid to improvise, adjust and adapt.Be a jerk
Years and years ago, Buck Gardner, a genuinely wonderful gentleman in addition to being a champion – and Champion of Champions – duck caller told me something I obviously never forgot. “If,” Mister Buck said, “I had to make a choice between using a duck call and using a jerk cord, I’d take the jerk cord every time.” Now this, remember, is a man who for decades has created, crafted, and sold duck calls for a living. But he’s right. Late in the season, motion in the spread – movement, ripples, waves, something – can be the most important thing to the success or failure of a hunt. Whistle while you hunt I’m no prize pig when it comes to blowing a duck call; however, I’d like to think I can hold my own most days. There are times, though, like during the late season, when ducks, and not only mallards but all breeds, seem to be somewhere between leery and downright terrified of a highball. When this appears the case, I cut back on the mallard talk – well-spaced contented quacks and very short low volume greetings only – and switch almost exclusively to a widgeon whistle. Breathy whistles, pintail trills, green-wing peeps; something other than your run-of-the-mill quacks. Practice invisibility Luke Clark, a young waterfowler who works with Matthew Cagle and Matt’s Rig ‘Em Right Waterfowl outfit, perhaps said it best. “You can run the prettiest decoys on the planet,” he said, “be that 100 or two, but if you’re not hidden well, they might as well be painted blaze orange. If you want to be successful, hide first. Decoy placement is indeed important. Scouting reveals all the answers. But,” he continued, with words of wisdom beyond his 27 years, “if you’re not hidden, you’re not shooting.” And it’s just that simple. You. Have. To. Hide. Stand back. Look at your blind. Touch it up where necessary. Cover the dog. Cover the thermos. Pick up your empties. Mediocrity is not an option here.


