Why has duck hunting become the "thing to do"

[Hammers down]

I'm just wondering why duck hunting has become the "Thing to do". It seems that everyone i talk to now is a DUCK HUNTER. It seems to me that duck hunting has now replaced golf as the thing for rich people to do. Shotguns have now replaced the the golf clubs, the swamps and marshes of america are now the golf courses, duck boats are golf carts, and dogs are shipped of to caddy school.

I'm not directing this at anyone on this site or anyone in general, i'm just ranting and wondering about a sport that use to be Special. A sport where you hunted with hand-me-down shotguns, in 20 year old boats, Blowing weathered old calls, hunting over old dull deekes, with a pet who could flat fetch ducks.

What happened guys? Not saying anythings wrong i'm just wondering what is making waterfowling grow like it has while the overal quality of the hunting has dropped.

I think it's the mew cammo.
Boy i'll be glad to get back to the days of being that crazy sum-bitch that wades in the water when it's 30 degrees. Remember those days, when we waterfowler's where called "crazy" now we are just the norm.

[Jimislesc]

I remember those days. I believe that the introduction of gortex, thinsulate and other weather related textiles has made the sport much more tolerable. The cold and inclimate weather weeded out a large majority. I would not like to go back to my wool lined army surplus jacket. People do not like discomfort the hunting clothes that have been introduced over the past 15 years make the sport much more bearable.

I do like those robo-deeks too!

[Jimislesc]

I remember those days. I believe that the introduction of gortex, thinsulate and other weather related textiles has made the sport much more tolerable. The cold and inclimate weather weeded out a large majority. I would not like to go back to my wool lined army surplus jacket. People do not like discomfort the hunting clothes that have been introduced over the past 15 years make the sport much more bearable.

I do like those robo-deeks too!

[Chap]

I would attribute a great deal of the popularity growth to released birds and hunting preserves. In SC alone, there are huge operations dedicated to providing "the hunt of a lifetime" for mallards. They allow the casual hunters or outdoorsmen, who are usually found on the golf course or in some other more tolerable environment, to shoot his limit, or beyond if he has enough $, and go home feeling like a bad ass duckhunter who just "cut some green" and "wore their asses out". These same individuals can then adorn their walls with mounts of these sickly birds so they can point out to their pals what absolute bad asses they really are. Not open a whole can of worms, but think about it.

[dukmon]

cabelas.

[dukhntr]

I can remember when I was four years old and my dad took me duck hunting with him for the first time. I have not missed a season since. It's a passion, and while I do encourage folks to hunt and respect the values we hold as duck hunters, I don't believe you can go to a superstore and spend $3000 on guns, gortex and acrylic, and quite get the same true feeling about "huntin ducks" as you could by growing up on it. You're right Hammers, there's just something about the way it "used to be" that duck hunters have gotten way to far away from. The sad thing is, it will never be the same.

[Catdaddy]

#1. release mallards
#2. Outdoor Life Network
#3. the increase in discretionary income.


Disclaimer: I like #2 and #3

[Gulfstream]

I agree with Catdaddy, tv has sensationalized the sport to the max. What we all experienced and know as waterfowling is marketed constantly on tv. Don't kid yourselves either, even though conservation and habitat is the goal, but you can thank DU and Delta and the likes also.

[JABIII]

I hear you Hammers. Duck hunting numbers are cyclic and will fall again as soon as we get rid of these assanine 6 duck limits. There are many factors leading to duck hunting becoming the "thing to do" but I blame the liberal limits and season along with the wicked spread of tame duck shooting for the rise in this state. It seems that everyone has a friend or two who has a tamie pond now. Sportsmanship is taking a serious beating and our sport has been whored out by greedy individuals and companies who have no interest in furthering what duck hunting is all about.

Nationally we are seeing it on a larger scale with companies mass producing videos with damn fools taking about how "grueling" the last 15 days of hunting in Canada have been. Then they show you all the latest tools you need to run out and buy so that you too can mallyhack 50 geese and 30 ducks a day just like them. It will only cost you $11,000 to hunt just like the dipshits from Avery do... Oh and don't forget you will need to go live in Canada for the season too. Which, I guess, is an improvement from Red China where those "good old boys from Tenessee" live during the offseason mass producing shitty duck decoys etc.

Turn on the Outdoor Channel and you will see them touting some new shotgun shell that effectively whacks ducks at 70 yards. What ever happened to decoying a mallard? 90% of the shots taken on even the DU TV show are skybusting these days. Why is that? The next commercial will be for some "mallard lodge" where you can enjoy "generous limits"-read all the tame ducks you can shoot for just $1500 per person.

Hunters are eating this crap with a spoon. Like Hammers said, the Camo Clothing lines certainly started this slide. Hell, half the "Matrix Cattail Turbo Marsh Camo" patterns they come out with look like crap in the field. I have seen damn near orange jackets hanging in stores they are selling as the latest in "Waterfowl Concealment Systems". They would be much better as "Redneck Concealment Systems" and should be sold as rain gear to Tennesee fans.

I don't know about y'all but we had no problems whacking our limit wearing a dookie brown Duxback canvas jacket when that was all we had. Don't get me wrong. I thank God and wounded soldiers in Vietnam for the invention of Gore Tex but aren't we taking it a little too far when they start calling our duck coat a "system"???? A system is what Barry Switzer had at Oklahoma when he was winning national championships. A system is what the brothers had thumping in their cars. A system is NOT my damn duck coat.

As Catdaddy will tell you, spinners are having a great influence as well. Ever seen 4 greenhorns in a tamie pond shoot 4 limits of greenheads using a robo duck? I have. And it will turn the stomach of any woodsman. These same greenhorns will be found in Five Points or on King Street at the bars talking it up about the wonderful duck killing machines that they are. Too ignorant to even know that $2.00 worth of D cell batteries did more hunting than they will likely ever learn to do.

The answer to you question, Hammers is GREED. Make enough $$ availiable and greed will ruin just about anything. Even something so pure and beautiful as duck hunting the way it is meant to be. When you have to learn to call and work a duck into your decoys. You learn to give much more for your quarry than you ever could possibly take be it habitat managment, donating time and effort to Duck Organizations, or just getting out there in a $200 boat with a 15 year old motor and a few decoys and killing yourself some ducks. Those are the things that the "liquor and the sticker" SCWA banquet crowd will just never understand and it is a shame that so many are being taught that way....

[Johnny Reb]

[img]graemlins/iagree.gif[/img] JAB really sums it up!!!

Bring the limit down and 2/3's of the "weekend warrior duckhunter crowd" will quit!!!

[LabLuvR]

It's gotten too easy and it's a fad now. If we allow robo's to be used next year we ought to have our asses kicked. If enough guys raise hell we can accomplish that if nothing else.

[Sasha and Abby]

Yall are both right. If the limit was 3, people would say, "... thats not worth going for..." and hunter numbers would plummet.

[Hammers down]

I've been praying for the three duck limmit for several years, cause when it does go to that 3 bird limmit, we will get our sport back.

[Love2BOutdoors]

Amen JAB, I agree with you 100%. What happened to the days of using spray paint on your one hunting coat to make it briar and waterproof. And that one coat was used for all hun ting, fishing and working. And what happened to hunters scouting the day before, building a blind, and then hunting the next morning? My oldest son is seven years old, been in a boat with me since he was 2, and understands more concepts of being a true outdoorsman than a lot of so called die hard duck hunters. Plus he comprehends what ethics are, yes , there should still be ethics in hunting. His favorite thing is watching ducks decoy, not shooting them. This, in my opinion, is what's wrong with not just duck hunting, but fishing, and life in general. If you don't start 'em young, you're adding to the "surburbanite" mentalilty.

Just my .02

[curlybackdogs]

Just remember, when hunter numbers drop, license sales drop, DU membership drops, stamp sales drop, retail sales drop...... and the subject gets dropped.

Financial greed and status of the local tamie shooters has gotten us where we are.

[Claimer]

I've been using the 3 duck limit for years. You guys must not hunt much on the cooper. If you shoot 3 it's been a fine day.

[Candor]

JAB is a poetically literate sonufabitch, eh? Very well said…it all boils down to greed. Greed like any other virtue can be overdone.

It is what it is though and we shall deal with it.

[Turd Ferguson]

I've seen certain river hunting "hot spots" turn into what looks like a Walmart parking lot full of blinded boats over the last 25 years, especially the last 8 or so. I admit that even I was the newbie once and probably crowded someone tryin to "squeeze" in. We've gotten to taking it like a grain of salt when we pass what used to be "our hole" by the young puppies-more power to em, I just wish they wouldnt sky cap as much- those mojo mallards do help em get closer to their limits, I guess a jerk cord is too much work and has no remote control. Cant blame em for having fun. Shoot em in the lips.

[scumterduckbusta]

tell you what;two years before this last season i always hunted away from everyone else.was taught to find birds ,barracade the area from rubba-heads and sit on it til hunt time.well it was not working well .so last year i found some birds and hunted smack dab in the middle of 30 other boats.grant it i was sitting at the hill since 12:00 the day before.i talked with people from charlseton,columbia,greenwood,and even florence.90% of these guys heard about the birds from some asshole who hunted their earlier.i remember when i would not tell my dad where the birds were.anyway to shorten this long story my group and two other groups that were their early shot our birds without the help of robo ducks and left by 10:00 a.m. while half the state with more robo ducks than the display at cabelas sat there watching the birds mill around and drop in on us.dealing with these conditions was very hard and took alot of patience,but we were able to surround the one little area holding most of the birds with good hunters and it paid off.hope this gives some of you help for this year with dealing with crowded rubba-head infested duck holes....GET PRE-PARED!!!!GAME AND FISH ARE PREDICTING RECORD BREAKING NUMBERS FOR RUBBA-HEAD HUNTERS THIS WINTER.

[Stripa Swipa]

Good posts all. This isn't only the case in duck hunting but all hunting has been infected with the Tom Miranda mentality. "whoo hoo....a ten point!" What a fag. Too much focus on the "end" and not the "means." Anybody can purchase the end they are looking for. E Don Thomas (Trad's hero) made a comment in a recent DU article that I think is on the money. He said voluntary restraint could be our generation's greatest contribution to the hunting heritage. One of my favorite quotes from history is when Robert E. Lee told an admiring lady to teach her son to deny himself, when she asked him how her son could become a great man too. Total commercialization of hunting and fishing is absolutely the problem. Like JAB said, figure out how to put back more than you take.