WB
My ONE duck hunting story...
Monday, January 26, 2026, 08:05

I sort of feel bad, until I step outside in single digit weather. Arkansas is a fantastic place to shoot waterfowl, and I have only gone once. With a co-worker, goofy Roger. He had the kit, boat, trailer, decoy set, calls, etc. I'd never been and we talked up a trip. I did not have any "magnum" shotguns but did have a nice 870 Wingmaster 12 with a fixed modified choke. Perfect I thought, I'd just buy a couple boxes of 2-3/4" short-mag. steel (mandated) shotshells and I'd do what I could. They were remarkably expensive if I remember, about days take home wages, for two boxes at the time. I think I went with #4's or #2's can't remember. Steel pellets lose energy terribly fast so you use a size larger than normal, but I was cramped on capacity with the 2-3/4" shells. The choke was perfect. Steel shoots the next choke size tighter than lead, so my modified should throw full choke patterns. However I did not test it.

We met about 3:30 a.m. and got on the road a little after 4:00. In the water and setting out plastic ducks at 4:30 in a really sweet spot. About 5:00 a bunch of guys came up to find us right where they wanted to be. They cussed us and called us every name in the book. It was actually intimidating, I'd never experienced such rude and asshole behavior hunting before or since. It was almost as if we were in their deer stand, but it was public land in a big slough. They actually cussed us all morning and did a lot of sky shooting which pushed ducks away from us. I think they actually peppered at us from 100 yds. or so away once. Roger shot a drake mallard and it hit the water and disappeared! An alligator?! Huge fish? He told me sometimes ducks would dive and bite on a stick to die and not resurface. But I saw it myself it was just gone.

I had one very picturesque Mallard drake come in, cupped in the sunrise glow about 10' off the top of the water in the middle of our decoy set. Instinctively I blasted him at 30 yards, twice with the pump, in less than a second. It looked as if I had shot a pillow, de-feathered the poor bird. Alas, he had just enough left to fly right on off! I have never felt so defeated while hunting. The shotgun seemed totally useless with steel shot. What crap. I think I gave away the remaining 48 rounds to Roger for his trouble and efforts. I have had zero rekindling to try it again since. I did later get a double 10 ga. and consider some thinning out of problematic Geese. But that too has subsided. I don't think I've ever venture out again, with steel shot using less than a 3-1/2" 12 or 10 ga., a waste of time. I've eaten some well prepared duck and Goose by true experts and it was not bad. But it wasn't Granny's fried chicken either. It does have a bit of liver whang, I don't care what anyone says.

Guys spend thousands waterfowl hunting and it really helps our hunting revenues. I'm happy for it. It's just a bug that nibbled on me but no bite.