The last part of our 3 part series regarding what to doing between big game hunts is waterfowl hunting. Arizona provides a wide variety of unique waterfowl hunting opportunities, though duck densities aren’t usually too high.
Waterfowl hunting has only recently become a love of mine. I was given some advice as to where to go and how to hunt waterfowl in Arizona, taking that advice I went out on a solo trip. The particular body of water I chose was located in high desert terrain, during the late fall hunt. I set up my horrible (looking back, it was terrible) stand and took a seat. I waited.
And waited.
And waited.
And nothing.
There was one moment where I was playing a game on my phone, not paying attention. I see a large bird-shaped figure fly into the body of water, but I figured it was a heron or something, because it was big.
I then looked at the figure, but the sun was in my eyes (did I mention a horrible setup?). This was no heron. The bird was a Canada goose.
I started freaking out, not only because here, on my first duck hunt, was a goose, but also because I didn’t have goose loads. I figured there would be no way I’d see more than maybe a teal on this hunt, so I only brought 2.75” #4 loads.
I tried to figure my plan of attack. The goose was way too far for a shot, and I didn’t have a lot of cover for movement. It was at this moment that the goose began to swim slowly away. I knew I had to try and coax the goose back in, but the only call I had was a pintail whistle, so it’d be a longshot.
I performed a series of short calls and, sure enough, the goose turned around to me. I was amazed and thrilled that I managed to turn it around. I gave the call a few more attempts and, sure enough, got it to move a little bit closer.
The goose was still out of range, however, and now it was fixed on my location. I had no chance for movement to try to circle around the goose. My only hope would be to stand up and give this goose everything I had – I was going to empty my gun into this goose.
I took a deep breath, stood up, took a solid a stance, aimed, and fired.
And fired.
And fired.
Three shots went into this goose, but it seemed almost untouched. It didn’t move, and I knew I had to at least hit it, as I could see my shot pattern over the water. The goose didn’t move, didn’t fly, didn’t flinch, it just sat there in the water.
I grabbed my gun and left the rest of my belongings, and proceeded by circling around the entire pond. I tried to hurry while doing this, but the distance to cover wasn’t necessarily small. I finally got to this hill where I thought the bird would be on the other side of. I slowly climbed up, peeked over, and sure enough, right there, was the goose.
Not only was the goose sitting there, but it was staring at me, which I was not expecting. I slowly shouldered my gun, took aim, and shot. The goose finally relaxed, and I harvested not only my first waterfowl, but also my first goose.
It’s stories and moments like this that make me love duck hunting – a hunter never knows what may fly to them that day.
In Arizona, a lot of duck hunting occurs by either sitting rivers or jumping ponds. Duck densities vary across the state, with northern AZ carrying a large portion, western AZ (along the Colorado river) also carries a large portion, and southern AZ carrying a decent portion. Arizona does have Mexican ducks, which only occur in the Southwest United States.
If you’re new to duck hunting, I recommend finding someone to tag along with. The learning curve can be steep for new duck hunters, and having a mentor can make it much smoother. Assure that your duck identification is on par, as the law states that only some ducks are allowed to be harvested in certain numbers. Also, be sure you have all the correct legal documents – a hunting license, migratory bird stamp, and a waterfowl stamp is required for duck hunting. As always, be sure of your local rules and regulations.
With the conclusion of this mini-series, I mostly just wanted to highlight the many opportunities that a hunter has to fill their season. Hunting small game, predators, or waterfowl always fills my season, and has created some of my more unique hunting memories. I’ll be filling my hunting season with these opportunities, and I’ll be sure to share them with you all. So get out there, have fun, follow the laws, and hunt some animals.
If you're interested in some of the products I use for waterfowl hunting, click HERE.