2025 Preseason...

[Darren]

Can vouch for that teal flight from the 1 time I hunted Gabe's blind in regular season, unfortunately without Gabe.

Will also never forget the mysterious calls before LST echoing out of that treeline, some kinda wild commotion I'd not previously heard.

[Rick]

The ghosts of Jean Lafitte's crewmen who were buried with the treasure they'd hauled in there for him. Still pissing and moaning about it.

[Rick]

Pretty sure most of that pond 's flight comes off "the body" of broken marsh west of my current spot, as the guys spoke of them "coming around" the location treeline in front (west) of that blind - and on down Issac's run. It's a flight I've watched from my current blind during the regular season but played hob trying to break. Maybe just not getting loud enough.

Perhaps another seasonal milestone is my having woke up thinking about that flight and how I hope to break more of it. Time to start September teal prep in earnest.

Though there are days or winds when the chain of broken marsh my pond's a part of is a teal passer (read: "er" as a hard "a"), as the old Cajuns would say, there are more others when the flights are nearly all west or north of me and for the most part beyond my reach. I've experimented a bit with squeezing their pitch out of the cutdown that's my loudest call with some success, and will work much more on that when the September season opens - and there are only friends and family along to embarrass myself in front of.

But I've also been thinking that intermittent spinners should be better teal attention getters - and holders - than continuous ones, just as they've most certainly seemed when I've flipped their switch on and off to draw squealers working over otherwise too distant marsh to be moved by continuous spinning. To that end, I've purchased a couple timers that I plan to install and begin entertaining the neighbors with this weekend, as I play with differing spinning cycles.

[Darren]

Always tinkering with something, only one way to find out !

re: traffic

Burns me up to go out on our lease and put eyes on so many bluewings passing high and low alike during Sept and no matter the flashing wings and screaming calls, have a miniscule response ratio to show for it. Wad last year on opening day showed they MIGHT/CAN do it just as pretty as you could want, but far too many others never blinked for the call.

The fact that it's a set-your-watch-to-it north to south "migration" flight pattern at least tells me I'm not just being ignored for kicks, but rather they've got somewhere else already in mind, so no hard feelings

[Rick]

I've generally found the high and hauling ones require a lot more work early on than after they've had a chance to settle down.

Took Call for a ride out to our blind this morning to clear pathways for our spinners' wiring and flat forgot the splasher's. Good news being that a wad of a couple dozen blue-wings headed due south over the blind at what I find workable altitude. Bad new being that I could smell where another meaningful alligator that had laid up near the blind, so we still didn't get them all. Grrr.

Saw several trucks with trailers parked along the ag lands south of Klondike, but whatever their occupants were doing (teal prep or dove hunting) wasn't pushing much to the marsh, as a tour of our better teal blinds encountered none.

[Rick]

...I've also been thinking that intermittent spinners should be better teal attention getters - and holders - than continuous ones, just as they've most certainly seemed when I've flipped their switch on and off to draw squealers working over otherwise too distant marsh to be moved by continuous spinning. To that end, I've purchased a couple timers that I plan to install and begin entertaining the neighbors with this weekend, as I play with differing spinning cycles.

Didn't happen over the weekend, but I got the timers installed (in a manner they're easily bypassed, if need be) and, through some trial and error, preliminary sequences set that I hope will either do or provide further direction. "We'll see..."

[Rick]

Been hearing that Wayne, my blind's nearest Cherry Ridge neighbor, has been talking about moving, which had me a bit worried about whether that and his seniority might lead to a change in my own situation, as he'd been in what's now my blind before moving to where he's been since when its previous occupant retired from guiding some seasons back. Was relieved to see him at the marsh this morning and learn he was heading to the North blind that's been our "go-to" for squealers on mornings when ours were dead and the better blinds still occupied.

That makes the spot he's leaving an "extra blind" that only he or I are apt to sometimes slide into if lack of pressure leads to its immediate area attracting more birds. Which should be a boon for me both in terms of increased traffic between holding areas and freedom to call trafficking birds I'd been passing on out of courtesy to he and his parties. Naturally, there's some "we'll see..." to how that will go, but it's a lot more encouraging than learning I have to move again.

Also encouraging has been the number of woodies trying to drop into the pond-scaped portion of our hole while Call and have been working on breaking up the black dirt blocking his access to the pond's south bank. Haven't, however, seen a teal anywhere, rice or marsh, since those zipping over the blind last Saturday.

[Darren]

Good news on the non-move, hope the added flexibility pays off. Got report of Delacroix area birds that were thick one day, gone the next. High suspicions that the cool snap bumped them, and didn't backfill just the same, just as has long been my observations in past years.

No cool snaps next week so just have to hope pressure this weekend north of us (Missouri) and shortening daylight moves more in.

[Rick]

Heard today from a fellow whose farm is holding scads of teal that "You wouldn't know they were there, if you didn't know they were." So it could well be yours are just dug into spots, as well.

Left the wild child at the house this morning and got the blind hosed down with the relatively clean rain water in it before pumping that out and adjusting the blind's new anchorage to insure water settles at the pump's location under my seat. No more pit water stank in our tank, thank you. Also blocked crippled ducks' and the dog's access to the boat hide's interior with 2"x3" wire fencing. No more arm wrestling the later with the former to keep him from leaving a trail of muck through the boat on his way back to his stand, or worse getting a pad blistered by its exhaust pipe. And no shortcuts to what falls behind our island, gots to go around it.

Should be out there at LST again in the morning to try and beat troublesome breezes while running my gizmo's hard-wiring, and am thinking I may get to see some birds weekend ag land hunters' preparations push our way to test it on...

[Rick]

Call and I spent every early morning this week easing through teal preparations without seeing the object of said preparations among the goodly number of other species checking on our progress before this morning, when we were finally treated to the sight of a few groups working the marsh - albeit while visiting with Byron at his blind. And, back at the boathouse, Neil added to that encouragement by noting that he had a little bunch come to land as soon he turned his spinner on.

Our blind's full dress rehearsal with cover in place, gizmos gizmoing and a bit of calling didn't produce much of anything the first half hour or so, as those early birds we saw mostly passed right on by before woodies and mottleds finally started dropping in in numbers such that Call eventually lost interest in them. His only offer to break came on the first splash and bob of the modified Mallard Machine (MMM) - but I expect it will take a sterner voice to settle him when guns go off and potential RETRIEVES!!! start falling.

Will be "interesting," in the Chinese curse sense of that word, to see how he handles not being able to retrieve anything he's not boated to past alligator danger. All of my others have come to accept that warm weather limitation pretty readily, but it could be a tough test for this wild child to pass. Could very well find it necessary to do without his company and utility on crips making it to the grass. "We'll see..."

[Darren]

I'm sure it'll shake out just fine when the guns get gunning in the rice...

[Rick]

I've great faith in the first couple mornings. After that, it'll go how it goes, which I'd be fine with if not for my guests' sake.

[Rick]

September survey email just showed up. Our region was lowest since 2018: 46% lower than the most recently completed, 2023, and nearly 60% below the most recent 5 and 10yr averages. "We'll see..."

[DComeaux]

September survey email just showed up. Our region was lowest since 2018: 46% lower than the most recently completed, 2023, and nearly 60% below the most recent 5 and 10yr averages. "We'll see..."

I just read the email. You'll either have some of the remaining population, or not.

[Rick]

As always, my worry is for weekday guests.

[Rick]

Pretty sure most of that pond 's flight comes off "the body" of broken marsh west of my current spot, as the guys spoke of them "coming around" the location treeline in front (west) of that blind - and on down Issac's run. It's a flight I've watched from my current blind during the regular season but played hob trying to break. Maybe just not getting loud enough.

Perhaps another seasonal milestone is my having woke up thinking about that flight and how I hope to break more of it. Time to start September teal prep in earnest.

Though there are days or winds when the chain of broken marsh my pond's a part of is a teal passer (read: "er" as a hard "a"), as the old Cajuns would say, there are more others when the flights are nearly all west or north of me and for the most part beyond my reach. I've experimented a bit with squeezing their pitch out of the cutdown that's my loudest call with some success, and will work much more on that when the September season opens - and there are only friends and family along to embarrass myself in front of.

But I've also been thinking that intermittent spinners should be better teal attention getters - and holders - than continuous ones, just as they've most certainly seemed when I've flipped their switch on and off to draw squealers working over otherwise too distant marsh to be moved by continuous spinning. To that end, I've purchased a couple timers that I plan to install and begin entertaining the neighbors with this weekend, as I play with differing spinning cycles.

Turns out that I lied to myself about giving the extra loud cutdown's version of teal calling a shot at long-distance teal and stuck with teal tuned Alan Stanley Deceiver throughout, which I've been kicking myself over since.

And, while I like the spinners running intermittently better than continuously (when "on"), I found it hard to judge its effectiveness on game, as there were mornings when both teal and black-bellies showed little or no apparent interest in them. And the "off" switch was of greater influence. Though, a bit surprisingly, both woodies and mottleds seemed to offered greater encouragement to continue the timer experiment by very often finishing while they cycled.

[Darren]

Your spinner use observation is interesting. With the ever-growing collection of YouTube content, Louisiana-based hunters included, lots of footage of hunters plainly just letting their spinners roll and whether flocks or singles, birds just flat eating the spinners up.

Wish I had more data points myself for this season, but with so few, hard to draw any notes for next season.

[Rick]

Your spinner use observation is interesting. With the ever-growing collection of YouTube content, Louisiana-based hunters included, lots of footage of hunters plainly just letting their spinners roll and whether flocks or singles, birds just flat eating the spinners up.

Long been my custom to afford birds that don't work more focus than those that do.

[Darren]

Long been my custom to afford birds that don't work more focus than those that do.

In similar fashion, weighing other ideas of achieving some decoy movement on calm days other than with my motorized splasher feeder butts. Seems a few times we've seen grays bail on them....though hard to tell if it was the splasher or just grays being grays. Our lease partner Will has had good success with just the little wobble butts he custom painted to be gray duck-like white, though found mine had bit the bullet at season's end back in January so tossed it.

[Rick]

My unedited for YouTube experience has kept me suspicious of movement I can't control: noticed a mess of big ducks pushing off the very first (California import) spinner I ever saw in action (much less those since), tied well over a thousand Texas rag windsocks only to find them less effective than rags alone on windy days, and I improved the original GHG's speck finishing success by cutting narrow, motion stopping, slots in most of their motion cones long before the factory cones provided that option.

Same with the modified Mallard Machine splasher I've settled on: soon learned that while approaching teal were apt to key on its splashing, it's easily overdone on finishing big ducks. (Also let me down last week when teal times got tough. In part, I hope, because one of its modified propeller tips has been damaged such that it's no longer slinging water as well as it should. Expect to break out my down singeing torch and modify a new prop for it sometime today.)

[Darren]

Seeing more vids of SW La specks arriving, know you don't have to be told to keep an eye out !

[Rick]

Thought I might have heard one the last weekend of teal, but it was brief, distant and in a direction where it was most likely someone giving a call a toot or three. Been back and forth through what was once prime speck country to the marsh a few times since and out and about the area between Thornwell and Welsh a bit without spotting any to date.

Wish there was some rain in the forecast, and glad our new 30" pump is set up and ready to go, if need be, as the marsh is low enough that the mudboat's rudder has stalled my pond grinding. Miss my Go-Devil.

[Darren]

Yea forecast for rain is bleak for the foreseeable, of course October being our driest month, grrrr.

Are you permanently transitioned to mud boat vs. go-devil, or just temp?