Our "Big Bird" Adventures...Geese, Turkey...

Waterfowl hunting is something we're both very interested in but haven't had much of a chance to hunt in Colorado. The first time we both hunted turkey was in Colorado and it morphed into a passion. Our Minnesota adventures expanded into Canada geese, ducks and pheasant. A learning curve is in progress with lessons learned and the gathering of proper equipment goes on!
Colorado Snow Geese...
There really is nothing quite like lying in a corn field well before first light and experiencing the anticipation of legal shooting hour! Up early to put our decoys and situate the blinds was all part of our Colorado Snow Goose Conservation Season! The picture shows our time with a good friend, Eric, who started a Wounded Veteran's Waterfowl business. His crew was gracious enough to invite us along for a thrilling hunt. In Minnesota, we switched to Canadas via a guided field hunt. Duck hunting proved a challenge since we only had the bare minimum of required equipment...but it was an absolutely incredible experience sharing my son's first duck hunting trip!
Minnesota Canada Geese...
With no decoys, the best option was a guided hunt near Rochester, Minnesota for my son's first goose hunt. Link-up with the guide early, early, follow him to the field that was already set, get in the blind and watch for incoming birds! My youngest hit one flying parallel but it went down in a cornfield. We hunted morning and late afternoon and saw plenty of birds. The guide service also has heated pit blinds that we'll try in the near future.
Minnesota Ducks...
Our only recent experience was fall of 2019 via canoe and three dozen various decoys on a nearby lake. My son sure had a blast and scored his first duck which was a fast and low flying green wing teal. Valuable lessons were learned in the area of pre-operational equipment checks as we discovered that the trolling motor battery was dead! A few miles of paddling drove home that lesson!
Minnesota Pheasants...
Being an avid pheasant hunter as a teen, I want to share those times with my son. We've hunted fields on public land and with a guided service thus far and will continue in the future! The picture is from the guided service where taking hens was allowed (in case you were wondering!).
Merriam's Wild Turkey...
Our first turkey hunt turned out to be legendary and not to be repeated anytime soon! You can "read all about it" in the article that we wrote for the annual Colorado Outdoors hunting edition in the turkey page. That hunt truly inspired us to continue the pursuit of The Bird of Thunder!
Eastern Wild Turkey...
Like many other experiences from my teen years in Minnesota, I was inspired to share those with my son. Turkey hunting was no exception and proved to be one of his favorite activities to look forward to in the spring and fall. He began during his first year of eligibility and has had fantastic success! Included in this page is also a few snapshots of a guided hunt that a local camp put on for wounded veterans.
