# 1st duck hunt



## el9surf (Dec 23, 2008)

I got my first hunt in this past Saturday morning down on lake toho. I have been practicing all year at the skeet range. Not to brag but I have become pretty good at the range usually 23 of 25 clays consistently.
I guess there is a learning curve because I couldn't hit the ducks to save my life. I shot 35 rounds and got one ringneck. Ironically the only bird I hit was flying low from left to right about the same speed a as a skeet clay. 
I should have taken pictures but in the excitement of everything I went straight to the cleaning table.
The shooting I will figure out through trial and error but the cooking I need help with.

I plucked and left the bird whole. Brined it overnight and then a quick marinade of orange juice, fresh garlic, oregano and some adobo then to the grill. In theory it should have come out good but it was kind of dissapointing. 

How do you guys cook your ducks. I don't mind a bit of gamey taste but this one was pretty strong. I felt bad just filleting the breast off and wasting the rest of the bird so I decided to keep it whole. Any ideas?


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## HighSide25 (May 15, 2007)

1st, congrats on your first duck. It takes some people a lot more hunts to get that first one, you're off to a good start!

2nd, ducks are a lot different than trap or skeet. I can barely hit 20/25 on a good day at the range, but can usually go 6 ducks for 12 rounds at the marsh. Its a different game.

And finally, cooking.

We all want the game we hunt to taste good. If you like a small kick in your food, this is my go to recipe. Keep in mind it is better with puddle ducks, but divers(ringers) work well with this too.

Breast out the meat, be sure to get as much skin/fat off as possible, also take out any blod clots that may have formed.

Let breasts soak in water a couple hours. drain bloody water and rinse meat with cold water.

Marinade in Mojo seasoning(ethnic isle at Publix) for 6-48 hours, the more the better.

cut bacon in 2inch sections and cook in a large skillet. make sure bacon is cooked, but not crispy.
Put duck in pan(med-med/high) put cream cheese in pan. let cook for 3-4 minutes.
Flip duck breast and put fresh jalapono slices in the mixture. cook all together for 4-5 minutes or until duck is(most important) MEDIUM RARE.

ducks cooked more than Medium taste horrible. It is perfectly safe to cook them med-rare and is how they should be, unless you want a tough, liver tasty food.

How spicy it is depends on when and how many jalepones you add, the later you add them, the less spicy it will be.

There are more variations of this recipe, but this is the easiest way to say it short of showing you.


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## DuckNut (Apr 3, 2009)

Congrats on number 1

I have been cooking duck for many years and have found that the recipe is far less important than the time and temp at which it is cooked. 

My favorite is to slice up into medallions and have butter in a hot pan toss in the duck and in two minutes flip and two more put on a plate.


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## bmack (Sep 8, 2009)

Way to go on your first duck. I couldn't hit anything on the opener either. Usually takes me a box of shells at the start of the season to remember how to hit them. Try sporting clays vs. skeet for practice but keep in mind nothing beats shooting at the real thing to really get the hang of it. Hardest thing for me is picking out one bird to shoot at.

For cooking I like to cut the breast meat into small pieces(after marinating) then using a toothpick I put a piece of onion on one side, a green pepper on the other and then wrap that in bacon. Cooks great on the grill that way.
Have fun!


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## Frank_Sebastian (Oct 15, 2007)

Dang Kyle, I could have written that recipe. I soak overnight in Mojo Crieollo (Goya native sauce) and then fry almost like a wok dish. If you want to add a few clumps of butter with corn starch and make a gravy it is near perfect over grits.

Frank_S


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## el9surf (Dec 23, 2008)

Thanks for the replies and the ideas on cooking. The one I cooked was grilled to medium rare. Since ringnecks are divers I'm wondering if they might have a stronger flavor. 
As for the practice skeet and trap are the only things I have to practice on consistently. I think that if I could have shot standing up I would have been more comfortable and more successful. I was sitting on the floor of my canoe tucked up in the weeds and the range of motion is pretty restricted in comparison. Having said that shooting at ducks is a lot more difficult than a clay. 

Hopefully I will get back out in a couple weeks and have another crack at it. I will be sure to take some pictures next time.


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## Flyline (Mar 3, 2008)

Congrats on your first duck! I had used almost 50 rounds and killed a ringneck today. First duck of course! Missed alots of ducks flying over me. I need alots of practice shooting and always pointed ahead of the duck where the duck flew over me. It's takes time and get used to it. But boy it's was alots of fun! Now I'm looking for a mud motor before phase 2 season.


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## TomFL (Oct 2, 2007)

Congrats on your first duck, now you're hooked for life. Kiss all your money away now, say goodbye to your wife, find someone to mow your lawn for the next 2 months, and get used to putting on smelly waders because you're now addicted. 

A common mistake with new hunters is to take the shot before the ducks are really within range. If you're shooting steel vs heavy shot this is especially true!!!

Wait till you can clearly see the head or bill color (mottleds), then you know you can take 'em safely and humanely. 

Take a tip from me I learned while hunting with Ducknut. If there are multiple ducks flying in the next county and one drops after you shoot, NEVER admit that wasn't the duck you were aiming at...

When practicing at the range on the course, ask your friends if you can shoot first at each station. Don't even look at the course to find the throwers, just keep your gun at your side and ask your buddies to push the button. Locate the clay, raise your gun, push your safety off, line it up, lead it and pull. 

This is more of a response to the "surprise" of seeing the clay, and should all be one motion. Don't worry about whether you shoot 1 clay or 99 clays out of a round of 100, what you're getting is real world experience rather than knowing where the target comes from, having your gun shouldered, etc., which we all know never happens when duck hunting!!

My best ringneck recipe consists of not shooting them. Sorry, but for me I wait for teal or mottleds, or woodies or...well, ANYTHING but a ringneck or merganser.. 

Way to go. Next time post some pics!

-T


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## el9surf (Dec 23, 2008)

A couple weeks ago at the skeet range we were not calling the clay but instead letting friends push the button silently to get practice visually acquiring the target and shooting from a rested position rather than knowing when to expect it . It was a change of pace but decent practice as you suggested Tom. 

As for waiting I did my best to shoot at birds that were inside of 20 - 30 yards. Nothing landed or attempted to land on the decoys so all shots were at passing birds. 
I could recognize the coots and avoided shooting at them. Learning to recognize the other ducks during the early morning while in flight is going to take some practice. I should probably go pattern my gun to see how it shoots with steel through the chokes I have. I was shooting with my modified and skeet choke with a federal 2 3/4 1550 fps #3. 
If anyone has an extra seat next trip out around central FL let me know. Do any of you guys hunt on the St. John's?


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## DuckNut (Apr 3, 2009)

Remington and Mossberg shoot Federal 3's real nice with the modified OEM chokes. Mossberg shoots beautiful with improved OEM choke with the back bored barrel. Skeet is too open.

I use a method similar to TomFL when deciding to shoot or not - if I can see its eye, I can kill it.


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## HighSide25 (May 15, 2007)

nothing wrong with shooting ringers. they will never taste as good as a puddler, but they arent bad at all. plus a good ringer shoot is way more thrilling than a slow moving mottled duck.
if thats all thats on your lake, go for it..... however, there seem to be loads of teal around the state this season.


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## WhiteDog70810 (May 6, 2008)

Skeet are great for getting the basics down, but if you play by the rules, you don't develop all the skills you need to hunt.  As suggested, start holding your shotgun like you would in the blind.  Shoulder once you see the clay.  You need to be moving as you shoulder to stay ahead of the bird  Your average will go to chit, but you'll become a better hunter.

You will catch yourself shouldering low.  Due to this, your head will be high.  Practice at home with an unloaded gun until you can look at a spot on the wall and bring the gun to your shoulder with your head in perfect position and the rib in line with that spot.

Once you are back in the really world, you won't swing through the bird.  I am the world's worst about this one.  Skeet always fly the same speed and distance, so it is easy to learn the correct lead and hold it through the shot.  This is great for blowing skeet to hell, but the real world doesn't work like that.  Remember that you are trying to "paint" the path in front of the bird with shot, so you must swing faster than the bird is flying.  This spreads your pattern out and increases your chance of hitting a moving target.  The only way to improve is to shoot a lot of fast moving targets.  Nothing else will get you to swing that gun through the target.  

Sooooooo, find a sporting clays range.  It is usually $25-50 for 100 rounds and it is worth every penny if you find a good one.  The clays come from every angel, direction, range and speed.  I've shot 65 yard passing pairs at Station 1 followed by decoying doubles at Station 2 followed by a flushing shot with a crossing rabbit on report at Station 3, etc.  You generally get 10 shots at every station, so you have time to figure things out.  You will learn to move that gun in every direction.  You will also meet some guys who can shoot like you'd never believe and they will teach you if you care to listen.  They take care of the poor fools who show up with 870s because they all started that way.

Regarding duck in general and scaup in particular, they don't cook like chicken.  They will always have a liver-like taste, so you have to learn to like it.  I pan fry or grill puddle ducks and smoke divers and spoonies.  I like to brine them overnight before I do anything to them.  If you smoke or grill them, you need to leave the skin on.  Season anyway you like.  That is never the problem, except that orange is horribly overrated IMO.  Most people overcook the hell out of duck.  Medium rare is a bit risky (but very good), but medium (165o) is good and safe.  Well done is a travesty.  Smoked duck is sublime even if they are diving ducks.  Smoked duck and sausage gumbo is a great way to empty the freezer. 

Nate


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## el9surf (Dec 23, 2008)

Thanks for the tips Nate. We went out yesterday for round two and did better. I managed 3 ringers, my friend got 5. 
We saw a few other types of duck but they didn't come within range. We have only been out on lake toho. Looking to scout the St Johns since it's closer to home. Any tips for this area would be appreciated.


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