Opening Day 2022 at our marsh

[fox-admin]

Had a great opener at our marsh in the Montezuma area of NY. Little Nellie had a big day.

[44whiskey]

great pics,Nellie looking fit, looks like good weather,what are blue drums for, thanks for posting Fred looking closer i see drums are motor covers

[Jim Cloninger]

Looks like fun, Craig! Jim

[Jimmy Goodtime]

A good hunt and a good looking dog! Can’t ask for much more.

[jolly bill]

Hopefully, the rest of your gang did as well.

It sure looks good.

[vaturkey]

That's a pile of ducks. Are those diving ducks? I'm used to blacks and mallards and woodies.

[fox-admin]

Tom: 8 Widgeon, 2 pintails, 1 black and one green wing teal. It must have been a awesome breeding season for wood ducks. In all my years I have never seen the kind of numbers like this year. Our marsh is holding close to 1000. I was not hunting our wood duck holes on the opener but my son was and said it was a sight he will never forget.

[Jeff S]

Fantastic pictures! A perfect opening day for sure.

[Maggiemollie]

One happy dog.

[Jeff S]

I were older how many retrieves Nellie has made this year?

[fox-admin]

Jeff the early split has ended here in western NY, Nellie has 55 retrieves so far, 3 lost. The second split opens the Saturday after thanksgiving. Once ice forms on the marsh Nellie stays in the truck.

[loggy]

Craig, good judgement! I recently read a book about hunting with labs and double barrel shotguns. There was one chapter where the author sent his lab to pick up a bird on a pond covered with thin ice. No bird is worth risking a dogs life. It ruined an otherwise good book. Not a guy I would care to be around. John

[Jeff S]

Jeff the early split has ended here in western NY, Nellie has 55 retrieves so far, 3 lost. The second split opens the Saturday after thanksgiving. Once ice forms on the marsh Nellie stays in the truck.

That's tremendous Craig. You, and Nellie, are having a great season.

[fox-admin]

When I was much younger I sent my lab across ice to make a retrieve in an open hole. She broke through the ice half way to the bird and thank god she came up through the hole. She couldn't get herself up on the ice shelf and started crying bloody murder. I got out of my boat and broke a pathway out to her and she was fine but close to hypothermia. Never again will I hunt a retriever in ice. One other piece of advise is do not hunt an older deaf lab in a thick cattail marsh, they can become easily disoriented and lost. It has happened to hunting buddies.

[Jim Cloninger]

That must have been frightening, Craig.