There are certain moments while hunting that are just unforgettable. Although, I have never quite put a finger on what makes a specific hunt so special that it will always be remembered. It’s certainly not the pile of birds at the end of a hunt that causes me to reflect back so fondly. Whatever it is, I know that 5, 10, or even 20 years from now, I’ll still be able to tell the story of my first teal with Grandpa, the opening day hunt with my Mom, or how Dad and I belly-crawled through a slough to shoot my first mallard.

But what about all the hunts in-between? The countless days of shooting nothing, the occasional limit of ducks, that brilliant sunrise or the foggy morning; all of these moments so often get overlooked and yet I know that I wouldn’t trade those hunts for anything.

I think that is what makes waterfowl hunting so special. To us, duck hunting is watching the Kansas sunrise over a marsh. It’s the 3AM stops at the convenience store for breakfast pizza and Red Bull. It’s hearing the whistling as a big group of teal rockets over your head, and it’s the daybreak airboat rides up Nebraska rivers. But most of all, it’s the quality time spent with family and friends that makes us who we are as duck hunters. We don’t just hunt ducks, we chase memories.

-Marcus