Woodies

Jim Strathearn turned me on to Woodies from his trip to Cameron County, Pennsylvania last year. We used the same guide that we used for the Elks this past January. There were 13 woodies in this small pond located right along side a lumber mill and construction company. About the only noise that seemed to get their attention was the diesel train which ran rather close. On the bright side there was only one train a day. By their sound, I could count the number of cars in the train.

I used two blinds. One was a wooden structure in the water - I sat about 3" above the water with my feet dangling in the water. When I first went in, I had to clear out some of the muskrat nesting material and other 'stuff'. The ducks were literally right in front of me. The other blind was a small dome tent blind. I do not know how they did it but Jim and his wife were in it last time - I barely had enough space myself with two tripods and cameras. I pulled two pics and still have a lot to PP.

 

Troy, Dianne, Jim, Keirin & Phil,

Thank you very much for your kind comments - these ducks are indeed very colorful which makes up for the effort as they are very skiddish. They also have an interesting peeping sound which they are not afraid to sound. What an advanture 'sitting' in the middle of 13 of this woodies - only possible using a blind.

 

I have atleast one shot with 3/4 of the wood blind - I have to check if I have the domed one - which one are you interested in?

 

Thank you Gale - I have more to PP - same old story - take too many shots and not enough time to PP - I have some Cherry blossoms that I also have to PP.

 

Thank you Ray - do you have these in the great white north? We saw a lot of your snow geese and tundra swans at middle creek in Pennsylvania a few weeks back. Can't wait to get back to Middle Creek next year.

 

I have been tied up with parenting stuff this week - I will see if I can put the blind to the top of the PP list tonight.

 

Thank you OhCorgis - I hope you post yours as well - they are great ducks to photograph.

 

Andy, Thank you - I was really surprised when I downloaded my nefs - this was the first photo that I took - the water droplets were an added bonus.

 

Here are two shoots of the blinds - I was actualy trying to NOT get the blinds in the shots - the wooden blind shows better than the 'tent' - I will see if I can find one on the internet and will post a link.

The wooden one is about 3'x3' and 3' above water - it sits in the water - the back side has a hinge on the top and lifts up to let you in. There is a bench to shoot off of a bench about 3" off of the water with my legs in the water. Their is a hole in the front with double camo screen - you put your lens through the screen. The 'tent' had two 'gun' holes and I sat on a 5 gallon bucket - could have used a folding chair but it would have been harder working the two camera/tripods. It was easier to shift on the bucket.