Making Memories, Daughter's First

Late this summer, our 2nd oldest daughter, 15 yrs old, came to me wanting to shoot during duck season. She has been tagging along for several years, enduring the extreme weather like any experienced fowler, plus she likes dad's duck blind cooking skills!

So, we started during the early teal season, got past the recoil concerns and some basic shooting skills.
We attended her hunter education classes, and she has been waiting for opening weekend. Thursday was a bust for us, wrong spot due to a inaccurate weather forecast and wind shift. Ducks just could not hook up with the cross wind and finish. She shopped with her momma friday and Saturday was a real bone chilling rain that I even questioned why I was out in it.

But come 3am this morning, she bounced out of bed ready to tackle the world. We got down to our launch point, misting rain, mud and kinda raw. We were both excited and ready for the days hunt.

She is tough just her momma. She was setting decoys like she always does, doing her part with the boat blind set up and not missing a beat. We worked several groups and she made several attempts but could not connect.

We finally got some mallards to get right, I lit several lead ducks and the rest of the group in tow. I flipped the blind door, quietly barking kill that greenhead!

She couldn't see it due to all the flocked headed decoys until the drake made some fatal mistakes. He started turning his head, swimming, and she had target position locked. She swung her shotgun and the drake came busting up off the water. All in fluid motion, she took her lead, the drake got about 3-4 feet of the water, and the report of her 20 ga and the sights of a pair of orange feet sticking up in the air!

Anna starts hollering, I did it, I shot my first duck!!!! High fives, fist bumps and watching my lab Cody complete the retrieve of Anna's first Mallard Drake. He even got tangled in 2 decoy lines on the way back.

I can't be a more proud dad. She has been so proud of herself all day. To endure the weather today, with a great attitude, and spend time with her ole dad. She could have slept in, visited with her boyfriend or hung out with her girlfriends. But she spent it in the outdoors!

Sorry for the ramblings, just an ole dad bragging on one of his own!

Brian