Fall Birds - Birds did Fall...Part III

When the five of us all drew tundra swan tags this year, we knew we had our work cut out for us because of the sheer number of tags to fill. Especially since we wanted to all go out hunting together on a single family outing.

Once November rolled around my youngest son Carson decided to head out on a Saturday to do some scouting to see if the swans had begun their migration through Utah. While he was at it he figured he’d do a little duck hunting and report back.

 swan hunt sunset over decoys  tundra swan and ducks

                         Sunset over the decoys                                        Carson with his swan and ducks

Somewhat surprising to all of us, Carson not only found swans but he bagged a swan mid-morning. He immediately made phone calls to all of us who still held tags and urged us to come meet him in the marsh ASAP. However, we all had previous commitments and were unavailable but both Dallas and Natalie committed to meeting Carson on Sunday around noon, while Daxton and I would have to wait until the next weekend to go hunting.

Only a couple of hours into the Sunday hunt and the kids had two swans flying toward their decoy spread. Since this was Natalie’s first time swan hunting she would be first to shoot. As the swans got close, both shooters readied for a shot. Finally the giant white birds were within range and Dallas called the shot. At the blast from Natalie’s 12 gauge one swan dropped! And within a flash Dallas pulled the trigger on the other swan, two birds down!

 tundra swan hunt  tundra swans

              Natalie and Dallas doubled up                                           Three down, two to go...

As the upcoming weekend approached I was getting anxious to the point that I took Thursday off work and headed solo into the marsh. The word was out that swans had arrived and hunters had begun to flock to the Wildlife Management Areas/Bird Refuges. I figured the weekend pressure would make it difficult for us to double up on swans like the kids had done the previous weekend. And when I arrived to hunt that weekday morning the parking lot already contained several boat trailers and trucks so I could easily imagine the difficulty that we’d face with the upcoming weekend hunting pressure.

For me the morning was slow. I only saw a few swans flying way far in the distance. That was until just before 9:00 a.m. when I spotted four swans flying relatively low across the open water ahead. Attempting to keep the group coming toward my decoys, I used my voice to make a loud “woo-woo” sound, emulating the call of a swan. My setup was working -- the swans were getting closer and closer and my heart was pounding harder and harder. Finally the swans were within range, I pulled up to shoot but my trigger was stiff and my gun wouldn’t fire. I proceeded to yank until I realized that my safety was still on. It took me a few seconds to figure it out and by that time the swans had passed overhead but not yet out of range -- I got off a shot at the closest bird. My shot definitely rocked the sawn but it didn’t drop. However, the hit must have done just enough damage to cause the swan to want to land because it swung wide and circled right back towards me. My next shot was much better, the swan dropped right at the edge of my decoys!

 tundra swans flying overhead  swan hunting in boat

          Carson had lots of swans flying overhead                         Boat made the job much easier

Saturday rolled around and after a short boat ride, Daxton, Carson and I settled into the reeds awaiting first light. During the three previous outings we hadn’t seen swans flying early so the boys had their guns loaded up with #4 shot as they anticipated getting some early shots at ducks. It was barely legal shooting time when we heard our first shots and noticed ducks skirting the decoys of the hunters next to us. Seconds later we heard the call of a tundra swan in the distance. It took a moment to locate the bird in the low light of the early dawn, but both of the boys spotted the swan and said it was headed directly for us!

 tundra swan hunt iwenthunting.com  swan hunting iwenthunting

  Determination to find & retrieve swan was impressive!                           Daxton with first swan!

Within a short 15 seconds the swan was close, not giving Daxton enough time to swap out his 20 gauge duck loads for swan loads. Without a second thought Daxton grabbed my 12 gauge and got ready. But just before the swan was close enough to shoot, it veered slightly to our left but a shot was still going to be possible. Carson was whispering to Daxton until he finally called the shot. Daxton pulled up and dumped the swan on his first and only shot! The speed of the passing swan caused the bird to go down in the dense thicket of reeds behind us, but Carson was out of the boat and quickly sloshing his way in the direction of the swan. It took several minutes for him to find the dead bird but he did.

 tundra swan hunt iwenthunting  swan hunting iwenthunting

       No dog...next best retriever                             BOSS 3/5 shot-combo did the trick

Luckily we had now filled all of our tags because we saw very few swans during the rest of the day and certainly none close enough to shoot. With little time before the Division of Wildlife Resources check-in site closed for the weekend, we loaded up and headed out. It’s mandatory to take any swan that has been harvested to be measured and evaluated by the DWR within 72 hours of harvest. And since I hadn’t yet taken my swan in, I brought it along which allowed Daxton and I to get a picture of us together with our swans!