diver vs. puddle

[waterfowler44]

why is diver hunting so much fun? never have done it. do you eat the divers or what? i have heard divers taste like rotten fish? personally i hunt puddle ducks, and love the grain fed ducks, but am curious why so many love to diver hunt? is it for the sport or for the meat? just curious not trying to make anyone angry or upset!?

[waterfowler44]

also what are some of the recipes you use for the divers? i have shot a couple of barrows goldeneyes and was curious on how to cook them so they taste great!!!

[George Kuhns]

I love to hunt all ducks, but divers are a special experience. The shots are different than puddlers, the decoy rig is of utmost importance, calling is usually not a necesity, plus I usually have some puddlers aound to blast at too. I grew up on lake erie layout hunting cans, bills, buffleheads, and red heads. While these birds may not be the best eating, they can be cooked to taste good. Give it a shot, and you'll be hooked.
George

[waterfowler44]

i don't have any good areas around here, but i am sure i can find a spot, only thing i need now is a rig of about 6 doz dekes!!

[Bob "Chappy" Chaplin]

Even though I'm a puddle duck hunter to the core, I do hunt divers once the marshes and inland lakes freeze. Its a blast, to watch these little black and white birds hit the top you your line and follow it right in to the kill hole. All at about 2 feet off the water, flying like jet fighters.

Rigging your decoys can be done with mother lines or in singles, I use both types this way my lines coming into the hole are as straight as can be, and I use the singles as birds just hanging out as if they just came down the mother line.

[Mark Brendemuehl]

waterfowler- I am a diver freak. I love hunting them. They are a challenge to hit, fun to watch, just great to hunt in general.
I marinade them like any duck in Zesty Italian dressing and or Cabelas Rubs. One rub I like from there is the Tequila Lime. Poke holes in the meat, let them sit overnight, and they are great table fair.
Mark

[George Zahradka]

GUY YOU HAVE NOT LIVED UNTIL YOU HAD 50 BLACKHEADS ZIP IN OVER YOUR DECOYS DOING MACH 3.
OR HEARD THE RUSH OF THE WIND WHEN THE CANS DROP OUT FROM 400 FEET.
SURE THEY MIGHT NOT BE THE BEST TASTING BUT GOD DO THEY DECOY PRETTY..LIKE WAYNES GRANDDAD SAYS THERE LIKE A WOMAN WITH HER SKIRT UP NOTHING IS BETTER THAN THAT UNTIL YOU SEEN THOSE BLACKHEADS THEN YOU WOULD KNOW WHAT I MEAN......

[BROWN DOG]

All I hunt is cut corn, it realy gears you up when 3 or 4 hundred mallards swarm down on you as you lay in a layout blind!!!! smile.gif

[gitrdone]

Waterfowler, all I have to say is you need to experience a diver hunt.. Im sure you have seen an heard teal zip in to your decoys.. But when you have a flock of bills, ringers cans etc come zipping in doing there aerobatic moves an sound like f-16 you got to try it.. A good way to cook them is you can breast them but marinate them in a wine to your choice over night an then throw them in a crockpot, frying pan or even the grill.. Another way is to throw them in a bucket with salt water for about 44-5 hours or even over night.. the salt will tender the meat an then just throw them in the baking pan stuffed with stuffing an bake them up.. good stuff

[Niagara1]

Cans are the best eating duck of all. Do some digging about the market days. What was the most expensive duck? I belive that Cans where over twice what a mallard was worth. They have a certain tenderness to them others dont.

[jolle]

Like most of these guys said it's just something you have to experience. Divers don't slow down, EVER. They slide 10 feet when they land on the water, and hit one on a good hard line and he'll skip like a rock on the water. We hunt big waters a lot and get a good mix of the divers and puddlers. I love the puddlers backpeddling over the dekes, but as for challenging they are a cakewalk compared to crossing divers, especially when in tight spaces and heavy clothes.

Took my bro-in-law last year for his first hunt and had some good groups of jacks and bills around. First one made a pass and he was amazed and the roar of the wings. I said get ready bud next pass they're gonna be in range but they won't be slowin down. I called it, he went to the plug in record time, and didn't pull a feather! I said, "What happened?" with a big smile on my face. He said, "That's crazy, I shot right at them!" I laughed and said, "That's the problem, you shot at ALL of them . . . easy to do when they rip by you like that!" About a box of shells later he had 4 ducks down, only one being a gadwall, which he said was "too easy" as it hovered right out front :D :D :D

Oh yeah, we throw all the meat together, divers and puddlers and eat it all the same. Tastes fine to me. Now a merg on the other hand, tried one time to clean one and almost gagged from the rotten fish stink!

[CurrituckBoy]

Diver hunting is the best kind of duck hunting there is. You cant beat it. puddlers are fun to shoot at and work on them by calling but diver hunting there is no calling you flag and just hope. I personaly think it takes alital more patients and skill to kill divers and sea ducks. Also when they do come in even small groups of 5 or 10 sound like a jet flying past. they are also like little rockets flying by. If you havent diver hunted you need to try it at least once. and once you try it you will love it. I think it is the best hunting there is. Puddlers, and geese are great but divers are awsome graceful little rockets.

[Joe Fladeland]

I have never hunted for divers on the big water. I'm sure that would be an amazing adventure. But I agree with BD. There is something about being in a finisher and having a couple hundred greenheads funneling into your spread.

[Ringneck]

There's nothing in my opinion likes divers on the deck and if they catch you day dreaming you might not get a good shot, i own alot of ghg divers and i like to set the puddle ducks to the right and the honkers out to the left it makes them come right down the two gaps inbetween the divers and one day in canada at the netle marsh we shot, ringers,redheads,bluebills,goleneyes and buffleheads a friend of mine on a lake of the woods minnesota even shot 2 surf scoters ( sea ducks ). The gunning is close, the birds aren't the smartest and it's a blast. What's that saying the faster they fly the dumber they are. ;) My family owns a meat market

[Ryan Vande Griend]

Diver hunting is just so fast action, and just has a different feel from anything else. There is always that danger of the big water hunting that always gets ur adriniline going! Probably one of my favorite things to do.
A good recipie for divers is cabobs. Cut the breast meat in cubes, and wrap it in some pre-cooked bacon to a rubbery consistancy. Add some onion/green peppers or whatever you want, throw on cabob stick and grill on coals. You wont tell the difference b/w corn fed mallards to a little bufflehead, gotta love bacon :)

[tealtom]

Diver Downer hit the head on that one. Diver's don't slow down to land like puddle ducks do, they just come screaming in with the wind at their backs doing mach 4. When they're 15 feet off the water and you shoot them they fall 100 feet to you left, that's how "motivated" they are. Everyone should definately try diver hunting once in their lifetime. I thought I would never like it but one hunt and I was hooked.

[Montauker]

I've never had 200 mallards funnel into my spread and I doubt many East Coast guys have, but I would imagine it is something similar to having 200 blackheads coming at 50 mph and then just splitting at every angle, think Top Gun dog fight scene. Its good stuff

[Smokin Barrels]

Diver hunting is a nice change of pace from puddlers/geese. Here in New York, winter can come overnight and freeze up all of the small water and blanket corn fields with tons of snow. Rather than putting the gear away for the year, you can head to the big water and have some great action. Like everyone has said, divers come screaming into the lines and can certainly humble you when you shooting isn't quite on. As for eating, I usually mix them into some chili with some venison.

[NYhunter]

winter ducks are fun to hunt probly because you dont really need experince in calling but they are one of the most fastes birds there like a teal really really fast and hard to hit

[Paul Cupka]

I love gunning all waterfowl, but divers have a special place in my heart. Like Max said, if I had ever seen 200 greenheads finishing on me in a corn field, I may feel differently. But that just doesn't happen here. The first few weeks of the season for me it's all about the puddlers. I love finishing geese in a field. But when that north wind blows us some Artic air, well it's time to seperate the men from the boys. Big water, huge rigs, really cold, everythings iced in a New York minute, windy as hell, and the birds could care less. They're coming whether you're ready or not, so get your tail out from between your legs and put a 4' lead on them- you MIGHT get lucky! Yeah, I love diver hunting. They taste just fine to me.