A Dream Hunt for Sea Ducks in Maine

Megan Harten, Savage Arms Senior Communications Specialist, has dreamed of hunting sea ducks and had the opportunity of a lifetime to hunt them in Maine. 

Looking out the window of my last flight of the day, I could see snow covered earth as the sun was setting in Bangor, Maine. I kept searching for life down below as we approached the runway, but the sun had set, and darkness had taken over.

Being only one of four hunters in the group, we were all eager to engage in an epic adventure together. The crew met up in baggage claim, we gathered our belongings and headed out. I had a lot of thoughts all processing at the same time, all very important questions that should be addressed. Never having met the three gentleman I would be hunting with for three days, being the only female in the group, would there BE enough snacks?! But nothing compared to the anticipation of checking off a bucket list hunt.

I’ve been hunting waterfowl for many years. It’s what I spend most of my fall doing. Hunting waterfowl is a grind. It’s work! But the reward outweighs the work. I love the early mornings; leaving before dawn, trekking into our spot, the set up, and finally the first few sips of coffee as we wait for shooting hours. Hunting fields and water around home is normal for the Midwest. I’ve traveled to neighboring states to also do some waterfowling but never to the coast. This has been something my husband and I have been talking about for many years. Dreaming of one day being able to sit in the icy waters and chase birds that come nowhere near Minnesota. So, when I found out I was headed to Maine, my eagerness for a new hunt took over.

We arrived at Penobscot Bay Outfitters in Maine to be greeted by Todd. He welcomed us in, showed us to our rooms, introduced us to our cook, gave us instructions for morning, and left us to our welcome dinner. We filled our bellies and got right to bed; breakfast would be at 3:30am and wheels up at 4:30am. The night went fast. I remember laying in bed thinking through how the following day might play out. Just as my shut, my alarm went off.

I heard Todd enter the lodge in the morning, immediately flipping on the radio to the weather station. You know, the station that sounds like it’s being read from a computer, not a human. He began making coffee, bacon and French toast. We gathered around the table and shared breakfast together and went over safety protocol for the morning’s hunt and headed out.

Arriving to our hunting location, as quickly as Todd put the boat in water we were headed out to our spot. It was still dark at this point. It wasn’t too cold, and the waves were calm. You could tell that Todd knew the waters exactly – he was navigating in almost all darkness. I watched Todd’s body language, seemed to help me not be as nervous not knowing where we were heading. Behind Todd was one of his dogs. That dog knew what was about to happen. You could tell that dog had done this before. It stood with two feet up on a bucket, ears flapping in the wind, and tail wagging steadily. Finally, the boat started to slow, and Todd started to give us instructions for setting our lines and getting ready. The decoys were in the water – now we wait.

The sun was up, and the first flight of birds flew the line just as they should. Out of that first flight only one bird was knocked down. Happy to say, I could take the credit for that with the Savage Renegauge Waterfowl. The dog jumped out of the back of the boat to retrieve that first bird. I stood up as I heard the splash so I could watch this dog do what it had been trained to do, swim through the icy waters to bring back a prize, to be praised in the boat for doing a good job. Proudly, that dog climbed back into the boat and gave Todd the bird. Todd handed it to me, and my heart stopped.

I just kept thinking, ‘MAN! Here I was, in Maine, hunting Common Eiders’ and now I found myself holding one in my hands. I was in awe. It was such an amazing bird with thick feathers and large body. I inspected it closely and was surprised by the spongy texture as the beak grew up the bird’s head. I stroked the feathers on top of the head to feel how thick they were. I may have been quiet, but inside I was beaming.

At this point, Todd asked if any of us would like to try the layout boat in another location in the bay. I was hesitant at the point – alone, in a small boat, surrounded by water, while the others were within eyesight and a quick boat ride, but not within yelling distance. Yeah, I’ll let someone else go first, HA!

One hunter quickly said he’d love to give it a try. We pulled up anchor and headed to where we would drop him off. Again, a net of decoys went out – this time Long Tails. The hunter crawled into the layout boat, was handed a life jacket, his gun, ammo, and finally a walkie. Todd said, “Let us know when you shoot something,” and away we went. We headed back to our spot and hunted a while. Then Todd said it was my turn to try the layout boat.

I switched places with that hunter and watched the boat drive away. Oddly, I felt super safe in the layout. Once inside, it was much wider and sturdier that I had expected. Although I didn’t try this, I would imagine being able to stand up perfectly and not tip over into the water. Thoughts aside, birds were coming in. These Long Tails are FAST and much smaller than an Eider. Out of the group I could easily pick out a male and knocked one down. I radioed to the group to say that a bird was down, and just as quickly I said it more sea ducks were flying in. Todd said sit tight, they were working the dog to get their birds and they’d be over.

After a few minutes of sitting and watching, no birds were coming in. I began to eye up the shoreline and then the water. It was a beautiful spot; how could I not look around? About 50 yards from me, and 30 yards from where my bird was floating, I noticed eyes above the water. It startled me. I realized I was staring at a seal. I watched as it was watching me, and smoothly lowered itself under the surface. Then it appeared again, this time closer to my bird! I radioed Todd again and said, ‘Ah, do seals eat birds?! Because I have one here getting closer and closer to my bird.’ Todd headed over to gather me, my bird, and the layout boat. Morning hunt was over, the birds would be flying much anymore, so we left to hunt puddle ducks.

Taking the boat over into another bay, I was now inspecting the longtail. A smaller sea duck with a sprig tail. The bird I took had two nice, long sprigs. We arrived at our spot. Here it was more wooded, super quiet, and very calm waters. Here we would be looking for Maine puddle ducks; Goldeneyes and Buffleheads. The wind started to pick up on the point we were on. We had an island to our backs, and our decoy spread in front. We only had so much time before the tide came back in and we would no longer be able to get the boat under the bridge. We had some luck but didn’t shoot our limit of sea ducks. That didn’t dampen our spirits though. Sometimes that’s how hunting goes. We enjoyed the camaraderie, the shooting, and the views of the day. The first day was done and we were heading back to the launch.

Driving back to the launch all I could think about was what had just happened today. To say I was pumped would be an understatement. I was elated. My dream of hunting sea ducks was happening, and this was only day one.