This photo is of my son, who is ten years old. This hunt will hold memories forever as it was his first hunt ever!! This Canadian Goose laid a golden memory for both of us. My son had been chomping at the bit for weeks in anticipation of the upcoming bird season. He turned 10 in December, which is the magic age in Maine for a youth to begin hunting. He has been in the woods with me before on hunts but this was his first attempt actively participating in one.
The hunt started at 4:30 a.m. when I woke both my son and daughter for the upcoming hunt. My daughter has been hunting for 3 years now and had made her own decision not to take a Goose. It is her personal choice and I respect that. Everyone should develop and nurture their own desires and goals for what type of game they wish to hunt. She did want to come along though because she knew that after the Goose hunt we would be hunting partridge, which is her personal favorite. My son woke with baited breath and eager anticipation for the hunt. We all dressed and then checked the safety of our shotguns and equipment. My son was going to be using a single shot 12 gauge with 3" BB shot steel loads; for Geese are a tough adversary. This was quite a step up from the 410 shotgun he had been practicing with but he felt confident he could handle the challenge.
We left the house and headed for Andover to meet my friend and co-worker, Dan Garbarini and his father-in-law Wayne. Once we met we formulated a plan of attack on a small pond, which was loaded with geese. The morning was cold and very foggy, which was optimum for a concealed approach to the shoreline of the pond. Dan and Wayne took the Southeast side of the pond and the three of us took the Northwest side of the pond. As we got into position on the shoreline we could hear the geese "honking" and we could hear ducks sounding off as well. My son was very excited with hearing the geese and nervous because we could not see them. I told him to remain still and look for any movement in the fog.
After about 30 minutes, we could see the geese moving to our right heading into a small cove about 30 yards away. As the geese congregated in the cove I could see that there were about 30 or 40 in the flock. I wanted to wait longer to see if the geese would move closer but another hunter arrived in his truck and the geese became skittish. I knew it was now or never or my son's opportunity would soon be gone. I whispered to him in the cover of fog, "pick the closest goose to us and concentrate on that one only then take him." My son acknowledged his understanding by slowly bringing his shotgun to his shoulder and taking aim. His face was like stone. His concentration marked that of a responsible hunter, emersed mentally and physically in the moment, and intent on finishing the task at hand. I looked towards the flock of geese and was startled by the shot, which was true to its mark. I watched as one of the geese closest to us toppled onto its side. The rest of the flock was immediately airborn. The goose my son had struck tried to go skyward and I instantly put it back down on the water. I then tried for my own goose as they distanced themselves from me and came up with a "goose egg"
I then told my son to finish what he started because the goose was still floundering in the water. He did not hesitate one second to reload the 12 gauge to fire his second shot. Now mind you this shotgun and load pack a whallop, especially for a 70 pound 10 year old boy. It took another round from mine and Wayne's gun to finish the job and then we retrieved the goose, which is another story in itself. Dan's dog would not touch the goose because it had not completely expired. He was sent out several times to no avail due to the fact that the goose was still trying to peck at him and was still moving. I ended up paddling a flat bottom boat our to the goose by hand, which we had discovered on the bank of the pond. What an exciting first hunt for father and son!! It is impossible to put into words how I feel about my son joining the hunting fraternity. So many adventures, experiences, lessons and unforgettable memories lie ahead for him and myself. (Next year my other son turns 10, look out!!)
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