Breaking New Ground

I give Mike a lot of credit, he listened to my idea and decided to go with it. I know it was a big step to undertake filming hunting videos, but here we are a few days removed from the beginning of the project. Filming fishing is hard enough in the heat, rain, sun and fog, but now we are adding cold weather to the list of difficulties.

For those that aren’t aware, I spend a good part of the winter chasing Waterfowl along the coastal areas of New Jersey. The challenge of fooling the eyesight of wary fowl is hard enough without throwing a camera or three into the mix. Movement and glare are the biggest factors that are going to challenge us this winter. As I write this, I am still thinking about how to mount cameras in my boat to catch our action, and protect them from saltwater.

I can tell you this about our upcoming production. We’re going to do our best to make it educational and entertaining. Potential hunters can be intimidated by going to new places, and this DVD should give them a helping hand with what to look for and expect.

Often, I’m asked about the difficulties of hunting a bay that can be over 2 miles across at times. We discuss tides, winds and other factors, but it just doesn’t translate without them seeing it firsthand. The fact is the rewards can far outweigh the challenges with a little firsthand advice.

What do I hope to do with the video? I would really like to capture the essence of what I do, and why I return year after year to do it. The scenery is a little foreboding, but beautiful none the less. The sight of small groups of diver ducks skimming along just above the surface of the water is a sight to behold. Their wings beat almost faster than human eyes can see as they approach the decoys and pass by. Flocks of Bluebills can look like swarms of bees on the horizon as the gain and lose altitude as the sun rises. Geese and Brant with their slower wing beats and large wingspans glide into the decoys and look the size of jumbo jets as they approach. Then there are the Sea Ducks. Scoters, Oldsquaw, and the occasional Eider migrate through New Jersey yearly on their migration south. These magnificent birds are like nothing most hunters will ever see. Maybe I can bring that to you, at least I’m really going to try.

Captain Steve Horvath