Pickleweeds Last week, I heard that Dave Hagerbaumer, one of the finest wildlife artists of our time, had passed away at the age of 92. Dave painted beautiful portraits in watercolor, portraits that capture the true spirit of “being there.” He also carved the decoys he hunted over. On many occasions when Joe Wooster and I used to get together, Dave Hagerbaumer’s artwork and hunting decoy rigs used to come up in conversation, and from Joe’s descriptions (and the occasional picture Dave had sent him ), it became clear that Dave was someone who held dear the preparation and anticipation that is such a huge part of all that makes up a day of hunting waterfowl. When hunting, Dave would go to great pains to create a “set” that would create a realistic portrayal of birds in the wild, one that no doubt would add a whole new level of enjoyment to his time spent gunning. For someone like Dave, I’ll bet it didn’t matter much whether he took a limit or nothing – I’d suspect that hunting correctly was what really mattered. Shortly after Dave’s passing, I read this statement written by Tom Newell, a West Coast carver who was a close friend of Dave’s: “He was my best friend and hunting partner for the last 38 years. I will miss him. He taught me all I know about waterfowling. He loved decoys, duck boats, shotguns and gun dogs. After a good hunt, or a day of carving in the shop Dave would say “days like this make a man want to live forever. A few years back, I came across a painting Dave had done called “Pintails Over the Decoys.” Like most of Dave’s work, it sprang from his experiences hunting and was a realistic portrayal of pintail hunting in the marshes of the West Coast. What caught my attention was the depiction of the use of “pickleweed” stick-up decoys. A pickleweed decoy is a carving meant to duplicate the outstretched head and neck of a duck peering over vegetation. A common use for them was in the “pickleweed” beds found in salt-marshes. Dave’s painting clearly showed pickleweed stick-ups placed along the shoreline in addition to the floating decoys out on the water. It occurred to me that, for the duck hunter set up in a habitat conducive to their use, pickleweed decoys would be an addition to his hunting rig that would not only be beautiful, but also functional – just the ticket for what I like to do. Initially, I started out by making sets of pickleweed silhouettes in handmade wooden carry-boxes; but before I got any use out of them, they found their way into the hands of other hunters. For some time I pondered the idea of making up a rig of fully carved , three dimensional pickleweed decoys rather than silhouettes. However, ut the labor involved - and other projects I had going - always seemed to provide a good excuse to put it off. Finally, the muse struck; and one summer, I took the time to carve a 5-bird set of 3-D pickleweeds earmarked for my own use. Over time, the set grew to a full-dozen, and now I carry a sack of pickleweeds in the boat at all times. I have found that they are a useful addition to my rig, adding realism where and whenever cover-conditions are right.
Posted on: Tue, 04 Mar 2014 04:26:28 +0000
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