The day in the pictures it was about 30 degress, ice was making on everything. We had a sheet of slush ice drift in the decoys twice and screw them all up. I don't know what the water temperature was exactly but I know that you didn't want to get into it. That boat is actually amazingly stable. It's 19 feet long, and wide enough that you can get into it without tipping. We haven't swamped it yet.....
As far as the canvasbacks being 70% drakes, we don't see anything like that were we gun for them. The flocks are about 50/50 drakes and hens. We try to go for the drakes but on a rough sneaking day like that we were keen to get finished up and head back to the duck shack. We were all solid ice from the belly down, ice on the gunbarrels, and wet from the waves blowing up our sleeves and down our necks.
The canvasbacks from there are excellent on the table. They feed on the wild celery that still grows where we shoot. Further south you get them occasionally that are a little strong. I think they get into the mussells once they get into country that doesn't have the vegetation they like the most.
And you're all exactly right about the old time price of canvasback. I've got some commission merchant price sheets in my collection that list mallard at $1 or less and cans at $5.
Destry
