The first memories I have of hunting, or more specifically shooting, were as a teenager with a few of my friends.  We would head out to my buddies dad’s farm and the neighboring farms and shoot groundhogs, pigeons, rabbits, crows or even just clays nearly every weekend and even some days after school.  As time went on we started hunting waterfowl on the saugeen river which, as most of you know, opened a world of challenges and a very steep learning curve.  Regardless of how different if was to shoot pigeons flying around a barn versus big canada's on the river I knew waterfowling was definitely the avenue I wanted to pursue.

 

We had hunted a few fields as we got a little older but never really had a banner day, so to speak, until my buddies dad invited me and a few of my friends to head out with him to a local swamp for a wood duck shoot.  We all strapped on our brand-new chest waders and headed into the abyss.  I remember thinking as we walked further into the swamp - 870 super mag in hand and my goose flute around my neck - that everywhere I look, in this no man's land, was like a painting you would see above a fireplace in a colonial style house. It was a really special place.  As the night went on the young boys all sat around and listened to the old boys tell tales about their experience in this swamp and beyond. We would only look away to call at or shoot the odd wood duck passing through and then all hell broke loose.  Last light came and the ducks and geese began appearing out of nowhere, like they were a part of the trees, and only when the sun began to set would they drop into human sight making an already picturesque scene that much more beautiful and chaotic at the same time.  We walked away that night with a good number of woodies and mallards and a handful of geese, one of which had a miner band (which i would only later realize the significance of) and as we walked out of that oil painting, I knew that THIS was for me, I was hooked.

 

As the years went on and high school turned into college, my hobby became my passion.  Every opportunity in the fall I got was spent either scouting, getting permission or hunting waterfowl.  It was just something about the chase and how the simplest thing could make or break the whole hunt that kept me going and learning and improving, it truly was a challenge and I couldn't get enough.

 

After college, I realized this was going to be just more than a hobby and I wanted to share my passion of both the outdoors and hunting and what better way to do that then guiding.  There was an outfitter that worked out of my home town and I started there as a guide, then head guide and finally partner for several years.  I made a lot of great friends some that I still hold dear to this day but my partner and I had differing opinions on what direction we wanted the business to go and so we parted ways and Wingfeather Outfitters was born!

 

At Wingfeather we want to ensure that our guests have the best experience possible and we do everything and sacrifice a lot to ensure this happens.  Obviously, we can't control everything like weather or migratory patterns/times but that's where the variables end.  What separates us from all the other guys "in the biz" is the amount of work we put in.  The season for my staff and I starts about a month or more before opening day.  We start visiting our farmers for permission, cleaning and fixing trailers, sorting decoys, building blinds and making plans to ensure, when D day hits,  we are as ready as we can be.  This doesn't include the seemingly never-ending phone calls, emails and social media messages that I like to respond to as quick as possible, which is sometimes difficult based on shear volume, however this is a good problem to have!

 

The typical day for me, when the season is upon, can start anywhere from 2am to 4am to get into the fields and ensure the spread is set, the blinds are out and next thing to invisible and any issues (that sometimes arise no matter how much we plan) can be resolved long before the sun cracks the horizon.  Shortly before shooting time the guests are brought to the field, geared up and given their posts.  My favourite part of the hunt is that calm before the storm.  The time after the trucks all leave the field but before the birds start flying where I can chat with the guests and almost relax and revel in the amount of anticipation  that is almost palpable across the blinds (x100 for first time hunters).  We will stay and hunt until we are done or as long as is feasible and then head back to the shop with my staff to butcher and package the days rewards, generally finishing up shortly after lunch.  The remainder of the day, for me, is spent responding to guests messages or chatting with the guests in camp about the day or the plan for the next hunt until scouting time in the evening until dark.  The sun goes down and the guide staff all meet up to set the plan and rig the trailers for the next day’s adventure.  This is more or less day in and day out for 50-70 days in a row and I wouldn't have it any other way.

 

The long days don't bother me at all because I know that what we have developed here isn't just a company that takes people hunting, we provide an experience to people who I consider my friends. Being able to be in the outdoors, day in day out, knowing that I have the opportunity and the ability to show our guests an adventure of a lifetime is unlike anything else.  I'm not even talking about going out and shooting limits every day.  Just seeing that sunrise or set, or the moon set in beautiful southwestern Ontario, or ducks back pedaling over the spinner 20 yards above your blind or the deer that was nosey enough to walk into the decoys or having that massive flock of geese overhead to the point of it being hard to even hear the guns go off.  Whatever the experience that's what it is, an experience, and that's what I want to provide for our guests while at the same time doing everything in my power to make sure they have the hunt of a lifetime.