THE ISLAND BOYZ

My first day visiting Sykes was hard on the dogs. I had to chain them up in order to keep them from wandering the countryside . Something they were used to doing down on the Prairies. This was the parkland and the bush was loaded with whitetail. IT won't take much for the hunting dogs to stray.

When I arrived after a filling Fall dinner at Herndon, The Wheeler Island hunters belonged to a duck club down near the California Pacific coastal range. The were straight out of California , the north thank God and all had been duck hunting together for many years. They were very excited about having a natural gas field under their marsh. Although, they were not uber dog guys they had labs back home and one even managed to sneak a cute little springer in named Jack. Jack thought he had died and gone to dog heaven with all the birds.

The patrons were two fathers and their sons who were on a return trip with Sykes. Jim and Harold were the senior members of the group and I thought at first were brothers they way they related to each other. Harold’s son, Derik was the most forthright and engaging being very transparent and great winger shooter. Harold enjoyed his duck shooting but it was the spicy “Bloody Marys" made by Derik that set the tone with Jim curing his mallard breast in a tasty jell sauce. After the morning shoot and a bloody Mary this crew spent the remainder of the morning hand cleaning ALL their birds for transport back home. They reaped the cornucopia of game.

At once, I held these hunters apart from the other American I have been with and hunted with who so often come and go with little respect for the game they harvest. Although I decided not to hunt until the mallards were further mature in 10 days or more . I enjoyed their enthusiasm for the process. Rarely had I witnessed the American caring for their birds in such a professional manner. Jim and his three sons truly had the times of their lives leaving the pressures of the Bay traffic and pressure to add value to their portfolio for at least this week. All of them came together without one cross word and truly a treat to see family and friends enjoy one another.

I enjoyed being akin to the Cal scene again, albeit for just a short time. Great wines, talk of expensive hunt clubs, winter ski trip and attempts at fly fishing, founder shares, Series A and B rounds and pre money valuations. I recalled quickly what I didn't miss about the Bay culture.

Jim Sr, a meticulous man, brought some great vintages and daily prepared mallard "de jour" marinated in a Currituck sauce worthy of my duck club in North Carolina. Well into the weeks and Sykes tiring of two daily shoots, I decided to show these gentlemen hunter the Quills Lakes, the reason for such abundance of waterfowl in good water years. And so Sykes who aimed to please his clients packed up my Weber gas grill with pressed duck breast, Jim’s excellent choice of a Napa Cab and off we were to watch the sun go down, the witness ducks hop from one slough to another and the White geese leave by the millions to feed on the left over field peas and barley. We would have a California gathering on the Quills

At the end of the week they parted happy campers and vowed to return. I hope the waters returns next year for it was an exceptional season for ducks. I will stop in to see Sykes when I go back to the Parklands next year.