Opportunity knocked today. My first day off with nothing to do but enjoy a day of hunting. I check the weather the night before. Strong east wind averaging 30 mph with gusts up to 50 mph. 30 degrees with a windchill of 24 degrees. Water at the 7 foot level. Sounds great right? I am hesitant with the wind being so strong but I had to find out. I'm thinking the back side of the cove so to be out of the wind.
Thinking that I will have the place to myself I wake at a reasonable 5:45. That will put me at the water around 6:30 and with cilling time at 7:20 that gives me a nice settle. Well I wake at said time but the wind at my house is whipping and it's freezing cold. I think that it has to be 10x worse out in Troutdale, I'm dragging my feet and having second thoughts. I already have the car packed and a guy like me deserves a party after a long two weeks. I make it to the lot and there are four trucks already there! What the hell! I head out and I have to crab walk out there due to the stiff in my face, brutal. Second guessing again. 
I make it to the water and I don't see anyone close by so I'm thinking that they all must be set up around the corner and probably in the cove, so I find a nice spot. I throw out 7 blocks, make a nice standup blind and have only 1 minute settle time. The wind is ripping from behind me. I think I'm looking pretty good. I have 4 blocks in front of me in the river and 3 blocks to my right in some shallow water looking very comfortable out of the wind.
Ducks are flying. Ducks are flying at mach 10. Three greenies are stalled to my left but my gun is not in my hands and by the time I retrieved it they were gone. Lost opportunity. Widgeon are dumping everywhere. A lone greenie flies through my spread, I don't take a shot due to the wind thinking that if a wing it the wind is going to take him where I can't go. Lost opportunity. More widgeon. 3 fat greenies fly in perfectly, stalled, literally stalled right over me. I pull the trigger missing because I'm leading it but it didn't't need any leading it just needed to be shotten. I pull the trigger again with a follow up shot, CLICK!
I try reloading my gun and get a shell completely stuck. Jammed it is. I need to disassemble my gun to fix it. I am able to get all the shells out of it but I am only able to put one shell in. Dumb gun, I am missing the 870 now. Well I think now I'm Mitch. Single shot. It's all I need right? I have been the Expert many times, one shot is all I need. Four more fat greenies come in again. Again completely stalled in the wind right over my three block to my right over ankle high water. Pull the trigger. Click! lost opportunity. Take the SBE apart again, reassemble, reload, try putting off a round, CLICK!
I'm walking out with the thoughts of what could have been. Then I notice a pile of dead seagulls. Someone shotten three gulls and left them in a pile. Then I realize that on the walk out the wind will be at my back and carry me back to the lot. All in all a nice morning. An awesome sunrise over Mt. Hood, and some nice looks at ducks all before 9 am. Maybe I'll clean my gun and go back out again some day, maybe not.
GBCH
R.I.P PTD
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