Anyone here duck hunt out of/with their skiff? I’d love to see anything you use to cover it while hunting, and any tips you might have on not banging up the boat too bad. I know a Jon boat would be ideal, but I currently have room for 1 boat in my garage and have to work with what I got.
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I havent hunted out of my skiff yet but have hunted with it before. I run an Esper 18 tiller.
Currently I dont even carry a blind in the skiff. I get to where I want to hunt then set up in some good tall marsh grass on a marsh stool. Then park the skiff a hundred or so yards away. I like this as some of the spots I will hunt I cant get to with the skiff (i.e. a closed marsh pod so I walk through the grass for a little ways).
I am currently drawing up a duck blind for my skiff so if I get it built ill share it here. The thought process is some heavy walled conduit or PVC. I would mount it with a pipe clamp on the poling platform, run it forward to the casting platform. Off the casting platform there would be another pipe clamp leading to a vertical pipe that forms the 90 to meet the long pipe from the poling platform. Then about halfway in the middle I would put a compression leg that just sits in the cupholder on the gunnel. I was thinking some small turn buckle or size it right to have this leg pretty stiff to help with the rigidity,
One of the drawbacks is I dont see this easily removable for a cast and blast type day as i think it would be hard to store. But days were im only duck hunting I think it could work. One option is to look at the boat blinds from beavertail, flyway, etc and try and retrofit it to the skiff.
I have a more detailed idea at the house but am thinking something like this as of now (crude minute sketch).
I’ve used it to get to a spot but don’t hunt out if it.
it has the benefit of taking up a second spot and keeping more people away from you 
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I throw a piece of camo / burlap over it but just park about 200 yards away
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Man I misworded my post a bit, more interested in how to hide the skiff while I get out and hunt from shore. Will probably do what you do and try to leave it at least a hundred yards away, that can just get tricky where I am because of pluff mud.
Ah okay. I dont even hide my skiff when im out hunting. I park it a ways away and leave it. With that said, my skiff is all tan with a brownish color seadeck so it already blends in with the marsh somewhat well.
Ive seen some guys just use a big piece of burlap or some imitation marsh grass. Easy to roll up and stow in the boat and relatively cheap. 1 piece of this would cover a whole skiff for $60 Amazon.com : Yeacool Camo Netting Camouflage Netting 20x20 10x20 10x10 Bulk Roll Burlap Camo Tarp Sunshade Net for Hunting Blind Dinosaur Birthday Jungle MilitaryTheme Party Decoration Camping Shooting : Sports & Outdoors
Heres a photo from BlackDuck with how one of their guys hunts
Thank you man, something like that is exactly what I’m looking for. Much appreciated
I use the panel blinds from momarsh and can set them on the outside of the boat. It’s completely hidden. Like enough to get pintails to come in
I’ve seen people use a skiff to shuttle layout boats out and set up. That would be extremely deadly.
Best case would be to park the boat far away and walk back to where you want to hunt
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I don’t duck hunt, but I do bounce between fly fishing trad bow hunting hogs.
I cant emphasize how killer a pirogue is. Its really really really really hard to hide an entire boat.
Its super easy to throw in the boat, then drop it off in the marsh somewhere for fishing. I typically get to the area I want to fish and just tow it behind me while I am poling. Its easy to stake my skiff out and then hop in to go up a slim creek if I hear some pigs.
I actually found myself wading a flat this weekend with my pirogue in tow behind me tied to my belt with my bow in it. Managed two belly crawling reds and a few good stalks on pigs all on the same flat.
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You should cover everything including the outboard because ducks will see that cowling and flare.
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I use my skiff for hunting here, use it to carry decoys and sometimes a kayak.
You can cover with burlap/netting etc. usually ducks find a white boat parked well away less threatening than a semi camo one.
Big thing is just hunt as far as practical from the boat. You can even park it somewhere so birds won’t land there and bounce to your spot.
Ducks are more terrified of yellow fast grass boxes than anything else.
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I park the boat as far away as possible then have some burlap and a couple extra palm fronds to throw over it. As others said you can use it to keep birds from going where you don’t want as well.
I don’t do it a ton but also shuttle layouts with a buddies go devil rig. Well bass fish on the trolling motor a couple hundred yards away with no issues while taking turns shooting. I will say with that always stick close to your guys as we’ve had some close calls with bass boats and other hunters almost run through the spread.
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