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Thread: The famous duck blind fire

  1. #1
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    Default The famous duck blind fire

    Before 2009 the Fish & Wildlife Service allowed duck hunters on the Upper Mississippi River to have permanent duck blind. We could build a blind and leave it out on the river for us or anyone else to use during the duck & Goose hunting season. Many years ago I made a duck blind kitchen. It was a wooden box with everything we needed for preparing coffee and breakfast out in the duck blind. It had a compartment for a gasoline campstove. My pancakes, named, "duck blind pancakes", became quite famous on and around the river. The Coleman campstove was in new in 1971 and after 30 years the control knob had questionable integrity. It didn't always turn off the fuel to the flame.

    I was duck hunting with my son-in-law, Tony, one morning and was frying up some bacon for breakfast. Tony was on lookout while I fixed breakfast. Tony says, "Jim, some ducks are coming", so I turned off the stove to watch the approaching ducks. We watched the ducks for several minutes then all of a sudden Tony says, Jim, the blind is on fire!! Sure enough, flames are wafting through the cracks in the duck blind roof and igniting the grass used for camouflage . We are slapping out the flames with our gloves only to have the flames return. I finally decided to look under the roof to see what could be causing such a blaze. There the Coleman stove engulfed in flames and the bacon was on fire as well, the flames were 3 feet high. I decide the bacon needs to go so I through the flaming frying pan and bacon out the front of the blind onto a sand bar. I turn back to the Coleman stove, it still has flames shooting upward to the roof. Tony is still slapping out the flames with his gloves. I tell Tony, "open the door the stove's going out". He opens the door, I throw the stove as far from the blind that I can. I still vividly remember the stove tumbling through the air, still fully engulfed in flames. It crashes to the ground and rolls across the swamp grass. By some miracle the swamp grass did not ignite. Tony is using a freshly made pot of coffee to put out the duck blind fire. In a mater of seconds it's over. The duck blind that didn't belong to us was a little scorched but still usable. The bacon was a loss and the Coleman stove looked as if it had gone through a war.

    I think the problem with the stove was my own fault, I overfilled the tank with the white gas. The stove was burning raw gas instead of a gas and air mix.

    I often wondered if any other duck hunters may have witnessed the infamous duck blind fire as my son-in-law and I named the episode. It must have been something to see
    Last edited by jim Glass; 03-31-2019 at 08:31 PM.


  2. #2
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    You're just lucky a flight of ducks weren't flying over right then. You'd have gotten over your limit from them dying laughing.

    Alan

  3. #3
    Senior Member hunter63's Avatar
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    Great story......
    Over the years our ever changing group has had its share of the "remember when" stories.

    One of the funny-er stories involved a couple....that decided that the landing we used for launching the boat ...about 100 yds away...would make a good place for making.... amore....in a big Caddy

    This blind was on the south shore of a small lake in SE Wisconsin...that was heavy cattails....we would put the blind up on pilings made for stop sign post...one guy worked for the county.

    We had arrived at the blind in the dark...set out the decoys...and settled in....

    Then the love birds showed up...and were at it hot a heavy.....all the while we were getting a show.

    Cracking dawn....just at shooting time...flock of blue bills did the 3 turn around the lake, set their wings and were dropping
    in....

    Group leader say "Take em"...4 shot guns opened up....at once...the muzzle flashes were pretty bright.....duck dropping while we loaded and shot some more....

    Was funny watching the love birds getting kinda dressed, and burning rubber from the landing... all the way to the highway....all the way to the Il. border 2 mile away.

    Often wonder what they thought.....LOL..... and what did that look like from their love nest.

    BTW wasn't the first time...had to knock on the steamed up windows a few times... and ask the lovers, if they could move...so we could launch the boat.
    After all there was a sign ....."Do Not Block Launch"

    I think about and laugh about this......When I hear Meatloaf....

    "Though it's cold and lonely in the deep dark night.....
    I can see paradise by the dashboard light..."
    Last edited by hunter63; 12-29-2017 at 01:09 AM.
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    Senior Member kyratshooter's Avatar
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    Reminds me of a story I heard years ago about a guy in airborne training.

    Someone had signed his name on the volunteer list as a joke and he was not taking his training seriously thinking if he failed the first test he would get kicked out.

    He discovered there was no first test and instead discovered himself in an airplane with a parachute strapped to his back. At the proper time and place a big Sgt. actually kicked him out the door of the plane at which time he realized he had not paid proper attention to any of his lessons.

    His parachute failed to open and he had o idea what to do when he was suddenly passed on his way DOWN by another soldier on his way UP!

    As they passed the falling airborne trooper shouted, "Do you know anything about a parachute?"

    The rapidly rising soldier replied, "No! Do you know anything about a Coleman stove?"
    If you didn't bring jerky what did I just eat?

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    I had a very similar thing happen about thirty years back. I was preparing to launch when a big sedan pulled in to the launch, which was well hidden from the highway by trees and brush. The sedan pulled as far back from view from the highway as he could, with out getting stuck. Funniest thing about it was that he was a fellow professor of mine but not in the same department. He was married---but not to the 'Lady" he was with. The "Lady", whom I also knew, but only casually, was also married. He got out of the vehicle when he saw me and walked over to me. I hastly told him that I was meeting my hunting partner in a few minuites and we would be building blinds near by. He thanked me for telling him , went back to his vehicle and had a short conversation and then drove away, prersumably to find a more remote love spot. Never saw either of them after that encounter. I think they were avoiding me for some reason.
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    Senior Member hunter63's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Old Professor View Post
    I had a very similar thing happen about thirty years back. I was preparing to launch when a big sedan pulled in to the launch, which was well hidden from the highway by trees and brush. The sedan pulled as far back from view from the highway as he could, with out getting stuck. Funniest thing about it was that he was a fellow professor of mine but not in the same department. He was married---but not to the 'Lady" he was with. The "Lady", whom I also knew, but only casually, was also married. He got out of the vehicle when he saw me and walked over to me. I hastly told him that I was meeting my hunting partner in a few minuites and we would be building blinds near by. He thanked me for telling him , went back to his vehicle and had a short conversation and then drove away, prersumably to find a more remote love spot. Never saw either of them after that encounter. I think they were avoiding me for some reason.
    Funny how that works.....
    Good to see ya been a while.
    Geezer Squad....Charter Member #1
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