86 Nebraskaland • January-February 2024
THE LAST STOP
By Jeff Kurrus
PINTAILS
"Pintails!" Todd Mills burst from beside me,
his eyes wide as he stared at the sleek fl yers
above us from our Platte River goose blind
that day. His gaze was part panic — because
he always gets a little more keyed up when
pintails are in the air.
How could you not be in wonderment when
watching these birds fl y?
"They're coming right in!" he darn near
shouted, ignoring the tornado of Canada geese
working our spread as well, which is especially
interesting because duck season had closed
and we had driven to Hall County with one
focus in mind — geese. But that focus changed
when Mills picked those birds out of the sky.
"Wow," was all he could say as they came in
easier than any fl ock of pintails had ever done
before, seemingly well aware that they were
out of danger.
Once they gave us their fl irty buzz, the entire
group well within gun range, they left — never
to be seen again.
Hours later, when we returned to the truck
after one of our most memorable goose hunts
ever, Mills fi nally got comfortable in his seat
and turned toward me.
"How about them pintails?" he said, his
61-year-old voice sounding like a teenager
again. "How many do you think there were?"
"I think I can tell you that," I said. When I
got home, I texted him the photograph with
this message: "There's nothing special about
this image. Too far away. But I thought you'd
like."
"Oh my," was all he responded to this
average-at-best photograph of what many
believe to be hunting's most beautiful and
graceful bird, reminding me that sometimes
it's simply not about the photo itself. It's the
feeling you get when you see it.
JEFF KURRUS, NEBRASKALAND
