Give us a little background on Brian Cahalan. Tell us where you grew up and how you discovered your passion for waterfowl hunting.
CAHALAN
I grew up in a small southern town in Minnesota. Northfield, Minnesota is where I spent most of my days growing up as a young man. I discovered my love and passion for waterfowl hunting with help from my grandfather, William Engman. I can remember my grandfather buying a small 12 foot aluminum boat when I was around 11 years old. We spent the summer painting it OD green with brown cattail stripes on the sides. We installed a wooden floor in small v hull for better shooting. It had a small 5 horsepower Sea King motor on it. On our first voyage on opening day of duck season that year my grandfather told me that the new duck boat was mine because of all the hard work I had helped put into it. I loved that duck boat. To this day I think of it every time I step foot in a duck boat or a marsh.
FLYWAY
What was the first duck you shot, where did you shoot it and what kind of gun did you shoot it with it?
CAHALAN
The first duck I ever shot was a Blue Wing Teal. It was harvested on Circle Lake in southern Minnesota. I shot that duck with a 20 gauge Remington pump shotgun.
FLYWAY
What is your favorite duck or goose to hunt and why?
CAHALAN
I have two favorite waterfowl types to hunt. My first passion would be to hunt the very famous Green Head. I enjoy calling sucks and there is nothing quite like calling in a big old flock of Mallards. It's truly a mesmerizing experience every time. My second favorite and in very close running is the ever wily Snow Goose. If you have ever laid down in a field and watched the grand spectacle of a spring snow goose migration you know what I am talking about. Snow Geese are very challenging at times to hunt, but when I know I have pulled one over on mother nature and my decoy spread has become the X it is just awesome,
FLYWAY
What is one duck you haven't shot but would really like to?
CAHALAN
I have always wanted to harvest a long tailed duck of South America.
FLYWAY
For your birthday this year I will be inviting 3 of your favorite bands or singers to perform especially for you at your birthday party. Who will I be inviting?
CAHALAN
Kings of Leon, Dave Matthews Band and AC/DC will have to be performing.
FLYWAY
You can go on an all expenses paid hunt of a lifetime and you can invite any 3 people you want, alive or deceased. They can be celebrities, athletes, family members or loved ones, any 3 people you want! Who will you be inviting, where will you be going and what will you be hunting for?
CAHALAN
I would want to go on an all expenses paid hunting trip with my grandfather, William Engman, my step dad, William Rossman and my wonderful daughter, Sophi. To have the opportunity for her to experience first hand what my grandfather and dad have passed on to me would be incredible. We would be on a waterfowl hunt in New Zealand.
FLYWAY
Tell us about Goose and Duck Smackers Guide Service. When did it get started, where are you based and what was your inspiration behind starting a guide service?
CAHALAN
Goose and Duck Smackers Guide Service is owned and operated by myself and one of my best friends, Joshua Lett. Goose and Duck Smackers Guide Service has been fully operational for 6 years. We are based in three primary states. We are in Minnesota for the early goose season and regular waterfowl season. We are also in "The Show Me State" of Missouri for early goose and the regular waterfowl season. With great pleasure this last year we were able to add Arkansas and it has been awesome! We offer fully guided duck and goose hunts in Arkansas. When spring snow goose season rolls around we start out in Arkansas with transitions to Missouri and South Dakota as the migration proceeds north. It all really started after piling up years of guiding for other companies. I found that a lot of the experience of hunting waterfowl was lost with those companies and it was evident that some in the guide business were all about the $$$ signs. In starting Goose and Duck Smackers Guide Service I felt I could bring back the core of waterfowl hunting traditions that I had learned, "friends, family, fun". I would then have the opportunity to pass those traditions on to others, just as they had been passed down to me, along with the added bonus of great hunting.
FLYWAY
In your opinion, what sets Goose and Duck Smackers Guide Service apart from the competition?
CAHALAN
At Goose and Duck Smackers Guise Service we take an enormous amount of pride in providing the best possible guided waterfowl hunt we can day in and day out. See, it's not just about the harvesting of a lot of birds that makes a great guided hunt. It's about the entire experience. From the first time we meet a potential customer to the minute they leave the field and are headed for home we want that customer to feel as if they are part of what we call the GDS family, and there is nothing else like hunting with family! It's all about long lasting, quality memories and last but not least, "Putting the smack down on waterfowl".
FLYWAY
What calls would we find on your lanyard right now?
CAHALAN
Calef Calls! Barnie Calef is a Three Time World Champion Duck Caller and has been making calls for some time now. They are the only calls you will find on my lanyard. .
FLYWAY
I've heard you call quite a few times and you are one of the best that I've heard on a duck call. What tips, advice or words of wisdom would you offer the beginners or rookies out there who are just getting started? The most common thing you hear from the experts is "practice" and that goes without saying. Can you offer a few other tips that might help those just getting started, be it on a duck or a goose call?
CAHALAN
The obvious thing to say would be practice. We all know that the only way to get better is to do that "P" word. If I had to offer up a bit of advise it would be to ask questions from your buddies. If you hear them doing something on a call ask them how to do it. If you go to sporting goods expos like Game Fair for instance, seek out a call company and ask them for tips or help. Most of them are more than willing to offer up the help. Remember, we all started out calling in the same spot. Another great way to get ahead of the game would be calling instructional's. I would recommend "Calling My Way" for ducks by Calef Calls and "Bad Grammar" by Molt Gear for geese. I have used both and have had great success.
FLYWAY
What is your biggest pet peeve?
CAHALAN
My biggest bother or pet peeve in life would be when someone doesn't put in the effort to do it right the first time. Not that mistakes can't be made, God knows I make them. It's when it could have been done just a little better with a little more effort. In other words...no slacking off!
FLYWAY
Your favorite movie and your favorite television show would be....?
CAHALAN
"For Love of the Game" with Kevin Costner.
FLYWAY
Your favorite meal is.....?
CAHALAN
My wonderful mom's homemade spaghetti and meatballs.
FLYWAY
You have been a part of some awesome hunts, many of them are documented on dvds with Calef Calls. Tell me your greatest hunt of all time. There has to be on that stands out above all others. Give us details on your greatest hunting memory.
CAHALAN
"There was this one time at band camp"....a little movie humor there! In all seriousness, I have been blessed to have played a part in many awesome hunts, many that made it on several DVD's and national TV. If I had to pick one out right at this moment it would be a hunt I was on in northern Minnesota on my families land. Myself along with a great friend of mine, Todd Solberg were bound and determined to hunt geese! Not pass shoot them, but decoy them. My Uncle's Marv and Paul laughed at us. They told us we were wasting our time and money on those plastic decoys. Todd and I had saved and saved to get two dozen Higdon shells and two layout blinds. We set up in a cut wheat field and it was game on. The flock was coming off roost right at us that morning. We were using flute calls at that time. I remember the both of us squawking away. Shots rang out and when all was said and done we picked up four dead geese and did the "DEAL". There was a shiny piece of goose jewelry that was found on a goose on my side, my first banded goose! The funny thing is, the next morning both of my uncles were laying out in a field with us.
FLYWAY
As co-owner of a reputable guide service there has to be many stresses and frustrations that the general public may not be aware of. What are some of the stresses and frustrations that you experience on a daily basis. What keeps you up at night in regards to Goose and Duck Smackers Guide Service?
CAHALAN
There are a few things that pop right to the front of the list. The thing that keeps me up at night before a guided hunt is putting all that time in scouting, but it all comes down to still making that one decision to set up in that spot. It's a game that is played out every morning of a guided hunt. I'm constantly asking myself if I made the right choice in that field or in that spot. Are the birds going to jump at night? Are the birds going to come earlier today or later due to weather? It's always a high level of stress until that first volley goes off. I think the second biggest thing I stress out about is safety.
FLYWAY
Let's talk about decoy placement for a moment, I'm interested in getting your thoughts on this subject. Many strategize their decoy spread much like a General devises a battle plan. They pay attention to every possible detail and it has to be perfect, many lay awake the night before a hunt thinking about it. Other simply throw their decoys out without any rhyme or reason to it at all, they don't seem to have any concern whatsoever when it comes to the way they set up their decoy spread, yet many claim to have success doing it this way. Your thoughts?
CAHALAN
I have seen all kinds of spreads that have been tried with some sort of success. They say a broken clock is always right twice a day, that is decoy placement in a nutshell. I use a couple of different types of decoy sets depending upon where I am and what I am hunting. I like to take a lot of mental notes about how I have seen the birds using a field or water spot during scouting. I will then try to set up in those areas, but I adjust my spreads so I can decoy the birds where I want them using the wind, cover and decoys to my advantage. If someone just throws decoys out anywhere and any which way it may look more natural, but now where are they going to decoy for the shot? I recommend using some sort of decoy placement pattern when hunting so you can make the proper adjustments to the spread if the birds aren't doing what you want.
FLYWAY
Describe Brian Cahalan in one word.
CAHALAN
Funny.
FLYWAY
You and I are in a blind together. To the left we see a flock of Canvasbacks coming in and to our right we see a flock of beautiful greenheads coming in at the same time. I tell you that we are taking the Canvasbacks, do you agree or are you going to put up a fight for a chance at those drake Mallards? And if you so choose to put up a fight, how do we reasonably come to an agreement in a quick fashion so we have a shot at our ducks?
CAHALAN
Well, Dave, since you were not specific in what kind of blind I must ask...are we in a layout blind together or a boat blind? Just joking around with you! There will be no fight on this one. I would have to agree to take the chance at the Drake Canvasback. I have shot a few Canvasbacks over the years but a true trophy Canvasback for the wall I have not. I would cringe a little about the mallards, but Canvasbacks decoy pretty well!
FLYWAY
You have a pretty close relationship with the one and only Barnie Calef. Tell us one or two things about Barnie that might surprise people. He is one of the most down to earth and humble guys I have ever come across in this industry.
CAHALAN
I have been very fortunate to have a great friendship with Barnie Calef. He is truly one of my best friends. I totally agree with you Dave, he is one of the most down to earth guys in the waterfowl industry. There are a couple of things that may surprise people about Barnie, or things that they may not know about him. Most will probably know that he has produced some of the best waterfowl hunting videos in the industry. What most will probably not know is he has won an award called "The Moose" for best waterfowl show in "Take'm 6". There is a mallard hunt that takes place in a South Dakota field on that video that is just purely awesome! Barnie always says, "never seen that many mallards in one spot since". The other thing that people might not know about Barnie is his passion for helping others. Barnie has deep ties with the Aiming for a Cure foundation and every year a guided hunt with Barnie is auctioned off to help research a cure for cancer.
FLYWAY
Tell us what you like to do in your spare time when you are not hunting or guiding clients. What are some of your hobbies or things you like to do in your spare time.
CAHALAN
If I am not hunting or guiding you will probably find me spending time with my family and friends. I really enjoy taking a few small family trips every year in the offseason. My main "non-hunting" hobbies include fishing, bike riding and training my dog, Gracie May.
FLYWAY
How intense are you and your guide service on scouting? Do you feel the key to a good hunt for clients is good scouting or is most of it attributed to luck? I have to believe you can scout for days or weeks and call a certain spot money and then the birds decide to move out the next morning and never come back to that spot. We've all been there and there isn't much you can do about that!
CAHALAN
Scouting is a fundamental tool in guiding a hunt. If the time scouting prior to a hunt isn't put in, the chance of success is diminished greatly. Even with all the miles put in on the ground prior to a hunt, it can all change by morning. This is that STRESS thing I mentioned to you earlier. I have found that it will be game on 99% of the time if the spot is scouted properly. This is hunting however, everyone has to have realistic expectations.
FLYWAY
Who or what inspires you?
CAHALAN
My Family!
FLYWAY
Are there some people within the industry that you look up to or who have helped you become successful? We all have our heroes, who are a few of yours, both inside and outside the waterfowling industry?
CAHALAN
I have been inspired and helped by people both in the industry and outside the industry. The first person that comes to mind in the industry is Barnie Calef along with some key individual companies that see the quality in which Goose and Duck Smackers conducts itself. We have been very fortunate to have Beavertail products and Dakota Decoys as part of the GDS family. My hero, who I am inspired to be like every day is my late grandfather, William Engman. He is a true hero!
FLYWAY
How can viewers to this website find out more about you and Goose and Duck Smackers Guide Service, and what should potential clients expect should they choose to book a hunt with you?
CAHALAN I can be found on the internet at www.gooseandducksmackers.com and you can email me at brian@gooseandducksmackers.com. Customers that book with GDS can expect to have a great overall experience in their guided hunt. It is our mission to make sure that everyone who hunts with Goose and Duck Smackers has long, lasting memories. You can check us out on Facebook as well.
Minnesota Flyway would like to thank Brian Cahalan for taking the time to answer our interview questions. For more to answer our interview questions.
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