The above photo was published in "Images of the Hunt" by R. K. Sawyer
The Call of the Marsh By Marie Hughes
There’s a call that rings through the ages
As timeless as sun, moon, and stars,
That captures the heart of the hunter
Who yields to the Call of the Marsh.
Its song echoes forth in the darkness
Long before dawn shines her light,
Rousing the hunter from dreamland
With the enchanting song of the night.
It vibrates in waves through the darkness
As the frogs chant their waking refrain
Then the crickets join in with the chorus
Bewitching the hunter again.
It whispers to those who will hear
it The mystical song that it sings.
Its melody floats on the morning mist
In the movement of waterfowl wings.
The hunter fades into the marsh grass
Before dawn kisses darkness goodbye
He inhales the fragrance around him
Now content, releases a sigh.
(Some info taken from Trinity River Delta article)
Hunters in the 1800s found a pristine delta wilderness at Trinity River Delta. With its headwaters just a few miles south of the Red River in Northern Texas, the Trinity River travels 400 miles before its fresh water terminates at Turtle Bay. There it branches out like fingers creating Cotton Lake, Lake Charlotte, Lost Lake, Mud Lake, Turtle Bay, and Wet Marsh Pond.
This area was a paradise for waterfowl that fed on the lush aquatic plants in the area and the seeds of the rice and cotton fields.
“There were plenty of white and Canada geese,” said Cove guide, Damon McKay, “All gunners had to do was sit down by a log and wait for ‘em to come in, they’d come in and light p’ert near on you if you didn’t move.” There was also an abundance of Snipe during those years.