Duck hunt was the first part of their trip. We took our guests to a rice farm, a kind of marshland, very close to San Javier Lodge, in fact just 400 meters away. There, our guests could complete the quota and then we returned to the lodge to sit comfortably by the fire and enjoy a delicious lunch. 

San Javier Lodge is a typical Argentine estancia. The Estancia is located in the north of the Santa Fe province. It is one of the best options for duck hunting in Argentina. The hunt is on the marshlands and islands of Parana River. The driving time from the airport to the lodge is one hour and thirty minutes. For those guests flying private charters, landing takes place forty minutes away from the lodge. 

The following morning started at 5.30 am with the wake up call. Duck hunt means early mornings but it is definitely worth it. Our guests had a hearty breakfast and then got into their gear. Chest waders are essential when hunting ducks. One of our guests said “We’ve been walking on water all morning!” And that’s how it is. Most of the duck hunt takes place in fields located around islands, near lagoons and rivers, in San Javier. The place looks like a big marshland. 

So back to our nice three guests. We took them to another rice farm this morning, une kilometer and a half away from San Javier lodge. The hunt lasted 45 minutes because our guests achieved their limits quite fast! They were using Berettas A400 ammunition 5. Once the hunt had finished we drove them to the lodge. Our staff welcomed them with appetizers, hot coffee and some drinks. Mixed bag season time takes place during our cold months of winter and although most days are sunny, early mornings can be a bit chilly, foggy and wet. Because we still had almost a full morning ahead, our guests decided to take a short nap before lunch. 

After lunch, it was time for doves! 28km away from San Javier Lodge, in the town of Colonia Teresa the doves roosts abound and we decided to use this place to show our guests how good dove hunting is here. Now, they were using Benellis Caliber 20, ammunition 7. The hunt was awesome. Our guests were truly surprised by the bird volume. They had never imagined that it could be as good as in Cordoba. At 6pm, we were back at San Javier Lodge. Some of our guests took massage with our professional massage therapists because they were incredibly tired after such a big volume of birds. 

The third day started later than usual because we were going to hunt just 5 minutes away from San Javier Lodge. The climatic conditions made the duck session last a bit longer. The ducks returned to the spots a bit later than usual so we finished the duck hunt at 9.30 am. We walked the short lane that separated us from the lodge, we had lunch and then at 2 pm we drove 110 kilometers to start our perdiz hunt. The weather was threatening us with some light showers but we risked it and drove there all the same with two dogs, a one year and a half German Shorthaired Pointer and a three year old Pointer. Despite the rain that started falling towards the evening and forced us to call it a day, our guests had a great experience!

Our guests were really passionate duck hunters so the entire last day of hunting was about ducks. The first session was early in the morning, after the wake up call at 5.30 am. We took our guests 10 minutes away from San Javier Lodge. We completed the limits in an hour and a half and then savoured a delicious lunch at the lodge. Delicious red meat, Malbecn wine and sweet desserts for a typical cold day in Argentina.

The next day we drove our guests to the airport. Another great group had gone back home after having a lifetime experience during our mixed bag season. 

You should be the next one!

Federico Silva

Hunting Guide