soft, making it easy to carve the heads — the 

 most elaborate detail given to the basic wooden 

 form. 



"They would cut a log, say 14 inches in 

 diameter and a foot-and-a-half long," explains 

 Conoley. The craftsman would quarter the log, 

 using the "V" of heartwood for the bottom of 

 the decoy. Minor shaping tapered the body 

 into a tail and a breast with a carved head 

 secured above. 



The result was a decoy much larger than 

 those found in other areas. 



"Currituck Sound waters are big," says 

 Conoley. "They needed big decoys to attract the 

 attention of flying ducks." 



Hundreds of decoys were grouped in the 

 water to resemble a real flock of birds. The 

 heavy decoys were hauled in and out of the 

 water by their heads, often causing accidental 

 decapitation. Anticipating this problem, hunters 

 carried a basket of "extra" heads. If a head fell 

 off, they simply added a new one. At the end of 

 a season, the decoy rig became an interesting 

 assortment of Frankenstein-like wooden figures. 



By the time the mm return to the 

 lodge, it k nearly dark ogam. E.C. 

 Kniqht, oumer ojike dub, m^tiadowUy 

 retards the kill in his ledger while hk 

 c&mfmwnvs thaw their stiff limbs by the 

 cozy jure tit the library. 



Lighter than the older wooden birds, 

 canvas decoys became popular in Currituck and 

 other areas. 



'The canvas decoy is really a signature 



10 Coastwatch I High Season 2006 I www.ncseagrcmt.org 



