Newbury Decoy & Woodshop

173 High Rd. 

Newbury, MA 

(978)462-7873

 

Retail Sales

Big Al's 

Rte. 1 Seabrook, N.H.

(603)474-3575

 

 

 

The Decoy Carver

Geoffrey H. Walker lives in Newbury Massachusetts with his wife Josette and his two sons, Nathan and Joshua. With the help of his father, Geoffrey built the family home that now overlooks the Great Marsh and the Parker River Wildlife Refuge.  Being the son of a legendary hunter, carver, conservationist and artist, Hank Walker, Geoffrey was raised in an atmosphere that allowed him to become the sportsman and wildlife activist that he is today. At 10 years old his organized sporting days were started on the famous “joppa flats” in sneak floats and lay out boats hunting over his father’s decoys. Those days “floating” the flats are what makes Geoffrey feel lucky that he was able to have experienced the tale end of the golden era of waterfowling. To have cold feet on those “diamond blue” cold days when equipment was simple, usually handcrafted and the bag limit was 7 blacks, is something that most modern outdoorsmen can only experience through the Walker Family artwork.

Geoffrey is a dedicated waterfowler and true conservationist interested in fostering respect and celebration of our local heritage and traditions. Geoffrey works hard to preserve the traditions of the “golden era” where the personal approach was most important and that secrets were learned from those you personally respected or admired. He feels that today with less people entering the hunting fraternity, that one must “put back as much as one takes out”.

Geoffrey is not only active in D.U., Rotary, Boy Scouts, but writes an outdoor column and is a certified gun& bow hunter safety instructor. Geoffrey’s active participation in 8 Towns and the Bay and Mass. Audubon’s Great Marsh Summit helps him to fulfill his role as a conservationist that strives to insure better access to a clean and well managed marsh land. Geoffrey also attained a Masters in Education and took part in the early version of Teacher Corp.

As a member of the League of New Hampshire Craftsmen, Geoffrey has shown at many prestigious shows, and his craft has been seen and admired at James Hunt Barker Galleries of N.Y., Nantucket and Palm Beach, Florida. Still, the carvers in house galleries in Seabrook, N.H. and in his workshop in Newbury, Ma. are his pride and joys.  For the last twenty-five years these personal studios have been a clearing house of ideas and strategies that would insure the continuance of our hunting traditions. A feel of the fifties, with sneak boats, old outboard motors, hunting decoys and original patterns of Hank’s original works ever present, these studios stand as a tribute to the traditions of hunting. Just as the strong, primitive, heavily keeled preening goose (working bird) stands not only as a fine example of a “Classic New England Gunning Decoy”, but a hope that the wealth of important history and traditions of waterfowling will always shine strong for generations to come.