Aug. 2-3 Will be Two "Ducky" Days at Bay City State Recreation Area
Saginaw Bay Waterfowl Clinic to Feature State Duck & Goose Calling Contest
July 27, 2003
By: Dave Rogers
The 2003 Michigan Waterfowl Stamp is symbolic of the clinic set for Bay City in August
For those who enjoy the sounds of "quack, quack, quack" that pervade the marshes and waterways during waterfowl hunting season, Sunday, August 3 will be a treat.
On that day the Bay City State Recreation Area will erupt with a multi-faceted chorus of quacks during the Michigan State Championship Duck and Goose Calling contest.
The contest is part of two days touted as a "spectacular festival focusing on Michigan's world class waterfowl." Activities will take place 12 noon to 6 p.m. on Saturday, Aug. 2 and 9 a.m.-5 p.m. on Sunday, Aug. 3.
Events and exhibits will include waterfowl artists, wildlife photographers, duck carvers and taxidermists. Clinics include the 2004 Michigan Duck Hunters Association Waterfowl Stamp Competition, a Wildlife Art & Craft Show and a Duck Hunter and Outdoor Recreation Expo.
Other activities include a live duck pond, dog retrieving demonstrations, parent/youth canoe race, sporting dog puppy sale and information booths.
Hunters are not alone is using waterfowl calling techniques. Bird watchers also employ calls for close-up viewing and identification.
Spectators are welcome at the event to hear experts as well as amateurs practice the age-old art of "calling in" waterfowl with hand-crafted and manufactured duck calls.
The State Duck Calling Contest will begin at 12:30 p.m. at the outdoor stage arena on the Saginaw Bay Visitor Center festival grounds in the Bay City State Recreation Area. A Team Duck Calling Competition will be held at 2:30 p.m. Hunting partners simulate "working" duck calls as used in blinds.
The Goose Calling Competition will "quack off" at 3:30 p.m.
The competition is part of the eighth annual Saginaw Bay Waterfowl ClinicSaturday and Sunday. Activity will feature waterfowl calling clinics for adults Sunday at 10 a.m. and youth at 11 a.m., both sponsored by Gander Mountain, an outdoor outfitting retailer with an outlet on Tittabawassee Road in Saginaw. The instructional staff will include Jan Ehlert of Saginaw, past regional duck and goose calling champion. Free duck calls will be given away during the clinic.
For more information contact the Bay City State Recreation Area, 989-667-0717 or view the Michigan Duck Hunters Association website, www.mimdha.org.