Tuesday, October 19, 2004

Crex hunt final report Jim Evrard sent out the final report on this year's Crex Invitational Waterfowl Hunt. It wasn't pretty. In two days of hunting, 17 hunters bagged a total of 21 ducks and 2 geese, for an average of .6 ducks per hunter per day, which tied the record for the poorest average ever with 1996 and 1990. The best year was 1992, when 16 hunters shot 51 ducks and 1 goose, for an average of 1.6 ducks.hunter/day. BTW, I hunted the second day (Tue., Oct. 5) with Harley Lindus, of Grantsburg, on Upper North Fork Flowage. There were several other groups on that flowage, including our own Evrard and Erickson and one other pair from our group. Harley and I set up at the extreme south end of the flowage, which we figured would be good with a strong SSW wind, but another pair of hunters was also hunting the south end. The place was thick with bidens (stick-tights), which covered my neoprene waders and gloves in short order. We had one greenwing buzz us early, but I didn't react fast enough to shoot. The guys next to us shot one greenwing later in the morning, then used it to train their Lab. We later learned that Evrard and Ericson shot four drake mallards. Harley and I pulled stakes early and took the scenic route back to town through the refuge. One small island was literally covered with sandhill cranes. It looked like a convention! I should have stopped to take a photo, but I didn't. Next time. I skipped the awards lunch, since I had a long ride ahead and since I knew I hadn't won or lost the event. Jim Evrard tallied the scores and sent out his report. Due to the late opening of the season, Evrard reports, few teal and no wood ducks were shot. Only four duck species were bagged: mallards, blue-winged teal, green-winged teal and ring-necked. Joe Paquette, of Grantsburg, won the CIWH trophy, bagging three ringnecks with four shells, for a total of +9 points, edging out Jim Evrard, who also had +9 points, but took seven shells to bag his three drake mallards. Dave Evenson and Mike Reiter shared the Hell Diver Award, given to the hunter(s) with the lowest score. Evenson and Reiter each scored -1.5 by doubling on a drake widgeon. Widgeon were worth -3 points this year, as the population is down. Each year, Evrard assigns points (positive and negative) to ducks, depending on their relative abundance. Drake mallards, ringnecks, greenwings and Canada geese were worth +3 points each; bluewings, +1 point; hen mallards, -1 point; lost cripples, -3 points. Shells used over 10 per day were worth -1 point each. The net proceeds from the hunt allowed for a modest donation of $110 to the Wisconsin DNR, earmarked for waterfowl management in the Glacial Lakes Grantsburg Wildlife Management Complex. Since 1988, Evrard reports, the CIWH has generated $3,345, of which $2,355 were donated to the Glacial Lakes Complex, $690 to Ducks Unlimited and $300 to Wisconsin Waterfowl Association. A good time was had by all, despite the low turn out by the waterfowl contingent. If we ever get an early opener again in the Grantsburg area (which happens to be in the Southern Duck Sone, despite being way up north), we might see a few more teal and some wood ducks. For me, it was a long drive to renew old acquaintances and spend two mornings on the marsh. The highlight was my float on the Clam with Don Erickson, which didn't count because we left our assigned flowage. Maybe we enjoyed it even more because we were playng hookey! Later... 10:01:53 PM    comment []

© Copyright 2004 Dan Small. Last update: 10/23/04; 9:08:46 PM.