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Every year, more than 1 million duck hunters flock to the waters and marshes of the United States in pursuit of waterfowl.
Duck hunting has risen steadily in popularity, as all species of ducks remain plentiful across North America.
The US boasts certain regions that simply seem to be hotspots for thriving duck populations.
This article will guide you through four of these areas, enabling you to make the most out of your next duck hunting trip! So come along with us as we uncover the best spots in the US for finding ducks!
Waterfowl Migration Patterns
For novice and experienced duck hunters alike, it is important to be up-to-date with the four major flyways ducks use annually.
Knowing which route they follow can help in determining the best spots for duck hunting.
As we discussed, North America’s ducks migrate southward when autumn arrives, so looking at these four pathways can provide a great indication of where the best hotspots will be.
The Atlantic Flyway follows the eastern coast of the United States while the Mississippi Flyway takes its course along the mighty Mississippi River.
Further inland, the Central Flyway traverses vast swathes of land from Montana through to Texas, and out West lies the Pacific Flyway which spans both coasts as far as Idaho, Utah and Arizona.
Knowing these patterns can help you decide where to duck hunt, or really plan ahead if you’d like to take a tour of hunting spots in different areas.
Upper Mississippi River
If you’re from the Midwest looking for a great duck hunt, the Upper Mississippi River Area is definitely worth checking out.
This area of Minnesota, Iowa, and Wisconsin offers plenty of public hunting land plus a wide array of foraging grounds near the river such as shallow water, small islands, and marshes.
With a total size of 240,000 acres this location provides ample opportunity for outdoor enthusiasts of all kinds.
In late October through November, you will find it teeming with ducks the best time of the year.
As the ducks begin to migrate south, the wetlands around the Upper Mississippi River will serve as a great staging area for them to gather.
Canvasbacks, redheads, lesser scaups, and mallards are the most popular ducks that can be found there in abundance.
Mississippi Delta
Heading south down the Mississippi River, you will discover a wealth of hunting opportunities in the Mississippi Delta.
After autumn rains and the harvest, most of this region becomes flooded, offering an ideal winter habitat to a vast array of ducks.
Similar to the Upper Mississippi River Area, the Delta has stretches of shallow waters, inundated hardwood forests and floods plains that attract hunters.
If you stick close to the Delta National Forest and other public areas owned by national or state wildlife authorities, there are plenty of options.
This area is definitely for those who want to hunt later into the season as the duck migration continues south.
The best time of the year to hunt this area is in December and January.
Because the Mississippi Flyway and the Central Flyway converge here, there are a wide variety of ducks here. Mallards, pintails, gadwalls, wood ducks, and greenwinged teal are among the ducks you can see here.
Chesapeake Bay
The Chesapeake Bay is located on the east coast of Virginia and touches Maryland, so we head east from the middle of the United States.
Due to the wide open water on the bay itself, this might be a very different type of duck hunting when compared to hunting the Mississippi and other inland areas.
Even so, it has one of the largest duck populations in the country both during migration and during the winter.
The Chesapeake Bay is accessible to all, as open water does not pose a challenge.
Those without the means of such a venture can visit many wildlife management areas and refuges within the bay.
The best time to hunt here is December and January, so be sure to bring warm clothing. Mallards, black ducks, green-winged teal, and canvasbacks are commonly encountered here.
Central Valley of California
In an effort to acknowledge the western region, we head to the Central Valley of California for our last hotbed duck hunting area in the United States.
The Central Valley is home to the largest duck wintering ground in North America.
The area is saturated with ducks for a very long period of time, so any hunter has a great opportunity to hunt them.
It is home to between five and seven million ducks in the peak migration and wintering season.
There are some decent public hunting opportunities in the area as well as the very intensely managed national wildlife refuges.
If you are looking for a destination duck hunt in the near future, you might want to check out the private duck clubs that are blanketed throughout the region.
You can find an abundance of pintails, mallards, wigeons, and green-winged teal between late November and the end of January, when the ducks are most active.
You have a great chance at bagging your limit in any of these duck hotspots if you don’t live in these areas. Let your duck hunting obsession take you to new places.
Sources: wideopenspaces
