Migration Report: October 12th

Fresh birds, but no flood. A late-week cold front pushed new ducks into every corner of Wisconsin, just not the big migration push hunters were hoping for. This week's Wisconsin duck hunting report covers the Northwest, Northeast, Southwest and Southeast: new mallards in southern Wisconsin, rafts of canvasbacks and ringnecks on the Mississippi River, the first goldeneyes on Green Bay, Canada geese hitting picked corn, light pressure during deer season, and the waterfowl outlook for the week ahead. Get the Upduck Newsletter every Monday. For more, follow us on:Instagram · Facebook · YouTube · TikTok In partnership with the Wisconsin Waterfowl Association: wisducks.org Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Tired of flipping between onX, county PDFs, and the DNR website just to find grouse cover? Chris Cavadini and Phil Terrien, two of the four Wisconsin bird hunters behind Upland Maps, built one map that puts it all in one place. Upland Maps layers public land, Managed Forest Law ground, county grouse area maps, and aspen by age onto a single Wisconsin map. It also works offline, saves your pins, and lets you share privately with your hunting party. The guys explain why they built it after years of hand-drawn Google Maps, and give a live demo. For more on Upland Maps, check out:Website · Open the map · Android app Get the Upduck Newsletter:Subscribe for free For more, follow us on:Instagram · Facebook · YouTube · TikTok Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The divers have arrived in Wisconsin. Bluebills, canvasbacks, redheads, buffleheads and even scoters are showing up on Green Bay and the big inland lakes, while puddle ducks across the state are getting stale in warm, calm weather. This week's Wisconsin duck hunting report covers waterfowl migration, green-winged teal, mallards, goose numbers, low water and the north winds coming midweek across Northwest, Northeast, Southwest and Southeast Wisconsin, plus a North Zone closing reminder. For more, follow us on:Instagram · Facebook · YouTube · TikTok Wisconsin Waterfowl Association: wisducks.org Get the Upduck Newsletter: upducknewsletter.beehiiv.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Warm, calm weather left stale ducks across Wisconsin this week, and every region is waiting on a cold front. This Migration Report covers Wisconsin duck hunting in the Northwest, Northeast, Southwest and Southeast: mallards holding tight, wood ducks and teal thinning out, divers and bluebills building on big water, and Canada geese stacking up on fresh-cut corn. Plus the late-October waterfowl migration outlook. Get the Upduck Newsletter every Monday: Subscribe here For more, follow us on: Instagram | Facebook | YouTube | TikTok Wisconsin Waterfowl Association Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Ever wondered what it actually takes to get on a hunting pro staff or why your out-of-state duck trip keeps coming up short? Jon Braun, Drake Waterfowl's Regional Pro Staff Coordinator for the northern Mississippi Flyway, has answers for both. Jon oversees about 40 pro staffers across Wisconsin, Illinois, Iowa and Minnesota and has made DIY North Dakota duck trips since 2003. He explains how his group scouts 3–4 hours every day, how to get permission on private land in North Dakota and Canada, what Drake looks for in pro staff (and what gets you cut), and the waterfowl gear new hunters should buy first. Plus: tundra swans , a lab with 1,500 retrieves, and North vs. South hunting culture. For more on Drake Waterfowl, check out:Website · Jon Braun on Instagram · BMF Waders · Non-Typical Whitetail Gear For more on Spoonie by Drake (sold at Walmart), check out:Spoonie Waders For more on Soggy Acres Retrievers, check out:Website For more on the Waterfowl Hunters Expo, check out:Website For more, follow us on:Newsletter · Instagram · Facebook · YouTube · TikTok Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The cold front brought the first real migrators into Wisconsin, but the hunting was hit or miss. Canvasbacks, ringnecks, wigeon and gadwall pushed in, wood ducks thinned out, and Canada geese are everywhere in the south. We cover the Southern Zone reopener, the Open Water opener on Green Bay, the Mississippi River and the Northwoods across Northwest, Northeast, Southwest and Southeast Wisconsin. For more, follow us on: InstagramFacebookYouTubeTikTok Wisconsin Waterfowl Association Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

hy is day two of duck season always slower than opening day? Tyler and Matt grade Wisconsin's first duck split and break down how fast opening weekend pressure changes the birds. From a three-man teal limit in under an hour to a Sunday bust after the ground around it got hunted, they dig into how hunting pressure moves ducks on public land, why downed ducks vanish in small timber holes, and a real-world poison-bird drill on a crippled green-winged teal. Plus: why you shouldn't shoot over a breaking dog, keeping a four-year-old happy in a layout blind for five hours, and motion decoys for light walk-in spreads. For more, follow us on:⁠Newsletter⁠ · ⁠Instagram⁠ · ⁠Facebook⁠ · ⁠YouTube⁠ · ⁠TikTok Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Heat stalled Wisconsin's duck hunting before the Southern Zone split, but the first divers are showing up. This week's Migration Report covers Northwest, Northeast, Southwest and Southeast Wisconsin: ringnecks, bluebills and buffleheads in the Northwoods, wary local mallards and wood ducks, building Canada geese and low water from the Mississippi River east. Plus a cold front arriving just in time for the October 17th reopener. For more, follow us on:Instagram · Facebook · YouTube · TikTok Wisconsin Waterfowl Association: wisducks.org Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Upland seasons are opening, so we're bringing back one of our best-performing episodes. Eric Forrester of Ghost Point Wirehairs is a self-taught Indiana bird hunter who breeds German Wirehaired Pointers, runs NSTRA field trials, and lives out of his truck chasing sharptails, Huns, chukar and quail across the West. We get into: How one lunch conversation turned into a wirehair kennel NSTRA field trials explained: braces, scoring and breaking on the flush Why breeding matters more than training DIY upland hunting out West: where to start, in-person scouting, snakes and porcupines Filming solo hunts and keeping it real with sponsors For more on Ghost Point Wirehairs check out: Ghost Point Wirehairs website Eric Forrester on YouTube Ghost Point Wirehairs on Instagram Ghost Point Wirehairs on Facebook For more, follow us on: Instagram | Facebook | YouTube | TikTok | Spotify Get more bird dog content every Monday in the Upduck Newsletter. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Wisconsin's duck opener belonged to the wood ducks. In this week's Migration Report, hunters from Northwest, Northeast, Southwest and Southeast Wisconsin break down opening weekend: woodie limits, scattered teal, building numbers of Canada geese and heavy pressure, even away from the big marshes. Plus what warm weather means for fresh birds, and a reminder that the Southern Duck Zone closes after October 11 for the split. Presented in partnership with the Wisconsin Waterfowl Association. For more, follow us on:Instagram · Facebook · YouTube · TikTok Wisconsin Waterfowl Association: wisducks.org Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices