Canada looking great

[JABIII]

Canadian forecast is bright
Glen Schmitt
Special to the Times
PRINTER FRIENDLY VERSION

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REGINA, Saskatchewan -- Waterfowl hunters who plan to travel to Canada in the next couple of weeks should expect excellent hunting. Warm temperatures in most provinces have done little for the migration up to this point.
In addition, crop harvest is behind due to cold, wet weather earlier this summer. As a result, the best waterfowl hunting opportunities are yet to come.

In Saskatchewan, farmers are as much as six weeks behind schedule with the harvest. Crop quality continues to be an issue this week due to an earlier frost and cold weather.

"We finally received favorable weather to get in the fields," said Terry Bedard of the Agriculture, Food, and Rural Revitalization Group in Regina. "As of this week, we're only 30 percent complete and normally we're 80 percent done by the first of October."

The southwest region of Saskatchewan is most advanced (47 percent combined), while the northwest is at only 13 percent. A prolonged stretch of warm, dry weather is needed to keep combines in the field, while a blast of cold weather is needed to push ducks and geese from the north.

Bob Kopp of Kopp's Gun Shop in Humboldt said the hunting isn't as good as it normally is this time of year. Located in Central Saskatchewan, Kopp has yet to see a migration of new birds into the area.

"It's just been too warm throughout the province," he said. "The guys that come in here are shooting birds, but we haven't had a push of ducks and geese come down from the north yet."

Kopp points out that hunting prospects could change in a hurry, especially at this time of year. A couple of cold days further north would move numbers of snow geese, Canadian geese and mallards into the central and southern portions of the province.

Warm temperatures and drying winds in the past week were a welcome break from the cool, wet weather that dominated regions of Manitoba for the past several weeks.

According to the Manitoba weekly crop report, harvest of small grains is only 5-20 percent completed in most regions. Most of the province received measurable rain this week, further slowing the harvest.

Very little waterfowl migration has occurred into Central Manitoba, according to the Ducks Unlimited Canada web site. The best hunting reports have come from northern regions of the province where mallards, snow geese and Canadian geese are quite plentiful.

Nathan Fontaine of Ducks Unlimited Canada in Brooks, Alberta reports better hunting conditions in his province. Located two hours southeast of Calgary, Fontaine says the annual migration and crop harvest are on schedule.

"We're just starting to see ducks and geese on the move," he said. "The first couple of weeks in October should be good for hunters."

According to Fontaine, birds have moved into the Red Deer area of Calgary and that more are showing up each week. With the right weather conditions, these birds will continue to push south.

"The migration is about how it should be this time of year," he added. "We haven't had that big push of cold weather yet, but it's in the forecast."

[MossyOak]

JAB I talked to JPC on Sunday and he seemed like he was going to bust a nut he was so excited. I'm heading out there a week after ya'll so maybe we'll run into one another.