Photo by Marc Murrell.

In the pre-dawn darkness I could hear the sweet sound of wood ducks chattering on the surface of the water a few hundred yards away. The familiar sound was reassuring, even though I had no way of telling in which direction they'd go as the sun came up -- but the prospects had me excited!

As the trees along the bank became visible in the early morning light, the ducks became more vocal. One wood duck took to the air; then the rapid beat of wings and ducks squealing set the scene for my fleeting chance to score.

Most of the ducks flew by just out of range, but one strayed just far enough for me to take a shot. Pulling the front sight just past the bird's head, I fired, and my target stumbled in midflight; a quick second shot dropped the beautiful drake wood duck into the clear waters of Lake Juliette. I saw a few other ducks darting by at very high range, but no other shot opportunities developed.

But the goose season was also on, and later a small group winged into a cove not far away. I figured I couldn't get close to them, so I devised an alternate game plan. The wind was blowing strong into the cove, so I decided to let it work for me.

Positioning my camouflaged boat about 200 yards from the geese, I pulled a camo cover over the boat and myself. It took perhaps 20 minutes, but the geese held position as the wind blew me within range. I popped up and claimed one of the geese.

And so went a typical Georgia waterfowl hunt: characterized by limited opportunity, careful planning, some guile and -- hopefully -- some good luck!

As most hunters know, Georgia duck hunting is scattered and sporadic, with plenty of ups and downs. (Cont.) But for the prepared hunter, plenty of opportunity is to be had.

Greg Balkcom, the state waterfowl biologist for the Georgia Department of Natural Resources' Wildlife Resources Division, reported that the duck harvest in Georgia consists of 50 to 60 percent wood ducks, a ratio that's been fairly constant over the last few years. Although the Peach State has produced a lot of homegrown woodies within the state's borders, recent banding studies have shown that 85 percent of the wood ducks taken have come from the Great Lakes area, the Mid-Atlantic states or the northeastern sections of the country. By the fall hunting season, many of the wood ducks gracing our skies have been long-distance travelers.

In addition to wood ducks, Balkcom noted, ringnecks and mallards comprise another 15 percent each of the total harvest with the balance made up of scaup, teal, mergansers, redheads and buffleheads.

In pursuit of ducks, the biologist said, waterfowlers shouldn't overlook the excellent shotgunning provided by Georgia's resident goose population. Geese were almost nonexistent in Georgia back in the 1960s, as most migratory birds never made it this far south, as food remained available on farms, pastures and nature preserves in the mid-Atlantic states.

But all that changed in the early 1970s, when the Georgia WRD made an agreement with several northern states to remove some of their overabundant Canada geese for transport south. From the initial stocking of a few hundred at Clark Hill Reservoir, the program expanded to other major reservoirs and many large public and private lakes across Georgia.

Today, Balkcom estimates, the resident Georgia goose population stands at 180,000 and growing. Some of the state's best goose hunting can be found around small private ponds on farms on which crop harvesting is in progress.

"Sometimes," said the biologist, "you can see large flocks of geese landing in a peanut field, for example, and that might be a great time to ask permission to hunt. Also, some golf clubs might be agreeable to discreet hunting to remove an overpopulation of geese -- so it never hurts to inquire through the proper channels."

Now let's take a look at the Peach State and identify some of the best locations for setting up your duck blind.