By Bruce Urben, WWA President
This article originally appeared in Wisconsin Waterfowl Association’s August, 2021 Newsletter edition.
By the time you read this article it will be less than 30 days to the opening of our first 2021 waterfowl season in Wisconsin. Early teal and early goose openers are on September 1st this year!
Sharpen your shooting skills at WWA’s 22nd Annual State Shoot at Wern Valley!
Preparation for our season openers should be well underway. Tuning up your scattergun, touching up and re-rigging decoys, getting the boat out and then running and finding all the gear that you put away last fall. Did I mention your hunt for ammo? That may be one of the more frustrating preparation tasks we’ll undertake this year.
What better way to tune up your shooting eye than by attending our State Shoot Fundraiser at Wern Valley Sportsman’s Club on August 21st near Waukesha. You may even win some new equipment for your planned hunts. A great way to get ready and support your WWA.
Join our Waukesha Chapter August 5th & get in on your chance to win this Cynergy shotgun!
In addition, we have several other events taking place this month to further tune up your firearm and waterfowling gear needs. Our Waukesha Chapter is hosting their Cynergy Bash on August 5th at Rustic Manor near Hartland, and our Midland Wings/West Bend Chapter will hold their 12th annual banquet on August 26th at The Colombian in West Bend. Our 2021 Hunter’s Eve Bash is scheduled for August 29th at the Beaver Dam Conservationists Club in Beaver Dam where we will also be drawing our ATV raffle, so show up to get your tickets and drive home with your new ATV and trailer!
And, of course, we can’t forget about the largest waterfowl event in the State, the inaugural Waterfowl Hunters Expo, taking place at Winnebago County Expo center in Oshkosh on August 28th. Featuring indoor and outdoor demonstrations and seminars on dog training, waterfowl research and even preparing your favorite waterfowl dish after the hunt. It includes a youth zone activities area, Wisconsin’s State Stamp art judging contest, and the Wisconsin duck and goose calling championships, just to name a few of the exciting events taking place all in one day. Many of the top waterfowl gear vendors, carvers and guides will be on hand to answer all of your questions as well. You can even test your retriever in the timed retrieve contest or browse through the waterfowl swap meet area. The event is youth and canine friendly. Dog water stations will be available throughout the venue. Check out the Waterfowl Hunters Expo website at waterfowlhuntersexpo.com or through the Expo Facebook page.
Also, we are still in need of volunteers to help out during the Expo. Volunteers receive free admission, a nice spiff for helping out and will have an opportunity to attend the event as well. Please contact Todd Schaller, volunteer coordinator at (920) 379-1704 or by email at c217tazman@gmail.com[\email] to sign up. Your help is really appreciated.
There is still time to get ready, but if August flies by as fast as June and July did… well, you will need to get your planning done as soon as possible.
See you at one of our upcoming events.