Not Your Typical Duck Hunt
By Toby Trigger

Posted: October 16, 2016

Spreading out across a vast open landscape, walking for miles with the sun at your back and a faithful retriever wagging his tail at your side.  Shotgun at the ready and you’re hunting – ducks?

Grassland Ducks Harry

 

Montana is a place where small ponds called kettle ponds hold ducks amidst rolling grasslands.  Looking out across the landscape from the highway gives the impression of, well, anything but waterfowl habitat.

Buffle head duck

If you’ve grown tired of shivering in a duck blind you might consider finding these hidden waterfowl-hiding gems.  But be prepared, the physical effort can require several miles of hiking, belly crawling to edge of ponds and fast shooting.  It’s sort of like antelope hunting except with shotguns and feathers.

Duck.

The variety of species isn’t limited like many of the popular river systems that seem to fill up with mallards and Canada geese even in the early season.  Hunters are surprised to find a huge variety tucked below the horizon.

So, where to go for this unique way of duck hunting?  Grassland complexes make up about 33.53% of Montana.  That’s 31,551,627 acres of Big Sky country.

If you find it difficult to locate a good place to hunt then might I suggest that you trade your shotgun in for golf clubs?

Golf courses aren’t as plentiful as Kettle ponds in Montana however they are easily accessible and don’t require any outdoor skills other than renting a golf cart.

For the rest of you, over 1/3 of Montana is waiting for you!  Good luck!

 

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