Hunting Report Archery Duck Deer

Duck season begins in the Texas North and South Duck Zones on Nov. 3. Duck hunters have just one weekend in which to scout for an opening day hot spot.

Texas Parks and Wildlife waterfowl biologist Kevin Kraai says scouting is particularly important this year. A soggy spring and summer dramatically changed the landscape around Dallas. Before the rains, many lake levels had dropped to historic lows.

Those lakes are now full, but so is every stock tank and private lake from the Rolling Plains northwest of Dallas to the brush country of deep South Texas. Kraai said the only region of Texas experiencing problems with surface water is the Panhandle, where shallow playa lakes are drying up.

“It’s been at least a decade since we’ve seen the water situation this good in Texas,” Kraai said. “I was in Canada two weeks ago, and I can tell you that the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service count is correct – there are lots of ducks headed this way.

“Not only was there a good overall duck hatch, the species that had the best production are those species particularly important to Texas hunters. Shovelers are at a record high. Gadwalls, widgeons, blue-winged teal and green-winged teal are near record numbers. There are plenty of mallards in the migration.”

Kraai, himself a serious duck hunter, is concerned with how warm the weather has been in Canada. If Canada isn’t bitter cold by Halloween, duck hunters there get the early-season treats and U.S. hunters can consider themselves tricked by Mother Nature.

The other concern for Dallas-area hunters is excellent habitat conditions in the Rolling Plains. Kraai considers that region to be the nation’s largest waterfowl refuge. It has plenty of high-quality waterfowl habitat and little human intrusion. The same could be said for South Texas, where most fall hunting pressure is directed toward deer and quail.

Where should Dallas hunters scout for an opening day hot spot? I asked Kraai to rank public lakes and wildlife management areas within a 100-mile radius of the city. Here are his top picks:

■ Lake Texoma. This huge lake on the Red River flyway is a perennial favorite for ducks and duck hunters. Kraai said the Red River itself is one of the most productive duck magnets in the entire state. At Texoma, the primary hunting occurs on the mud flats at the upper end of the lake.

■ Cooper Lake. After the lake level dropped so low that boat ramps were unusable last year, Cooper is again full. Thousands of acres of flooded vegetation could make this lake east of Dallas the area’s best hunting spot. Alas, Kraai expects the high water to be temporary as Cooper is stressed by urban water demands.

■ White Oak Creek Wildlife Management Area. This one may be slightly outside the 100-mile radius, but it’s worth the drive. The 25,777-acre WMA has both the Sulphur River and White Oak Creek and lies between Cooper Lake and Wright Patman Lake.

■ Richland Creek Wildlife Management Area. Kraai credits WMA manager Jeff Gunnels and his staff with creating one of the region’s top duck hunting spots near Richland Chamber Lake. The bad news is that Richland Creek gets uncomfortably crowded with hunters, creating a potentially frustrating experience.

■ Lake Tawakoni, near Wills Point, is a perennial favorite for Dallas-area duck hunters. It, too, has been helped by high water levels, as has Lake Ray Roberts, north of Denton. Ray Roberts has crowding issues, but it’s a big lake and holds plenty of ducks.

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