The Michigan Department of Natural Resources will host the 19th annual Saginaw Bay Waterfowl Festival Saturday and Sunday, Aug. 1 and 2, at Bay City State Recreation Area. The 2016 Michigan Duck Hunters Association Michigan Duck Stamp Competition and the 2015 Michigan Duck and Goose Calling Contest will be held during this event.
Michigan Duck Stamp Competition
The 2016 Michigan Duck Hunters Association Michigan Duck Stamp Competition, open to all artists, will be held Saturday, Aug. 1. This year’s competition will feature original artwork representing specific waterfowl species. All entries will be on display inside the Saginaw Bay Visitor Center auditorium, starting at 3:30 p.m. on the day of the event. Judging will begin at 4 p.m. The first-place entry will win a $2,500 cash prize; second place, $300; and third place, $200.
The Michigan Waterfowl Stamp program began 39 years ago to raise money for wetland habitat restoration and habitat acquisition for waterfowl. A portion of every waterfowl stamp purchased goes toward Michigan wetland habitat restoration. Over a million dollars has been raised for waterfowl conservation projects since the first stamp was issued in 1976. For more details on the 2016 Michigan Duck Stamp Competition, contact Ed Standler, Duck Stamp program coordinator, at 989-545-9525 or yellowdawgg@hotmail.com. The deadline for entry is midnight July 31.
Michigan Duck and Goose Calling Contests
The 2015 Michigan Duck and Goose Calling Contest will be held Sunday, Aug. 2, beginning with the Goose Competition at 12:30 p.m. followed by the State Duck Competition at 1:30 p.m. The contests will be held at the outdoor stage arena on the Saginaw Bay Visitor Center festival grounds, located inside Bay City State Recreation Area. Entries will be accepted for both novice (a division for those who are just getting started in competition calling) and master’s (designed for callers who would like a chance to advance to national-level competitions) divisions. The event is fun to watch and a great way to improve waterfowl-calling skills. Spectators are welcome.
The Goose Calling Competition, open to any caller, has an entry fee of $25. The first-place goose caller will receive a $300 cash prize, trophy, prize package and points toward advancing to the national competition. The State Duck Calling Contest, open to Michigan residents, has an entry fee of $25. The first-place duck caller will win a $300 cash prize, trophy and prize package and will represent Michigan at the Stuttgart, Arkansas, World Championship Duck Calling Contest this fall.
For those who would like to get started calling or brush up on their calling skills, Cabela’s will sponsor Waterfowl Calling Clinics for both adult (12:30 p.m. Saturday and 9 a.m. Sunday) and youth (11:30 a.m. Saturday and 11 a.m. Sunday) waterfowl hunters. The clinics will introduce basic methods and techniques used in calling in ducks and geese. Registration for all of the above events will be taken the day of the event at the Friends of Bay City State Recreation Area information booth, located inside the park’s day-use area parking lot.
The Saginaw Bay Waterfowl Festival, open 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Saturday and 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sunday, offers numerous programs, exhibits and competitions that focus on the ducks and geese that depend upon the wetlands of the Saginaw Bay Watershed for staging, nesting and breeding habitat. Visitors will be able to take part in a wide range of activities to help them become more aware of the sports of waterfowl watching and waterfowl hunting and the conservation and management of Michigan’s waterfowl resources. The event is co-sponsored by the Michigan Department of Natural Resources, the Michigan Duck Hunters Association, the Frank N. Andersen Foundation, Ducks Unlimited, Cabela’s, Frank’s Great Outdoors and the Friends of Bay City State Recreation Area.
For more information on the festival, please stop by the Saginaw Bay Visitor Center, located in Bay City State Recreation Area at 3582 State Park Drive in Bay City; call 989-667-0717, or visit www.friendsofpark.org or www.michigan.gov/saginawbayvc.
Admission to the Saginaw Bay Waterfowl Festival is free; however a Recreation Passport is required for entry into all Michigan state parks and recreation areas. Check “YES” when you renew your license plate. Learn more at www.michigan.gov/recreationpassport.
The Michigan Department of Natural Resources will host the 19th annual Saginaw Bay Waterfowl Festival Saturday and Sunday, Aug. 1 and 2, at Bay City State Recreation Area. The 2016 Michigan Duck Hunters Association Michigan Duck Stamp Competition and the 2015 Michigan Duck and Goose Calling Contest will be held during this event.
