Manager's Updates - State of Michigan

Fennville Farm Unit Manager’s Update 

2013 Season - Week of 9/30 

Weather 

No significant weather events. 

Waterfowl Abundance 

Waterfowl numbers have been normal, with the exception of mallards. We do have some mallards 

on the Farm Unit but have seen very few in the Highbanks Refuge. Normally, mallard numbers pick 

up in October so we should see an upswing soon. Goose numbers continue to be about average. 

Quite a few were harvested in the area off the Farm Unit (remember that the Farm is not open for 

early goose). As with the mallards, goose numbers should begin to increase more rapidly during 

October. 

Hunting Conditions 

Crops are looking nice this year and there will be plenty of winter food for the waterfowl on the Farm 

Unit. The corn hunting strips are looking much better than last year’s drought-stricken stands and 

hunters should be able to conceal themselves quite well. So far, the lack of rain has prevented us 

from filling the Zone 7 impoundment but the other Area impoundments are at appropriate levels. 

Hunter Numbers 

n/a 

Waterfowl Harvest 

Early goose season appeared to be good in the area with many successful hunts reported. 

Upcoming Events 

The Fennville Farm Unit will be open for duck season. All duck hunting is first-come, first-served 

until November 2nd, when the Allegan Goose Management Unit season opens. 

November 2nd will be the AM Youth Hunt at the Fennville Farm Unit. The Farm will be open to youth 

hunters only in all zones. 

November 3rd will be the regular opener for all hunters.



Weather 

Approximately 1.5” of rain fell over the last week, according to the gauge at the Farm Unit. The rain 

has helped get some standing water in the Farm impoundments. Hopefully that will persist until this 

weekend for the duck opener. 


Waterfowl numbers increased last week, especially geese. We do have some mallards on the Farm 

Unit but have seen very few in the Highbanks Refuge – but they numbers have increased over last 

week. We are seeing an influx of wood ducks, probably due to cooler weather up north and the 

opener for the Northern Lower. 







n/a 


Early goose season appeared to be good in the area with many successful hunts reported. 

What To Expect This Week 

With the duck opener we expect to see heavy use at the Farm unit and the rest of the Allegan State 

Game Area. Sounds like we may have some rain events coming through over the weekend 

according to the current weather forcast… 









Weather 

Approximately 0.3” of rain fell on Saturday, according to the gauge at the Farm Unit. The rain has 

helped get some standing water in the Farm impoundments. We hope to pick up more precipitation 

with the forecasted storms this week. 


While the survey shows a decline in geese the numbers were probably stable. The previous survey 

took place when fewer fields were opened up so geese were more concentrated. More mallards 

showed up on the Highbanks and are beginning to hit the patches of smartweed. There are still a lot 

of woodies in the Highbanks but I expect numbers to go down over the week due to the start of duck 

season and colder temperatures. 






Sharecroppers have been harvesting beans as the fields come ready so they will be disking rye in 

those fields shortly. 


It sounds like there were a few parties on the Farm Unit, mostly in Zones 6 and 7, for the duck opener. 

No word on how many ducks were harvested. 


There was some shooting from the Farm Unit for opening day and the Ottawa Marsh was surely 

busy. I have not heard whether or not the hunting was good across the board but have heard that 

some locations produced full bags. 


Sounds like we may have some rain events coming through this week. 






November 3rd will be the regular opener for all hunters. 

Trapping on the Farm Unit is by permit only. We are trying to continue allowing trapping while preventing 

negative impacts to our primary function: waterfowl hunting. You may contact the ASGA HQ 

or Farm Unit to get the permit.



Weather 

Approximately 3” of rain has fallen over the past week, according to the gauge at the Farm Unit. The 

rain has helped get some standing water in the Farm impoundments. The weather is sure to push 

some ducks around. 


Goose numbers have increased, probably due to the inclement weather and fields continuing to open 

up. Wood duck numbers have begun to deplete. Mallard numbers are on the increase with fresh 

birds showing up at the Farm and Highbanks. They are hitting the smartweed in the Highbanks and 

starting to feed in some fields on the Farm. 






Sharecroppers have been harvesting beans as the fields come ready so they will be disking rye in 

those fields shortly. 


Sounds like we were crawling with pheasant hunters on Sunday for the opener. Success was 

reported to be good. Duck hunts have been successful as well, according to word of mouth. 


Sounds like the harvest is about average at this point. 


Sounds like we may have some rain events coming through this week with snow possibly mixed in. 

This should get some more ducks into the refuge which would help hunter success. 


The Fennville Farm Unit will be open for duck season. All duck hunting is first-come, first-served until 

November 2nd, when the Allegan Goose Management Unit season opens. 



November 3rd will be the regular opener for all hunters. 

Trapping on the Farm Unit is by permit only. We are trying to continue allowing trapping while 

preventing negative impacts to our primary function: waterfowl hunting. You may contact the ASGA 

HQ or Farm Unit to get the permit.



Weather 

The last week has been very wet with 4” at least of heavy, wet snow falling. Monday and Tuesday 

have been nice weather with milder temperatures. 


Goose numbers have remained constant but they are widely spread across the GMU and have not 

fully congregated at the Farm as of yet. There are some snows mixed in but in low numbers. Wood 

ducks appear to have mostly left the area, probably during the snowstorm. Mallard numbers are on 

the increase with fresh birds showing up at the Farm and Highbanks. They are hitting the 

smartweed in the Highbanks and starting to feed in some fields on the Farm. Hunting pressure on 

the ducks is still high enough that they are becoming educated quickly but some good hunts have 

been reported on the Farm and Ottawa Marsh. 


Zone 7 is filled to the maximum allowed by the dikes. We are looking forward to repairing the dikes 

next summer so that we can flood more of 7A, B, and C. With the nice weather during the beginning 

of this week the sharecroppers have been in the fields all over, trying desperately to get the beans 

off before the upcoming rain. This has delayed the rye planting so some fields may not green up as 

much as desired before the winter hits. 


Duck hunters have been consistent but not in high numbers – 4-8 parties or so in the morning 

(first-come, first-served). Fewer pheasant hunters are hitting the area and success appears to be 

down. The snow last week really flattened some of the habitat but it appears to be rebounding. 


Sounds like the harvest is about average at this point. 


The managed goose hunt begins this Saturday, November 2, with the YOUTH HUNT. Only youth 

hunters may shoot. The managed hunt opens for adults on Sunday, November 3. 


The Fennville Farm Unit will be open for duck season. All duck hunting is first-come, first-served until 

November 2nd, when the Allegan Goose Management Unit season opens. 





2013 Season - Week of 10/27 Continued 



HQ or Farm Unit to get the permit. 

Be aware that we also have pheasant hunters on the property right now as well.



Weather 

Well, we’ve had a fair bit of rain over the last week and a ½ but it seems to have helped the hunt by 

moving the birds around. Looks like we have some clear weather for a few days, possible snow, and 

rain in the forecast. 


As with last week, goose numbers have remained constant but they are widely spread across the 

GMU and have not fully congregated at the Farm refuge. There are some snows mixed in but in low 

numbers. I’ve had some reports of new birds in the area and heading south toward the area so I 

expect estimates to rise over the next couple weeks. Even though the numbers aren’t as high as one 

would like we are still seeing a decent harvest rate because the birds that are here aren’t fully educated 

and they have been moving on and off the Farm giving hunters a shot as they come and go. 

I have had multiple reports of new ducks. Lots of orange feet on greenheads and other various 

species that we don’t normally hold in high numbers have been reported (gadwall, widgeon, pintail, 

shoveler). The duck numbers have been increasing. 


The fields and drives are wet so be aware as you go out to your zone. Otherwise, conditions are 

good at all the posts. Do not drive down to 7D – very wet – one hunter buried his truck down there on 

Sunday and had to get a tow truck. 


There were 25 youth hunters on Youth Day and they harvested 16 birds. I saw quite a few happy 

faces. 

Hunter numbers have been average for weekdays and probably we were a little lower than normal for 

opening day for the adults (we had 59 parties Sunday, 12 Monday, 24 Tuesday for the afternoon, and 

12 Wednesday). As of noon yesterday we had harvested 79 geese and 8 ducks through the hunt 

(remember that duck hunters that come in 1st come – 1st served do not have to report ducks, you 

can hunt ducks 1st come – 1st served in any zone on Mon, Wed, Fri, Sat, and Sun. after 3:00 pm). 

We are already on pace to have a better hunt than last year – the best hunting days of the year are 

yet to come. 


Sounds like the harvest is about average at this point: 79 birds. So we are probably averaging about 

3 birds for every 10 hunter trips (the long term average is about 2.5 birds per 10 hunter trips). 


Nothing out of the ordinary, just come and hunt. We may have trappers trying to enter zones on Nov. 

10 so help spread the word that trapping for muskrats, mink, and raccoons is closed on the Farm Unit 

during the managed hunt.






HQ or Farm Unit to get the permit. 

Be aware that we also have pheasant hunters on the property right now as well.



Weather 

Fair weather over the past week has shut down the goose movement but the ducks have still been 

flying some. The big front that came through may helped more if it came through a bit earlier in the 

day rather than after the hunt was closed for the afternoon. Then again, we wouldn’t have wanted all 

the hunters out in that type of storm so probably for the better – I talked to a couple duck hunters who 

were out in the first part of the storm and it was nasty. The cloudy/rainy/snowy weather coming up 

the end of this week into the weekend should help get things moving some more. 


Goose numbers remain nearly static. We’ve not observed mass movements into or out of the GMU. 

With the nice weather it is actually harder to get a good estimate because the geese don’t tend to get 

up into the air in one big uprising – they sit on the water, sometimes in the refuge and are difficult to 

see. 

Ducks may be continuing to move into the area. We have a lot of orange feet indicating that new 

birds continue to hold in the area. 


With the big blow we had some of the corn has been knocked over or shortened. 8H is probably 

about the worst for blown over corn but there’s still enough cover there to hide. There are plenty of 

trails through the corn strips already so don’t make new ones – we are going to need as much corn 

standing as possibly to make it through the end of January with good cover. The fields and drives are 

wet so be aware as you go out to your zone. Otherwise, conditions are good at all the posts. Do not 

drive down to 7D – very wet – one hunter buried his truck down there on Sunday and had to get a tow 

truck. 


Hunter numbers have been low over the past week, possibly due to firearm deer season and slow 

harvests. We are averaging between 10 and 15 parties (20 – 40 hunters) so there’s been plenty of 

posts to go around. 


Goose harvest has probably hovered around average on the days with good goose hunting weather 

– to date we’ve harvested 190 or so. Duck harvest has been very good compared to our averages 

through the managed hunt. I suspect that the ducks have been moving more and hunters have been 

targeting them rather than geese (by using spinners) which may account for fewer geese taken but 

higher than average duck harvests. That said, I hunted for a bit yesterday over spinners and the 

geese were flaring off us and going into an adjacent post so it doesn’t appear that the spinners are 

affecting neighboring parties to a high degree.




If we have the weather we expect then I think we’ll see more birds and better hunts. Higher party 

numbers as well with the Thanksgiving weekend approaching. REMEMBER THAT THERE IS A 5:30 

AM DRAW ON THANKSGIVING rather than an 11:00 AM draw – we did this so that you can hunt in 

the morning and eat roast goose for Thanksgiving in the afternoon (seriously, the last couple years 

we’ve had dismal participation on Thanksgiving and we’re hoping this turns that pattern around). 


THE THANKSGIVING DAY DRAWING IS AT 5:30 AM instead of 11:00 AM. 

Trapping on the Farm Unit is by permit only. We are trying to continue allowing trapping while preventing 

negative impacts to our primary function: waterfowl hunting. You may contact the ASGA HQ 

or Farm Unit to get the permit.



Weather 

COLD! SNOW! This ought to (and seems to be) bringing geese into the area. The Farm accumulates 

more geese as it freezes up north and snow covers the picked fields. 


Geese continue to trickle in slowly. We are loaded with ducks right now and had a really good last 

week of the duck season. 


Some of the corn strips have deteriorated but cover is still sufficient in all the areas I’ve seen. 


Hunter numbers have been down with parties mostly in the teens. We had 1 party through the draw 

yesterday (and a few that came in later through reissue) – they harvested 5 geese though so hunter 

success has been decent. 


We are up to 282 geese as of Monday. We’ve harvested 225 ducks through the drawing which is 

actually better success than we’ve seen in past years. This is nowhere near the total duck harvest for 

the Farm as most of our duck hunting takes place after the goose hunt on Mon, Wed, Fri, Sat, & Sun 

and we were also open early during the duck season before the goose season started. Currently, we 

are at 19 geese per 100 hunter trips but adding in the ducks brings us up to 1 bird per every 3 hunter 

trips which isn’t that bad for a goose hunt. Really, what we saw over the last 2 weeks was hunters 

focusing on ducks and not paying as much attention to the geese which is part of why the goose 

harvest has been below average and the duck harvest above average. 


Nothing out of the ordinary, just come and hunt. We are expecting cold weather and snow which 

should help success. 


The Farm Unit is closed on Christmas (but the rest of the Goose Management Unit will be open). 

December 28th is the PM Youth Hunt so hunters through the 5:30 AM draw will hunt til noon – the 

youth hunt drawing will be at 11:00 AM with lunch probably provided by Macatawa Bay Waterfowlers 

– our local chapter of the Michigan Duck Hunters Association.



Weather 

Cold & snowy with wind – perfect goose hunting weather for the Farm. We continue to get excellent 

weather. Right now we have about 8” or more of snow on the ground – more has fallen but the wind 

has been blowing into ditches and drifts. 


More geese have moved in over the past week. I am estimating 8500 but it has been difficult to see 

and count the birds on the Farm in the snowy weather, especially when they are sitting a distance 

from the road as they are in spots today. Right now they are feeding in the corn strip right behind the 

Farm headquarters. Duck numbers started to increase rapidly through the last week of the season 

until now. If they keep flying the way they have been we should see a good 2-day split and hopefully 

good numbers for the youth hunt. 


The corn strips are holding together OK. Snow is making it difficult for 2WD vehicles to get in and out 

of the hunting spots. Bring your 4WD if you can. 


Hunter numbers were down last week, ranging between 1 and 8 parties through the drawing during 

the weekday. The weekend proved to be busier with 29 and 22 parties on Saturday and Sunday, 

respectively. Monday there were 4 parties and today, for the 11 AM draw, we had 20 parties and I’ve 

heard some shooting so far. 


To date, we have harvested 405 geese, which exceeds the total number shot during last season. 

Harvest has been good. Since last Monday, we’ve had 199 hunter trips and 128 geese shot, so 

that’s a success rate of 64%. If more hunters would have been out last week our harvest would have 

increased much more dramatically. But, the weather was bad so that drove participation down. My 

rule of thumb is that a day where the roads are nasty due to snow and wind is a day that will be good 

at the Farm (in other words, if I wake up and have to leave early in order to get here on time and drive 

white-knuckled most of the way – that’s a good day to hunt). 


The weather seems like it will be OK for hunting this week. Sometimes these warmups like we are 

due to experience on Thursday produce good hunting – especially if the rain on the snow produces a 

thick fog. 


The Farm Unit is closed on Christmas (but the rest of the Goose Management Unit will be open). 

December 28th is the PM Youth Hunt so hunters through the 5:30 AM draw will hunt til noon – the 

youth hunt drawing will be at 11:00 AM with lunch probably provided by Macatawa Bay Waterfowlers 

– our local chapter of the Michigan Duck Hunters Association.

Manager's Updates - State of Michigan

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