While I haven’t spent as much time in recent years chasing greenheads due to my increasing affinity to deer hunt with my bow, I still find myself drawn to the late season.

I would largely guess that it is because once all the deer seasons are finally over the duck season is about all that is left before the long wait for turkey season. The downside to waiting this long before starting to hunt ducks, is that the ducks have been hunted for a few months and getting them within shooting range can prove difficult.

Just like with almost every other type of hunting when it gets cold out, comfort and food are key for successful duck hunts. Finding the spots where ducks go to get out of the wind or high waves to conserve energy can lead to a stellar hunt. You can look at aerial maps and see where rivers make oxbows or where a point juts out into a lake.

Make your setup on the downriver or downwind side of these breaks. I like to have a mix of decoys in the water and up on shore to give added realism of ducks that have gone up on land to rest or sleep. A mix of species of decoys can also help. Black ducks are very wary ducks so black duck decoys can give approaching birds confidence that it’s safe to come in.