The marsh covers nearly 3,000 acres, about half of which is wetlands. Access to the east unit is four miles east of Lake Mills on Highway 105. The west unit is a half-mile south on Dogwood Avenue. The area is long and narrow, with a slight break between the east and west units along Elk Creek.

For additional information, contact the Rice Lake Unit at (641) 324-2431.

BAYS BRANCH WA
"Early in the season there will be 10,000 birds there," said Zenner. "The late-season Canada goose hunting has been good."

Late-season waterfowl shooting in the area can be fast and furious, as thousands of Canada geese will still be on their annual Iowa stopover unless severe winter weather is pushing them further south.

Though open-water hunters might disagree, field-hunting Canadas and ducks can be one of the highlights of the waterfowl season. "Towards the end of the season a lot of the water freezes up hard and forces most of the birds south," said Zenner. "It's all weather-driven and the key is snow. If enough snow hits Manitoba in the fall, then the birds will move south to where the feeding is easier.

"Temperatures don't seem to be that big of a factor, since the birds are well insulated, and usually enough of them get together to keep some water open. When it snows in Minnesota the central Iowa hunters get the benefit. When the birds are flying 50 mph out of Minnesota, they'll usually fly for a few hours, which puts them right into our area."

Randall Alicie has been shooting honkers for years. He's a fascinating guy to talk to -- one with ideas that can be traditional, but have just enough of a twist to be surprisingly effective.

Alicie maintains that decoys should be set in as realistic a pattern as possible. "Spreads should face into the wind with only a few lookouts on alert with their heads up," he said. "A bad decoy spread can easily spook geese from 100 yards away, so realism is critical. During the late season, a haphazard spread of cheap decoys won't fool geese. Use decoys with well-painted detail, the right size and in a variety of positions."

Out in the field, most of the geese should have their heads down as though they're feeding. As geese fly by, it should look to them as if their buddies have hit the jackpot.

The open-water option can be equally productive when shooters are setting up on sites that geese are using for overnight roosting. There's safety on the water, which means that birds will move out in the morning and into the nearby fields to feed; the return trip will be made in the evening. Both morning and evening shotgunners can bag their limits. These flights arguably offer the best shooting of the day.

Water spreads should follow the same general rules, added Alicie: great detail, proper placement, and the suggestion that those "birds" are scoring a great meal.

Bays Branch, which covers 842 acres in Guthrie County, is two miles north of Panora on Highway 4, and then two and a half miles east on 190th St. For more information contact the Bays Branch Management Unit at (641) 332-2019.