This year’s waterfowl hunting season officially started on October 17th. This will be a two month season, ending in December, where ducks, mergansers, coots, and canada geese are open for hunting as they begin their migration down south.

People all round Antioch have been preparing several weeks in advance for the start of this season. The preparations almost always include the building of a duck blind, and stretch out to dusting off old clothes, buying supplies like ammo and food, and scouting.

Scouting is when you look for the patterns that the waterfowl are making in their hunting grounds. As senior Michael Rudny states, “I go out and look for where they land, where they come out of, when they go there, when they come out of there, and finding out where they head off to.”

Duck hunting is done for many different reasons. Some people do it because they find it relaxing, being out in nature and enjoying themselves. Others do it for tradition, Like senior Zachary Frye, “I adopted it from my dad, who adopted it from my grandfather. It is a tradition in my family.”

All of Antioch’s lakes and wetlands provide waterfowl with a perfect spot to live. The abundant population is the reason that the sport is so popular with the students of ACHS.