Is it because of global warming? Is it because Hoosier waterfowlers who respond to post-season polls conducted by the Department of Natural Resources (DNR) show a preference for late-season hunting? Have ducks and geese changed the patterns and timing of their fall migration? Perhaps it's because we've had liberal season lengths for the past several years giving the DNR's waterfowl hunting date pickers a chance to set later seasons?

The answer to any of the above questions could be "yes, no or maybe," depending on who is being quizzed. Regardless of all the questions above, anyone who has duck and goose hunted in Indiana for the past decade or so realizes the heart of the season has shifted to later on the calendar.

There was a time when there were scant few duck or goose hunting options available much past the end of November in the Hoosier State. That really didn't matter to a large extent, because there weren't many ducks or geese in Indiana past the end of November.

That's changed and many waterfowlers now eagerly anticipate the challenges and steady dose of success that are available later on in many areas. So, let me point out a few options.

Indiana has three waterfowling zones. With a good number of December days available in each of the zones, let's pick a worthwhile choice to hunt in each region.

NORTH ZONE
LaSalle Fish And Wildlife Area (FWA)
Traditionally, the North Zone duck season ends sometime in December, but the goose season continues on through the month. Therefore, I've picked a spot where both ducks and geese are abundant and the good times just never end.

Early in December, when both duck and goose seasons are open, a daily drawing is held at the LaSalle FWA check station at 4:30 a.m. each day to allocate the duck blinds on the property. The action depends on the weather. If the weather is mild, expect plenty of late-season mallards to be hanging around.

After the duck season ends or if a December cold blast hardens up the ice in LaSalle's marshes, the action switches to the Kankakee River, which flows through the property from U.S. Route 41 to the Illinois/Indiana border. The flowing water keeps the ice at bay, but there's more.

The cooling lakes at three nuclear power plants along the Kankakee River, downstream from LaSalle, have become the migration terminus for hundreds of thousands of Canada geese. Though these geese headquarter on the cooling lakes, they spread out for miles up and down the Kankakee River on their daily excursions to feeding fields. That puts plenty of them in gun range of hunters setting up along the main stem of the river on the LaSalle property or in unfrozen bayous adjacent to the stream.

It's freelance hunting, but hunters do need to sign in at the LaSalle check station just off state Route 10 before heading to either the state line or campground bayou access ramps. The state line ramp is a longer trip from the check station, but it will stay unfrozen long after the campground bayou ramp is frozen tight.

SOUTH ZONE
Fairbanks Landing FWA
Fairbanks Landing is Indiana's newest FWA and is located along the Wabash River between Terre Haute and Sullivan. Indiana deer hunters eagerly awaited the opening of this land because before it being deeded over to the DNR, it was hunted only lightly. There were some big bucks waiting. For the same reason, quail hunters lined up to get their chance at the new property. Big coveys were waiting to provide topnotch action as well. How 'bout with waterfowl? Waterfowl-wise, Fairbanks Landing didn't make much of a splash.