Ben Rutten, district wildlife manager for the NGPC at Bassett, said that the Calamus River and reservoir, the North Loup and Cedar rivers, and Sherman Reservoir offer some December waterfowl action in his district, adding that some field hunting for geese can be found along the Niobrara south of Valentine and the fields in and around Ainsworth, Purdum and Ord.

Richard Nelson, district wildlife manager at North Platte, hunts the South Platte River west of town. "Our hunting last fall was OK," he reported, "but mild weather made duck hunting difficult. We killed about 60 mallards from my blind and did get a couple geese. I'm not a goose hunter.

"Lincoln County likely winters more ducks and geese than any other county in Nebraska. Over the years we have recorded as many as 60,000 geese and 100,000 mallards wintering in the county. Last year our surveys showed an estimated 40,000 mallards along with about 10,000 Canadas. That's about average on ducks, and a little low on geese."

Sutherland Reservoir and Lake McConaughy attract thousands of ducks and geese in December; both provide public hunting areas. Clear Creek WMA, on the west end of McConaughy, is the state's only regularly staffed public hunting area for Canadas. Usually, 10 blinds are available daily on the area; the fee to hunt them is $5 per gun. Call (308) 535-8025 for details.

December waterfowl hunting in the Panhandle centers on the North Platte Valley west of Lake McConaughy. Both ducks and geese stage at the Garden County Refuge, as well as on Lake Minatare. Those birds, along with flights coming off Clear Creek and Lake McConaughy, offer highly serviceable hunting on private land all the way to the Wyoming border.

For more information and a guide to public hunting lands, call NGPC headquarters at (402) 471-0641.