Shrouded in Arkansas green timber and wrapped in wonder. The sunrise begins to stream through the cathedral spires as the growing wind rustles the bare branches above. With it, flashes of greenheads and dangling orange feet descend to the calls from “lonely hens” below. You are here, at the right place and at the right time, because of the work and history that make it possible. Strait Lake Lodge.
After a year without many contests, the World Goose Calling Championship Contest was back on in Maryland this past November. With it, the event crowned a new Champion in Lee Williams.
The lord gave JD the passion for building relationships and the ability to relate to others quickly, pair that with what he says is the only thing he’s really good at- and you get one of the most skilled waterfowl guides in all of Arkansas crushing birds in Oklahoma.
Finding success in an area with a lot of birds but even more pressure can be tough, but not for the other guys. Good landowner relations and even better work ethic make the Other Guys Outfitters successful day-in and day-out. Hunt Nebraska and go home happy, but better yet, happily come back for more.
Cristina Wing is a talented photographer, waterfowler, and business-savvy social media manager for Split Reed- but it wasn’t always the easiest road traveled.
Continuing on the who, how, and what of Makers Calls, we speak with Travis Ward. Travis is a guy who wants to make great calls to help people shoot ducks, and it’s really as simple as that. The best part is that he and Makers Calls delivers.
Makers Call Company is sky-rocketing to the top of the waterfowl call makers game- and for good reason. Ryan Barnes for Split Reed talks with Colton Thompson for Part 1 about the inception of the business and how they’ve grown to a powerhouse in the duck call business.
Women in hunting- they’re under-represented, but more and more are finding their way into the sport and culture, and in case you didn’t know, that’s a good thing.
“You can’t really know where you are going until you know where you have been” rings true for waterfowlers. Collector and waterfowl hunting historian Ryan Graves is helping us remember that.
If you were at SquadFest 2021 and took part in watching the calling contests, you know who Tyler Heaton is. Ryan Barnes discussed with Tyler about his journey into Contest Calling and what it meant to win on a stage full of decorated contest callers.
