GOOSE HUNTING REMAINS SLOW IN QUOTA ZONE

Wisconsin weather forecasters are calling for chances of snow statewide with temperatures lowering to the teens.

That's good news for goose hunters in Southern Illinois.

"When it starts snowing in Wisconsin, Canada geese move south," said Rich Whitten, waterfowl biologist for the Illinois Department of Conservation. "That means Southern Illinois."

The goose season opened in the Southern Illinois Quota Zone earlier this month, but goose flights into the area have been few and far between.

The latest Canada goose census, compiled Monday showed only 35,000 of the big honkers in Southern Illinois and only 25,000 in the four-county -- Alexander, Union, Jackson and Williamson -- quota zone.

The small count is reflected in the harvest totals during the first 15 days of the season, when only 1,498 geese were harvested, with the lion's share of those in the northern quota zone area in Jackson and Williamson counties, where more than 1,200 of the big birds were harvested.

Hunters bagged only 219 geese in Alexander County -- less than 15 a day. Alexander includes the Horseshoe Lake Wildlife Area. In Union County, home of the Union County Wildlife Area, only 78 geese were harvested.

It's not looking much like goose weather in extreme Southern Illinois, with temperatures expected in the lower to mid-60s through today. However, cloudy skies with periods of showers may put some geese in the air.

Some clubs haven't opened yet.

"I'm looking at opening the first weekend in December," said Greg Patton of his Horseshoe Farm Hunting Club near Miller City. "The weather hasn't been good for goose hunting yet."

The geese have been moving from site to site over the past few weeks.

"Most of the geese into the area hit Horseshoe Lake first, then move to other areas," said Patton, "We had 12,500 geese around the Horseshoe Lake Refuge two weeks ago, but Monday's count had the area with only 7,500."

The latest census revealed about 9,000 geese at Crab Orchard Lake, where only 2,500 were counted Nov. 6. About 8,000 were reported on Union County Refuge. Elsewhere in Southern Illinois, 7,500 geese were counted at the Rend Lake area, and 1,800 were found across the Ohio River in the Ballard County Refuge of Western Kentucky.

Worthington's Club, located on the Miller City blacktop, south of Olive Branch, is one of the clubs that is open. A club spokesman said hunters were harvesting a few ducks and geese. Blakemore Hunting Club, also on the Miller City blacktop, opened for business last week. "We put out our decoys on Thanksgiving day," said Frank Blakemore. "We had our first hunters Friday."

Meanwhile, hunters and goose enthusiasts are looking forward to the fourth annual Goose Festival at the Alexander-Pulaski County Sportsman's Club next weekend.

"We have planned a big schedule of events just beyond the public shooting area," said Bill Beasley, president of the club near the Roth's Crossing area of Horseshoe Lake.

Although the festival is only the fourth at this site, a Goose Festival has been held in the Horseshoe Lake area for 13 years. The Horseshoe Lake Area Chamber of Commerce sponsored the festival at the lake's spillway for 10 years through 1991.

The sportsman's club started sponsoring the festival in 1992.

Championship goose and duck calling contests will be held Saturday, with shooting matches throughout the day Sunday, Dec. 3. Also on the agenda are washer-pitching contests, horseshoe-pitching tournaments and a number of games for children.

The goose and duck calling championships will include mechanical and voice competitions in two age brackets: 14 and younger, and adults for those 15 and older.

Food will be available throughout the two days, along with arts and crafts and flea markets. A silent auction will also be held.

Seminars for goose hunting at clubs around Horseshoe Lake will be presented.

The festival is open to sportsmen, women and children throughout the tri-state area, Beasley said.

Ed Britton, festival chairman, said the clubhouse will open at 11 a.m. on Saturday and 9:30 a.m. Sunday.

The hope is that there will be plenty of geese in the Horseshoe Lake area.

The quota zone has an 89-day goose season for 1995-96, with a quota of 62,691 birds and a limit of three Canada geese per day per hunter.

"These are some big numbers for goose hunters," said Whitten, "but habitat conditions in the northlands continue to improve.

He said the adult population of Canada geese expected in the Mississippi Flyway this year is well over a million, resulting in one of the most liberal seasons in modern years.