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  What If?

  Women Afield - What If?
  
  Text and Photos by Lisa Metheny
  
  The driving snow felt like daggers against our faces as we shuffled into the pit blind. I have never hunted ducks in the snow before, grinned Virginia Getz, a Ducks Unlimited (DU) biologist from California.
  
  Once in the large pit blind, we settled in and prepared for sunrise and what was sure to be an exciting morning waterfowl hunting in the duck hunting capital of the world, Stuttgart, Arkansas on the first-ever all female Ducks Unlimited media event. Sharing the blind with us was the 2009 Womens World Champion Duck caller, 17 year old Shelby Free, and her dad Bill.
  
  In the morning quiet, you could hear each of us load our guns with Winchester ammunition as we prepared for daylight and ducks. Darkness gave way to a harsh reality of frozen and flooded rice fields, dark gray skies, high winds and driving snow. Hour after hour we sat and waited for the ducks to appear. Despite Shelby and Bills calling efforts the few waterfowl we did manage to see decided to stay in the timber. Typically, we would have headed to the timber but thanks to a record rainfall the week before, the flooded timbers were only accessible by boat. And it was not a good day to be in a boat.
  
  Despite the valiant efforts of DU, valuable sponsors and champion duck calling I went home with an empty cooler. Thats hunting, said Andi Cooper, a DU biologist from Mississippi. And she was right. Still, I couldnt help but think what this place would be like if conservation organizations such as DU did not exist. Who would work to conserve and protect this vital environment?
  
  What if there was no conservation groups working to preserve and protect the wildlife that we love to hunt? Where would we be today if no efforts were made to protect vital nesting and wintering grounds for the waterfowl or precious mountain meadows for elk? Would there be any duck hunting? Would we be contemplating that spring turkey hunt or enjoy the majestic sounds of the bugling elk?
  
  Years ago, I remember seeing my first wild turkeys in a nearby field and I enthusiastically renewed my membership to the National Wild Turkey Federation (NWTF). I celebrated with members when elk were successfully reintroduced in areas such as the Buffalo River area of Arkansas or the Eastern Tennessee region, all thanks to the tireless work of the Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation (RMEF). I recall sitting in the pit blind last year and watching thousands upon thousands of snow geese filling the cold winter sky and enjoyed knowing that my DU membership helped make that a reality. What if we didnt have conservation organizations such as DU, RMEF, Pheasants/Quail Forever, NWTF and others?
  
  These organizations are only as successful as the core volunteers that support them. They realize that without the tireless efforts of their volunteers there would be no reason to celebrate these milestones. DU volunteers are truly the organizations foundation. Knowing that waterfowl and wildlife are benefiting from our habitat work is one thing, but the fact that wetlands are natural flood barriers, filter ground water and provide recreational opportunities for everyone in the community makes DU volunteers true stewards of the land. DU relies on its volunteers for every aspect of the conservation mission, says Chris Jennings, Communications Specialist for DU.
  It is not just individuals that aid in helping conservation groups, corporations such as Yamaha, Winchester, Remington and Budweiser to name a few all partner with these organizations. "For more than 20 years, Winchester has supported Ducks Unlimited wetland and waterfowl conservation projects and has been the exclusive sponsor for their shooting programs. Strong conservation partnerships like ours with Ducks Unlimited benefit wildlife habitat and our hunting
  heritage." said Dick Hammett, Winchester Ammunition president.
  Corporate sponsors do more than just funnel in much needed financial support, often they can provide valuable exposure of the importance of conservation to the non-hunting communities. Yamaha is proud to be a part of this effort through our work with DU and other important outdoors organizations. We always strive to promote safe, responsible use of our products as well as the responsible and sustainable use of our lands so that they may be available for generations to come says Van Holmes, Public Relations Manager for Yamaha ATV Group.
  With all the questions we hunters have to ask like, Where can I hunt? What weapon should I use? What ammo load is best suited? There is one question I'm glad I dont have to ask and that is, What if we had no one working to preserve some of our most precious resources, the wetlands, mountains, elk, pheasants, turkeys and yes, the ducks?"
  

  
   

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