End of the Road: Regular season wraps Saturday; Youth have chance at WRICE field hunting Feb. 7-8

If we know the true, devoted Arkansas duck hunter, a brave few found a way through the snowmageddon of January 2026 to four-wheel their way into their favorite waterfowl spot, attempt to break ice (surely that was necessary, and not easy) and get in another duck hunt this past week before the season winds down. The rest of us, no doubt, stayed inside.

We’d love to hear some anecdotal reports of the past several days. Maybe the winter storm that hit across the country and covered the states above us with snow and ice pushed a few more ducks back down through Arkansas and on into southern Louisiana, where folks have been looking for a boost to their waterfowl season.

The overnight drops in temperature that will refreeze the afternoon melt of all this winter precipitation here at midweek may make it difficult for any more hunts before Saturday, when weather forecasters say the temperature will drop back down to single digits. Good luck if you persist in your waterfowl endeavors.

Arkansas’s regular season wraps at sunset Saturday (Jan. 31).

In the photo at the top, beautiful pintails were captured by Joe Gieringer’s camera recently in a field just east of Pine Bluff. Joe also saw a big arrival of snow geese in that area and caught them in action (below).

Looking Ahead
Youths under 16, veterans of the armed forces and active duty military will get the final hunts of Arkansas’s 2025-26 season on Saturday and Sunday, Feb. 7-8, statewide.

Youths may apply for any of the Waterfowl Rice Incentive Conservation Enhancement program fields that are made available for that weekend. Those fields are privately owned and managed by their owners to help waterfowl habitat; part of the agreement with the AGFC’s Private Lands Habitat Division is that the fields are made available to permit draw hunts from the public on weekends. The program has been a huge success this year in the number of applications, where more than 900 applicants sought a field on opening weekend (the most ever to apply by about 300 applicants) and other weekends have drawn 700-800 or more applicants to the 40 or so available fields.

Youths just need a CID (customer identification) number through the AGFC licensing system to apply. The application period runs from 3 p.m. Thursday to midnight Sunday. The system is set up to recognize the age of the applicant, and unfortunately, that will mean that veterans and active military won’t be able to apply for permits for WRICE.

Youths may also apply for the designated youth blinds in the WMAs that contain them (Steve N. Wilson Raft Creek Bottoms, Sheffield Nelson Dagmar, Freddie Black Choctaw Island West Unit and Frog Bayou). All the WMAs outside of the designated youth blinds will be open for hunting for youths, veterans and active military next weekend.

Youths winning a permit for a WRICE hunt may take up to three others (a non-hunting mentor who can call and retrieve the ducks, and two other youths; or two non-hunting mentors and another youth) along for all-day hunting at the same WRICE field Feb. 7-8. The same rules apply for a permit to the youth blinds (they are for one of the two days). Just go to the agfc.com website (under “Get a License) or HERE. Information is provided to the winning applicant on Mondays. The application fee for all permit applications is $5.

Youths who have not completed a hunter education course must be accompanied by a mentor 21 or older. With the way the hunts are set up concurrently, and with the second day restored to the veterans and active duty hunts this season, veterans can mentor the youth and hunt both days.

Click here for more information about the permit hunts available for youths and the regulations for veterans and active duty military.

* Based on the numbers seen by the AGFC biologists in their waterfowl surveys so far this season, and with what we’ve seen with our own eyes in Arkansas and Prairie counties as well as just east of the Clarendon area, the snow goose population in Arkansas seems in great shape this season, compared to recent years. Snow geese began arriving in Arkansas County earlier, before Thanksgiving, than we recall in recent years. And the numbers have steadily picked up. Estimated counts of lesser geese were close to 2 million in the late December survey and still over 1.4 million in the midwinter survey of waterfowl in Arkansas’s Delta.

We say all this because the Light Goose Conservation Order opens on Sunday, Feb. 1. During the Conservation Order, hunters have more liberal regulations while hunting snows, blues and Ross’s geese (greater white-fronted geese and Canada geese cannot be hunted during the Conservation Order).

The order is halted for the Feb. 7-8 youth, veterans and active duty military hunts, but resumes on Monday, Feb. 9, and concludes on April 25.

There is no bag or possession limit of geese harvested during the order, which was established by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service so that hunters could reduce the snow, blue and Ross’s goose numbers through increased harvest. Hunters must call 833-345-0325 or click on the permit link to receive a free snow goose registration permit (youths 15 and under are excluded from needing the permit).

Hunters may use electronic calls, unplugged shotguns, they do not need a Migratory Bird Hunting and Conservation Stamp, Arkansas Waterfowl Stamp or HIP registration, but MUST HAVE A VALID HUNTING LICENSE from any state (youths 15 and under are excluded from needing a license).

Shooting hours are from 30 minutes before sunrise to 30 minutes after sunset.

Click HERE for All Waterfowl Dates and Limits