ESPN Hunting

TREMONTON, Utah — You have a week — two if you live in parts of Idaho and Utah — to find the last ducks of the season.

It's not hard if you know where to look. Find spots that have a combination of open water and adjacent food sources — basically, tail waters of the region's largest rivers.

The moving water that comes from the bottom of impounded lakes stays ice-free for miles below the dam, and most of these valleys are rich in small grains, alfalfa and even livestock feedlots — all spots that can produce winter food for ducks and geese alike.

Here are the best spots to find late-season ducks in the Rockies:

Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge, Utah

Not all the refuge is open; the best duck populations will be on the closed portion of this Great Salt Lake refuge. But even with pounding pressure, ducks remain on this marsh located on the northeastern shore of the lake.

Expect plenty of puddle ducks (mallards, pintails and teal), but if you have the gear to take on big water, you can have great shoots on redheads.

Best hunting, for a combination of un-pressured birds and pick of the best pass shooting and decoying spots, is on weekdays.

Check in with the refuge (435-723-5887) west of Tremonton, Utah.

Yellowstone River, near Forsyth, Mont.

A sleeper spot for ducks because it's better known for late-season honker hunting, but mallard hunters can take quick limits on either the river or nearby fields.

The river stays open thanks to the contribution of warm water from the Bighorn River, about 50 miles upstream.

Access to fields is tight, but not impossible, but if you'd rather put your time into a moving-water decoy spread than knock on doors, consider hunting from a jet boat.

Best hunting is on either bone-chilling cold or foggy days when birds crave company.

Contact: Red Rock Sporting Goods (406-232-2716) in Miles City

Fort Hall, Idaho

World-class opportunity, with a price tag. If you want a legendary day on the marsh, shell out a couple Franklins for the chance to hunt unpressured ducks and geese.

The price for a non-tribal permit to hunt the Fort Hall Indian Reservation is around $450 for a season. Probably too steep to justify at the end of the season, but consider it for next year.

Your reward is all the birds that hunters on the public land around American Falls Reservoir bump your way.

Contact: Fort Hall Indian Reservation Wildlife Dept. (208-478-3808) in Fort Hall, Idaho.

North Platte River

Another phenomenal tailwater, the North Platte has so much huntable water that you can spend the rest of the season on the river from Casper to Torrington and never hunt the same spread twice. Probably the best spot is below the Dave Johnston Power Plant near Glendo.

The warm effluent from the plant keeps the water from icing and provides the kind of foggy environment that puts a premium on good calling.

Guys who can spread decoys and work a hen call get piled up in big, orange-legged mallards.

Contact: Bullwinkle's Bait & Tackle (307-234-7001) in Casper, Wyo.

Snake River below C.J. Strike Reservoir

Another long, relatively unpressured stretch of river, the Snake produces good late-season hunting all the way downstream to Ontario, even to the head of Brownlee Reservoir.

Outfitted hunting isn't allowed for waterfowl, so pressure stays disproportionately low for such a quality resource.

Best habitat, and access, is on the Birds of Prey Wildlife Management Area.

Contact: Turner's Sportsfair (208-342-9003) in Boise, Idaho.

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