Every year thousands of Canada geese descend on the Buckeye State as the frigid winter weather pushes them out of their northern range. They join ranks with geese that live year 'round in Ohio to create some of the finest winter waterfowling in the Midwest.

A change in weather means a change of tactics for Ohio waterfowlers. Open water and corn fields are the ticket for honkers at this time of year. As the birds move out of the frozen marshes and shallow waterways, hunters are going to have to move right along with them.

The Canada goose has a two-track mind: Give him a spot on open water to roost and a harvested grain field for lunch and you've got a happy honker on your hands.

Milder winter weather occasionally allows waterfowl to stay on Ohio's Lake Erie marshes where hunting will center around concentrations of geese that are visible on the open water.

During periods of extremely harsh weather, Canadas may leave northeastern Ohio temporarily and move south onto open inland waterways. Severe weather can push the birds as far south as the watersheds of the Scioto, Great Miami, Muskingum and Ohio rivers. Fields with corn and other grain crops near open-water pockets on lakes and slow-moving rivers are the key.

At this time of the year, you won't know where the geese are until you get out and look for them.

Here are some spots to check for great waterfowling action this winter:

MOSQUITO CREEK WILDLIFE AREA
If there's a "best-bet" winter waterfowling area in Ohio, this is it. This area can be hot throughout the long winter months and it's not unusual for 3,000 to 4,000 geese to come off the area every day. The lake can freeze up, but it will still keep producing good shooting.

The Ohio Division of Wildlife has put a lot of work into pulling Canadas into the region and holding them here. Several hundred acres are put into row crops and blinds are set up in corn strips. There are permit hunts, but blinds that aren't drawn are put into the daily draw to sweeten the pot. There is usually a blind or two available for hunters who don't arrive on time.

When cold weather drives the birds out of the Lake Erie marshes, Mosquito Lake is the next stop south. The area is just 45 miles from Cleveland and 70 miles from Akron in Trumbull County.

The Mosquito Creek WA borders the 8,648-acre Mosquito Lake State Park. The lake lies within park boundaries and is managed for the dual purposes of providing a waterfowl refuge and a public hunting area.

The no-hunting refuge area is clearly marked.

The lake covers 3,156 acres and can freeze over at times or remain open, depending on the weather. The wildlife area offers about a thousand acres of field hunting opportunities including plenty of wetlands. The marsh west of the Penn Central Railroad tracks holds birds during mild weather.

The area has quite a large number of migrant birds and hosts many thousands of migrating honkers each year.

Small boats may be launched from the ramp on township Road 240 and walk-in opportunities will be found along the shoreline between the small town of Cortland and the buoy line on the lake.

Access is from state routes 46 and 87, which intersect five miles south of Colebrook.

Call the state park office at (440) 685-4776 for details on current lake conditions and for a heads-up on whether the lake has open water.