Rend Lake in Franklin County holds a fair amount of migrating birds, and is in an area where geese from nearby Crab Orchard Refuge fly to feed. This area can have some pretty good goose shooting late in the season, but usually not before Christmas. Migrating snow and blue geese also use this lake. You will find the Rend Lake Resort very accommodating to hunters and their dogs. It has a very good restaurant, and a nice lounge to unwind in after the day's adventure. For more info on the resort, call 1-800-633-3341 or go to www.rendlakeresort.com. For up-to-the-minute hunting reports or to hook up with a good area guide, call Todd Gessner at Southern Outdoor Resources Service at (618) 629-6085, or e-mail him at sors@midwest.net.

In 2005 -- the last year records of the actual goose kill were compiled for the dearly departed Quota Zone -- only 4,031 birds were accounted for. While that surely isn't a very impressive record when spread over a 56-day season, it must be pointed out that most of these geese were shot during a relatively short period of time in early January. This was caused by extremely cold weather in the northern part of Illinois, coupled with long-lasting snow cover, a combination that drove large numbers of geese winging south in search of food and open water.

To hunt for geese in the South Zone now is to travel back in time. Many of the old clubs are still there, waiting for the skies to open and Canada geese to pour down as they once did. But with warmer winters, no-till farming and non-migrating giant Canadas that lure the migrants to remain in the North Zone, that just isn't in the cards. Ducks are the name of the game in the former Quota Zone now, and there are plenty of them.

To successfully hunt geese there, you must wait until bad winter weather chases honkers out of the North Zone and Central Zone. That's when you had better get down south quick, because the birds will only fly out to feed recklessly for a few days before they wise up to the way the game is being played. Then you need to find a club that still attracts decent numbers of the geese that are around. Once you get that right, you still need to hunt properly, because the birds will be generally hard-pressed and shy of everything.

Here are the numbers that will help you choose the right place to try your luck in the South Zone. Clubs around the Crab Orchard Refuge exceeded all others by a large margin, reporting 2,919 birds killed during the 2005 season. The hunter success rate was .24 geese per hunter day, but that doesn't mean too much since there were good and bad days all lumped together. Union County clubs brought down 729 geese, while Horseshoe Lake hunters accounted for 503.

Among clubs at Crab Orchard, the Crab Orchard Hunting Club scored highest with 466 geese shot by 830 hunters for a daily average of .58. Next best was Country Kitchen and D&M Club, each with 178 geese; Burns Club, 163; Bleyer Farm, 127; L&D, 126; and the Crab Orchard Public grounds with 120 honkers.

Just a little bit to the south at the Union County Refuge, Colin Cain's Grassy Lake Club killed 437 geese over his famous "Black Hole." The success rate there for geese was only .20, but many of the clients were primarily shooting mallards. The Union County public hunting area was second best with 81 geese.