It's a journey many Western Pennsylvanians make each summer, one that traverses the Chesapeake Bay Bridge as beachgoers head to the shores of Maryland and Delaware.

A couple of months later, the same corridor can be used to take waterfowlers to some of the best public lands on the Eastern Shore.

There's much more to this area than boardwalks and sunburn. Now's the time to plan a fall trip down east.

While controlled hunts are common on many public duck hunting areas, national wildlife refuges in particular, there is no daily lottery on Maryland's public marshlands. Hunters can use their own portable blinds, as long as they are removed at the end of the day's hunt.

Two of the most extensive areas — Fishing Bay and Ellis Bay wildlife management areas — are located just south of Cambridge, Md., which is about a 5Z\x-hour drive from our area. The relatively short drive is quite feasible for a two- or three-day hunt.

At 12,000 acres, Fishing Bay is the state's largest publicly owned tidal wetland. It pierces the Dorchester shoreline of Chesapeake Bay. The immense state wildlife management area is located just to the east of the Blackwater National Wildlife Refuge.

Fishing Bay is comprised of a variety of waterfowl habitats. As such, there are many hunting options. There is the open water of the Fishing Bay and the Nanticoke River, and an immense network of tidal creeks, ponds and marshes.

"All of the wetlands are tidal marsh, so you have to watch the tides and plan your hunts accordingly," said Larry Hindman, a Maryland Department of Natural Resources waterfowl biologist.

Hindman said most hunters use a jonboat to access a pond or marsh, then either erect a temporary blind or construct a blind on the boat itself. There are some ponds you can walk to, however. There are also opportunities to jump shoot ducks.

Expect to find black ducks and mallards on the marshlands and canvasbacks on the bay. Divers, such as canvasbacks, are more common later in the fall.

Maps of the Fishing Bay Wildlife Management Area can be found on the Maryland DNR Website. Visit www.dnr.state.md.us/publiclands/eastern/fishingbaymap.html for an overview of the area. From this page you can click on any of nine maps that show individual parcels of this massive tract.

Additional information on Fishing Bay can be obtained by calling the office of the LeCompte Wildlife Management Area in Vienna, Md., at 410-376-3236.

Found to the east of Fishing Bay, across the Nanticoke River ,lies the 3,000 acres of Ellis Bay WMA, which is located in Wicomico County.

"Most folks that hunt Ellis Bay do so from a jonboat or from shore," said Hindman. "There are some smaller creeks in this area, as well as some ponds."

Ellis Bay is located at the mouth of the Wicomico River. Two parcels comprise the area. The largest parcel is found to the east of Ellis Bay. The smaller parcel is located just to the southwest and is situated on the point that separates the mouths of the Wicomico and Nanticoke rivers.

In addition to the complement of mallards and blacks, Hindman said the area also attracts good numbers of green-winged teals.

The WMA has a boat ramp, one that is located on the northern end of the property. Another ramp is found off the WMA, across the Wicomico River, in Webster Cove, near Mount Vernon.

The Maryland DNR will post the 2007 season's specific dates and bag limits by late summer at www.dnr.state.md.us.

Guided Canada goose hunts over the Eastern Shore's grain fields are another popular waterfowling activity, one that could be combined with a public marshland duck/goose hunt during a multiday trip. Type "eastern shore hunting guides" in your browser's search engine and you'll call up several options.

Jeff Knapp is an outdoors columnist for the Butler Eagle.