Pre-Season Duck Gear Prep: Waders, Boat, Decoys, Gun and Dog

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The worst time to find a wader leak is at 5 a.m. in 45-degree water. Most opening-day disasters start as gear problems that were easy to catch in October.

Mid-South water is low this fall (low-water guide), which means stumps, sandbars and long runs. Get the boat right.

Rules are cited and were last checked Oct 22, 2026. The tips are ours. Product prices were checked Oct 22, 2026 and change often.

1. Waders: find the leak before the water does

Leak test (do it this week):

1. In a dark room, put a bright light inside each leg. Pinholes glow.
2. For seams and booties, mist rubbing alcohol on the outside. A leak shows as a dark spot on the inside.
3. Circle every leak, patch it, and let the adhesive cure overnight.
4. Look hardest at the boot seams, inner thighs and knees. That's where most leaks are.

Also:

• Check boot tread. Worn-flat soles on a muddy ramp put people in the water.
• Replace cracked buckles. Wear a wading belt.
• Dry them on a boot dryer or stuffed with newspaper, never in a hot truck bed.

Early-season note: Mid-South openers can be warm. If the high is 70 degrees, breathables over light layers beat 5mm neoprene.

Gear we'd buy (checked Oct 22, 2026):

• Sitka DELTA GORE-TEX Wader, $800 at Sitka. Four-layer GORE-TEX Pro upper and legs, an insulated Wetlands Boot with an EVA midsole, and a repair kit in the box (Sitka). Layer under it for January and one pair covers the season.
• Drake Buckshot Eqwader 3.0 Bootfoot, $319.99 at Sportsman's Warehouse (some sizes showed out of stock). Fleece-lined 5mm neoprene with 1600g Thinsulate boots (Sportsman's Warehouse). For cold late-season timber.
• Gear Aid Aquaseal UV Cure (0.25 oz), $9.95 at Sportsman's Warehouse. A field patch for pinholes that cures in seconds under UV light, rated for GORE-TEX and neoprene (Sportsman's Warehouse).
• Cabela's Original PEET Boot Dryer, $49.99 at Bass Pro Shops. Silent convection dryer, one set of extensions included, 25-year warranty (Bass Pro Shops). PEET says chest waders need two pairs of 12-inch extensions (PEET), so plan on an extra pair.

2. Boat, motor and trailer

Mud motor or outboard

• Change the oil (four-strokes) and check the level before every trip.
• Grease every fitting on a long-tail or surface-drive, on the manual's schedule.
• Check the prop for dings and spun hubs. Carry a spare prop, wrench and shear pins. Low water means you will hit something.
• Fuel: fresh fuel with stabilizer; new filter; check the primer bulb and lines for cracks.
• Plug and kill switch: replace the plug; test that the lanyard kill switch works.
• Cooling: confirm a strong tell-tale stream. Low-water mud clogs intakes fast.
• Exhaust rule (Arkansas): factory or factory-equivalent exhausts are required on many AGFC waterfowl WMAs and on Cache River, Felsenthal, Overflow and Dale Bumpers White River NWRs, and ported outboards are illegal there (AGFC 2026-27 Waterfowl Guidebook, p. 43).
• Horsepower limits vary by WMA and refuge. Lake Isom NWR, for example, is 10 hp max (Reelfoot/Lake Isom brochure). Read the listing for each area you hunt.

Hull and lights

• Look for cracked welds and loose rivets, especially near the transom.
• Navigation lights: you'll run before daylight almost every hunt. Under the federal Inland Navigation Rules, a power-driven boat under way at night shows sidelights plus a white masthead or all-round light; small boats under 12 meters may combine the masthead and stern light into one all-round white (USCG Navigation Rules, Rule 23). Test every bulb and carry spare bulbs or a backup LED set.
• A spotlight is not a navigation light. Use both.

Safety gear and paperwork

• Life jackets: in Mississippi, everyone aboard needs a wearable life jacket, kids 12 and under must wear one while under way, and boats 16 feet and longer need a throwable device (MDWFP boating rules). In cold water, wear yours. An inflatable belt pack or a hunting-style vest you'll actually keep on beats a good one under the bench.
  • Our pick: Airhead Sportsman Camo Life Jacket, $60.99 at Sportsman's Warehouse. U.S. Coast Guard approved (Level 70 on the listing), open sides and two big front pockets (Sportsman's Warehouse). It's a foam vest you can shoot in, so it stays on.
• Boater education:
  • Arkansas: required for anyone born after 1985 operating a motorboat (Guidebook p. 36).
  • Mississippi: required for operators born on or after June 30, 1980 (MDWFP).
  • Tennessee: residents born after Jan 1, 1989 need the card, with an exception when a carded adult is aboard (TWRA 2026-27 Hunting Guide, p. 7).
• Registration: check the expiration on your registration card and decals now. Mississippi requires the registration on board and the numbers displayed (MDWFP).
• Arkansas plug law: boat plugs must be pulled before you leave the ramp area (Guidebook p. 36).
• Dry bag: throw rope, whistle, first-aid kit, fire starter, dry clothes, phone in a waterproof case, and a paddle or push pole.

Trailer

• Bearings: jack each wheel and spin it. Grinding, play or heat after a short drive means repack or replace. Carry a spare hub kit.
• Tires: pressure, sidewall cracks, and the spare.
• Lights: check every one, clean the plug, use dielectric grease.
• Winch strap, safety chains, coupler latch, transom straps: replace anything frayed or rusted.
• Bunks and rollers: low-water ramps often end in mud or a drop-off. Don't drop a wheel off the concrete.

3. Decoys: rig once, hunt all season

• Sort and count. Pull the cracked, sunk and faded ones. A decoy that rolls flares birds.
• Line and weights: replace frayed line and match the length to your water. This year that may mean shorter lines on shallow timber and flats, and a few long-line rigs for river eddies.
• Clip or wrap: pick one system so decoys pick up fast. On Arkansas WMAs and Cache River NWR, everything has to be out by 1 p.m. (Guidebook p. 41; Cache River NWR).
• Repaint: touch up heads and drake whites with flat paint. Shine looks wrong from the air.
• Bags: a mesh bag with a shoulder strap for wading, a bigger one for the boat. On Reelfoot, plastic or metal decoy containers are banned while you hunt the lake (Reelfoot guide).

Gear we'd buy (checked Oct 22, 2026, on Hardcore Waterfowl):

• Hardcore Field Series Mallard Floater 12-pack, on sale at $59.99 (list $79.99). Six drakes, six hens, WhaleTail keel (Hardcore). An affordable way to replace the dozen that sank.
• Hardcore Rugged Series Diver Pack (foam filled), on sale at $89.99 (list $119.99). Two each of canvasback, bluebill and redhead drakes (Hardcore). Worth it if you hunt Reelfoot or big river water.
• Hardcore Texas Rig, 36-inch, 4 oz (12-pack), $34.99 (Hardcore). A short fixed line suits this year's shallow water.
• Hardcore Mesh Decoy Bag, $10.79 to $17.99. Self-draining mesh in 30x38-inch and 30x50-inch sizes, with wide straps (Hardcore).

• Motion: charge spinning-wing batteries and test the motors. Not confirmed We found no state rule against spinning-wing decoys in the Arkansas, Mississippi or Tennessee sources we checked, but we haven't confirmed it either way. Check your state and refuge before you rely on one (see our law pages).

4. Shotgun: clean, plugged and patterned

• Strip and clean, especially the gas system on a semi-auto. A gummed-up action that worked in September can quit at 30 degrees. Use a light oil and wipe off the excess, because heavy oil thickens in cold weather.
• Check the plug. Federal law limits a waterfowl gun to 3 shells, with a one-piece plug that can't come out without taking the gun apart (50 CFR 20.21). Load it with dummy rounds and count.
• Nontoxic shot only. Every state here requires it for ducks, and you can't even carry lead shells while hunting them (MS, AR, TN). Clean out your vest and blind bag, because one forgotten dove load is still a ticket.
• Shot size and shell count on some Arkansas WMAs: no shot larger than No. 2 and no more than 25 shells per hunter on Common Restriction A areas like Dagmar and Black Swamp (Guidebook pp. 42, 44).
• Pattern your load at 30 and 40 yards. Steel, bismuth and tungsten pattern differently through the same choke.
• Field cleaning: Our pick: Otis Ripcord shotgun bore cleaner (12 ga), $23.99 at Sportsman's Warehouse (Sportsman's Warehouse). A pull-through for the truck when mud gets in the barrel. Always confirm the bore is clear before you shoot again.
• Sling and case: Mississippi WMAs require shoulder guns to be cased in vehicles (MDWFP WMA rules). A floating case is cheap insurance in a boat.

5. Blind and boat-blind

• Re-grass the boat blind with cover that matches where you'll hunt (cane, willow, buckbrush).
• On public land, know the rules on cutting. On Arkansas WMAs you can't use chainsaws, hatchets or other cutting tools, though knives and pocket saws are allowed (Guidebook p. 41). Cache River NWR bans cutting or clearing vegetation outright (Cache River NWR). Bring your cover with you.
• Maps: load WMA and refuge boundaries on your phone before you scout, and save them offline. Plenty of Mid-South bottoms have no signal. Our pick: onX Hunt. Premium is $34.99 a year for one state or $49.99 for two (Arkansas plus Tennessee or Mississippi, say). Elite is $99.99 a year or $14.99 a month for every state, and there's a 7-day free trial (onX pricing; onX FAQ). Drop a pin on your hole and your parking spot.
• Tennessee Tier 1 blinds must be finished by the fourth Monday in October, which is Oct 26, 2026 (TWRA guide p. 82).

6. The dog

• Conditioning: daily retrieves and swims now. Early-season heat is harder on a dog than cold.
• Vet visit: vaccines, heartworm, and a check of feet and nails. Pack a dog first-aid kit with vet wrap, styptic powder and a tick tool.
• Neoprene vest: check the zipper and fit. A vest that fit last year may not fit a dog who's gained or lost weight.
• Stand or platform: on Arkansas WMAs, dog stands can't be left overnight (Guidebook p. 41), so pick one that packs out easily.
• Steady work: practice boat manners. A dog breaking on the neighbors' birds starts arguments.

Print-and-go checklist

• Waders leak-tested and patched; wading belt
• Motor: oil, grease, plug, fuel filter, prop checked; spare prop and tools
• Navigation lights working; spare bulbs; spotlight
• Life jackets for everyone; throwable if 16 ft+
• Boater ed card, registration on board, numbers displayed
• Trailer bearings, tires, spare, lights, straps
• Decoys sorted, re-rigged, touched up; bags
• Shotgun cleaned; plug confirmed (3 shells); nontoxic shells only
• Pattern tested with this season's load
• Blind cover ready (no cutting where it's banned)
• Offline maps and boundaries saved on your phone
• Dog: vet check, vest, first-aid kit
• Dry bag: dry clothes, fire starter, first aid, phone, whistle, throw rope

Next: the public-land checklist for licenses, permits and the rules that catch people out.

FAQ