The Michigan Department of Natural Resources will host the 13th annual Saginaw Bay Waterfowl Festival, Aug. 2-3, at Bay City State Recreation Area, with activities beginning at 10 a.m. Saturday and running through 4 p.m. Sunday.

The festival celebrates the ducks and geese that use the Saginaw Bay Watershed for staging, nesting and breeding habitat, and encourages public awareness of Michigan's waterfowl, the sport of waterfowl hunting and the important of resource conservation programs. The event is co-sponsored by the DNR, the Michigan Duck Hunters Association, the Friends of Bay City State Recreation Area and the Frank N. Andersen Foundation. Last year, more than 10,000 visitors attended this popular event.

Main events include the 2008 Michigan Waterfowl Stamp competition, the Michigan goose calling competition at 1 p.m. Sunday and the Michigan championship duck calling contest at 2:30 p.m. Sunday. There also will be a junior duck calling competition Saturday and a junior goose calling contest Sunday, for youth 17 and under. A team duck calling contest, featuring two hunters using working field calls, is slated for Saturday.

The Duck Hunter & Outdoor Recreation Expo, featuring more than 170 vendors, offers festival goers the opportunity to purchase the latest in hunting, camping and boating equipment. The festival also includes a wildlife art and craft show with fine art originals, prints, photographs, carvings and crafts. Vendors or artists interested in participating should contact the park at (989) 667-0717.

Bring your retriever to participate in the dog fun hunt trial, learn tips from trainers on dog handling or find a new hunting buddy in "Puppy Alley." Other events include a youth/adult canoe race, live animal wildlife conservation programs, waterfowl identification trail, decorative decoy carving contest and waterfowl photography contest for professional, amateur and junior divisions.

One of the festival's newest events is an opportunity for adults to mentor youngsters in a three-person team (one adult, two youth) competition. The "Quack-Athalon" is a contest of skill and timing in three events: canoeing, air rifle marksmanship and duck identification.

There also will be special displays by featured wildlife artist, Dietmar Krumrey; featured photographer, Danny Klauss; and featured taxidermist and carver, Gary Hanson inside the Saginaw Bay Visitor Center. Visitors also will be able to enjoy exhibits by DNR Wildlife Division, DNR Law Enforcement Division, Shiawassee National Wildlife Area, Ducks Unlimited and many others.

"This festival is known for being much different from other outdoor shows because of the wide array of opportunities, activities and programs it provides for families to enjoy," said Valerie Blaschka, park interpreter. "I hear over and over again from visitors that there is something fun for everyone in their family, young and old, and for hunters and non-hunters alike."

Admission is free; however, all motor vehicles entering a state park or recreation area must display a Motor Vehicle Permit, available for purchase at the park entrance. Cost is $24 for a resident annual and $6 for a resident daily. A nonresident annual is $29 and a nonresident daily is $8.

For advance registration information, a complete schedule of festival activities and more information, please stop by the Saginaw Bay Visitor Center, located within Bay City State Recreation Area, 3582 State Park Drive, Bay City, or phone (989) 667-0717. Registration materials also are available online at www.midha.org.