World-class decoy carvers, waterfowl callers and leaping dogs took over three areas of Washington on Saturday as the 17th-annual East Carolina Wildlife Arts Festival and North Carolina Decoy Carving Championships opened to the public for two days.
The festival, which began with an invitation-only reception Friday, concludes today.
Several years ago, the festival expanded from its Civic Center roots. It now takes place at the Civic Center, Red Men’s Lodge and Kugler Field. That expansion makes it harder to judge attendance, said David Gossett, the festival’s show chairman and member of the East Carolina Wildfowl Guild, which organizes and puts on the festival.
“Early in the show years when we were concentrated here at this one building (Civic Center), you get a good feel for how man people were actually attending the show,” Gossett said Saturday. “Now that the show is spread out all over town and the shuttles going back and forth, it’s very difficult to get a feel for it. It’s been a steady flow of people coming into the Civic Center, the Sportsmen’s tent and the Peterson Building and around the cooking area all day long. If there are this many other people spread out all through town, it’s a good turnout.”
Among the festival’s exhibitors is locally based Tar-Pam Guide Service owned by captain Richard Andrews. The guide service had a presence at last year’s festival.
“I started Tar-Pam Guide Service two years ago. I offer light-tackle fishing charters on the Pamlico, Pungo, Neuse and Roanoke rivers year-round,” Andrews said while manning his booth Saturday.
Asked what motivated him to start his fishing-guide service, Andrews said, “I got my start as an offshore fisherman out of Oregon Inlet working the offshore boats. I really love the fishing industry. I perceived a demand for it in this area. Hopefully, my services will provide a good time for a lot of people.”
The festival continues today with the final rounds in the carving competitions at the Red Men’s Lodge on East Third Street and the final rounds of the DockDogs competitions at Kugler Field off Hudnell Street. The wildlife-arts component of the festival is located at the Civic Center and adjacent facilities.
The two-day Southern Classic Duck, Goose and Swan Calling Championships conclude today. The Southern Classic includes the North Carolina duck-calling championship, the winner of which will represent North Carolina at the World Championship Duck Calling Contest in Stuttgart, Ark., during Thanksgiving weekend this year.
The calling competitions include the Pamlico Regional Duck Calling Competition. That competition, formerly known as the Swamp Fox Regional Duck Calling Competition, made its first appearance at the festival three years ago. It used to be held in South Carolina. The event’s name was changed because of it being conducted in the Pamlico River watershed.
The winner of the regional event qualifies to compete in the World Championship Duck Calling Contest.
The North Carolina goose-calling and the world swan-calling competitions also are part of the festival lineup, as will be the Southern Classic Open Goose Calling Competition.
Also part of the lineup are junior-level competitions in the state duck-, state goose- and world swan-calling contests.

Schedule of events for Sunday
DockDogs venue
9 a.m. registration opens
10 a.m. Speed retrieve competition 3
Noon. Big Air Wave competition 6
2:30 p.m. Speed retrieve finals
3 p.m. Big Air amateur finals
3:30 p.m. Big Air semi-pro finals
4 p.m. Big Air pro finals
Main festival
8:30 to 9:30 a.m. Church service at First United Methodist Church across
from Civic Center.
9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Learn-to-carve booth open, Red Men’s Lodge
9:30 a.m. Show opens to the public (free shuttles to different venues
provided)
11 a.m. to noon. Registration for Southern Classic Duck, Goose and
Swan Calling Championships, west end of Stewart Parkway
11:30 a.m. Judging for N.C. Decoy Carving Championship division
Noon. Judging for the Tri-County Telephone Canvas Gunning Decoy
Division
Noon. Southern Classic competitions begin
1:30 p.m. Judging for the O’Neal’s Drug Store Carolina Gunning Decoy Division
2 p.m. Retriever demonstrations, Kugler Field (next to DockDogs venue and free to public)
2:30 p.m. Judging for TRADE carving division
3 p.m. Drawings for door prizes and raffles, Civic Center
3:30 p.m. Carving-competitions awards ceremony
4 p.m. Show closes to public and carving-competitions checkout
4:30 p.m. Shuttle service ends