MORRIS, MINN. — Nine mallards circled in the blue sky, locked wings, then banked crisply into a north wind, well out of shotgun range.

Jared Otterstatter, 12, standing in cattails and cradling a 20-gauge, watched in awe.

"It's cool when they do that," he said softly.

Jared, a first-time waterfowl hunter from Redwood Falls, Minn., was among an estimated 20,000 Minnesota youths 15 and younger who slipped into duck blinds early Saturday on Minnesota's 15th annual Youth Waterfowl Day. Jared and 45 other kids signed up for a special mentored hunt at which they and their dads or moms were paired with veteran duck hunters. The idea is to encourage kids who come from non-duck hunting families to try the sport. And with duck hunter numbers falling, it's more important than ever to recruit new duck hunters and conservationists, said Win Mitchell of Castle Rock, Minn., a longtime Ducks Unlimited activist who coordinated this year's hunt and came up with the idea.

"The object is to instill our passion for waterfowl hunting," Mitchell said. Without good numbers of duck hunters, there will be fewer dollars for conservation and less political pull to help ducks and other wildlife, he said.

Saturday, Mitchell and I acted as mentors for Jared and Tate Romnes, 13, of Owatonna. Also along were Jared's dad, Mike, and Tate's dad, Ron. The boys and dads hunt other species but have done little or no duck hunting.

The idea of the mentored hunt is not only to teach the kids how to duck hunt but to also teach the parents, so both can do it on their own. It's modeled after successful mentored youth turkey and pheasant hunts.

The four learned a duck hunting lesson immediately: Hunting public lands has its drawbacks. When we arrived at 5:20 a.m. in the dark at a federal Waterfowl Production Area, a group of goose hunters already was there, setting out decoys. With few options, we went to a less desirable side of the slough. Most of the ducks and geese we saw flew and landed north, where we had wanted to hunt.

Still, we saw a remarkable number of ducks -- mostly mallards and teal -- and lots of Canada geese. The goose hunters across the way dropped at least six honkers.

Tate and Jared got some shooting. Four blue-winged teal rocketed through our decoys. "OK!" shouted Mitchell. Both boys fired once, hitting only air.

"I shot behind it," Jared said.

Another lesson: You don't always go home with ducks.

By 10 a.m., after several other errant shots, we pulled our decoys and met with the other eight young hunters and their mentors and parents who hunted the Morris area to compare notes.

Boys and dads gave the morning two thumbs up. "I learned a lot," said Mike Otterstatter. "I'd feel comfortable now doing it myself."

Which is the idea.

Ducks Unlimited, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the state Department of Natural Resources sponsor the hunt, being offered for its second year. Mitchell wants it to grow. Some kids were turned down because not enough mentors volunteered. "I'm looking for more mentors for next year," he said.

The mentors learned a lesson, too. Introducing a kid to duck hunting is rewarding -- and fun.

"I had a blast," said Jeff Hellermann of Starbuck, Minn. He hunted with Jake Pettit, 13, of Buffalo Lake and his dad, John. Jake dropped two drake mallards with one shot and finished with six ducks and a goose.

"He's hooked," Hellermann said.

Hunters interested in mentoring next year can contact the DNR's Mike Kurre at 651-259-5193 or michael.kurre@state.mn.us.