For those who may never have experienced the Waterfowl Festival or who have not attended recently, this is the year to give the Festival a try. To thank the community and visitors who have supported the event over its 39 years, the Waterfowl Festival has rolled back ticket prices to a flat $10 each, good for one, two or all three days of the event, to be held November 13-15 in Easton.

In addition, the Waterfowl Festival has joined the “Arts Step Up” initiative created by Maryland Citizens for the Arts. Supporting State employees furloughed by the recent budget cuts, the Festival will offer buy one, get one free tickets to those showing Maryland State employee identification cards.

Festival attendees can take their time, coming back each day using the same one-price ticket to visit the art galleries they may have missed on previous days. The Ducks Unlimited Greenwing event, held only on Sunday, invites a return visit for those with youngsters. Kids of all ages will enjoy coming back to catch another Retriever Demonstration, DockDogs® competition or Skyhunters in Flight raptor show.

The Shooting Demonstrations return to the Festival this year with displays of firearm virtuosity by Team Benelli and sharpshooter Tim Bradley on Saturday and Sunday at Talbot Rod & Gun Club.

A unique collection of Eastern Shore hunting artifacts also returns to the Festival. The Dr. Harry Walsh Outlaw Gunner Collection brings back a selection of artifacts that were displayed at Waterfowl Festivals in the early 1970s and are now part of prized museum collections.

Presented in conjunction with the dedication of the 2009 Festival to the late Dr. Walsh, one of the Festival’s founders, the exhibit will feature a sinkbox gunning platform, battery gun, sneak skiff, punt gun and more.

The Festival’s one-low-price ticket also will provide guests with a chance to win an authentic Eastern Shore experience—a trip on a Chesapeake Bay skipjack. This year’s raffle prize is a two-hour cruise for four on the TilghmanIsland skipjack Rebecca T. Ruark.

Rebecca is the oldest skipjack still sailing, built in 1886. Her skipper, Capt. Wade H. Murphy, Jr., is a fifth-generation waterman who regales passengers with colorful nautical tales mixed with lessons on Bay-area ecology.

Ticket stubs may be dropped off for raffle entry during the Festival at Collectibles sites located at Easton High School, Easton Middle School and the pavilion across from the Armory, or at the Tidewater Inn painting gallery.

Advance tickets may be purchased in Easton at the Waterfowl Festival office on South Harrison Street, Talbot County Chamber of Commerce and Albright’s Gun Shop, or in St. Michaels at the Chesapeake Bay Maritime Museum. Tickets may also be purchased online at www.waterfowlfestival.org. The buy one, get one free ticket offer for State employees is only available in advance at the Festival office or during the event at any ticket kiosk.