Walking around hoping to flush a grouse, partridge or pheasant has become my favorite type of hunting. Used to really be into whitetail and mule deer buck hunting but I gradually drifted away from that and the last few years have only hunted birds. I know guys that wouldn't waste their time looking for a bird and I know a few guys who only hunt birds.


I guess ideally a guy would have a drilling and focus on birds with the off chance of getting a shot at a big buck. That would be paradise.



But back to the original thought....

How many of you guys really anticipate upland bird hunting?

Bird hunting is my favorite.

I do, but have to travel. Makes the anticipation better. I go to sodak or nodak most years. Duck hunt a lot too in the winter. Still try to kill an elk and a deer or two every year.

Years ago we could wander around and get shots at pheasants,now it's nice to hear a cackle.
Nest raiders have really put a hurt on them.

As I get older and getting harder to drag a deer, I appreciate small game and bird hunting more. Especially that I just got another young bird dog to train. Wish I had a good place locally for ducks and/or geese though.
However I will deer/bear hunt as long as I can.

If you don't have a bird dog in the house, you have a cat......

Grew up bird hunting. It's always been my favorite. Enjoy watching the pup grow up and learn how to chase roosters.

Sitting in a tree with a bow does take a close second tho...........

Used to Sam.

Before I got married, the folks had 500 acres which was surrounded by a major irrigation canal. Each time the canal crossed a draw, it leaked enough to create a 1/4 to 1/2 acre cat tail patch. Sometimes we could jump 20 to thirty pheasant out of a single patch. Especially if the neighboring farms had been hunted earlier that day.

Had we been better shots, we could have limited out with just one or two jumps. But Brother and I could burn a box of shells in a day to harvest three cocks each.

My pheasant dog:

You guys mention dogs and I had been thinking about that a few minutes ago.

We have 3 (Rez rescue)dogs in the house and not one of them would be worth a damn as a bird dog.....lol!






Great pic ID, stuff like that brings back good memories.


You guys feel free to post more!

I’ve hunted pheasants extensively since the 1960s, mostly in Ks but some SD. The population has plummeted in west central Ks where our family farm is. So last couple years we’ve bought and released some birds just to make it something other than a walk with a shotgun. I sure do miss going out with several guys and labs and killing a four bird limit. Having said that, I’m pretty diversified. I’m in NM archery elk camp now. And I Bowhunt deer and turkeys, coyote call and do some PD shooting. And I never miss the Ks dove opener. It’s been awesome last few years.
I hunt a lot.

I used to, when we had birds.

Dove opener on sept 1 was always a big thing with family and friends from all over gathering for Labor Day weekend. Now we get some good shooting about 1 in every 5 years and there isn’t a gathering as everyone has either grown up, drifted off, or died. Me and my son still look forward to it and participate no matter how few birds, just to have him out there.

When I was little we had quail. Every guy had a dog or 3 kept around and trained up for the quail season. But quail have declined to the point where I would feel bad about shooting them around here and I bet I don’t know 3 guys who keep a dog anymore.

When I was a teenager southern Kansas was lousy with pheasants. The license was cheap, season long, and almost unlimited access, a mere 3 1/2 hour run from the house. Me and a buddy or cousins, dad and uncles, sometimes two of us sometimes 10 would leave Saturday morning about 2:30 and get there at sunup to start hunting. Hunt Saturday and Sunday until early afternoon before driving home in time to get cleaned up and rested up for work and school. My God did we have some great times and slaughter the birds. 4 bird a day limit and one year I hunted 6 or 8 weekends in a row and shot a limit of roosters every day. Looking back I would almost feel bad about killing so many if it weren’t for the mega drought that started after the last year I hunted up there and lasted for almost a decade. That pretty much hammered the last nail in their coffin.

So now we have a great place to go hunt pheasants in South Dakota where my sister lives. But it’s 14 hours away so I don’t get up as often as I would if it were closer. Always a lot of fun when we do make it up.

Hard to have more fun in the game fields than when the bird shooting is hot and heavy.

Used to ruff grouse hunt a good bit. Some around now, but not many. Way back you could still kill wild pheasants around here. Not no more. Used to come up with a couple woodcock every yr also. Imagine there's still a few of those around.

I like all types of hunting. It's just with less time I gotta pick something, so messing with rifles and primarily deer hunting every yr has become my new hobby.

If I get too old to deer hunt and drag them out I'll likely go back to getting some beagles and rabbit hunting. Beagles and coon hounds were a constant in my life growing up.

Birds are fun. You can have a great day and eat them all up in one meal. Big game, you have a great day and you eat it for months.

Even living where I live, elk and deer hunting are major under takings. Unless a neighbor is gracious enough to grant access (and im blessed that they regularly do) it takes most of a day. Elk really does take most of a week, unless pursuing a depredation type hunt.

I can kick the dog out of the truck across the road from one farm and hunt sharptails, Huns or pheasant. Cross the canal at the other farm and i’m knee deep in chukars. A good hunt literally takes less than an hour out of my day. Forest grouse take a hour walk up the hill from the neighbor’s place, so it’s a half day. Either way, a tremendous return on the investment, and it permits going out many more times during the season.

But the real reason is that the dogs like it much better.

I've bounced back and forth between birds and big game during the archery season, and do prefer the weather in the early season. As I get older, I tend to prefer bird hunting more due to the physical effort required and a lot more action throughout the day.

I used to live to hunt pheasants and doves, now it's a minimum 2 to 3 hour drive to do either, sucks.

Sharptail grouse are the most fun I've had hunting.

And coyotes.

We got into some sharptails up in South Dakota a couple times and they were dang fun. Coyotes are mainly what I hunt nowadays. Very enjoyable

If you would have had those khaki colored pants, mock toe boots, a fancy shirt and vest you would have been a much better wing shot.

Sammo you need a bird dog if you enjoy it , it's as much fun watching them work as it is hunting birds, if not more.

While I’m an avid whitetail, elk and mule deer hunter, there is nothing else I enjoy more than hunting quail over my GSP’s!

I grew up in SD hunting pheasants. Really miss it. Would like to hunt birds more, but family duties keep me pretty well busy and the kids don’t really like to hunt. I still like to tinker at the loading bench so most of the shooting I do is rifle and deer and antelope hunting.

A few years ago I wanted to get back into bird hunting and so bought my second Chessie, thinking I’d take him on a combo pheasant and antelope hunt. He wouldn’t take to training the way my first Chessie did and I got to thinking maybe he was just too stupid to train. Now I think he’s smart enough to feign being stupid so he can laze about the house. At any rate, now it’s mostly deer and antelope hunting for me. That might change in a few years as I get old and the kids move out.

Thank you guys for the great replies. We think alike and yeah, wish I had a hunting dog!









Flave, sharptails are fun to hunt but I'll always be a cock man at heart.

I’ve shot well more than my share of doves, Gambels, Cal Valley quail, and ringnecks. Shot huns and sharpies for years in MT during annual big game hunts.

Started training shorthairs at 15, Springers at 35, and still run Springers.

Love ‘em all, but if I had to choose one, I’d break up with ringnecks and settle down with quail. Redheads are aptly monikered. Love to hate those runnin’ little b@stards.

Valley quail in the foothills are more civilized. Break up the covey, and the singles hold TIGHT.

So. Now I’d just have to decide on settling down with redheads or not.

Anybody who has ever had a Springer deliver a beautiful rooster to hand must think I am crazy, and I might be, pheasants being the beautiful trophies that they are.

But quail ...

Any type of fowl or game hunting is better when the dogs are involved.

Yeah, I grew up on COCK. And I do love a good flush of COCK.

But I fell in love with those sharpies out there. They're just cool. And indigenous. Not some ching-chong immigrant.

I do. Pretty much any upland bird gets my attention.

Waterfowl? Meh. I do it sometimes but way more than 9/10 times I am after birds it is for upland. Ptarmigan, pheasants, forest grouse, chukar, it doesn’t matter. I luv it.

Himalayan Snowcock a few types of dove and a couple quail species is about all I need before I have taken everything a guy can hunt in the US.

Knew once the cock talk started you would be along.

Where does one find a Himalayan Snowcock?

And dumber than a day old......thing.

Bird hunting is easily my fave.

Cali quail, Huns, chukar, pheasant....Pretty much in that order. I really don’t care though, they are all a good time. Throw dove in as well.

Flushed my first covey of Bobwhites here in SC last Friday. Stoked to chase some southern quail and bunnies. Squirrel too.

In the Nepalese section of your adult book store.

I’d give up all big game hunting if I knew I could have average bird hunting from here on out.

Like Dale said above, western Kansas is terrible now on pheasants. There was a time about 15 years ago that it was phenomenal though. 4 bird limit on public ground by 11am. Not anymore though.

Last 3 years have had tons of fun with a friend of a friend in SD though.

We used to have bobwhite quail too. Now they’re cause for stopping the truck and staring if you see one.

Ducks have taken their place, somewhat. I’d still rather watch a dog go on point as about anything when carrying a gun. If I didn’t have dogs I’d likely not go.

Ruffed grouse are a great game bird.

Sometimes they act dumber than a fugkin rock. Will stand there and take fire. Other times they flush wild 40+ yards out.

They may be my favorite eating bird.

Pard...

I cut my teeth on waterfowl hunting. Progressed to upland birds. Started hunting big game in my late 40’s. Have hunted many states and on three continents. But, my 1st love is upland hunting with my dog/s. I will hunt big game for the freezer and upland for enjoyment. My lab, Belle, will turn 10 years old in March. I will be looking for another pup in the not so distant future. Of course, another lab. MTG

Pard.

Do you know WTF you're talking about pard?

One thing about sharpies ... they seem to die REAL easy ...

What doesn't?

They might very well be dumb, I don't really know. But if they are dumb, they have fantastic instincts in heavy cover as you would know. They are masters at letting you take that 2'cnd or 3rd step to where you are past them at a bad angle and they have a tree between you and them that they can take off directly away from.

That and their ability to go from zero to 60 in .095 milliseconds. They are the most challenging game I've ever hunted when in the cover they typically are holed up in. Walk and walk up and down hills in heavy cover to get 2 to 3 flushes an hr when it's GOOD. Out of those flushes I was lucky to have a remote chance at 1 out of 4. Most I either never seen or just got a brief glimpse. The flush itself with them is half the success.

Awesome replies gentlemen, thank you all for posting!

Fun to read and see how much we think alike when it comes to bird hunting. Numbers go up and down. We had a really bad streak of hail and I haven't even bothered trying that particular spot yet this year. Last couple years were bad drought and there wasn't much to talk about for birds.

This year has been a little better and the word is out. All kinds of out of state hunters. Local guy told me that Jerry Jones nephew was part of a group of hunters that crossed the fence onto our property. Rumor only, I wasn't there.



Cuzzin', I reported you to the mods. Friendly warning for obscene vulgarity.

I’ve got a cock radar like no other.
Don’t be jealous…

Or in some Himalayan snow???

Sharpies are dumber than huns.

Early season they are all dumb.

Sheesh. In the Himalaya's above the snow line. I used to write some of the commercials for Captain Obvious.

Like with Clark’s weiner, you beat me to it.
In more ways than one…

I am out after ptarmigan right now.
Nothing spotted but a few sharptails that gave me the slip, but there’s plenty of daylight left.

Suck it.

https://www.ndow.org/species/himalayan-snowcock/

I enjoy it, wish we had more pheasant around here as they sure are tasty. Only ones we've seen are on the Refuge or right along the river near town and the sewage plant.

The whippets don't hold the quail for a shot very well either.

I miss Eastern WA where I worked, got to hunt them right after work, especially if I put in a 12 hr night. Walk a bit with the gun, maybe get some shots, sleep really good for the next night.

Jealous.

I'm lazy and inside my house right now and should be outside but considering I slayed 4 sharptail yesterday didn't feel the need to get piggy.

On my family’s ranches upland game is a target of opportunity. If we see roosters, Hungarians or quail we go after them. Saw more quail over Labor Day weekend than I have seen in a lot of years. To many damn eagles, hawks, falcons, etc.

Great pics you guys are putting up.

You put them in the BGE?

An undetected ruffed exploding from your feet will definitely get the heart pumping. I don’t know if they come out faster than quail. My own experience says not. But they usually do so in cover and are flat fuggin’ gone in a flash.

A covey blowing out can be just as exciting. Multiple birds hauling azz in different directions. Following up is usually a pretty simple affair with quail. Not so with a grouse.

Sam, I loved the cock pics you put up in Ren five 50,s thread with Charlie yesterday, only thing missing was a dog.

Those grouse about killed me once in NW PA when deer hunting. Climbed up over some boulders to get to another spot, just about at the top one flushed from below one of the rocks, just as I got my balance back after nearly falling between two VW sized boulders another flushed from the base of a tree growing in the middle of the rock pile.

got my heart to beating it did.

You also have some amazing looking coyote calling country also

My first Brittany will be 16 in March, she’s been retired for a few years now but we hunted regularly. We kept a female from her one and only litter of pups that will be ten in November. Still hunt her some but like others have mentioned we don’t have the bird numbers we did a decade ago. Since she only has a couple more good years left I’ll try to run “the pup” more and hope for some success. Good chance she’ll be my last bird dog, so much to do and so little time in the fall.

Is that the pics or it never happened thread?

I quail hunted for 25 years, had 6 to 8 pointers, killed bunches of birds. I had a fabulous deer and bird lease in north central texas, but the old owner died, so it was sold. It was too much trouble to find another, day hunting sucks most of the time. My old dog I was attached to died about that time, so I went back to deer hunting.

Geno, good question.


From the start I broke the law and cleaned them out in the field. Less mess at home and wild critters eat the rest of the bird. Found an empty plastic coffee can in the pickup that we'd used for grain samples so I washed that out with some drinking water and used it for meat storage.

Wife is afraid of biting on the copper plated #5's so I asked my mom to make her famous slow cook mushroom soup and rice recipe.

I like to gather them up and put them in a windrow with my rake.

Friend does that with pheasant legs.


It's great! Bet you moms is stellar.

You're terrible.


You guys get any rain?

Three tenths here.

Good idea on that recipe, I will have to remember it.

Have to be really careful here in Cali now as we're only allowed the non-lead ammo for hunting. Can't imagine my teefers liking crunching down on a #6 steel in a piece of bird.

I think about an inch actually.

Have 200 acres of wheat left.....couldn't care less!

Pard,

Family site, pard.

Pard,

Still a family site, pard.

I instantly regretted posting that!


Hahaha!

A good retriever evens up Quail VS Sharp-tails About 80% of birds knocked down hit the ground running,a good retriever is a must have for upland birds. Rio7

Old shotguns and upland birds is what fall is about…

It's when I come back to life. When we could get OTC deer tags in NV I always carried a drilling. If I went deer hunting I also shot chukar, quail, and blue grouse. When chukar hunting instead, I often popped a nice buck the bird dogs booted out of thick brush, where I would have walked right past him.

It's illegal to use dogs to hunt deer, but I was ALWAYS chukar hunting.

You could no doubt take full advantage of hunting with a drilling, Sam. If I could afford FJB gas I'd bring a couple out for you to try and help thin your sharptails and pheasants.

Blue grouse with Kreighoff drilling:


Chukar taken with a drilling: I got a small mulie buck a week later here, but I didn't have a camera.



Bobwhite and a great eating little doe in OK a while back, taken with the same drilling the same afternoon. .

I'd like to shoot a ruffed grouse.

Oh Christ!


lol



You fuuckers....lol

Used to hunt grouse and quail with Brittanys, but been out of the hunting dog scene for a while. There were a lot more birds when I was a kid, but way fewer deer.

That is rather classy.

I take my sons and SILs pheasant hunting every year. We look forward to that week with great anticipation. We also Dove hunt here on the farm as time and their work schedule allows. Also a great time for family. That said, I'm not ready to give up deer and elk hunting just yet.

Yes Geno, Charlie is damn sure smiling.

Class act, Frankenstein.

LOL

The peaceful tranquility of yesterday.





Ted, what is wrong with this picture? lol




Escape route.

I think those boots worth more than my truck, pard.

1.5" here today.

Homies only saving grace killing birds this year might be in mid Oct when fall turkey opens up on FTCKY.
That fugging Tom in area 50 played stump the dummy with me this spring.
Judas Bird in my noggin to me now.

2 shots on dove this year.
Dove 2
Homie goose egg..

SMH.....😔🥴🤣🥴😔

Huns and chukar for me this year. Maybe some sharptail..

Well Ren, you make up for it with big bucks. Not to rub salt in the wound, but I done better with my red ryder bb gun on doves here at home. Lol.

Count me in……..

And since someone mentioned Sharptails…. Upon further inspection, I guess the last pic has Huns in it.

Great Dogs!
Great Birds
Great shotgun!

GREAT PHOTOS!!

Did a bunch in PA back in the 70s, 80s, into the early 90s. All wild birds until near the end, then the catch and release started after the wild ones went into decline.

At the peak, one could hope to bag pheasants, rabbits, dove, squirrels, and the occasional quail. Great stuff, great exercise. I don’t hunt up there anymore, but my impression is it’s not anywhere near what it was. Hell, it wasn’t even before I quit.

There are grouse in the mountains here, but they’re very spotty, and too much hard work for a boomer with a bad knee, or even two good ones. Too bad, because they’re the tastiest IMO.

Geno, if I was you I’d be a mountain quail hunting SOB.
I chased them around Happy Valley a few years ago. Got several but they made me work for them, no doubt.

Other than that, I am an equal opportunity uplander.




I have even known to carry a shotgun when going in for a 2nd load of bigger critters.

FAMILY!

SITE!

FUGK!!!!!

Two of the elusive snowCOCKS

Thirty years ago I almost fell off the rock face above Island Lake in the Rubys, going after some of those. They've always beat me, always.

Chasing pheasants with my Lab is my favorite kind of hunting.

Grew up hunting Bob Whites with a pair of Irish Setters. Really good pair, big rangy male was the covey dog, smaller female cleaned up on singles. When I was in Juco back in '71 I had all my classes over at 12:30. Hunted several days a week. After the two setters passed I switched to German Shorthairs. We never had pheasants here in SE Ks, think I was 20 or so before I ever saw one. As the quail population dwindled trips to western Ks became the norm for pheasant. These days it's South Dakota with cheesy and his buddies. I used to hunt big whitetail on the home place, put several on the wall. Anymore as I age, I've become a meat hunter. Just want to put 2-3 in the freezer to keep out of the grocery store more. Still, upland birds will always be king for me.

So far this fall, birds 0; old shotguns 20+

Love upland hunting and have another dog to add to the mix this year. 16 month old Toller on the right and a 7 year old on the left. Early season sharptail hunt and he performed very well.

I will most likely forgo deer this year and hunt pheasants all of November. Upland is a passion -- just hope the left knee can hold up for a full season. Might have to take a few rest breaks with ducks and geese added to the mix.

Bird hunting is my favourite hunt. Getting to old to haul deer and elk out of the bush without a quad. Most landowners here won't allow you to drive across the land, I can't justify owning a quad for the odd trip to the mountains.
Upland and waterfowl seasons are both long here, plenty of geese in particular but most years the Sharptail and Hun numbers are pretty good. When I do head to the mountains/foothills, it is usually Sept/Oct, perfect for ruffies and spruce plus trout with a light fly rod.
Tomorrow afternoon, I'm finally going to have a bird dog again after 5 years without. Adopting an 8 year old Chocolate lab that has a solid hunting background.
Current owner just can't get out anymore, life got in the way apparently. Was going to pickup a Britany or GSP pup in the spring but I'm thinking that this might just be the best option for the next few years. I get a great dog, he gets a great new, happy life/home. Win Win!
Jeff

I shot my first Sharptails last fall. I'm usually hunting in Blue grouse country with an occasional Ruffed grouse in the mix.

Yeah.

I go more than birds harvested, typically.

This pic is from a few years ago. Great day for a few guys.

I really miss pheasant hunting.

Cool pics bud,

yeah, if I could hunt them in this area, within 100 miles or so, I'd certainly go after them. Unfortunately, they're not on approved list and although we're within their range, I personally haven't run across any.

I'm just checking now on the CDFW page to see if grouse is open in the Warners or up the hill from me. Fall turkey is not until Nov I believe, but I might have that wrong. By that time I might be hunting frozen turkey, in the store or in the woods.

This. ^^^

Doves are just shooting. Quail are hunting to find them, working with your pal, a dog to get into them, and shooting and then watching you happy buddy haul ass to get what you shot.

Several factors have combined to practically eliminate our pheasant population.
first, consolidation of little forty and eighty acre farms and elimination of fence rows. All of the rolling hills with small six and ten acre fields which irrigated every which direction have been consolidated under pivots.

second, fur is worthless, so fox and coyote populations are uncontrolled. Even the one neighbor sold all of his sheep, and quit shooting predators.

third, Raptor populations are higher than fox and coyotes.

I used to love taking a few blue grouse incidentally to deer hunting. Most of them shot with a 30-06 with 165 ballistic tips over 60 gr H4831. I could usually get two or three out of the trees on the walk back down the mountain after a day of deer hunting.

Love it! I have 3 German Shorthaired Pointers and watching them work is my idea of happiness.

Heaven on Earth.

Back in the good old days of SW KS pheasant hunting I had a mammoth sized chocolate lab.

Dad had run over her when she was a pup so she had bad hips from the get go. But that meant she was slow and stuck right by my side. Until she got wind of a bird close and she’d give me that look like “come on boss” and start on the trail at a wallowing lope. She’d bull through whatever thick thorny mess of cover and root them out to put them up. The shooting was usually easy as they flushed close, nothing as satisfying as pillow casing a big rooster with an ounce and a quarter of 6s at 12 yards. Cripples she was slow but she’d stick with it and run them to ground, didn’t lose many when she was around.

More than one time a guy asked if I was really bringing that old dog at the start of the day. At the end of the day they’d be wanting to buy one just like her. I could take her and hunt slow like we were sneaking and stalking and not walk past birds and kill most of the ones we put up. With her staying so close and us being pretty quiet we didn’t put many up wild out of range either.

End of the day we’d clean birds on the tailgate and she’d crush and gnaw the elbows off all the wings we cut off. Then eat all the guts out of every bird as we cleaned them. Big old stinking bloody filthy dog that I had to lift into and out of the truck because of her hips. I always snuck her into the motel room and gave her a couple aspirin in a slice of cheese at bedtime. Good times.

Sam, early season sharptails, with the chance for a hun, is my favorite too. I still hunt deer, but don't shoot at them much. I'm located near Circle.

Doc…..Those blue sunglasses on you remind me of Elton John …..👍🏼

Been a great season so far, just got home from the fields with a tired pup.

Big game hunting is like getting groceries, you gotta do it and the quicker and more convenient the better. Hopefully you can get it done in a couple days and then have fun chasing birds again.

If you like kicking up birds solo, just wait til you get to work with good dogs.

100 miles?
That is surprising. I figured they were most everywhere in N Kali, as they’re also in NW Nevada and S Oregon. The habitat shown in your pics sure looks like they could live there.

Good luck with grouse and turkey, regardless.

Hunted the pheasant opener the day of my wedding. Same with anniversaries the years it fell on it.

I’ve seen plenty of them not 20 miles from where Geno lives. Always wanted to bring my dogs and hunt my friends place there, but between the stupid regs in Cali about guns and ammo and the joy of carrying a dog in a semi with a small sleeper, it never happened.

Chukar hunting in Nevada cured me of bird hunting.....

My sister is a big fan of grouse, which means I get to borrow her flush it all lab when I go hunting. Compared to the Brit Span we had as a kid the lab's fairly inept. A bunch of far-flushed birds is a small price to be paid for spending a good day afield with a sweet natured dog.

LOL...Owen took this after he fell down and damaged his phone, but you know what it shows.



Taken with mine when they got down to the trucks.

Yep... a picture is worth a thousand words, I do miss the sage hen season though

Chukar hunting: Fist time. Is for fun, afterr that its for revenge. Those birds are tough to hunt.

Gambels and mountain quail, occasionally band tailed pigeons. Mountain quail are pretty challenging too.

My long time black powder friends and I have been doing an annual bird hunt in the northern tip of New Hampshire for around 30 years. We started out with muzzle loaders but have grown older and lazier so now use modern guns. This allows me to miss faster. This annual trip is one of the highlights of my year. The weather is usually nice, the fall colors are out, getting to spend some time with old friends and maybe a bird or two will be bagged. It don't get no better than that.

What birds, Mike?

What a great Campfire story.

I like pheasant hunting. Love quail hunting. But I am addicted to hunting chukar. I'll trade them all for some great chukar hunting. My grandpa chased chukar until he was in his mid 80's. My Dad is 73 and he'll be hunting them with us in a few weeks. My son is 13. He knocked down his first chukar at age 11.
Guess it's in my blood.

My apologies if my communications weren't clear. I know they're within 100 miles, and Dutch tell me your secret spot, but we can't (legally) hunt them in this area. Last I read the regs, I think it's at least 100 mile drive to get to an open for hunting area.

Only ones I've seen locally are the California quail, as in a covey of about 40 I spooked out by the woodpile this evening when I went to turn on the trail cam out there for the night.

Hehehe, he'd be jealous.

You coming over to the south of the Warners or heading down further south? I hear there's some decent areas to the SE of Likely, but not having a dog I'm not going to attempt getting after them there.

This

Sounds like a good hatch for chukar everywhere this year. We hunt them all over central Nevada.
I don't understand guys who say: "I quit hunting when I had to travel for birds" I'll drive 6 to 8 hours to hunt chukar every chance I get.

Dayom nice doubles, Shrap.

Yeah,

but your rich and rollin' in the nuts.

Fixed income and a long ass drive to AZ to hunt this year is going to take some of my resources that could go into chukar hunting.

Sheesh, not quite. But yeah, I'll drop the coin to chase birds around. But all it costs is gas money and shotgun shells. Maybe a motel 6 if I'm feeling ritzy.

It certainly is fun, but we're at almost $6 a gallon for LGB gas here now. I guess I want a chance to make more meat than a few birds, although with my luck a couple of chukar makes a better meal than the deer I don't get.

Ate a javelina tag in AZ a couple of years back when gas was too high, didn't see spending that kind of money for a vacation and a few pounds of meat, even as delicious as it is. And I love the area we hunt..

Maybe the economy turns around and my retirement plans start earning better rates again I'll chase birds more frequently. Don't know the odds, but I'd sure like to go after one of those snowcock.

My favorite modern SXS, modern by 20th century standards, made in the early 20’s. Webley 2 1/2 inch ejector…

Older Webley…

Javelina delicious???

I've dearly loved upland hunting since growing up in IL and IN back in the heady days of the early 70's when pheasants were everywhere. Now that we're retired and in NH time to get back into it. We're on the list with a breeder for a Small Musterlander in late winter/Spring and looking forward to training another pup. I know it won't be as easy as our labs were but hopefully fun.

Here's what they look like for those not familiar (not my pup obviously) but all my research seems to point to them being a solid pointer as well as a good family/house dog so we'll see. There are grouse where we are, nearly hit one with the truck mirror a bit ago, but mostly it will involve driving a couple hours to find them, although the woodcock come through here well.



In the meantime did a preserve hunt yesterday with a buddy I shoot clays with. He has a pair of Brittanies who were really enjoyable to watch work. I can do that 10 minutes from the house which will be good for training. After a summer of shooting clays toting the 16 gauge Parker in the woods reminded me that they knew what they were doing back then.

Zekee at work (for some reason CF doesn't want to embed a youtube short)

[video:youtube]https://youtube.com/shorts/RDCC1D1x22A?si=21Ll1YAAxi8W1rvy[/video]

Yes I do. Spent the better part of yesterday riding and walking.

about all i want to do besides flyfish, and i am along way from a trout

I like it quite a bit Sam. Got out with my BIL on Saturday. It was raining all day but we got a few. All we have is ruffed grouse and the occasional spruce grouse.

Our weather is usually great for most of grouse season and it's a good way to get into the woods walking around and enjoying fall.

I do like deer hunting still but like it for a lot different reasons than I did when I was younger.

I've hunted grouse since I was old enough to carry a shotgun. There's not as many as there used to be even when the cycles are supposedly at the high ends. Too dang many turkeys! DNR biologists will say there is no conflict but every place where turkey (tree pig) populations have expanded grouse populations have declined.

Pheasant will have to wait until we're done working on lions, tigers, and bears.

Dove hunting is my passion.

Bird hunting has always been my favorite outdoor passion. I have done all kinds of big game hunts and very enjoyable to, but training and hunting over Brittanies and fieldbred english cockers is my year round obsession. Fortunately, upper Michigan has some excellent grouse/ woodcock hunting. And plenty of excellent game farms around with pheasants. Have gone West out to SoDak with my dogs and friends for many years and will be out there for a week this year too. I would be happy to die with my boots on afield with my dogs.

I was 11 when the 1985 farm bill established CRP. We already had good populations of Sharps and Huns in central ND, but CRP just EXPLODED the pheasant population. So there I was, right in the middle of an upland explosion growing up with a father who loved to bird hunt and took me with him almost everywhere. We had labs when I was growing up. Once I finished college and had a place of my own, in 2001 I dumbed into an 18Mo finished English Cocker. I'm now on my 3rd and he hunts everything w/feathers.

CRP contracts went unrenewed and/or folks paid the penalty and got out early when commodity prices went wild and land-rent prices even wilder starting about 2008. Nobody is going to tend to grassland for $30/Ac when someone will farm it for $100+/Ac.

There are still pockets of wild birds and I do truly enjoy a walk behind a working dog. I don't have any big-game tags this fall so the dog and I will get after the birds harder. I've truly lived "The Good 'Ol Days" of upland hunting since my pre-teen years.

Do you have a bird dog to hunt birds or do you hunt birds to have a bird dog?

Duck hunted for 35 years exclusively. But, at some point, if became something I just did not enjoy anymore. I primarily hunted the mouth of the Mississippi out of Venice. No air cooled engines, outboards and pirogues only. Up until the overload of mud boats and surface drives, that way of hunting was truly special. I guess I'm just wired to be simple.

Our only true upland bird here in South Louisiana is the becasse.........woodcock. And I still make a couple hunts like that a year. When moved to deer hunting, my hunting partner moved focus to woodcock. Hunting over his pointers is classic!!! He has been successful with his dogs on many levels.

You started a great thread Sam!

Older friend got me into bird hunting here in Az in the late 80s. We would be coues wt hunting and he would say: "Got to get my deer so I can go back to bird hunting". I thought he was nuts as big game hunting was IT. As I got older I realized I had the same thoughts!

Been hunting upland birds in Az for 35 yrs with dogs. Gambels, Scaled and mearns quail. Dove and occasionally ducks.
Can't imagine hunting birds without dogs.

First dog with a bunch of scalies


Gambels

One of the better days mearns hunting with a friend

fetching a double

Feel free to drop that pup off at my house until you return. Take your time, no rush on getting back.

The best of days are in October.

Was fortunate to grow up with valley quail, chukar, blue grouse, and ruff grouse in the area. For a few years mountain quail made a showing and we would find them while going after the devil bird. Huns would be plentiful some years and sparse other years.

Love chasing valley quail and blue grouse....chukar is all about revenge now.

Upland birds will be a priority when it comes time to relocate upon retirement.

This Saturday morning, I will be dove hunting in east Texas. My first bird hunt in 40 years.

Love it but I don't do enough of it. Southern quail hunting over good dogs is probably my favorite, but I must admit, N and S Dakota pheasants is also very enjoyable

The ones we get in AZ are.

Once my outfitter buddy showed me how they clean them.

When I got back up to WA where I was working, I gave some to my farm boy neighbor and co-worker. His impression was it tasted like a farm raised free range pig, not a corn fed feedlot one.

I grew up here in eastern ks. Quail hunting used to be awesome around here but now if you see a convey per day you are doing well. But even with that I still have a gsp and we go every chance we get. Old habits die hard.

We have a few in Brown County. Let the guys kill a few pheasants but quail are off limits.

Unless I have to I won't pick up a Javelina, stinking things are covered with fleas they will be up to you arm pit before you can let go, we call them ranch rats, no one here eats them. They will damn sure kill you're bird dogs in heart beat. Rio7

My son hunts pigeons and brags about how tasty they are. I have not tried pigeon.

He also convinced me to try carp and sucker, which are both nasty too.

AZ seasons are from late Jan/early Feb (archery) thru to the beginning of March or so (general). Fairly cool weather, as in snow where we hunt between 3500-5000+ feet elev. Probably keeps the flea numbers down, as I've never noticed any on the ones we've taken at camp.

To you and Cheesy too. Beautiful dogs.

Good luck. We need pics.

Great pic. Where is that bit of heaven, please?

You lose the plug to your shotgun or something'?

Great stuff T, as usual.

Hahaha, tff.

But it takes a devious mind.

Nice, L2S and great multi bag.

I didn't have a drilling but was ready for coyotes with a 22-250. Yep, it was deer season too. A 55 gr SP to a bucks neck works.

Speaking of Javelina. We are always on the lookout for them. I do my best to steer the dogs away if I see them.

Around 12 years ago my former pair of GWPs and I rounded a small hill deep in Gardner Canyon while mearns hunting. The dogs worked forward and loped right into a sounder of 15 javelina! The javelina and dogs were going the same direction. One big one sided Thor and bit him in the face as they ran side by side. I immediately began firing the shotgun and ran in the dog's direction. It was over in seconds.

After seeing cut on his cheek didn't seem too bad we went back to hunting. A day or so later the swelling began. Took him to the vet. After a careful inspection the vet found two connecting holes. Thor's face was shaved and the infected area was irrigated. Antibiotics stopped the infection and eventually his hair grew back. As you can see, for a while he was a strange looking dog.


Here is Thor along with Abbey with his regular hairy face.

Only reason to hunt birds is for the dog work. I feel sorry for those that don’t have that pleasure. Yeah they’re good to eat and fun to get but the dogs are the reason for the season.

THAT Rates a Two Cool!!

Dang,

tusked your dog good that pig did.

Glad he healed up nicely.

Most of the dogs I've seen get away from a storm with Javy's Need stitch's and big antibiotics,we manage to save about 75% of them, if we see them we bring our dogs in fast we have a huge Quail crop this year so we will be Quail from JAN 1st to March 28th all wild free range birds. Rio7

I always enjoy seeing your dogs.

Count me in as another that loves to hunt upland birds. I don't currently have a dog, but I used to have GSP, raised a couple of litters and used to run dog trials and did pretty well.

Although the pheasant population isn't nothing like it used to be back in N.C. Kansas around our farm, the bobwhites are making a comeback. Last year was the first season in a long time that I was able to kill a limit one day. And the dove hunting has been nothing short of great the past several years. Love some good fast wing shooting almost as much as watching a good dog work.

Pigeon is just a big dove which they taste like, The carp are okay but nothing special.

A guy I worked for back in the 80s had a javelina for a pet, it nipped him on the ankle playing around and almost killed him, he almost bled out from the cut artery before getting to the hospital from his ranch outside Benavides Texas.
My buddy and I had a pet javelina that we kept at the motel his parents owned. One day an Indian dot was there looking at the place to buy. He made the mistake of kicking it and got bit, animal control was called and they took the javelina to the pound and the day before we could get him back someone cut the chain link fence and took him. They probably made tamales out of him.

I'm laughing,

tamales.


Bummer about your pet though Rog.

PM coming today about another question I have for you and krp.

My history too, Sam, just fifty miles further north. If others had the experience we are describing, they would come to the same conclusion. ;-{>

Love wild quail above any other hunting. Here in Texas the prices have gotten too rich for the average guy and public hunts are few and far between. Urban sprawl and the eye worm parasite have decimated my old hunting areas. I need to find a group of hunters that are willing to travel west and start hunting for different bird species.

Again, thank you guys for the great replies and pics. I've really enjoyed this thread, two thumbs up!

NE Montana

Couple of pups on birds Rio7

10 years ago with the pups.
(and no they didn't help hunt birds, just goofed off the entire time....lol)

Brings a tear to my eye.

All right. Thanks.

Now that pictures would get Lassie cancelled in Hollywood.

🦫

Sam Olsen, where are you on the HiLine?

It's almost unbelievable how fast a big boar javelina can run. If you try to run one down in a truck across deep grass prairie you better have your seat belt on. It seems they are about as fast as a coyote to me and it's no wonder they can hit a birddog quick.

If you try to catch one in this kind of country before it gets to the next brushy draw you better have your dog inside the cab.
Had video cam and fore end in my left hand coming up on this point.

Break time.

We live in town at Wolf Point. On the Rez.

Idk what you took that picture with but it's a fantastic picture. I understand feeling wistful about yesteryear. Reminds me of Gus McCrae: here's to the sunny slopes of long ago.

The old time camera pics really are better.
(Canon G15, took me 10 minutes to go back in time that far to find the pic.....lol)


Pre smart phone days.



I found some old hero cock shots from the same time. Damn I looked good, probably 15lb lighter.

Great photo Sam! 👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻

Dang Sam, if I had seen this 10 years ago you could have hunted over a great bird dog for a few beers.

Puppy dog same year.
(I don't even remember this pic, back when things were green and life was easy)

My Dad liked the 16ga too but all he could afford was his old 870, nothing as pretty as yours.

That h-brace is rotted off and now leans....

Chit has gone to hell....lol

Well, get to fixin' it there farmer Sam.

Model 12 Sam?

I've got one looks about like that, nice and well worn. Full choke so I haven't used it for hunting yet. Have thoughts of turning it into a dedicated turkey gun sometimes.

God damn it Geno I need a younger person to keep up with the never ending maintenance issues!

I ain’t Sam but that’s the Lord’s pump gun Geno. 16 bore Ithaca 37. All the cool kids have them.

Is that a 37 or a 17? Too close for me to tell.

Rio,

What blood lines you running?

Thanks

That Ithaca thing was my second choice.

I don't have one, but if I did I'd like it to look like that rusty one.

And you ain't wrong.

Sam,

I've only got a 7 Acre RANCH! and I need a young person around here.

Then again, I have a couple of years on you too.

Just wait, it gets funner.

HUGE upland guy here, both myself and my son!
I hunt with muzzle loaders, BP cartridge guns , and modern SxS guns as well.
In fact, we have a new Munsterlander puppy this year that will be going on his first grouse hunt tomorrow, along with our Springer Spaniel.
Cat



Louie the GSP ( RIP)

My son and Louie a few years back.

Damn straight, mines a 1951 vintage. And its sexier sister in a 20 gauge is just as nice. 2 of my favorite shotguns.

The last year we had a good dove shoot was about 3 years back. Buddy had two or three places in milo he cut right as the birds came through and they camped out.

Me and my compadre shot birds every day after work for nearly three weeks. I have video of us hunting in 40 mph winds before a storm blew in. It was definitely the “good old days”. And it’ll happen again in a year or two. I’d have to look in my journal to get the count but we killed a bunch that year.


Now the dude is 410ing this year. I think he’s got 4 or 5 so far. Birds are thin but it’s worth going to let him scare a few and watch the dragonflies. We got 5 big collared models this evening.

I needed a bourbon and a deck of cards to make a bonafide Slumlord pic the other day. Close as I could get.

I’ve got 3 of them. A 1950’s 16 that my Granddad gave me for wages farming one summer. The 1941 16 in the pic that I paid $20 for. And a 1970’s 20ga with the pressed checkered wood I bought like new for $200.

They’re such a nice machine and can still be turned up for small money at times. I passed on a 12 a couple weeks back for $350.

Well done gentlemen, thank you all for the awesome pics and comments.


I gotta hit the hay.

Kid,

do you folks eat the collared ones?

I'm letting the ones around here live as my Zombie Pockalips emergency food supply. Once nesting season is over I end up with about 40 or so coming in to eat the scratch I put out for the doves and pinyon jays (more emergency food)..

Every once in a while I get the urge to pop a couple with the pellet rifle, it would just be me eating them as the wife would prolly take a pass.

The collared doves taste as good as the mourning doves. Usually a little more meat. They are fair game year around.

That's the good thing here, pests are year round targets.

Thanks for passing on your culinary knowledge. I may just have to "harvest" a couple

Try this!

https://honest-food.net/dove-jagerschnitzel/

Like he says Geno, they just taste like doves. Pigeons do too for the record. We used to hunt an old gravel pit pond and there’d be a flight of pigeons come in every evening. No limit on them and they’re bigger than a dove.

Dove breasts rolled in flour, salt, and pepper and fried in good clean lard until golden brown are my favorite game bird to eat. Probably partly nostalgia since they were a big part of my early hunting experience but I still love them.

Always enjoy reading about rabbit hunting thanks guys.

Think of me, pard.

Sometimes you just need to shoot them with an old rifle or a handgun. It doesn’t matter, birds in the fall is the essence of hunting…

What a great picture!

I grew up hunting quail (and squirrel, rabbit, and dove) in Arkansas. Got into GSPs after I moved to MO and hunted quail and pheasant hard several years. I worked 12 hour shift work for awhile and got a lot of hunting in both MO and KS. Had some really good hunts in both states.

As the numbers declined in both states, and as my wife's knees made trekking through the fields less tolerable for her, I finally stopped upland bird hunting maybe 15 years ago, and lost my last bird dog about 7 years after that. Deer and turkey here in mid-MO and an elk trip very occasionally out west have been the extent of my hunting since.

I did go up to the northeast corner of MT last fall with an old bird hunting buddy of mine who still has dogs, and some of his dog training/hunting friends. Hunted the week before the pheasant opener, and had a blast hunting Sharpies and Huns, for the first time ever. Ended up with 8 Sharpies and 9 huns and if I could have shot half like I should've it could have easily been twice that. Good birds, good dogs, good friends hard to beat.

Upland bird hunting behind good dogs with decent bird numbers is far and away the most enjoyable for me. Not to mention the awesome cardio workout you get tromping behind the dogs.

I haven’t read the whole thread yet, so if Ren 50 already said it here, …”Ruffed Grouse tastes like a wet dog smells”. Hahaha! I couldn’t disagree more, but I remember him saying that at some point because it surprised the hell out of me, and, it’s one of funnier analogies I can remember anyone making.

Myself, love hunting them. Woodcock are my absolute fave.

My pals have dogs, I’ll do it without one. Fun stuff.

Did you hunt private or public land up there Blu and if I may ask, what towns did you hunt close to? Did you encounter pheasant?

Ive been out a time or two...Good luck this fall everyone!

Not too far away, I grew up on a farm east of Circle.

Bird shot long ago. I could walk right back to where it was shot. I've never shot one longer but I've seen one half again that long that looked like a golf tee, straight as an arrow.

Wife and I will move to South Dakota in the next few years at some point. I'll work 3 days a week and chase walleyes and roosters the rest of the time. Should be a good time.

And look at that classy GEC to clean them with.

Thanks, save to the recipes folder

Opens Saturday here. I look forward to bird hunting now more than deer...barely.

and a BPS upland....nice choice!

I would much rather bird hunt with a good dog!







I have a new pup, this will be her first hunt, come November.

He since moved out of that shotgun into an O/U, no more BPS upland for him I guess. Nice dogs!

Logged into my imgur account for some more pics...because this is a great thread.

\





Dad missed it 'by that far'








Skunked...

Fun to walk in on a point and find this...

Cheesy, don't make the badger angry.....🤔

Love those rock posts out in that part of KS. Neat history.

I've never walked up on a badger but I've shot 3 skunks at the end of my gun barrel.

Twice now the same dog has pointed a badger, about 5 miles apart in different years. Both times he was flat on the ground, growling and snarling and hissing and just generally not in a good mood. My buddy told me after the fact that is just his way of saying he wanted scratched on the belly....who knew???

3 years in a row that one I have pictured (the son of the badger pointer) has been skunked in SD. The dawn dish soap/peroxide/baking soda concoction really does work.

The only thing my dogs like more than pointing pheasants is fighting fur (bad trainer, me, I guess?) They'll fight a pile of raccoons in a heartbeat too. Keeps it entertaining I guess....

Skunk spray stinks and tastes bad, too.

This is a great thread!

Was turkey hunting in the mountains of Eastern AZ a long while back. Saw movement behind a slash pile. Had a little squeaker call in my hunting pants so used that to call in a little badger. To about 8 feet before I said "hello Mr Badger" whereupon he slammed on the brakes.

Told someone the story and they said "weren't you scared, those badgers can be nasty". I said nope, I was holding a 12g with #6 turkey load in it, badger would have had a bad day.

Cheesy,

those Pyke gloves, you recommend them? Good trigger feel?

I have a dislike for most gloves, if they fit my palm they're usually too long for my fingers. If I get them with short enough fingers they are too tight on my palm and set the arthritis off after a little bit. I'm always looking for a good glove for hunting.

I agree, great thread!

I like them, but not at full retail, just because I’m cheap. Got them as an open package sale for less than half. They’re comfortable and great feel. They’re just a leather with no lining. He offers a lined cold weather glove but I know nothing about them.

Dad wears winter golf gloves a lot for hunting.

My first love is spot and stalk style hunting for whitetails and mulies. That being said, I really look forward to chasing pheasants and partridge for a couple weeks each fall too. Pulling the trigger on birds is much less of a commitment from the cleaning and processing standpoint. Nothing better than frying the day’s bird harvest for dinner. Grouse can’t hang with the others on a plate so they largely get a pass from me. I have to travel to do both hunt types so generally do a combo with deer hunting early and late with birds bagged mid day. I’m blessed to have great hunting land in both my family and my wife’s. It gets exponentially better if there is some cold and snow to bunch up the birds. Said weather normally happens around the deer rut so it’s a win-win!

Mountain biking or motocross gloves work really well..

Thanks.

I saw a pack of golf gloves in Costco that looked great for doing certain things. Vented backs for summer use. Got home, found out they were all left hand gloves.

Fuggin' Michael Jackson crap is that?

No Pheasants here to speak of.....too fuggin many coons (4 legged) get the eggs first

Pine Hens (Blue Grouse) on the mountain

Dumm as fugg

22 LR and you're done

Iffin you like the taste of a pine/fir cone

We have had native Pheasants

Those were the days

Cackle's in my mind

Great pics. Beautiful dogs. Your boys are blessed.

Cousin had a pet doe we hunted bucks with but I never heard of hunting birds with one.

Thanks for all the great pics and stories!


You guys did not disappoint, nice thread, thanks gentlemen.

Count me in.

Good looking chukar dog!

Where were you hunting?

Sam,

My first hunt was a dove hunt and when I was a kid we did a good bit of dove, quail and pheasant hunting. Later I got into ducks and have always loved those too.

We had some short haired pointers but really got lucky with some britneys that had fantastic noses. They didn't quit no matter how tough the country was and would hunt dead birds like their lives depended on it.

I'm head out to go on an antelope hunt soon and will be toting a shotgun too. A cousin of mine has tons of of the Eurasian or collared invasive dove - no season or limit on them.

Had a lady friend once that made me a pheasant pot pie and it was one of the tastiest game meals I ever enjoyed.

Hope you get into 'em this fall!

Thanks, Safari. Very close to home. The hike takes longer than the drive!

Native pheasants from China?

I used to hunt 4 days a week when I owned my Brittany, I hunted Pheasants and Quail and never had more fun hunting. Upland hunting is not the same without a good dog.

If I went hunting and discovered I forgot my shotgun, I'd take my dogs and hunt anyway. If I went hunting and discovered I forgot my dogs, I'd just go home.

It's a total game changer and as others have said, watching a good dog work, is a sight to behold. It's more fun than shooting the birds, actually.

Lesson number 1:

ALWAYS trust the dog. My pointing lab (RIP) made me look like a fool a few times until I learned to trust that she knew more about the hunting situation we were in than I did.

Interesting you say that. The blues I have eaten have been the mildest of game birds. More mild flavored than pheasant, comparable to Valley Quail feeding on grain from the hog feeders.

Training continues!
Cat

Good looking bird dog, Cat!

Munsterlander?

Yup, 7 months old, Four Points Put'em up "Rigby", out of Cochrane Alberta
He comes from a very dark litter, the sire. Fabio is also very dark, and gets real low on the point like this pup does.
Cat

Hunting game birds was the first real hunting I ever did (other than squirrel hunting as a kid and without a license). Once I started finding ruffed grouse consistently, I became obsessed and it was the main hunting I did for years. I did hunt deer here and there but grouse was my number one focus. Unfortunately, the grouse numbers in my hunting area have declined dramatically over the last 10 years. I don't even hunt them here anymore because I don't want to put any added pressure on them.

It's a real shame. When I was a kid, we had wild pheasants, wild quail and plenty of grouse in southeastern PA. The wild quail and pheasants are long gone. We have a few grouse in the PA but in the eastern side of the state, the numbers have been really low, at least in the areas I hunt. It is depressing. It may not be totally fair but I blame the Game Commission.

Now I spend most of my hunting time chasing deer. I really miss the game birds. I think quail and pheasant are a lost cause but I really hope the grouse recover.

511 Tacticool Upland Pants???

I believe they came from Scheels.

If I might ask, what are the reasons for blaming the Game Commission?

Never hunted in that part of PA, just up in the Big Woods of NW PA. I haven't a clue what the GC might have done over that way to cause grouse populations to decline.

We could use one of those places around this area. Within 100 miles or so would be great.

Dam! You got a death grip on that cock!

Gotta make sure he can't get away.

T, all good here, thanks for posting!

Hope things are fine your way.

My fellow cocksman.


The inspiration for the pose known to all as 'The Flave'.....

It's a game changer.

Whoa.

Double Cock.

Props.

Well, you cock chokers aren’t alone. I was raised with shotguns and bird hunting. Dove and quail for the most part, but I’ve bagged my share of ducks, pheasants and turkeys. Even nailed some chukars.

I usually held them by their legs when posing for pics.

I picked up my new dog on Monday. We haven't been hunting yet as I'm running drills in the yard to see where he is at. Getting to know each other sort of thing.
So far, great dog, a bit rusty from not hunting since last year. Listens/obeys commands well. Seems to have a strong prey drive. Hoping to get him out in the field next week if the weather changes. We need a cool down to get the birds moving. Have seen a few good coveys of Huns while out scouting for geese. Can't wait to get him working the birds. Found out he is dynamite on Ringnecks, season opens in a couple weeks......
He also loves to sit in a blind, working the geese on field hunts. (We don't have much water here so almost all our waterfowling is field hunts.)
Life is good!
Jeff

Another year where I can't get out over the uneven ground that is required for upland hunting.

I hope to read about more than a few successful outings.

The best COCK chasing doesn't involve any dog.

Kenlguy, 3 sharptails 9/29/23 16 ga 870 1 1/8 oz of 6 shot late 60's vintage shells. No crips they were coming out of sunflowers to public grass..mb

Gruff told me that about you. Said the Haver gay's were scared of dogs. (paraphrasing)

Along with SamOlson, I am thoroughly enjoying this thread. Thanks to all who have posted.

From my early teens until my 40's, quail hunting was my passion. I had exclusive permission to hunt a tree nursery that held a healthy population of wild bobwhites. Now their numbers have dwindled to the point that their season has been closed for 10 years or so. Same with ruffed grouse.

Only upland birds available now are released ringnecks, but I'm only a mile away from hundreds of acres of WMA fields. It's enough to keep the upland spirit alive, and the birds taste just fine.

I’m still in the woods killing these birds…

Ruffed grouse used to be plentiful here don’t know what happened

Sharptail pops are decent this year






and blue grouse





ruffed

fall is cast and blast time

nice job shrap

Hunting between fasting…

So you gotta cock that thing before you shoot at the bird?

You guys sure have some nice cocks.

Cock it?

That’s pretty damn cool. The guns a Beaut.

Good deal.

Puppies are cute but old broken in dogs are the best dogs. There’s nothing like the excitement of a new or new to you dog and spending time connecting over yard work.

A true gentlemen's thread.



Thanks for keeping it classy.

When you get be to seventy-nine, you don't get around like you used to.

Today. Scouting a new spot to trap wolverine.
Luv blasting these stupid things….

Can't strangle a cock like you could back in the day?
Time is undefeated I guess...

Today. I luv it when they turn white before snow sticks.

I could have just kept on blasting them, legally and physically but figured this was enough.

Ted, that a quite the passel of white cock, oh my!


Assuming those make good eats?





I was out fencing today in the mist, brought a shotgun but didn't see any game birds. Saw hundreds meadowlarks though.




Creek crossing, there should be a fence here but it disappeared.....lol



In search of some low light polarized sunglasses. I wear contacts and pretty much wear sunglasses 100% of the time when outside.



You guys have any favorites for wing shooting?

Found these but am not a fan of the price.

https://www.smithoptics.com/en_US/p/sunglass/guides-choice-performance-sunglass/20494700362L5.html

Any of you fellas ever hunt snipe?

They are the toughest airborne target on earth.

Dan, I have not.

Are they good to eat?

Sammo I, I luv the white cock because under that white feathery soft surface is some serious dark meat. I LUV it being in my mouth.

Mr. Barbarian. Snipe hunts are a fav of mine, especially with new boots, AKA FNGs. Sending one to find the humvee keys was always awesome, but the best was to send one out to get me a box of grid squares.

It never failed to make me laugh until one asked the Sgt. Major. Then it ceased being so funny.

I really enjoy the upland season when it finally arrives. For the gorgeous country, the dog work, the exercise, the satisfaction of striking a flying bird, and the of course the birds and resulting meals themselves. I've jumped some whopper bucks while bird hunting, and more than once have thought that a drilling would be handy on those rare occasions. One conflict here in Montana is you aren't allowed to pursue big game with a dog, and a rabid warden could write you a ticket for bagging a deer while a dog was afoot.

Ithaca Featherlight is never a bad choice for the uplands.

Thanks! We are having a blast getting to know each other. Once things get worked out, my hunting partner will be doing the shooting while I handle the dog. I can't shoot this Fall as I had shoulder surgery a few weeks ago. Doc said no shooting for 6-8 months. Plan is to more than make up for it next year. Still seeing it as a win just working my new dog.
Jeff

chukar

That's typical chukar country. It's not for sissies.

I used to a lot and had a dog that would point them. They zig-zag like no other bird and are FAST!

I use a 1957 vintage 20ga Superposed choked IC/M and #9 shot. We had great snipe habitat within five miles of my house, but drought and water right sales have dried most of it up.

We get a few here in our little valley during breeding season. Mostly across the way in irrigated pastures. Not much water on our side.

I find them at the sagehen lecks until they freeze up and down a lot of creeks like Cottonwood Creek and NiQQer Creek the next canyon over. There are always some on the open wide springs around Boulder Reservoir.

Try hunting rails in a flooded marsh if you ever get the chance, it's some fine gunning and good eats.

I've gone to 8s and a skeet choked 20 for doves around water and I've become more deadly on gunshy birds.

Of course, very early in the season the young and dumb ones come in regardless of what's going on without twisting and swerving and dodging and diving.

Sam that is a good sized, good looking heeler. Is he new around the ranch? Or your Dad's deceased dog?

He reminds me much of my brother's heeler. About that size, but a little more blue mixed with red freckles. He was a hunting SOB. Pointed pheasant like a bastard. One day, hunting the tumbleweed, and sagebrush above the canal on BLM, we lost track of him. We backtracked 30 minutes and found him still on point under a pile of tumbleweeds.

"Get 'em up!" bang One more dead cock.

We often saw him point roosters that blooded GSH pointers missed. It was embarrassing for the owners of the pointers.

Four of us went out one day in the rain, about Turkey Day. It was a slow soaking rain and about 40 degrees out. We never fired a shot in a six hour hunt. But we came back, carrying four pheasant the dog had snatched out of the air as they lifted off. Yes, they were a little bit water logged.

Ever try Wilson's snipe, Jag? They make doves look like balloons floating by, by comparison, and doves aren't easy.

Sam-
Upland bird hunting with my German Girls is THE HIGHLIGHT of my year! I still like to hunt antelope, and sometimes deer but I've basically matured into a 100% bird hunter. And the best part of the hunt is watching my dogs work! Hopefully you'll get to enjoy a great fall on the Hi-Line this year.

Yes indeed, but they are quite small. 4 will make a meal for one person.

Those look like a lot of fun.

The dove were virtually nonexistent. Amongst a dozen hunters, there were a total of about 12-15 shots fired all day. One bird taken in the whole group. I shot once at a bird that was really too far away.

But it was a great day to see the sunrise, listen to the songbirds waking up, watch a lab playing and swimming in the pond and enjoy the fellowship.

They have not kept up with their grouse management plan that schedules periodic cutting. There is too much mature timber on the game lands. They seem to manage for deer and nothing else. They finally started to do more cutting but it will take several years before it becomes good cover. Some of these cuts are a long way from any decent grouse cover and may never be found by grouse. They always claim that they can't do much because 80 percent of the state is privately owned. That's a cop out in my opinion. 20 percent is enough land to make an impact.

I also think their pheasant stocking program damaged our wild pheasants. Too much inbreeding but this is just a theory. Farming practices definitely had an impact. They seemed surprised to learn that pheasant and quail had been extirpated from PA. I have to imagine that could have planted native grasses instead of filling all of their fields with field corn through the 90s and beyond.