It had been about a week since Beau had made a turn around eating as much as I would put in front of him now. What a relief to see this dog come around one more time. However not knowing how long this recovery would last at age 12 I had decided to start letting him back in the field. Now with him still recovering all 3 Setter's moved at about the same pace with Beau always pushing the lead of course. So I'd pick appropriate cover for them to work without much resistance hoping to corner some birds and get everybody out in the fresh air again. Together.
On this overcast day in November my plan was to run across a bean stubble field that had several rock piles, small depressions with cattails, and weedy cover. At the north end a mile and a half away there was also a nice narrow waterway we'd walk before turning west for a while and then back south along a fence line ending back towards the Jeep. Most hunters would look at this route and scratch their heads about walking across a bean stubble field that looked pretty bare but my advantage living here and hunting this area throughout the season as it changes is that I know the birds patterns. All the out of state hunters hunt along a waterfowl production area bordering the big lake and walk down the section line adjacent hunting the ditches. Well it doesn't take the birds very many times being repeatedly flushed out of those areas to adopt alternate plans!
You have to also know I'm looking for a perfect moment. A beautiful picture and experience not just an opportunity to empty my gun of super magnum shells at a wild rooster as he flushes from the reeds. I want the birds best game on his terms pitted against my willing and beautiful Setters and I'll add my average shooting skills!
Sure enough as we made our way into the bean field here comes two "out a stater's" as the locals call them, dressed in full camo upland hunting after obviously finishing banging away at some ducks this morning. Right on down the old section line road with their flushing dog's in tow. They were coming towards me but I kept walking in their direction for a while until I got to where I turned on this run into the stubble to the north west. They must have been puzzled as to where I was going as I walked across the bare stubble with 3 bird dog's but the field rises and dips so you actually can't see most of the small areas of cover unless you actually walk the field which is the case with a lot of these spots looking at them from the roads. We skirted several of these areas of cover with tracks visible in the snow as we made our way to a spot which had been an old homestead which was now just some brush, bits of old machinery and pieces of the foundation here and there amongst the weeds and grass. The Setter's are experts at identifying cover so as we approached this spot in the field they quickened their pace with Beau in the lead. I followed suit of course. As soon as Beau got to the edge of this cover his head came up as he surfed the wind. This sign was immediately picked up by Mick and Molly. That was the joy in this hunt today not knowing a week earlier if we'd ever be able to do this together again or not. I'm talking about hunting as a team. Reading each others body language and working together to hunt these birds culminating in a point and a successful shot. As I watched it began to unfold. Beau slowed as he came to the corner. Mick and Molly had caught up stopping one behind the other as Beau became rigid with his head high looking to the west. I was 40 yards behind at this point but closing in fast. Just as I got behind Molly Beau eased up and slowly walked forward followed by the other dog's. The birds had moved . I came around and we all walked through this weedy cover with no birds present. Beau then picked up the scent and trailed it across the stubble 50 yards to the next area of heavy cover in the field which was part of the waterway I mentioned earlier. All 3 Setter's now knew by watching each other and picking up the same scent that we had birds right here! They cautiously moved about when Beau froze looking to the south but Mick and Molly were facing another direction doing the same! What I figured I had was a few birds all in the same area. I walked around with nothing flushing and the Setter's not willing to move. A few more steps and all hell broke loose! First a couple hens then one more then one, two, three more and I was still just waiting. Waiting for the rooster! Sure enough after several seconds of delay here he came just a beauty flushing right in front of Beau going to my right. I quickly dropped him hard and waited cautiously but there were no more as all 3 Setter's converged on the bird.
We continued on but this single moment is exactly what we're out here for. It couldn't have been any better and we got to do it one more time! Together." Just Like Old Times! "
Wednesday, December 31, 2014
Screeeech!
It was early in the sharptail season when Beau and I loaded up the Jeep and headed east to some old haunts we hadn't visited in a few year's. The weather had been pretty warm so far so I chose this cold overcast day to make our way to a run called the Honey Hole in year's past. This is what's called prairie pot hole country. A swath of North Dakota peppered with pot holes of various sizes creating habitat for a variety of species including Grouse and Huns, otherwise known as Hungarian Grey Partridge, which were on our radar today. Amongst the pot holes are rolling hills with plenty of high points favored by grouse as breeding areas or Leks as they're called. Since they use sight as a main defense mechanism these hilly areas are prime habitat when bordered by crop and hay fields which they use to raise their broods.
This section we pulled into on a dirt road I had hunted many times and have written about over the year's. When it was a hayfield with adjacent hills and crops the grouse loved it in the early season. It was the kind of place I'd look at and think I'd just like to hunt that because it's a beautiful place. Truth be told often times those are the eyes through which I view the places I hunt. I want an experience that includes a multitude of factors not just those centered around shooting a "limit"of birds.
The hayfield has been gone now for 5 year's having been rotated to small grains with this year's crop being soybeans. So once harvested there is virtually no cover here except what's available around rock piles and the narrow band of cattails that circle every low spot or slough. There is however a shelter belt that was planted in an L shape running the entire east side about a 1/3 of a mile with a mix of cedar trees and bushes. This shelter belt is what I had in mind being just about 5 feet tall now it offered some nice cover right next to a food source. Plus I just wanted to put my boots on the ground here once again walking along thinking about those days when everything seemed to be just right. The setting. The habitat. The bird population. And my beautiful Setter's in their early year's full of life and desire to hunt creating beautiful scenes almost surreal at times as they cast about in the alfalfa then suddenly all together coming to a point in the open cover strung out in a line.
We parked on the north end of the shelter belt a half mile off the road and planned to work south up and back. Beau was ready to stretch his legs so I let him out and got myself set up for our run. There are also Huns or Partridge that use this area along with Pheasants so while I was hoping to have sharptail for supper we also were scouting to see what kind of other birds were around. The Pheasant season opener was still 3 weeks away at this point but Huns were fair game just hard to come by.
As we walked the shelter belt on the east side the cover looked great with a strip of alfalfa separating the other half. A light rain had started and I was hoping this cover would hold some birds given the weather. Beau was casting in and out between the rows and since I use a Garmin GPS collar on my Setters I'm never worried about losing sight of him. He rarely will bump a bird anyway as he's very very careful not to push a bird once he reads scent on the wind. As I walked along he disappeared for a few moments as we crested a slight rise in the terrain. I looked out ahead and couldn't find him so I pulled out my Garmin which told me he was ahead about 50 Yards south slightly to my left on point! With my eyes focused in that direction I quickened my pace or as my friend Dennis calls it made a "surge" ahead. As I came closer I caught sight of him turned in a kind of twist and looking right under a cedar tree. This was getting exciting I thought and as I decided on my approach I thought possibly a pheasant or a covey of Huns with Grouse being my last expectation with the bird having held so long already. I went ahead on the opposite side of the tree from Beau knowing it was a toss up anyway. I stomped in and nothing happened. I turned around 360' at the ready when it happened. A flutter of wings and "screeching" with a dozen or so Huns splitting into 2 groups as they flew one forward arcing to the right and the other to the left and behind me. I chose the leading bird on the forward advancing group missing twice! Beau had held all through this obviously with his nose right on the covey under that cedar tree. You would think it was an easy shot but I tell you more times than not these small birds are very hard to get an advantage on. But what a beautiful sight in different shades of red and brown.
We saw no other birds in the shelter belt and as we walked to the end a truck came off the road I identified as the local federal warden obviously in the area because a waterfowl production hunting area borders this run to the south. I came out to the road and talked with him for a while. When I said I was hunting for grouse in the area today he suggested I go east a few miles. Little did he know how well I knew those hills he was talking about! I said yes that's where I think we'll head but I just want to check the waterfowl production area, which was a small parcel, for any pheasants while I'm here. I asked if he wanted to see my license but he said "No thank you just go ahead. I'm checking for waterfowl hunters today." I noticed his dash video camera was on so he had my vehicle plate recorded as he went up and back down the road anyway I thought if he wanted to check on me.There just are not enough of these guys to deal with the people that think since North Dakota is such a sparsely populated and rural area anything goes. So I actually like seeing them out there.
Beau and I then circled the waterfowl production area where he pointed 3 roosters for me to my surprise as the pheasant population had taken quite a hit here due to 3 severe winters in this area. It looked like one carry over bird and two birds of the year so a successful hatch here possibly. Good news! We walked on back to the north with the rain coming a little more steady as we arrived at the Jeep and loaded up.
This was a good day as I looked over at Beau before we started to head in the direction the Warden talked about. We got some scouting done and had a beautiful point and flush on a full covey of Huns. A treat on any day just to see them rise and hear their signature "Screeeech!"
This section we pulled into on a dirt road I had hunted many times and have written about over the year's. When it was a hayfield with adjacent hills and crops the grouse loved it in the early season. It was the kind of place I'd look at and think I'd just like to hunt that because it's a beautiful place. Truth be told often times those are the eyes through which I view the places I hunt. I want an experience that includes a multitude of factors not just those centered around shooting a "limit"of birds.
The hayfield has been gone now for 5 year's having been rotated to small grains with this year's crop being soybeans. So once harvested there is virtually no cover here except what's available around rock piles and the narrow band of cattails that circle every low spot or slough. There is however a shelter belt that was planted in an L shape running the entire east side about a 1/3 of a mile with a mix of cedar trees and bushes. This shelter belt is what I had in mind being just about 5 feet tall now it offered some nice cover right next to a food source. Plus I just wanted to put my boots on the ground here once again walking along thinking about those days when everything seemed to be just right. The setting. The habitat. The bird population. And my beautiful Setter's in their early year's full of life and desire to hunt creating beautiful scenes almost surreal at times as they cast about in the alfalfa then suddenly all together coming to a point in the open cover strung out in a line.
We parked on the north end of the shelter belt a half mile off the road and planned to work south up and back. Beau was ready to stretch his legs so I let him out and got myself set up for our run. There are also Huns or Partridge that use this area along with Pheasants so while I was hoping to have sharptail for supper we also were scouting to see what kind of other birds were around. The Pheasant season opener was still 3 weeks away at this point but Huns were fair game just hard to come by.
As we walked the shelter belt on the east side the cover looked great with a strip of alfalfa separating the other half. A light rain had started and I was hoping this cover would hold some birds given the weather. Beau was casting in and out between the rows and since I use a Garmin GPS collar on my Setters I'm never worried about losing sight of him. He rarely will bump a bird anyway as he's very very careful not to push a bird once he reads scent on the wind. As I walked along he disappeared for a few moments as we crested a slight rise in the terrain. I looked out ahead and couldn't find him so I pulled out my Garmin which told me he was ahead about 50 Yards south slightly to my left on point! With my eyes focused in that direction I quickened my pace or as my friend Dennis calls it made a "surge" ahead. As I came closer I caught sight of him turned in a kind of twist and looking right under a cedar tree. This was getting exciting I thought and as I decided on my approach I thought possibly a pheasant or a covey of Huns with Grouse being my last expectation with the bird having held so long already. I went ahead on the opposite side of the tree from Beau knowing it was a toss up anyway. I stomped in and nothing happened. I turned around 360' at the ready when it happened. A flutter of wings and "screeching" with a dozen or so Huns splitting into 2 groups as they flew one forward arcing to the right and the other to the left and behind me. I chose the leading bird on the forward advancing group missing twice! Beau had held all through this obviously with his nose right on the covey under that cedar tree. You would think it was an easy shot but I tell you more times than not these small birds are very hard to get an advantage on. But what a beautiful sight in different shades of red and brown.
We saw no other birds in the shelter belt and as we walked to the end a truck came off the road I identified as the local federal warden obviously in the area because a waterfowl production hunting area borders this run to the south. I came out to the road and talked with him for a while. When I said I was hunting for grouse in the area today he suggested I go east a few miles. Little did he know how well I knew those hills he was talking about! I said yes that's where I think we'll head but I just want to check the waterfowl production area, which was a small parcel, for any pheasants while I'm here. I asked if he wanted to see my license but he said "No thank you just go ahead. I'm checking for waterfowl hunters today." I noticed his dash video camera was on so he had my vehicle plate recorded as he went up and back down the road anyway I thought if he wanted to check on me.There just are not enough of these guys to deal with the people that think since North Dakota is such a sparsely populated and rural area anything goes. So I actually like seeing them out there.
Beau and I then circled the waterfowl production area where he pointed 3 roosters for me to my surprise as the pheasant population had taken quite a hit here due to 3 severe winters in this area. It looked like one carry over bird and two birds of the year so a successful hatch here possibly. Good news! We walked on back to the north with the rain coming a little more steady as we arrived at the Jeep and loaded up.
This was a good day as I looked over at Beau before we started to head in the direction the Warden talked about. We got some scouting done and had a beautiful point and flush on a full covey of Huns. A treat on any day just to see them rise and hear their signature "Screeeech!"
Tuesday, December 30, 2014
Together Again Thanksgiving 2014
In late October my son Carson called letting me know he and my son Jared were planning to spend Thanksgiving hunting with me here in North Dakota. I was excited to get the news as we hadn't all been together out here hunting before and with the Setters now all turning 12 this year it'd be great to get a hunt in while all the dog's were still physically able to be in the field. Carson had hunted Thanksgiving with me here in 2010 and 2011 but before you know it we all just get busy with our lives and time becomes a real premium so I really appreciated the news about this visit.
Just like it was no easy task for the boys to work around schedules at work and home to get here for 3 days it also made some work for me as well in preparation. I needed an inventory of terrain to hunt with them that hopefully still held some birds late in the season and would give Jared's new Lab pup Yuba an opportunity to get some experience on wild birds. I had spent a week with Yuba at 4 months old this spring here in North Dakota while Jared and Carson were on a fly fishing trip in Montana so I was looking forward to seeing her perform in a hunting situation at 10 months. I walked some new ground and observed the progress of the harvest looking at some areas with corn that would still be up into November protecting the birds living along the waterways within the sections of crop land. These areas were the best targets as they would have received the least amount of pressure from the prime time hunters that typically hunt the first two weeks of the season. The real advantage of living in bird country is you get to watch the progress of the harvest and time your hunts around when the crops come off. I found a couple remote runs tucked away off the secondary roads that were just perfect. We could spend several hours in each area with adjacent cover available as well.
As days went by prior to Thanksgiving the weather turned extremely cold and fields filled with several inches of snow slowing the harvest to a standstill. This froze the sloughs earlier than normal which gave me an opportunity to hunt some areas difficult to traverse otherwise giving me a few more options depending on how we did elsewhere.
Beau had suddenly quit eating around the end of October and went into a quick decline. I had been through digestive tract ailments with him a few times before and never was able to get a definitive answer as to what the trigger was. The best impact I ever had on his health was getting him on a grain free high quality dog food. I had run him extensively the previous year and he'd gotten really thin as he always did but when I finally switched foods after doing some research having been frustrated with the Vets inability to help me I couldn't believe the change in him. He started looking great obviously absorbing more nutrients I expected. So suddenly he was in jeopardy again and I was beside myself watching him decline day after day. I spoon fed him water and anything I could get in him which for over a week was nothing. Slowly he came around and I got a few soft eggs in him then a half can of food then more water with each day. The day I was upstairs and turned around to see him looking at me I knew he was back having climbed the stairs himself. I'm recounting these days because in the midst of my preparation for the boys visit I had this very difficult prospect of losing one of the best hunting companions I'd ever had. So with Molly impaired by a lung tumor restricting her breathing and Beau narrowly surviving this mystery ailment my shot gun riding companion Mick who just turned 12 in October was suddenly pressed into full time service once again!
With Beau still on house arrest while he recovered Mick and I had some great runs together scouting areas that may have promise for the boys visit. I wanted to have options as the weather could really change conditions quickly. Molly joined us occasionally as well and to my surprise we usually picked up a bird. My expectations became to just enjoy the time together. I slowed down adjusting to the pace the Setters could maintain. We stopped frequently and just took it all in. I eventually shed the dark cloud hanging over my head with the prospect of losing Beau and just took things a day at a time. Then a week before Thanksgiving I was putting on my gear getting ready to head out with Mick and Beau started to howl at me! This is his usual antic when he feels he needs to remind me he wants to go along. It was a kind of a hoarse howl at first but within a few days became stronger. Then it wasn't long before he was trying to boss me around with his howl! I'd put a coat on he'd howl. Open the door howling again. Pick up a gun even louder howling! So I finally started letting him go along again on easy walks all the Setters could navigate. What fun that was to just to be back together. So with the boys visit days away now we were once again running on all cylinders slowly but we were still walking into the wind!
Another area of preparation was of course Thanksgiving dinner! The only way I could do this was to have everything cooked ahead as we'd be in the field as much as possible. I did some quick thinking and moved a banquet table onto the front porch where it was plenty cold planning to lay out all the food in a buffet style so whenever anyone was ready you could just make a plate and pop it in the oven. The menu included smoked turkey, ham, meatloaf, gravy, creamed garlic cauliflower, homemade dinner rolls, 4 pies and twice baked potatoes! Quite a sight in itself I must admit. It was all fun in anticipation of us spending some time together.
The boys would be on the road early Thursday morning leaving from Minneapolis. Carson had arrived the night before from Madison WI and spent the night with Jared and his wife Jordan. Their ETA was 1:30 p.m. and I had the Jeep ready with all the gear we needed. The weather was single digits with 20 mph winds the worst you could ask for but that's North Dakota. You just make the best of it. The plan was to just get a run in to let Jared's pup get oriented before we tackled the longer and more promising runs I had in the inventory for the next day.
The boys arrived right on schedule and after saying our hello's we got unloaded and loaded to go in short order. It was a funny sight with all 3 Setter's packed in the back with Carson and Jared sitting in front with me along with his pup on his lap! What a crew we made. I headed to a spot I could let Carson and Jared walk with Yuba that contained both pheasants and sharptail while I walked some small areas of cover within some adjacent corn stubble. Carson had made this run with me two years prior during a Thanksgiving visit so he was familiar with the ground. It was a mile east and then a quarter mile or so south before turning back west along some cattail waterways. I got a hundred yards from the Jeep and turned to look for Beau and he was just sitting down looking at me then started barking. In his language there was no way in hell he was going out in this wind at 7 degrees! I walked back and put him in the Jeep wondering how the boys were finding the extreme conditions. I knew the birds would be hunkered down in those cattails so it was worth giving it a try. I continued on my run for 45 minutes before turning back into the bitter wind and heading for the Jeep hoping the boys had done the same. I heard one shot ring out as I made my way across the stubble and worked to a slough 100 yards from the Jeep. As soon as we approached the cattails both Mick and Molly raised their heads picking up scent. It was subtle but after years hunting these dog's I've learned these subtle nuances and sure enough after a couple more steps they both went rigid side by side in the wind and cold. I pushed ahead in the thick cattails waist high and a flutter of wings beating the cover brought forth a rooster making his way right to left. It was a good 15 yard shot and he went down right ahead of me. The Setters moved in right away and went on point again but slightly ahead of where I had marked the bird. I moved in and Mick was looking straight down into the matted mass of cattails in front of me so I parted the vegetation slowly in front of him and sure enough there was the rooster sitting in the cover! I quickly grabbed him as he still had some fight left in him then showed our prize to Mick and Molly complimenting them on a job well done.
We made our way back to the Jeep and walked down the gravel road a ways to see if we could see Carson and Jared coming through the waterway to the east. Sure enough just cresting the top of the knoll they were making their way towards us. Yuba didn't look at all tired out. No surprise there! Young pups are so much fun as they discover what this game is about. As we all reached the Jeep we talked about the birds the boys saw starting with a covey of grouse a couple hundred yards in on the fence line followed by a larger group of grouse to the east and a nice group of pheasants in a depression along the cattails There was just one shot and a miss as all the birds spooked ahead pretty much but they were there! I thought I'd see if I could get Yuba's attention and tossed the rooster. She had that bird in her mouth in no time parading in front of Mick and Molly. No doubt about this pups interest in birds! We packed up and headed to town with our orientation accomplished. The next day held promise in better weather also knowing the birds were bunched up and ready for a break in the weather as much as we were.
After unloading and getting warmed up we all made our plates and got a drink enjoying sitting at the same table again as the food heated up. It's times like this you wonder what our lives would be like if we weren't so far apart and we talked about that. There surely will be days ahead I'll spend closer I said but for now I'm living out this adventure. We all have to follow our own road for different reasons but they will meet again when the time is right. I enjoyed the dinner together and the catching up in particular as Jared and I both enjoyed Carson's tale of the nice buck he had just shot during the Wisconsin deer season days before. A real beauty!
But there was more news to share on this holiday. First Jared shared he and his wife Jordan were expecting their first child come next July and Carson shared he and his fiance Kim were getting married in February. What a great year ahead for our family I said! The conversation milled around this great news as we all made a dent in the whiskey bottle and finally surrendered to the need to rest for the coming day in the field.
Morning came quickly with the goal to be on our way by 8:30 or 9:00. After I made us all breakfast and we got our coffee fix we repeated the loading of the Jeep I had running and warmed up. Everybody squeezed in again and off we went. This was a honey of a run 3/4 of a mile off the road running through a corn field harvested just a week earlier. Overnight the cold front had moved through actually warming things up overnight so when our boots hit the ground it was almost twenty degrees and the sky showed signs of opening to some blue! Wind no where to be found. It just felt perfect as we made our way through a pasture ahead to the waterway we'd be hunting. There was a field road we could have driven in on but with several inches of snow I chose to not take a chance on getting stuck back in off the road not being able to see any obstructions there might be. So we walked the distance giving everybody including the pups a chance to get acclimated to the day ahead.
We crossed the first fence and split up with my pups and I on the east side and the boys with Yuba to the west closest to the corn stubble as we moved ahead. This first section was wider than the rest and really thick with cattails. I expected it to be difficult to get birds to take flight here and sure enough lots of fresh tracks but only a couple of hens took to the air as we walked by. However Carson noted later we also moved a big coyote that ran out and to the east which ran behind me and up the adjacent hillside. It's fun walking along in fresh snow as there's no doubt you're in bird cover with tracks everywhere. Mick and Molly were moving along in front of me nicely. Mick just loves the close work as I like to call it working the birds in this thick cover. As we came to a bend in the waterway much narrower now I looked down and saw where a covey of Huns had spent the night as evidenced by a circle of scat in the grass next to the cattails. It wasn't a couple minutes later that they flushed just to the right of the boys on the edge of the corn stubble. A nice covey of a dozen birds within shooting distance but no one took this first opportunity. North Dakota's magic for upland hunters is the prospect for a mixed bag but it takes a while to adjust to the different birds. No worries we'd get other opportunities before this day was done.
The waterway narrowed now and a couple minutes after the Huns took flight Mick and Molly suddenly went on point 20 feet ahead of me right on the edge of the cattails. I signaled to Carson and Jared to get ready and walked ahead. A nice rooster bolted from the cover and before I could get my gun mounted two shots were fired and the bird rocked both times but kept flying down the waterway. Knowing the cover ahead I had no doubt that we would find that bird with 4 dog's on the ground so we just continued hunting the waterway as planned. It wasn't long before Mick was working birds again in and around the now narrow band of cattails. We had another point in minutes with a few hens flying to the north into the corn stubble.
The cover thinned out for a while and I was calculating the flight distance of that rooster trying to guess where he may have come down when I saw movement ahead. Sure enough that rooster was trying to move ahead to bury himself in a group of cattails. I called to Jared and told him to send Yuba to fetch in that direction. Off she went with a curious look but it didn't take long once she caught scent for her to put her nose on that bird and grab it! What a sight! At this age they learn from every experience and this was a great start.
We paused for a picture or two and gathered ourselves for the next portion of the run to the west. Although Carson was the shooter Jared had the vest so he got to carry the bird!. We had blue sky now and temps were still hovering around 20 degrees so it was as close to perfect for a late season hunt as you could get with no wind! The waterway ahead became wider as we approached the fence line and I cautioned the boys to be ready thinking we may have moved birds ahead of us when a covey of sharptail flushed to my left in the corn stubble just out of range. It was a nice sight against the blue sky to the south nonetheless. I turned back and moved ahead as we came alongside the last area of the cattails close to the fence line and adjacent pasture when another rooster burst into the air above the cattails and fell with one report from Carson again! I stayed on guard for another flush as Yuba made quick work of locating and retrieving the bird from the heavy cattails. When it looked like there were no other birds to take flight I crossed over for another photo opp and recap of the action with the Setter's milling around enjoying the action as well.
There was a another area of cover much less dense across the fence line so I crossed and circled with Mick just to make sure we were leaving no birds behind. Sure enough a rooster bolted wild out of range to the north east as I moved through. We'd catch up later I said as the boys and I fanned out along the corn stubble to the north having walked the length of the waterway. It was an rolling hill field as we reached the northwest corner for this run and turned back east. The objective was to walk the edge hoping to move some birds that had been feeding in the stubble. Everywhere we went there were fresh tracks and the dog's all stayed birdy as we moved along in the sunshine. Despite the tracks in the snow we weren't able to move a bird on this leg and turned back south after we observed some birds flushing wild from around a slough in the middle of the stubble a quarter mile away. We fanned out hoping again to herd some moving birds in the stubble to the sparse cover around this slough which was actually more of a large pot hole with some weedy cover on the edge. In my scouting I had walked this cover and knew the birds used it so we made the walk ahead and circled the frozen pot hole. Again there were fresh tracks everywhere but no birds moving. We got 3/4 of the way around when a single Hun flushed flying right to left which I missed.
We then had a couple hundred more yards to cover around this frozen pot hole when the Setter's started tracking scent ahead through the knee high weedy cover. As I've related the weather had just broke and all the birds were actively moving about feeding so tracks were everywhere. This turned into a cat and mouse game with Mick and Molly slowing up and testing the wind knowing we had a bird ahead someplace. We were all walking together now fairly close. Mick pointed again with Molly backing close behind. I walked forward and again nothing. I expected the bird had exited through the corn stubble. We walked ahead another 25 yards and came to where we had started. I was just standing there looking at where we'd come from when Carson said, 'Hey Dad Molly's on point!" I was looking for her ahead somewhere and Carson said," She's right to your left. Between you and I right here!" I looked to my left and there she was standing rigid looking right out into the open along the shore of the pot hole. All right get ready I said walking forward a couple steps when a nice rooster burst out of the short cover. Bang! Before I again got my gun to my shoulder the bird was down with another great shot by Carson with his 870. This was the same gun he used with a slug barrel days earlier to take that trophy buck I mentioned earlier in southern Wisconsin. Almost as soon as that bird was down on the frozen ice Jared's pup Yuba was racing to it full speed ahead! What she didn't know or care about was that the ice was slippery and when she tried to scoop up the bird on the run did a somersault then just as quickly righted herself and had the rooster in her mouth on the way back to us. All I thought when I saw how aggressively she handled this retrieve was " Wow! I want one of those dog's!" What a show for just a young dog in her debut season. Amazing!
We circled back to the waterway to try to locate any of the birds we saw earlier flush wild in addition to the covey of Huns but the walk back was without any more opportunities but what an absolute beautiful day it had turned into. My Garmin GPS told me we were in our 4th mile as we approached the Jeep. Jared decided to skirt the small slough beside the field road while Carson and I packed it in watching Jared and Yuba. Carson also took this opportunity to have a piece of the pumpkin pie we had brought with us which we decided was a great idea after we all had a piece. After hardly any debate we voted among us that pie on the hunts was a new tradition!
There was another waterway across the road but I had another prime spot picked out for our next run of the day I wanted to get too. We all remarked about the walk we'd just taken and the fact that we hadn't seen anyone in sight all morning. That's why I love North Dakota I said but you have to be careful knowing there isn't likely to be anyone around often times in case you encounter difficulty of some type. Often times I'll hunt the less traveled areas just because I like the feeling of being out there without any other hunters around.
We drove a few miles west to the next run driving by some great cover on the way but a little wide for the conditions meaning when an area of cattails is just to big the birds have endless avenues of escape without needing to fly making it useless to hunt them there.
It was early afternoon when we arrived and parked at the edge of a wheat field overlooking a waterway in the middle of the section running east to west with a hill to the south which had yet another waterway and pot hole with cattails on the other side. This was the perfect formula for late season cold weather. Heavy cover with food close by preferably corn which was right across the road a couple hundred yards.
Mick and Molly were really beat from the morning run so I put Beau on the ground for this run as we all walked down to the waterway through a quarter mile of wheat stubble to the south. Carson took the south side with Jared walking the middle and myself to the north. Again we were in the middle of fresh tracks everywhere and I stood stationary as the boys walked around to the other side and came parallel with me. It can be very dangerous hunting in close proximity in heavy cover so it's of the utmost importance to stay in view and not get ahead where someone can't see you. We slowly moved along and I had what I knew were rooster tracks right in front of me. They're larger is how I know. Beau picked up the scent right away and headed into the cover. Before I knew it a thundering beating of the cattails revealed a rooster rising and flying right to left heading behind me back the way we'd just come. I couldn't shoot though as I at this point was unsure of where exactly the boys were so I let the rooster get to the edge of the cattails where I could see and pulled the trigger. He folded but not in the manner I was hoping. I knew he was going to run and he did. But before I even walked in that direction I heard another shot and Carson had downed a bird as well. He called Jared over with Yuba who immediately again tracked this rooster that was also moving and brought it to hand in short order. Another great retrieve by this young pup! We looked for my bird for quite awhile and neither dog picked up scent leading me to believe a set of tracks leading out into the pasture to the west was our bird now long gone unfortunately.
We continued ahead ever ready as there had been a number of birds when we pulled in around a small bush at the top of the knoll just above where we were walking. Another rooster and a few hens flushed wild as we made our way to the end of the cover and started the walk over the hill to the next waterway.
As we crested the hill overlooking the area we would be hunting another large group of birds got up wild and set down a few hundred yards away. It was exciting to see. Then as we approached the edge of the cover ahead a covey of sharptail grouse busted wild just out of range as well having been feeding on the wheat stubble. We entered the cattails which bordered the frozen pot hole on the east side working our way back west eventually. Jared was on the inside this time with Yuba and Carson in the middle with myself on the east edge. A hundred yards in all hell broke loose first with birds flushing by Jared and then in another few moments between Carson and myself. It was difficult with so many birds taking flight at different angles to identify hen from rooster so we all actually just ended up not firing a shot as the few roosters within the group either were not identifiable or just out of range. Having just lost a bird I didn't want to take a risky shot just to down a bird in this heavy cover. Besides we had an excellent chance of pinning these birds down within the area we were now headed. As we came around we moved a few more hens but no roosters. At the south end Jared decided to take a walk with Yuba a quarter mile south and join us on the west side. Carson and I walked around until we heard Jared shoot and waited for a while for him to crest the knoll coming towards us but he didn't come for quite a while so we decided to check on him walking far enough to the west so he could see us coming. Sure enough he was looking around a small waterway for his bird. We joined the search walking the area thoroughly but again with no luck. When you're hunting wild birds it can be very difficult to recover them in this big country. Yuba had done just an excellent job for us so far but this bird again was just gone. Two nice roosters had flushed for Jared right on the top of the knoll flying south west. It was a beautiful sight he said and surely looked like the bird went down hard. You never like to walk away but it happens. The good news is that nothing ever goes to waste out here between predator and prey. Nothing. Everything enters the food chain at some level even though it may not be on your plate today!
We began our walk along the western most side of this run coming through some nice tall grass. Beau was pointing and creeping the whole way but couldn't get a bird pinned down with the exception of one hen. Run! Run! Run! They all must have been shouting to each other. Just at the point where the grass met the wheat stubble and the cattails where we started a rooster suddenly rocketed to my left catching me totally off guard. It was an easy straight away shot but I swear I must have been shooting blanks as not a feather was ruffled. He flew straight past Carson as well. I think I led him to far he said as the bird continued on his way!
I was tired at this point. We came together for the walk another quarter mile to the Jeep as the sun was just starting to descend on a beautiful late afternoon sky. We had seen quite a number of birds here but again it was a big area and even with a couple dogs and 3 hunters it's difficult to gain an advantage often times.
It had been a great day. Everyone had good opportunities. All the pups had done their best. Jared"s pup Yuba showed a tremendous drive and desire to find birds all which held so much promise for days and hunts ahead. We recounted the day as we drove the miles back home. Everyone was interested in trying the meatloaf this evening and of course the pie which we also enjoyed and finished off as we drove home sharing the Jeep with 4 very tired dog's.
Upon arriving home and getting settled we had supper to attend to a little whiskey to consume and guns to clean. I complimented Carson on his shooting remarking that next year he'd be wearing a game vest to carry his own birds! We reminisced a little about the family as you'd expect. Somebody remembered to heat up the dinner rolls which I was thankful for. I had shared the story of when I first moved here how people expected dinner rolls with every meal and gravy as well actually. So I had bought some homemade dinner rolls from my German friend a couple blocks away to share the tradition.
The cold windy weather returned for Saturday. It was to be a half day hunt with the boys heading back to Minneapolis in the afternoon. I had a quarter section I wanted to hunt for this short time frame just a quarter mile from where we ended the day before. It was next to a rolling hill pasture which had always held a nice population of grouse. We drove in on the field road to the west end moving a large group of grouse on the fence line as we drove and walked south an 1/8 of a mile to the hayfield which unfortunately was pretty full of snow. I decided we'd walk the edge anyway since we were there. It was tough with wind again and both Mick and Molly were played out and having difficulty keeping pace. But we kept going skirting the edges along wheat stubble hoping for a pheasant or grouse flushing. 2/3 of the way around a group of grouse flushed wild from a small slough to the west in a wheat stubble field with a small slough 75 yards away. Shortly after I saw fresh grouse tracks in front of me and started following them into the grass hayfield thinking this bird is out here somewhere and will maybe hold for a point. Beau began working scent with his head high into the wind knowing that bird was close. He's a beautiful sight when he catches scent lifting his head into the wind stretching forward a bit as if he's turning up the power of his nose to catch any scent on the wind. Just a few moments later Beau stopped just ever so slowly looking to my right where a lone sharptail beat it's way chuckling into the air from left to right falling with a report from my gun into the fresh snow. Yuba was there in a flash over running the bird and before she turned around Beau was standing over the prize in the snow as I came over and shared it with Yuba before putting it in my pouch.
We continued on with Jared working tracks on the fence line but these birds seemed to have simply vanished into thin air or thick cover. I don't think I recalled seeing so many grouse tracks in an area as we made our way back to the Jeep. Beau worked in circles on these tracks with fresh scent but we just couldn't get these birds pinned down. When I caught up to the boys I said this was a missed call due to the snow filling in the cover but you never really know until you're right on it. It was a tough slog back to the Jeep into the wind with Mick and Molly needing to stop frequently but my decision is to allow them to go as long as they're able. After all it's what they live for but they were done for this day. The boys had a lone sharptail flush on the fence line on the way back and fired a shot but no cigar as we closed in on the Jeep 200 yards ahead.
I was able to tire Carson out in 2010 and 2011 but this was 2014 and as I made my way with my aging trio of bird dog's I recounted the last two days in my mind. They had suddenly become faster to shoulder their guns and after runs of a few miles expectantly asked "Well what's next?" while I took note of my energy level. Just as I had painfully noticed Beau's desire being somewhat mismatched with his ability from the beginning of the sharptail season I now was facing my own shortcomings. Here I'd been focusing on adapting to the Setters aging never realizing there was another front to fight the same battle. My own.
We were a determined looking bunch packed back into the Jeep as the wind blew all of 20 plus mph and damn single digits again. Well the best option was to head back to yesterdays run across the way and run it again hoping the birds had again spent the night there. That was the plan as we walked back down the stubble field and began walking the first waterway. I took Beau solo and left Mick and Molly to take refuge in the Jeep. Yuba just took it all in stride as we headed for the cattails again. Young pups are just so much fun to watch. We had walked for just a few minutes when I once again had fresh rooster tracks in front of me in pretty much the same place as yesterday. Moments later we had another rooster rocket to the top of the cattails this time flying straight to the east on the outside of the cover so I had a clear and safe shot at 30 yards dropping the bird hard in short cover. Beau marched right over and handled the rooster a little rougher than I like but he's always been that way when they flutter. If they are still he's really soft with them but he'll not tolerate any movement! That's OK with me as I've seen many birds over the years realize they can still run flip over and away they go! We reached the end with just a couple of hens moving and again walked to the other side. We had the same result with just a couple hens flushing and when we reached the south end Jared split off again with Yuba as he did the previous day. Carson and I walked the west edge of the pot hole with him on the edge walking the ice and myself on the outside. A couple hundred yards into it Carson fired on a rooster I didn't see come up and then headed in the direction it went not far away having missed his shot. I followed but before I got even with him he had the rooster flush again right next to him and missed a high rising shot straight away actually so close it was hard he said. As I watched I was sure the way he'd been shooting this bird was coming down but it continued to fly another day. He then joined me back to the west as we looked for Jared coming around the knoll again. I was tired out by the cold and wind and let Carson meet him walking towards the fence line waiting for both of them along with Beau.
It was an ending to the hunt reminding you how challenging this sport can be but so much fun pitting yourself and you're dog's against these wild and crafty birds! A group picture would have to wait until we got home as my camera battery had gone dead in the cold the last two days. We rolled home passing a covey of Huns and a large group of grouse sitting on the edge of the road. It was encouraging and inspiring to have seen them and all the birds in the numbers we did. A real and true reason among many to be thankful for on this hunt but especially for being Together Again Thanksgiving 2014.
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| Together Again Thanksgiving 2014 |
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| Carson and Molly Thanksgiving 2011 |
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| Carson Thanksgiving 2010 |
Just like it was no easy task for the boys to work around schedules at work and home to get here for 3 days it also made some work for me as well in preparation. I needed an inventory of terrain to hunt with them that hopefully still held some birds late in the season and would give Jared's new Lab pup Yuba an opportunity to get some experience on wild birds. I had spent a week with Yuba at 4 months old this spring here in North Dakota while Jared and Carson were on a fly fishing trip in Montana so I was looking forward to seeing her perform in a hunting situation at 10 months. I walked some new ground and observed the progress of the harvest looking at some areas with corn that would still be up into November protecting the birds living along the waterways within the sections of crop land. These areas were the best targets as they would have received the least amount of pressure from the prime time hunters that typically hunt the first two weeks of the season. The real advantage of living in bird country is you get to watch the progress of the harvest and time your hunts around when the crops come off. I found a couple remote runs tucked away off the secondary roads that were just perfect. We could spend several hours in each area with adjacent cover available as well.
As days went by prior to Thanksgiving the weather turned extremely cold and fields filled with several inches of snow slowing the harvest to a standstill. This froze the sloughs earlier than normal which gave me an opportunity to hunt some areas difficult to traverse otherwise giving me a few more options depending on how we did elsewhere.
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| The sloughs froze early creating some great hunting opportunities |
Beau had suddenly quit eating around the end of October and went into a quick decline. I had been through digestive tract ailments with him a few times before and never was able to get a definitive answer as to what the trigger was. The best impact I ever had on his health was getting him on a grain free high quality dog food. I had run him extensively the previous year and he'd gotten really thin as he always did but when I finally switched foods after doing some research having been frustrated with the Vets inability to help me I couldn't believe the change in him. He started looking great obviously absorbing more nutrients I expected. So suddenly he was in jeopardy again and I was beside myself watching him decline day after day. I spoon fed him water and anything I could get in him which for over a week was nothing. Slowly he came around and I got a few soft eggs in him then a half can of food then more water with each day. The day I was upstairs and turned around to see him looking at me I knew he was back having climbed the stairs himself. I'm recounting these days because in the midst of my preparation for the boys visit I had this very difficult prospect of losing one of the best hunting companions I'd ever had. So with Molly impaired by a lung tumor restricting her breathing and Beau narrowly surviving this mystery ailment my shot gun riding companion Mick who just turned 12 in October was suddenly pressed into full time service once again!
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| Mick had no complaints filling in for Beau while he recovered! |
With Beau still on house arrest while he recovered Mick and I had some great runs together scouting areas that may have promise for the boys visit. I wanted to have options as the weather could really change conditions quickly. Molly joined us occasionally as well and to my surprise we usually picked up a bird. My expectations became to just enjoy the time together. I slowed down adjusting to the pace the Setters could maintain. We stopped frequently and just took it all in. I eventually shed the dark cloud hanging over my head with the prospect of losing Beau and just took things a day at a time. Then a week before Thanksgiving I was putting on my gear getting ready to head out with Mick and Beau started to howl at me! This is his usual antic when he feels he needs to remind me he wants to go along. It was a kind of a hoarse howl at first but within a few days became stronger. Then it wasn't long before he was trying to boss me around with his howl! I'd put a coat on he'd howl. Open the door howling again. Pick up a gun even louder howling! So I finally started letting him go along again on easy walks all the Setters could navigate. What fun that was to just to be back together. So with the boys visit days away now we were once again running on all cylinders slowly but we were still walking into the wind!
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| Beau howled his way back into the field! Leading the way pointing a group of seven birds on this run! |
Another area of preparation was of course Thanksgiving dinner! The only way I could do this was to have everything cooked ahead as we'd be in the field as much as possible. I did some quick thinking and moved a banquet table onto the front porch where it was plenty cold planning to lay out all the food in a buffet style so whenever anyone was ready you could just make a plate and pop it in the oven. The menu included smoked turkey, ham, meatloaf, gravy, creamed garlic cauliflower, homemade dinner rolls, 4 pies and twice baked potatoes! Quite a sight in itself I must admit. It was all fun in anticipation of us spending some time together.
The boys would be on the road early Thursday morning leaving from Minneapolis. Carson had arrived the night before from Madison WI and spent the night with Jared and his wife Jordan. Their ETA was 1:30 p.m. and I had the Jeep ready with all the gear we needed. The weather was single digits with 20 mph winds the worst you could ask for but that's North Dakota. You just make the best of it. The plan was to just get a run in to let Jared's pup get oriented before we tackled the longer and more promising runs I had in the inventory for the next day.
The boys arrived right on schedule and after saying our hello's we got unloaded and loaded to go in short order. It was a funny sight with all 3 Setter's packed in the back with Carson and Jared sitting in front with me along with his pup on his lap! What a crew we made. I headed to a spot I could let Carson and Jared walk with Yuba that contained both pheasants and sharptail while I walked some small areas of cover within some adjacent corn stubble. Carson had made this run with me two years prior during a Thanksgiving visit so he was familiar with the ground. It was a mile east and then a quarter mile or so south before turning back west along some cattail waterways. I got a hundred yards from the Jeep and turned to look for Beau and he was just sitting down looking at me then started barking. In his language there was no way in hell he was going out in this wind at 7 degrees! I walked back and put him in the Jeep wondering how the boys were finding the extreme conditions. I knew the birds would be hunkered down in those cattails so it was worth giving it a try. I continued on my run for 45 minutes before turning back into the bitter wind and heading for the Jeep hoping the boys had done the same. I heard one shot ring out as I made my way across the stubble and worked to a slough 100 yards from the Jeep. As soon as we approached the cattails both Mick and Molly raised their heads picking up scent. It was subtle but after years hunting these dog's I've learned these subtle nuances and sure enough after a couple more steps they both went rigid side by side in the wind and cold. I pushed ahead in the thick cattails waist high and a flutter of wings beating the cover brought forth a rooster making his way right to left. It was a good 15 yard shot and he went down right ahead of me. The Setters moved in right away and went on point again but slightly ahead of where I had marked the bird. I moved in and Mick was looking straight down into the matted mass of cattails in front of me so I parted the vegetation slowly in front of him and sure enough there was the rooster sitting in the cover! I quickly grabbed him as he still had some fight left in him then showed our prize to Mick and Molly complimenting them on a job well done.
We made our way back to the Jeep and walked down the gravel road a ways to see if we could see Carson and Jared coming through the waterway to the east. Sure enough just cresting the top of the knoll they were making their way towards us. Yuba didn't look at all tired out. No surprise there! Young pups are so much fun as they discover what this game is about. As we all reached the Jeep we talked about the birds the boys saw starting with a covey of grouse a couple hundred yards in on the fence line followed by a larger group of grouse to the east and a nice group of pheasants in a depression along the cattails There was just one shot and a miss as all the birds spooked ahead pretty much but they were there! I thought I'd see if I could get Yuba's attention and tossed the rooster. She had that bird in her mouth in no time parading in front of Mick and Molly. No doubt about this pups interest in birds! We packed up and headed to town with our orientation accomplished. The next day held promise in better weather also knowing the birds were bunched up and ready for a break in the weather as much as we were.
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| Yuba tracking a drag and retrieving a wing at 4 month's |
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| Spring 2014 learning to love the water in North Dakota! |
After unloading and getting warmed up we all made our plates and got a drink enjoying sitting at the same table again as the food heated up. It's times like this you wonder what our lives would be like if we weren't so far apart and we talked about that. There surely will be days ahead I'll spend closer I said but for now I'm living out this adventure. We all have to follow our own road for different reasons but they will meet again when the time is right. I enjoyed the dinner together and the catching up in particular as Jared and I both enjoyed Carson's tale of the nice buck he had just shot during the Wisconsin deer season days before. A real beauty!
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| I'd say that 870 must fit you pretty well! |
But there was more news to share on this holiday. First Jared shared he and his wife Jordan were expecting their first child come next July and Carson shared he and his fiance Kim were getting married in February. What a great year ahead for our family I said! The conversation milled around this great news as we all made a dent in the whiskey bottle and finally surrendered to the need to rest for the coming day in the field.
Morning came quickly with the goal to be on our way by 8:30 or 9:00. After I made us all breakfast and we got our coffee fix we repeated the loading of the Jeep I had running and warmed up. Everybody squeezed in again and off we went. This was a honey of a run 3/4 of a mile off the road running through a corn field harvested just a week earlier. Overnight the cold front had moved through actually warming things up overnight so when our boots hit the ground it was almost twenty degrees and the sky showed signs of opening to some blue! Wind no where to be found. It just felt perfect as we made our way through a pasture ahead to the waterway we'd be hunting. There was a field road we could have driven in on but with several inches of snow I chose to not take a chance on getting stuck back in off the road not being able to see any obstructions there might be. So we walked the distance giving everybody including the pups a chance to get acclimated to the day ahead.
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| We hunted our way in. Boots on the ground is the best way to find birds! |
We crossed the first fence and split up with my pups and I on the east side and the boys with Yuba to the west closest to the corn stubble as we moved ahead. This first section was wider than the rest and really thick with cattails. I expected it to be difficult to get birds to take flight here and sure enough lots of fresh tracks but only a couple of hens took to the air as we walked by. However Carson noted later we also moved a big coyote that ran out and to the east which ran behind me and up the adjacent hillside. It's fun walking along in fresh snow as there's no doubt you're in bird cover with tracks everywhere. Mick and Molly were moving along in front of me nicely. Mick just loves the close work as I like to call it working the birds in this thick cover. As we came to a bend in the waterway much narrower now I looked down and saw where a covey of Huns had spent the night as evidenced by a circle of scat in the grass next to the cattails. It wasn't a couple minutes later that they flushed just to the right of the boys on the edge of the corn stubble. A nice covey of a dozen birds within shooting distance but no one took this first opportunity. North Dakota's magic for upland hunters is the prospect for a mixed bag but it takes a while to adjust to the different birds. No worries we'd get other opportunities before this day was done.
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| Here we go! |
The cover thinned out for a while and I was calculating the flight distance of that rooster trying to guess where he may have come down when I saw movement ahead. Sure enough that rooster was trying to move ahead to bury himself in a group of cattails. I called to Jared and told him to send Yuba to fetch in that direction. Off she went with a curious look but it didn't take long once she caught scent for her to put her nose on that bird and grab it! What a sight! At this age they learn from every experience and this was a great start.
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| This was a great experience for a young pup |
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| Many happy returns! Yuba at 10 month's |
We paused for a picture or two and gathered ourselves for the next portion of the run to the west. Although Carson was the shooter Jared had the vest so he got to carry the bird!. We had blue sky now and temps were still hovering around 20 degrees so it was as close to perfect for a late season hunt as you could get with no wind! The waterway ahead became wider as we approached the fence line and I cautioned the boys to be ready thinking we may have moved birds ahead of us when a covey of sharptail flushed to my left in the corn stubble just out of range. It was a nice sight against the blue sky to the south nonetheless. I turned back and moved ahead as we came alongside the last area of the cattails close to the fence line and adjacent pasture when another rooster burst into the air above the cattails and fell with one report from Carson again! I stayed on guard for another flush as Yuba made quick work of locating and retrieving the bird from the heavy cattails. When it looked like there were no other birds to take flight I crossed over for another photo opp and recap of the action with the Setter's milling around enjoying the action as well.
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| Again! |
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| And again! |
There was a another area of cover much less dense across the fence line so I crossed and circled with Mick just to make sure we were leaving no birds behind. Sure enough a rooster bolted wild out of range to the north east as I moved through. We'd catch up later I said as the boys and I fanned out along the corn stubble to the north having walked the length of the waterway. It was an rolling hill field as we reached the northwest corner for this run and turned back east. The objective was to walk the edge hoping to move some birds that had been feeding in the stubble. Everywhere we went there were fresh tracks and the dog's all stayed birdy as we moved along in the sunshine. Despite the tracks in the snow we weren't able to move a bird on this leg and turned back south after we observed some birds flushing wild from around a slough in the middle of the stubble a quarter mile away. We fanned out hoping again to herd some moving birds in the stubble to the sparse cover around this slough which was actually more of a large pot hole with some weedy cover on the edge. In my scouting I had walked this cover and knew the birds used it so we made the walk ahead and circled the frozen pot hole. Again there were fresh tracks everywhere but no birds moving. We got 3/4 of the way around when a single Hun flushed flying right to left which I missed.
We then had a couple hundred more yards to cover around this frozen pot hole when the Setter's started tracking scent ahead through the knee high weedy cover. As I've related the weather had just broke and all the birds were actively moving about feeding so tracks were everywhere. This turned into a cat and mouse game with Mick and Molly slowing up and testing the wind knowing we had a bird ahead someplace. We were all walking together now fairly close. Mick pointed again with Molly backing close behind. I walked forward and again nothing. I expected the bird had exited through the corn stubble. We walked ahead another 25 yards and came to where we had started. I was just standing there looking at where we'd come from when Carson said, 'Hey Dad Molly's on point!" I was looking for her ahead somewhere and Carson said," She's right to your left. Between you and I right here!" I looked to my left and there she was standing rigid looking right out into the open along the shore of the pot hole. All right get ready I said walking forward a couple steps when a nice rooster burst out of the short cover. Bang! Before I again got my gun to my shoulder the bird was down with another great shot by Carson with his 870. This was the same gun he used with a slug barrel days earlier to take that trophy buck I mentioned earlier in southern Wisconsin. Almost as soon as that bird was down on the frozen ice Jared's pup Yuba was racing to it full speed ahead! What she didn't know or care about was that the ice was slippery and when she tried to scoop up the bird on the run did a somersault then just as quickly righted herself and had the rooster in her mouth on the way back to us. All I thought when I saw how aggressively she handled this retrieve was " Wow! I want one of those dog's!" What a show for just a young dog in her debut season. Amazing!
We circled back to the waterway to try to locate any of the birds we saw earlier flush wild in addition to the covey of Huns but the walk back was without any more opportunities but what an absolute beautiful day it had turned into. My Garmin GPS told me we were in our 4th mile as we approached the Jeep. Jared decided to skirt the small slough beside the field road while Carson and I packed it in watching Jared and Yuba. Carson also took this opportunity to have a piece of the pumpkin pie we had brought with us which we decided was a great idea after we all had a piece. After hardly any debate we voted among us that pie on the hunts was a new tradition!
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| Then there was pie! A new tradition! |
There was another waterway across the road but I had another prime spot picked out for our next run of the day I wanted to get too. We all remarked about the walk we'd just taken and the fact that we hadn't seen anyone in sight all morning. That's why I love North Dakota I said but you have to be careful knowing there isn't likely to be anyone around often times in case you encounter difficulty of some type. Often times I'll hunt the less traveled areas just because I like the feeling of being out there without any other hunters around.
We drove a few miles west to the next run driving by some great cover on the way but a little wide for the conditions meaning when an area of cattails is just to big the birds have endless avenues of escape without needing to fly making it useless to hunt them there.
It was early afternoon when we arrived and parked at the edge of a wheat field overlooking a waterway in the middle of the section running east to west with a hill to the south which had yet another waterway and pot hole with cattails on the other side. This was the perfect formula for late season cold weather. Heavy cover with food close by preferably corn which was right across the road a couple hundred yards.
Mick and Molly were really beat from the morning run so I put Beau on the ground for this run as we all walked down to the waterway through a quarter mile of wheat stubble to the south. Carson took the south side with Jared walking the middle and myself to the north. Again we were in the middle of fresh tracks everywhere and I stood stationary as the boys walked around to the other side and came parallel with me. It can be very dangerous hunting in close proximity in heavy cover so it's of the utmost importance to stay in view and not get ahead where someone can't see you. We slowly moved along and I had what I knew were rooster tracks right in front of me. They're larger is how I know. Beau picked up the scent right away and headed into the cover. Before I knew it a thundering beating of the cattails revealed a rooster rising and flying right to left heading behind me back the way we'd just come. I couldn't shoot though as I at this point was unsure of where exactly the boys were so I let the rooster get to the edge of the cattails where I could see and pulled the trigger. He folded but not in the manner I was hoping. I knew he was going to run and he did. But before I even walked in that direction I heard another shot and Carson had downed a bird as well. He called Jared over with Yuba who immediately again tracked this rooster that was also moving and brought it to hand in short order. Another great retrieve by this young pup! We looked for my bird for quite awhile and neither dog picked up scent leading me to believe a set of tracks leading out into the pasture to the west was our bird now long gone unfortunately.
We continued ahead ever ready as there had been a number of birds when we pulled in around a small bush at the top of the knoll just above where we were walking. Another rooster and a few hens flushed wild as we made our way to the end of the cover and started the walk over the hill to the next waterway.
As we crested the hill overlooking the area we would be hunting another large group of birds got up wild and set down a few hundred yards away. It was exciting to see. Then as we approached the edge of the cover ahead a covey of sharptail grouse busted wild just out of range as well having been feeding on the wheat stubble. We entered the cattails which bordered the frozen pot hole on the east side working our way back west eventually. Jared was on the inside this time with Yuba and Carson in the middle with myself on the east edge. A hundred yards in all hell broke loose first with birds flushing by Jared and then in another few moments between Carson and myself. It was difficult with so many birds taking flight at different angles to identify hen from rooster so we all actually just ended up not firing a shot as the few roosters within the group either were not identifiable or just out of range. Having just lost a bird I didn't want to take a risky shot just to down a bird in this heavy cover. Besides we had an excellent chance of pinning these birds down within the area we were now headed. As we came around we moved a few more hens but no roosters. At the south end Jared decided to take a walk with Yuba a quarter mile south and join us on the west side. Carson and I walked around until we heard Jared shoot and waited for a while for him to crest the knoll coming towards us but he didn't come for quite a while so we decided to check on him walking far enough to the west so he could see us coming. Sure enough he was looking around a small waterway for his bird. We joined the search walking the area thoroughly but again with no luck. When you're hunting wild birds it can be very difficult to recover them in this big country. Yuba had done just an excellent job for us so far but this bird again was just gone. Two nice roosters had flushed for Jared right on the top of the knoll flying south west. It was a beautiful sight he said and surely looked like the bird went down hard. You never like to walk away but it happens. The good news is that nothing ever goes to waste out here between predator and prey. Nothing. Everything enters the food chain at some level even though it may not be on your plate today!
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| Making our way through the grass |
We began our walk along the western most side of this run coming through some nice tall grass. Beau was pointing and creeping the whole way but couldn't get a bird pinned down with the exception of one hen. Run! Run! Run! They all must have been shouting to each other. Just at the point where the grass met the wheat stubble and the cattails where we started a rooster suddenly rocketed to my left catching me totally off guard. It was an easy straight away shot but I swear I must have been shooting blanks as not a feather was ruffled. He flew straight past Carson as well. I think I led him to far he said as the bird continued on his way!
I was tired at this point. We came together for the walk another quarter mile to the Jeep as the sun was just starting to descend on a beautiful late afternoon sky. We had seen quite a number of birds here but again it was a big area and even with a couple dogs and 3 hunters it's difficult to gain an advantage often times.
It had been a great day. Everyone had good opportunities. All the pups had done their best. Jared"s pup Yuba showed a tremendous drive and desire to find birds all which held so much promise for days and hunts ahead. We recounted the day as we drove the miles back home. Everyone was interested in trying the meatloaf this evening and of course the pie which we also enjoyed and finished off as we drove home sharing the Jeep with 4 very tired dog's.
Upon arriving home and getting settled we had supper to attend to a little whiskey to consume and guns to clean. I complimented Carson on his shooting remarking that next year he'd be wearing a game vest to carry his own birds! We reminisced a little about the family as you'd expect. Somebody remembered to heat up the dinner rolls which I was thankful for. I had shared the story of when I first moved here how people expected dinner rolls with every meal and gravy as well actually. So I had bought some homemade dinner rolls from my German friend a couple blocks away to share the tradition.
The cold windy weather returned for Saturday. It was to be a half day hunt with the boys heading back to Minneapolis in the afternoon. I had a quarter section I wanted to hunt for this short time frame just a quarter mile from where we ended the day before. It was next to a rolling hill pasture which had always held a nice population of grouse. We drove in on the field road to the west end moving a large group of grouse on the fence line as we drove and walked south an 1/8 of a mile to the hayfield which unfortunately was pretty full of snow. I decided we'd walk the edge anyway since we were there. It was tough with wind again and both Mick and Molly were played out and having difficulty keeping pace. But we kept going skirting the edges along wheat stubble hoping for a pheasant or grouse flushing. 2/3 of the way around a group of grouse flushed wild from a small slough to the west in a wheat stubble field with a small slough 75 yards away. Shortly after I saw fresh grouse tracks in front of me and started following them into the grass hayfield thinking this bird is out here somewhere and will maybe hold for a point. Beau began working scent with his head high into the wind knowing that bird was close. He's a beautiful sight when he catches scent lifting his head into the wind stretching forward a bit as if he's turning up the power of his nose to catch any scent on the wind. Just a few moments later Beau stopped just ever so slowly looking to my right where a lone sharptail beat it's way chuckling into the air from left to right falling with a report from my gun into the fresh snow. Yuba was there in a flash over running the bird and before she turned around Beau was standing over the prize in the snow as I came over and shared it with Yuba before putting it in my pouch.
We continued on with Jared working tracks on the fence line but these birds seemed to have simply vanished into thin air or thick cover. I don't think I recalled seeing so many grouse tracks in an area as we made our way back to the Jeep. Beau worked in circles on these tracks with fresh scent but we just couldn't get these birds pinned down. When I caught up to the boys I said this was a missed call due to the snow filling in the cover but you never really know until you're right on it. It was a tough slog back to the Jeep into the wind with Mick and Molly needing to stop frequently but my decision is to allow them to go as long as they're able. After all it's what they live for but they were done for this day. The boys had a lone sharptail flush on the fence line on the way back and fired a shot but no cigar as we closed in on the Jeep 200 yards ahead.
I was able to tire Carson out in 2010 and 2011 but this was 2014 and as I made my way with my aging trio of bird dog's I recounted the last two days in my mind. They had suddenly become faster to shoulder their guns and after runs of a few miles expectantly asked "Well what's next?" while I took note of my energy level. Just as I had painfully noticed Beau's desire being somewhat mismatched with his ability from the beginning of the sharptail season I now was facing my own shortcomings. Here I'd been focusing on adapting to the Setters aging never realizing there was another front to fight the same battle. My own.
We were a determined looking bunch packed back into the Jeep as the wind blew all of 20 plus mph and damn single digits again. Well the best option was to head back to yesterdays run across the way and run it again hoping the birds had again spent the night there. That was the plan as we walked back down the stubble field and began walking the first waterway. I took Beau solo and left Mick and Molly to take refuge in the Jeep. Yuba just took it all in stride as we headed for the cattails again. Young pups are just so much fun to watch. We had walked for just a few minutes when I once again had fresh rooster tracks in front of me in pretty much the same place as yesterday. Moments later we had another rooster rocket to the top of the cattails this time flying straight to the east on the outside of the cover so I had a clear and safe shot at 30 yards dropping the bird hard in short cover. Beau marched right over and handled the rooster a little rougher than I like but he's always been that way when they flutter. If they are still he's really soft with them but he'll not tolerate any movement! That's OK with me as I've seen many birds over the years realize they can still run flip over and away they go! We reached the end with just a couple of hens moving and again walked to the other side. We had the same result with just a couple hens flushing and when we reached the south end Jared split off again with Yuba as he did the previous day. Carson and I walked the west edge of the pot hole with him on the edge walking the ice and myself on the outside. A couple hundred yards into it Carson fired on a rooster I didn't see come up and then headed in the direction it went not far away having missed his shot. I followed but before I got even with him he had the rooster flush again right next to him and missed a high rising shot straight away actually so close it was hard he said. As I watched I was sure the way he'd been shooting this bird was coming down but it continued to fly another day. He then joined me back to the west as we looked for Jared coming around the knoll again. I was tired out by the cold and wind and let Carson meet him walking towards the fence line waiting for both of them along with Beau.
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| Together Again Thanksgiving 2014 |
It was an ending to the hunt reminding you how challenging this sport can be but so much fun pitting yourself and you're dog's against these wild and crafty birds! A group picture would have to wait until we got home as my camera battery had gone dead in the cold the last two days. We rolled home passing a covey of Huns and a large group of grouse sitting on the edge of the road. It was encouraging and inspiring to have seen them and all the birds in the numbers we did. A real and true reason among many to be thankful for on this hunt but especially for being Together Again Thanksgiving 2014.
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