20 days

[Ben Lamb]

Michigan upland opener is the 15th. We missed last year entirely due to bad knees & a couple of TPLO surgeries. Jasmine took over dog duty during the winter while I was in MT. We've been hitting the trails and covers since I got back, getting ready. The black dog is sensing the impending chaos and her energy levels have increased to the point where I was on the recieving end of teeth today as she was greeting the brown dog as I took her out of the kennel.

Not sure what the fall holds just yet aside from daily morning hunts and the small trip elsewhere in-state. Shotguns get cleaned this week, the gear gets rounded up and dusted off. The dogs insanity increases each day, $*)Q!#@$ idiots.


Can't wait.

 

[Ben Lamb]

The Ruffed Grouse Society/American Woodcock Society have a great flight tracker if you're interested in checking out reports of migrating birds.

https://ruffedgrousesociety.org/migration-map/

Love those little birds. Really cool critter and tasty as heck.

 

[brymoore]

3 days and a wake up for me. I’ll be at 8k feet at dawn on Saturday to hunt high country sage brush for blue grouse.

 

[Treeshark]

The Ruffed Grouse Society/American Woodcock Society have a great flight tracker if you're interested in checking out reports of migrating birds.

I love that tracker.

Columbus Day always seems to be the start of the woodcock flight around here, imagine it would be roughly the same by you?

 

[Ben Lamb]

I hope so bad I can at least get my phupps to backpack with me next fall without chewing a hole in the tent, shredding my sleeping bag or airing out my pad.

Tired dogs are well-behaved dogs! Make sure those pups are getting tons of activity while you're out and they'll be champs for you.

The black dog can't ride in the cab of the truck w/o some tranquilizers because of the frothy excitement. But on the way home after a long day, she just sleeps in the cab and I don't have to kennel her.

 

[Ben Lamb]

I love that tracker.

Columbus Day always seems to be the start of the woodcock flight around here, imagine it would be roughly the same by you?

Weather dependent, but late Sept to early Oct seems to be the start of flights. We're blessed with a decent resident population as well, so early season mudbats are always a welcome addition!

We have a spot that's good for both doodles & pats, so likely to hit that opener as it gets over-hunted fairly early in the season. The nicest part of that is it's one of the farthest covers we hit at 40 minutes from the house.

 

[Ben Lamb]

View attachment 383669
3 days and a wake up for me. I’ll be at 8k feet at dawn on Saturday to hunt high country sage brush for blue grouse.

I'm hopeful there's a trip to MT w/a shotgun this fall. Looking promising so far! Can't wait to see Cady's return to glory.

 

[Treeshark]

We're blessed with a decent resident population as well, so early season mudbats are always a welcome addition!

Same here. Woodcock are a blast, and they are under-pursued near home. Fun to have that option close by.

 

[brymoore]

I'm hopeful there's a trip to MT w/a shotgun this fall. Looking promising so far! Can't wait to see Cady's return to glory.

Last year the blue grouse numbers were insane. Best I’ve seen in 20 years.

Dot’s going to make her first hunting trip at 6 months old. We’ll see how it goes with her. She’s still in the chase her mother phase.

 

[Ben Lamb]

Last year the blue grouse numbers were insane. Best I’ve seen in 20 years.

Dot’s going to make her first hunting trip at 6 months old. We’ll see how it goes with her. She’s still in the chase her mother phase.

I love young dogs in the field during in their first season. There's so much sensory overload you think they're going to explode with excitement.

Great to hear on Blues! Heard similar on the correct side of the state line as well for both mtn species.

 

[El Jason]

September 10th for me. Can’t wait to break in the 20.

 

[Ben Lamb]

September 10th for me. Can’t wait to break in the 20.

Love going into a new season with a new gun!

We should still try to make an Eastern MT thing happen. I'll let you know my schedule once I figure it out!

 

[brymoore]

I love young dogs in the field during in their first season. There's so much sensory overload you think they're going to explode with excitement.

Great to hear on Blues! Heard similar on the correct side of the state line as well for both mtn species.

All bird numbers in I**** were great the last two years. I was finding Huns in areas I’ve never seen then while looking for other bird species. Big chukar flocks.

Initial reports are solid numbers for this year too.

 

[Ben Lamb]

All bird numbers in I**** were great the last two years. I was finding Huns in areas I’ve never seen then while looking for other bird species. Big chukar flocks.

Initial reports are solid numbers for this year too.

Iowa only has 3 asterisks, not 4. FYI.

Reported.

 

[Ben Lamb]

Sorry if this is a silly question, but this is my first bird dog.
I’m wanting to take her out looking for rabbits this fall whilst keeping her on a 6ft leash.
Do I need to worry about her hearing if I’m shooting a 20 gauge over her head at close distance like that?
I could take a .22, but I prefer the shotgun.

There are some really solid trainers here, so hopefully they will chime in.

For guns - introduce the dog to gunshots when young. Go to a trap range and walk around with the pup and don't act excited, etc. Just play it off likes it's no big deal. You want the dog to associate gunshots with fun/reward of finding a downed bird. I'd also say get off leash as soon as possible and get the pup trained hard on recall. Having a dog that responds off-leash is mission-critical. Focus on key behavior commands like sit, stay, heel and place. Those 4 commands are the cornerstone for any bird-dog foundation.

What kind of dog? There are some really killer books out there as well that help reduce the learning curve on training.

And PLEASE keep asking questions. HT is an amazing resource for learning this stuff!!!

 

[brymoore]

Sorry if this is a silly question, but this is my first bird dog.
I’m wanting to take her out looking for rabbits this fall whilst keeping her on a 6ft leash.
Do I need to worry about her hearing if I’m shooting a 20 gauge over her head at close distance like that?
I could take a .22, but I prefer the shotgun.

You should gun break your pup.

I start with a 22 cap pistol. Start when the pup is a good distance away and work the shots closer depending on the pups reaction. Once the pup is cap broke, do the same thing with a shotgun.

All pups are different. Some take time and others are born noise broke. Better to do it right than to have a gunshy dog latter.

 

[Ben Lamb]

Good luck with the gun!

I'm not much help with pointers. My idiots flush, sometimes when I want them too but most times it's just luck.

 

[crock239]

Iowa only has 3 asterisks, not 4. FYI.

Reported.

Iowa also only has 3 birds. We'll be trying to find one of 'em this fall.

First week of Oct we'll be in U P for ruffed and woodcock.

Morning lows in the 40s here this week, feels like fall...and a tease.

 

[brymoore]

I made the mistake of not gun breaking my first bird dog. She flushed her first pheasant, I shoot the bird and realize my dog ran away. I found her hiding at the family truck a mile away. She never recovered and would flee whenever I shot.

I was a young teen and thought dogs came out of the womb ready to bird hunt.

 

[Nameless Range]

Love it. Here’s to bad knees being good enough, feathers ruffling, leaves rustling, and the Golden Ale of Fall.