Wind River Range or Big Horns Blue Grouse

[KMO385]

This is going to sound dumb, but I've gone to the Winds for years to hunt grouse. I've shot loads of ruffed grouse but never a blue grouse. Sadly its the only Wyoming upland bird I hadn't found anyone have any advice for in the Winds or Big Horns? At this point I'm even willing to trade way points, which sounds desperate.

 

[Wyoming270]

I shoot a lot of DUSKY grouse around 7-9,000 feet. I find the dry open sage plains and focus on the creeks and springs with trees and brush around them. Walk right along the creeks in the morning and the grouse are always there.

 

[Wyoming270]

I know the op has a history of using excessive slang when refering to game birds so to clarify for everyone reading, by blue grouse he is refferring to the grouse subspecies known as Dusky grouse. Dusky grouse live in Wyoming, the other sub species of grouse reffered to by the slang blue grouse is the Sooty grouse who live near the pacific coast.

 

[Hunter0925]

Blues are all over the state. I have killed them up around the winds, the snowies, seen them in the bighorns and everywhere in between. Shoot me a pm and I'll try to help you.

 

[El Jason]

https://projectupland.com/grouse-species/blue-grouse/the-differences-between-dusky-grouse-and-sooty-grouse/

Many of us heathens here still collectively refer to them as blue grouse.

A solid water source is pretty crucial to good blue grouse hunting. They key on a lot of different food sources, grasshoppers, currants, rose hips, you name it.

I kill most of mine around 5-6k feet but that’s as high as I can get too.

 

[MTLabrador]

I will live my life saying blue grouse, antelope, and buffalo, and I don’t care that none of those are technically correct. There’s not a ton of them in the areas I know well in the Big Horns compared to some other mountains. I haven’t spent much time in the Winds except near Dubois and then closer to south pass, but there’s grouse there. I usually find them in the type of country where I usually find elk in September, any elevation and especially where there’s some snowberries or rose hips to eat.

 

[El Jason]

I will live my life saying blue grouse, antelope, and buffalo, and I don’t care that none of those are technically correct.

Heathen

 

[Wyoming270]

I will live my life saying blue grouse, antelope, and buffalo, and I don’t care that none of those are technically correct. There’s not a ton of them in the areas I know well in the Big Horns compared to some other mountains. I haven’t spent much time in the Winds except near Dubois and then closer to south pass, but there’s grouse there. I usually find them in the type of country where I usually find elk in September, any elevation and especially where there’s some snowberries or rose hips to eat.

Dont forget june berries

 

[Tilzbow]

I will live my life saying blue grouse, antelope, and buffalo, and I don’t care that none of those are technically correct.

I still call a Marsh Hawk a Marsh Hawk. Oh wait, it’s a Northern Harrier!

 

[shootbrownelk]

I still call Native Americans Indians.

 

[wytex]

The dusky /blue grouse go higher up later in season. I'd look for dandelions growing along the roads or old clearcuts. They love both.
Jumped many in the middle of dark timber too.

 

[Ben Lamb]

ain't none. Woofs et 'em all.

 

[Wyoming270]

I still call Native Americans Indians.

They do too.

 

[Caseknife]

They are definitely Blues to us old guys. The powers that be keep changing bird names now that DNA analysis is more mainstream. Used to be just the "Lumpers" and "Splitters", now there are DNA analyzers.

 

[Dan-06]

I have a place where I see tons of them. How dedicated are you? It’s a bit of a hike but they are always there.

 

[El Jason]

How dedicated are you?

Highly. PMs welcome