First Day Pheasants...

[ironranger]

Idecided to head to Western Mn for a day of pheasant hunting with Wiley. With my work schedule (Mon-Wed off), it works out really good for hunting as there aren't many afield on those days. Wish I could say I did as well as my hunting partner but I couldn't hit the broadside of a barn for most of the day. We started hunting a big marshy public area that we've taken alot of birds in the past on. There was a ton of corn still in the fields so I wasn't expecting much. We made a swing down thru a swampy patch that has been thick with birds in the past. He flushed two hens but no roosters. I stopped at a pond to let him drink and we continued on down a road towards some corn that bordered the public. Wiley flushed 6 more hens on the way there. When we came along the corn field next to the road, Wiley flushed the first roosterbut I wasn't ready and then hurried the shot and missed. Another rooster about half hour later and same result. Seems like I always do that the first pheasant trip of the fall.

We switched to a private crp/native grass field that was full of roosters last fall. Talked to a farmer who lives right there and he said a bunch of hunters had walked it over the weekend. Just as I figured...not a bird was to be found there. I asked him if I could walk the edge of his corn and he said yes so off we went. Got to the end of it and was stepping into the ditch when three roosters blew back into the corn. Out of range though.

I hit another public area and a hawk flew up in front of me off the ground. I walked to where he had been and found out what he was doing. A rooster was splayed out with nothing left but the head and frame. He'd eaten the rest. I thought...maybe there are more roosters to be had. We made our way over a hill as I'd seen a corn field from back at the truck beyond it. When we got to the corn, Wiley got really birdy and 4 roosters exploded from cover on 4 sides of me. Talk about not knowing which one to take.Hurried the shots again and missed.After I emptied my gun about 15 more birds got up right in the corn and were flying everywhere. At that point, it probably didn't matter if I had shells in the gun or not the way I was shooting. So Wiley and I went back over the hill as 3 roosters had flushed that way in the initial explosion. We swung wide thru a cattail slew and then went with the wind for awhile and then made the turn into the wind and headed back towards the hill. Wiley was taking his time quartering back and forth. I was zigzagging and suddenly he got birdy. He starts doing his prize fighter imitation dodging and weaving back and forth. I called him back once as he was out too far. Gave him the "Slow down" pinch of the ear and off we went. He picked up the scent and this time I was ready. Unfortunately, this bird flushed so low that I couldn't shoot him. I couldn't believe it. This rooster got up and stayed just above the weeds for what seemed like forever. With the dog right there, I never got a shot. It was time to regroup. I was really disappointed with my shooting at that point and contemplated hanging it up for the day. After some water and a few choice words, I decided to hunt for as long as it took to at least get one bird.

We went back to the first public area we'd hunted that morning. I parked and we walked down an old road on our way to the crp. We headed back to some corn bordering the crp. Along the way, no birds at all. Then Wiley got birdy as we were reaching the crops but nothing came of it. Then I decided to swing around full circle where he'd gotten birdy and a rooster exploded from cover with Wiley on his tail. I snapped up, took my time, and down he went. Just as Wiley was delivering the bird, another rooster blew from cover within 10 feet of me. Of course, I was kneeling and never got a shot off. Didn't care that much as I had one in my hand! So we covered the edge of the corn and headed back to the truck. Two other hunters were too late in getting there as I saw them off in the distance and they turned around when they saw me. Wiley and I went back thru where they'd been hunting with their dogs and I walked a ditch as it was easy walking and we'd gotten up roosters there in the past. We were almost to the road when he turned and jumped into the thick grass. Exploding rooster is met with steel shot charge. Bird number 2 down!! It's amazing how they drop when I actually take my time!! Here is one pic of us and another of one of the roosters close up. The colors are something else on those wild roosters...

[Rebel Hog]

Nice and good story, also like the dog!

[Pokey]

Great write up, it was honest and from the heart, no talking about your great shooting or blaming missing on something or someone else.

[sproulman]

great story,boy, do you folks have great hunting..pa. is a terrible place to hunt now..hunters are getting nasty,they stock 50 birds and 500 hunters go after them,dogs running all over, hunters blowing whistles and yelling terrible at their dogs and other hunters on publicland..

boy, that would be dream come true to hunt like you are..my dogs tail is straight up when he saw those pictures, ha..

[Crazy Horse RVN]

"Ironranger" what do you think about the steel shot requirements? Are you folks having the same problems as the waterfowl people have with steel shot or is it proving to be effective on pheasants? Just curious.

[ironranger]

Crazy Horse, I don't mind using steel on the public areas as I found a shell that shoots good in my gun. I've been using the Winchester Xpert steel and it has pretty good knockdown power...that is when I hit what I'm aiming at!!

[nutz4bucks]

Nice job!!!

We did great this weekend on the roosters.

Thanks for sharing them with us

Congrats.

[Granby]

Great story and pics! Congrats

[Pickerel]

ORIGINAL: sproulman

great story,boy, do you folks have great hunting..pa. is a terrible place to hunt now..hunters are getting nasty,they stock 50 birds and 500 hunters go after them,dogs running all over, hunters blowing whistles and yelling terrible at their dogs and other hunters on publicland..

boy, that would be dream come true to hunt like you are..my dogs tail is straight up when he saw those pictures, ha..

Would you like to swap places with me? I hunt in Jersey! [:@] Forty bucks for a pheasant stamp, and I the entire season I'd say I saw maybe a dozen birds, and I only shot one of them due to the huge number of hunters in the "shooting gallery" where they stock pheasants in Colliers Mills.

[sproulman]

ORIGINAL: Pickerel

Would you like to swap places with me? I hunt in Jersey! [:@] Forty bucks for a pheasant stamp, and I the entire season I'd say I saw maybe a dozen birds, and I only shot one of them due to the huge number of hunters in the "shooting gallery" where they stock pheasants in Colliers Mills.

hunting is getting to point ,many are losing interest..i will stay on pheasants..that was my worry if 40 dollar stamp is allowed..when you sit here and think, well, 40 dollars will reduce hunters..

you answered that, it WONT..the hunters that leave will be replaced by new hunters that will pay 40 dollars..i see young hunters that you could charge them 100 dollars,and they will still pay it..

new jersey hunters WILL PAY, pa hunters WONT.. i seen that over years,why, because new jersey hunters are USED to paying high taxes and higher costs for everything, pa hunters are not..

so, nj hunters think they are getting deal when they come to pa..

personelly, here is way i would stock pheasants here in pa. and in new jersey..stocking should cover 3 days and birds stocked each of those 3 days..when you get your permit,permit would tell you what day you can hunt during STOCKINGS ONLY.. any other day ,you can go without this regulation..

what is happening is 500 hunters are there the day they stock after 50 birds..

first, thats no fun.. second its, DANGEROUS..third, someone ,someday will get mad enough at another hunter to do harm to them..i saw last week in sgl252 in lycoming county, hunters chasing people away while they were hunting..they even MADE up storys of pellets hitting them so they could chase the people away.that never happened, i was there and saw which way others shot..it was only done to let others know they did not want them hunting here..

i was confronted by person with 2 britts, he came up path after me yelling, YOU SLOBS ,you knew i was down here hunting in this corn field..

i said to this person, first you have no right to come after me like that, second its PUBLICLAND and i can hunt anywhere i like, third, i did not see him in corn field with 10 ft high corn stalks..

he was mad because he flushed a pheasant up the hill to me and our dogs..he could not come up to me because i was there and my dog flushed bird but i left it go because others were to close to shoot.

sorry, i got off subject again...