What is the ultimate upland bird?????
 

OK. So what does everyone like to hunt most? What is the greatest gamebird of them all? Why?

Although I am a chukar hunter by trade, I must admit that to me the greatest of all gamebirds is the gray (Hungarian) partridge. They form large coveys, live in open country, and are the spookiest, most difficult birds for a dog to handle. They also hold for a pointing dog like ticks to a deer' s ear.

Huns are also very unforgiving of sloppy dog work. I have seen coveys that will get up when a careless dog is still 100 yards away.

If you have a dog that can find, point and hold late-season, highly-pressured huns well enough that you can get a shot at them, you have a pretty damn good bird dog.

As a bonus, huns are also about the best-tasting bird there is.

RE: What is the ultimate upland bird?????
 

my part of the mid west it' s the Ruff Grouse but I think a ultimatechallenge is the old Timberdoodle a.k.a. woodcock and mighty tasty in it' s own right...

RE: What is the ultimate upland bird?????
 

Seattle, I have to say Ruffed Grouse, and disagree on two points. 1- I think the hardest dog to make is a good Grouse dog. (IMHO) 2- Grouse taste the best.
Regards

Michael

RE: What is the ultimate upland bird?????
 

Rebel wolf,

I' m a woodcock hunting fanatic and agree that they are pretty tough -- with their tight-holding, sometimes pheasant running behavior, but in all fairness to game birds, the toughest is the pressured bird. Late season ruffs which are heard, but rarely seen, prairie grouse that flush -- 100+ yards away, as your parking the rig and chukars that run to other states. The more pressure on a particular species -- the tougher he is!

RE: What is the ultimate upland bird?????
 

woodsboy - I love to hunt ruffs, too, but in my experience the great equalizer and what makes the huns more difficult is that there are 40 eyes that are always watching you (and your dog) in wide-open country with little cover as opposed to grouse with two eyes in heavy cover.

Time and time again I have seen young/less experienced/less talented dogs (often my own) schooled by large coveys of huns in the late season. Much more rarely have I had the pleasure of seeing great bird dogs push and press, push and press, push and press, then finally stick ' em from 80 yards away, these canine sages knowing full well that getting even one step closer will result in a lost covey. If we hunters are then quiet, careful, stealthy, and we circle well below the covey and come back up hill towards the dog, and if everything plays out just right, we might get a chance to scratch one down with a 40 yard shot.

As much as I love hunting ruff grouse (and who wouldn' t?), I have never found it that difficult to at least get a shot at one if they are present in a covert.

You are also right about grouse tasting good...they are awesome!! So are valley quail, if you' ve never had a chance to try them.

RE: What is the ultimate upland bird?????
 

Seattle, Haven' t tried Valley Quail, but Gambles, Scaled, and Mearns Quail have all fallen before our guns.

Michael

RE: What is the ultimate upland bird?????
 

Ultimate upland bird?

I love hunting pheasants. Wild pheasants in field edge cover. They aren' t the toughest to bag, but when a big rooster comes cackling up from patch of thick stuff .. that is just awesome.

I haven' t done it in years but ranging sagebrush covered hill sides in WA for chukars always got me going.

Here in the Northeast it would have to be Ruffed Grouse. They make you work pretty hard for it.

RE: What is the ultimate upland bird?????
 

In this area, I hunt ruffed and blue grouse and mountain quail. Out of those, I like ruffed grouse the best.:)

RE: What is the ultimate upland bird?????
 

I am from north dakota an i think pheaseants are the ultimate upland bird to hunt.

RE: What is the ultimate upland bird?????
 

I would have to say Phesants, I love' em here in montana.
Yes huns are fun,but not as much as hunting ringnecks on the river bottoms.

P.S. Seattle good looking dogs.

RE: What is the ultimate upland bird?????
 

Gotta go with Ringnecks!! The prettiest of all upland and definately one of the smartest (wild birds of course). Nothing like kicking up a double and getting the wits scared out of you. JDinAB

RE: What is the ultimate upland bird?????
 

JD in Alberta,

First , I have to complement you on your quote. Val Kilimer in Tombstone staring along side Kurt Russle. GOOD MOVIE by the way...

As for the best upland game bird, being from Illinois, there just a few pheasants that live around here. When the ol' cock flushes from his hidding spot there is nothing better.

Eric

RE: What is the ultimate upland bird?????
 

EJ, obviously you are a man with good taste;).

RE: What is the ultimate upland bird?????
 

I gotta go with the pheasants all the way and I have done the quail and chukar thing and chukars run close but pheasants get my money!

RE: What is the ultimate upland bird?????
 

the Good ol' ring neck. If nothing more than because of their specacular color.

RE: What is the ultimate upland bird?????
 

Hi´s, for everyone:D joined just for your forum, from beyond the greater waters, (finland).

I´d add definetly the Capercaillie to the most ultimate upland bird, hard to get but a majestic outlook (though can be harmful aggressive during mating season). And a best hunt you get with a spitz, clean shot after a 30min crawling when at the same time the dog distracts the bird by barking it to a tree. put a little bit model for a " top hunting friend" there under

RE: What is the ultimate upland bird?????
 

Mearns quail, seem to be the hardest for a dog to smell, but great country to hunt, but my favorite is the CHUKAR, is king of all upland birds in my book. I love ruffs, and shoot 30 plus a year, but i cant count the times ive had dogs on point, and watch the grouse stand up and start towards the pup, but they make the best table fare.
15 days til grouse season, god help em.

RE: What is the ultimate upland bird?????
 

Nothing like a flushing ringneck to get the blood going. I love their colors as well. Also they can be mighty fine on the dinner table. ;)

Schemy

RE: What is the ultimate upland bird?????
 

I would love to hunt other upland birds but the game being limited out here i have to say pheasant thus far.

RE: What is the ultimate upland bird?????
 

where i live, there are no pheasants, no grouse, nor Capercaillie; and the quail population is way down. turkeys are considered big game. so all i can vote for is dove.

RE: What is the ultimate upland bird?????
 

I have only had the opportunity to hunt ruffed grouse and woodcock. Up here the grouse are the only bird anyone really hunts. It' s not much of a challenge though, because unless it' s a smart old drummer the birds don' t like to flush. It' s almost like they are a different species than the grouse that inhabit the more southern parts of the state.

I like to try for woodcock while I' m grouse hunting, because they taste great and are a real challenge to shoot. Their small size and erratic flight patterns make them difficult to get.

As far as pheasants go, the state used to release farm-raised birds and let hunters shoot them. Not sure if they still do that, but to me that isn' t real hunting. I' d love to hunt wild pheasant someday though, they seem to be quite a challenge from what I have read.

RE: What is the ultimate upland bird?????
 

IOWA = PHEASANTS enough said

RE: What is the ultimate upland bird?????
 

pheasants, in either south dakota or north dakota, hunted them in nd for the first time last yr and i about crapped my pants in the first field by the amount that got up. pheasants would have to be the funnest to shoot and best to eat

RE: What is the ultimate upland bird?????
 

Wher I live in Indiana (NorthWest) there is only pheasant, with the occasional covey of bobwhite quail. There is nothing like kicking up the first rooster of the season, or flushing a BIG covey of quail. Wish it was November.

RE: What is the ultimate upland bird?????
 

Chukars!!!
No question about it. It isn' t a sport, it' s revenge. If you can throw in some Huns in the flats and some quail in the ravines then so much the better; but hiking cap rock and circling mountain tops to get above ' em is what it is all about.

RE: What is the ultimate upland bird?????
 

For me it is the Blue grouse. They are not the smartest birds in the world that is for sure. I just enjoy hunting them in the rugged country they live in. The scenery is just awesome.

RE: What is the ultimate upland bird?????
 

Blue Grouse and Scaled Quail.

RE: What is the ultimate upland bird?????
 

It has to be the Ruff Grouse in the Mountains of Tennessee and Virginia , a clear shot doesn' t come often , because he will flush with a tree between you and him, so you must be quick or he is gone. It up one hill and down another all day long and if you come home with a limit of three birds you will know you earned them. It doesn' t get any better.

Love to Hunt

RE: What is the ultimate upland bird?????
 

Where I live there are for the most part just Ruffed Grouse and Woodcock, and Woodcocks are definitely the harder to hit of the two.

RE: What is the ultimate upland bird?????
 

PHEASANTS