Tag Archives: Bird Dogs

September 29, 2019 · 9:51 pm

Sage Grouse and Garmin Pro 550 Plus Review

My favorite Son-in-law, Kyle, and I went to Wyoming to hunt Hungarian Partridge, Chukar Partridge and Sage Grouse. First, you should know that the birds in Wyoming are WAY down. Three and a half days of hunting, 20+ miles of hiking and plenty of road hunting and we saw zero Huns, zero Chukar and only a few Sage Grouse. We were checked by a Wyoming game officer and he confirmed that this is a pretty dismal year for bird hunting. Not quite what I expected given that all the great plains states are no longer in a drought but the game officer thinks that these things go in cycles. I hope he is right and we look forward to better hunting in the future. Despite these depressing statistics, we had a terrific hunt. Kyle is a new bird hunter – he has not yet enjoyed a game rich hunt and he was elated when we succeeded on sage grouse. It was time well spent and a great hunt in all the categories that matter!

There is nothing like a Modelo Especial after a 4 hour hike of futility!

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Filed under Equipment, Wild Bird Hunts

Tagged as Armas Garbi Shotgun, Bird Dogs, Bird Hunting, Dog Photography, Garmin 550 Pro Plus, Garmin Dog Collars, German Shorthaired Pointer, Gun Dog, Hunting Photography, Photography, Pointers, Sage Grouse, Wyoming Bird Hunting

February 9, 2019 · 5:17 pm

West Texas Quail

Texas quail are by FAR our favorite bird to hunt! We had the pleasure of spending 3 days with West Texas Quail Outfitters hunting near Alpine, Texas. Chasing scaled quail in the shadow of the Davis mountains on crisp west Texas days is about as good as upland bird hunting gets. The guides, Ryan and Josh, are hard working guys and did all they could to put us in the right places. They were an absolute pleasure to hunt with.

But know that hunting wild birds means that bird counts are at the whim of the cycles of mother nature . This year finding birds at times was a challenge and required covering a lot of ground to hit the coveys. It reminds you that every bird is indeed a gift from God.

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Filed under Wild Bird Hunts

Tagged as Bird Dogs, Bird Hunting, Brittany Spaniel, Dog Photography, English Pointers, German Shorthaired Pointer, Hunting Photography, Photography, Pointers, Quail Hunting, Texas Hunting, West Texas

December 21, 2018 · 11:04 pm

Pushing Our Luck in North Dakota

Last year, our guide called to say that the bird counts were down and the hunting might not be so good. We went anyway and had a terrific hunt! This year the guide called again and said “hey, seriously, this year is going to suck” and advised that we skip again but we still went. After all, these bird hunts are much more than hunting birds. . . right? You know . . . camaraderie, communing with nature, getting away from accountability for a while, riding in pickup trucks with shotguns, hunting-camp cuisine, etc. We were pushing our luck! This year, we were rewarded with a dastardly cold hunt and the lowest bird count in our 20 years of chasing roosters. All part of the game though. The great hunts are appreciated because of the tough times endured. This was definitely not the worst and we are glad we went. Everyone is looking forward to a future of more birds and less frostbite! Of course, bird dog Tex has no idea what I am whining about. He had a terrific time!

Majestic Tex

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Filed under Wild Bird Hunts

Tagged as Americana, Bird Dogs, Bird Hunting, Dog Photography, German Shorthaired Pointer, Hunting Photography, North Dakota Hunting, Pheasant Hunting, Photography, Pointers, Rural Photography

November 22, 2018 · 10:36 pm

Huns

Happy Thanksgiving!!

Here are some pics from our hunt on the rolling prairie a few weeks ago. This is a good year for Hungarian Partridge. Not the covey counts you find on Texas quail but enough to keep our interest and make this a great hunt. I am thankful that we live in proximity to such beautiful, wild country!

The Hungarian Partridge is a fast flying covey bird. They don’t hold as well for a point like quail or pheasant but when they flush it is some fast shooting. Beautiful bird!

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Filed under Wild Bird Hunts

Tagged as Armas Garbi Shotgun, Bird Dogs, Bird Hunting, Dog Photography, English Setter, German Shorthaired Pointer, Gun Dog, Hungarian Partridge, Hunting Photography, Photography, Pointers, Rural Photography

October 3, 2018 · 10:35 pm

Western Grouse

The bird hunting season is upon us and most have already hit the fields but I was forced to spend the first of September on vacation in Boston. Sometimes sacrifices are necessary to keep the peace in the marriage! Check out this quaint street . . .

DSC_1686x This is Acorn Street, one of the most photographed in the country. Boston is an awesome city and we had a terrific time. Highly recommended!

Then off to another world – our favorite western state in search of sage grouse. This was our first time in an area that holds more sage grouse than anywhere else in the country. Even though, this land is vast and we of course had to learn first where they weren’t before we stumbled into where they were.

Tex on a staunch point, happy that the slow days of summer are over.

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Filed under Wild Bird Hunts

Tagged as Bird Dogs, Bird Hunting, Dog Photography, German Shorthaired Pointer, Hunting Photography, Photography, Pointers, Sage Grouse

April 22, 2018 · 9:53 pm

Heading Into Summer

It was a great hunting season! Not as many birds as we would have liked but Tex’s knees performed well and we are ready to take on the next 5 years or so. The bird hunting is over for a while and we look forward to the wonderful Colorado summer and Sunday afternoons at the dog park!

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Filed under Bird Dogs

Tagged as Bird Dogs, Dog Photography, German Shorthaired Pointer, Photography

January 28, 2018 · 1:05 pm

Needles

Tex went to southern Colorado yesterday to find a quail or two. The quail were sparse but the cactus were not! Here are some pictures from the day.

Solid point on a cholla cactus.

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Tagged as Bird Dogs, Bird Hunting, Colorado Hunting, Dog Photography, German Shorthaired Pointer, Hunting Photography, Photography, Pointers, Quail Hunting

December 31, 2017 · 1:56 pm

Cheap December Quail

We spent some of December looking for quail on public land. Hunting public land can be challenging because of . . . well . . . the public. But birds are there if you are willing to work to find them and the price is right! Here are some of the pictures of that effort . . .

A bird in hand.

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Filed under Wild Bird Hunts

Tagged as Bird Dogs, Bird Hunting, German Shorthaired Pointer, Hunting Photography, Photography, Pointers, Quail Hunting

November 19, 2017 · 12:03 pm

A Not So Down Year in North Dakota

The forecast was that this hunt would suck. Because of a drought and tough winter and summer, the bird counts were down by 60%. We discovered this when the outfitter, Cannonball Company, called to ask if we wanted to skip the year and try again in 2018! I must say the folks at Cannonball are first rate. They made sure we knew what kind of hunt to expect and were ready to accommodate if we chose to do something else. Half of our usual hunting party did just that and spent the weekend on the couch at home. Before the hunt, the weather outlook predicted highs in the mid-30s with high winds. There was ample reason to skip this hunt!

Despite the dismal predictions, the 5 hunters who chose to make the hunt were treated to one of our best hunts yet. The hunting was certainly more challenging but, out of a possible 45 bird limit, the group harvested 41 birds. We could have nailed the other four had we wanted to. 🙂 The weather on day one was cold and windy. The other two days the wind died down and we had near perfect sunny days in the 40s and 50s. Having to work for our birds kept us in the field longer than usual and we all enjoyed that, especially the dogs. You never know what is going to happen on a hunt and this year persistence and a bit of blind faith paid us handsome dividends.

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Filed under Wild Bird Hunts

Tagged as Bird Dogs, Bird Hunting, Dog Photography, German Shorthaired Pointer, Hunting Photography, North Dakota Hunting, Pheasant Hunting, Photography

October 22, 2017 · 9:27 pm

Preserve Bird Interlude

After a dove hunt in Texas and a long walk in a Wyoming prairie, we thought it would be fun to hit the local hunting preserve before the next season opens. Another reason to get on “bought” birds is that after those two out-of-state hunting trips I have yet to fire my gun! I can understand tough bird hunting in Wyoming, but no dove in Texas?!?! The bird forecast for the upcoming pheasant season in North Dakota is dismal as well, so this interlude was good for the dogs to be reminded what game birds smell like.

Appreciation of the good things in life is intensified by contrast. These lean seasons give us reason to appreciate the seasons of abundance. So far this is a year of paying dues, hoping that we will be rewarded for our persistence. Happily we are old enough and wise enough to understand that the joy of the hunt is not a carcass count. The real satisfaction of bird hunting comes from the time afield with our friends and our dogs . . . but a covey flush every now and then would be nice!

Tex on a serious point!

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Filed under Preserve Bird Hunts

Tagged as Bird Dogs, Bird Hunting, Dog Photography, German Shorthaired Pointer, Hunting Photography, Hunting Preserve, Photography, Pointers

October 5, 2017 · 9:30 pm

BLM Bird Hunt

Those fortunate enough to live in one of the western great plains states have access to the massive tracts of public BLM land (managed by the Bureau of Land Management). Last weekend we took bird dog Tex there to try out his new knees. During the past year, he blew out his two back knees and had TPLO surgery on both to put him back together. This nasty, invasive surgery is a big deal and I was anxious to see if he could hold up to a full day of heavy duty hunting.

The magnitude of this vast land is hard to grasp. It is a bad place to loose your keys.

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Filed under Wild Bird Hunts

Tagged as Bird Dogs, Bird Hunting, Dog Photography, German Shorthaired Pointer, Hunting Photography, Photography, Pointers

September 11, 2017 · 10:06 pm

Reflected Dog

Tex takes a swim in a Texas stock pond during our annual dove hunt. The still morning gave us a pool of glass, reflecting a very happy puppy.

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Tagged as Americana, Bird Dogs, Bird Hunting, Dog Photography, German Shorthaired Pointer, Kenton, Oklahoma, Photography, Texas Hunting

May 7, 2017 · 9:11 pm

Snowy Spring Preserve Hunt

Colorado weather is awesome. This weekend was in the 80s, we wore shorts to the Rockies baseball game but last weekend we had a foot of snow! We took English Setter Oak out on that snowy Sunday for a spin on some chukars.

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Filed under Preserve Bird Hunts

Tagged as Bird Dogs, Bird Hunting, Chukar, Colorado Hunting, Dog Photography, English Setter, Hunting Photography, Photography

February 4, 2017 · 4:07 pm

Tex’s Forgettable Bird Hunting Season

If you follow this blog, then you know that Tex tore the dog equivalent of his ACL back at the beginning of the bird season. The poor dog had to miss October through the middle of December. He recovered well and here are some pictures of his return to hunting fields.
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Filed under Bird Dogs

Tagged as Bird Dogs, Bird Hunting, Dog Photography, German Shorthaired Pointer, Hunting Photography, Photography, Pointers, TPLO Surgery

November 22, 2016 · 9:43 pm

Another Great ND Hunt!

Another year of great weather! This makes two in a row. We have been hunting ND pheasants for 15 years and this annual event is like a dear old friend. We can’t wait to get back every year and are always a bit sad when the hunt is over. This is one of those things that you know, at some point, will come to an end so we savor every minute, every bird, every point, every step in the field and every moment of comradery with our friends and fellow hunters. As we grow older, the hunt is cherished simply because we are here, in the vast openness of North Dakota – away from the grind, away from the responsibility, away from the noise. This time afield, immersed in God’s creation, is our connection with what is real and what matters. I hope you enjoy these pictures from a perfect hunt.

A picture perfect lay-up.

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Filed under Wild Bird Hunts

Tagged as Bird Dogs, Bird Hunting, Dog Photography, Hunting Photography, North Dakota Hunting, Photography, Rural Photography

October 9, 2016 · 10:00 pm

Tex’s Last Hunt . . . . for a while.

About 6 weeks ago, Oak the setter puppy and Tex got out for some time on birds. We had a great time and here are the pictures.

dsc_1432x

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Filed under Bird Dogs

Tagged as Bird Dogs, Dog Photography, German Shorthaired Pointer, Hunting Photography, Pointers, TPLO Surgery

July 31, 2016 · 10:30 pm

First Point

Meet Oak. The sweet guy is a Llewellin English Setter from Paint River Llewellins out of Saugarties, New York. We took him out on a beautiful summer morning to learn what birds smell like.

“Oak”

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Tagged as Bird Dogs, Dog Photography, English Setters, Hunting Photography, Llewellin Setters, Pointers, Puppies

February 28, 2016 · 7:47 pm

Rocky Mountain Roosters

The real hunting is over for now but we are fortunate to have some very nice preserves or hunt clubs on the Colorado front range. Kiowa Creek, The Bluffs, Quail Run are all great venues, but this weekend we tried Rocky Mountain Roosters . This is a great way to extend the season and get the dogs a little more time in the field.

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Filed under Preserve Bird Hunts

Tagged as Bird Dogs, Bird Hunting, Dog Photography, German Shorthaired Pointer, Hunting Photography, Hunting Preserve, Pointers

February 4, 2016 · 9:38 pm

Windmill Point

DSC_8435w tex2

Filed under Wild Bird Hunts

Tagged as Bird Dogs, Bird Hunting, Dog Photography, German Shorthaired Pointer, Hunting Photography, Quail Hunting

February 1, 2016 · 9:48 pm

Wild Quail . . . Finally!

The biblical drought that tormented the western quail country for the past decade has subsided for now. The moisture provided the basic life elements (water, plants and bugs) allowing the quail to return to areas where they seemingly were gone forever. This is a wonderful testimony to nature’s amazing ability to recover when given a chance. We took advantage of the bird rebound with an end of season hunt.

A beautiful cock and hen

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Filed under Wild Bird Hunts

Tagged as Bird Dogs, Bird Hunting, Bobwhite Quail, Dog Photography, German Shorthaired Pointer, Hunting Photography, Quail Hunting, Rural Photography