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The Gift of a Day
Unread 12-26-2019, 04:50 PM   #1
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Default The Gift of a Day

I know that there are some among our ranks that enjoy the tradition of a holiday hunt. Our Christmas Day hunt has been an annual celebration for over 30 years now, and we’ve found ourselves out in weather that ranges as far and wide as weather does on the edge of the prairie.

Yesterday was a jewel among Christmas weather days. Bright, warm and with enough breeze to refresh (and move scent). We went to a farm close by that we’d set aside for the Day. It’s a small piece of ground that generally has a covey on it. We can walk it all in about an hour, and we did on this Christmas morning — to no avail. The covey was not home. Adjacent to the farm is a small Conservation area with a nice, small lake and a bit of surrounding old field cover. On a hunch we crossed over into the field and within only a matter of yards “our” covey was pinned my Aspen. My little DHE 20 took two birds on the rise. We lingered over the birds, Aspen impatient to go find singles, but today he had to be satisfied with just this find, and we headed back to the truck and then home.

The weather was so fine that we grilled outside, and sat on the deck with the dogs enjoying the winter sun. There are many kinds of gifts one receives at Christmas time, but none better that the gift of a day — a day spent well.

I hope your day was a gift however you spent it.

Photo Key:
1. We hunted near the small town of Gorin, a once thriving railroad stop. The trains still pass this way, and we hear them from where we hunt, echoing something of the past. So many North Missouri towns have gone the way of Gorin, abandoned and without hope for a future. It's sad to see what these small towns have become, but each town displays its Christmas decorations, probably put up by a longtime resident who remembers something of what Christmases past were like. Here is Gorin's Town Hall, all decked out for the holidays. Sad, but sincere.
2. Bruce Day commented in another post that maybe a wall should be built around the flyover states. I think he's on to something. When the day is right and the skies clear, not a minute goes by without a jet trail. We had to stop often on this hunt to find water for Aspen, who was enjoying the hunt if not the unseasonably warm temperatures. The sky was marked with planes taking people elsewhere. I am often thankful we are not a destination for much more than a deer or turkey hunter. And no one vacations in Gorin.
3. Not the red and green of Christmas, but the colors of our Bobs are as beautiful as any in my eyes -- subtle and rich, they are the color of the season to us.
4. My gift for this Christmas was the Day, as are all my days afield. My wife, Elaine, and Aspen gave me this gift Day.
5. Home early to savor the weather, the sunset was as nice an end to the Day as I could imagine. I hope each of you had a Day to remember, also.
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Unread 12-26-2019, 05:04 PM   #2
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I took my son, Mills, and my Brittany out looking for woodcock but we didn't find any. Was still a lot of fun. Sherwood had a ball
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Unread 12-26-2019, 05:09 PM   #3
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Mills Morrison View Post
I took my son, Mills, and my Brittany out looking for woodcock but we didn't find any. Was still a lot of fun. Sherwood had a ball
Sounds like a gift Day to me! Surely you have a photo or two to post here, yes?
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Unread 12-26-2019, 05:25 PM   #4
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Sherwood is happy when muddy
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Unread 12-26-2019, 05:32 PM   #5
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Garry,
Thank you for another great post, you should write more often in here or magazines, or a book, I really enjoy your posts and pictures. Mills, I went out with my brittany hunting buddy today, we ran my brittany and one of his dogs together. They raced around and really covered ground, the 8 to 10 inches of snow went down to 4 or 5 inches. Much more manageable to walk in, we never found a bird, not even a fresh track, but I didn't care a bit. I watched cash today and he was holding his own with the best brittany I have hunted over yet. Cash quarters more, and "duke" runs longer straighter runs, then comes back and checks in. Cash was out to about 80 yards on a nice quarter, between those 2 dogs, I don't think they missed to much. I was really proud of those dogs, the short loops we took were wonderful, like Garry says it was a gift of a day today.
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Unread 12-26-2019, 05:49 PM   #6
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We are in a big push to get Sherwood on as many birds as possible this season. He really shows promise and we want him to develop good habits and a love of the game while he is still young.

I tried to upload a picture but it won't come up
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Unread 12-26-2019, 06:56 PM   #7
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Ed, I really like a dog that naturally quarters, especially in tight cover. Aspen is still figuring out his pattern, but I likes to cast broad rather than quarter so far. Alder is a far going dog, bred for horseback field trials. I've worked hard to bring her in. Cedar was my "perfect" range dog, adjusting to the cover. I still hope she recovers to hunt again, but for now she rides along and waits in the truck. If Cash quarters in the grouse woods, count your blessings.

Mills, you know the old saying, if at first you don't succeed...
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Unread 12-26-2019, 07:21 PM   #8
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Mills Morrison View Post
We are in a big push to get Sherwood on as many birds as possible this season. He really shows promise and we want him to develop good habits and a love of the game while he is still young.

I tried to upload a picture but it won't come up
Mills,
The guy I hunted with today (Fred) is the guy who first took me hunting 2 years ago with his 2 brittanies. I saw all the work and effort he does with his 2 dogs, they are 8 and 9 years old now. After the heat of the summer goes away, he looks for cool days or mornings and his goal is to keep his dogs in birds every 72 hours all the way through hunting season and on towards the next spring until hot weather hits us again. I have never heard of anyone yet trying for every 72 hours, but I also don't know many bird dog guys Hunting season is easy, because he hunts quite often, he also has a charter fishing business, so he works his clients around his bird dogs when he can. My other friend Hap who had my brittany as a puppy has a couple dozen pigeons, with return flight pens, and he has 2 quail return pens as well. He has one quail pen set up on 9 acres about 1/2 mile from his house. We all buy quail and many times the quail will return to the quail pen and we can reuse them. I think I purchased 10 quail 2 summers ago to help train cash with and I got many many points with those 10 birds. I am even thinking of selling our house and moving to an area where I can set up a similar setting like Hap has. I can't keep my dog in birds as often as Hap and Fred, they are both retired and I still work a lot, but I do the best I can. I wish I would of kept hunting and did not take the 40 years off, but with all the help my wife and I got, our brittany really has turned out well. I wish you all the best with your young dog, it sure is exciting watching them learn their craft.
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Unread 12-26-2019, 10:44 PM   #9
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There is no way I could do every 72 hours although I would love to try. Life goals!
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Unread 12-27-2019, 11:15 AM   #10
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Both of my "boys" Ike and Duke will go to Georgia quail hunting next month. They will see plenty of birds in 4 days of hunting.
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