Weekend of clays and quail

[DoubleDown]

What a great time. Jim Hall and I hunted together and ran our dogs together all day. What a difference the temperature makes. In Georgia the weekend before where it was 70 degrees, the dogs were spent after walking off one covey. On Saturday in the cold they went for hours on end, and all the hunting I've been doing with them has paid off. Couldn't be happier with my boys and the work they did. I can't decide what was better, Sam holding a point for 10 minutes by himself while we took care of a separate bird that Diamond had pointed, or watching him stop and point another Quail on the way back from a retrieve with one in his mouth. Diamond went from earning some time on the check cord down in Georgia to a near flawless performance on Saturday. Jim ran Caroline for only her second ever bird hunt and she got some experience flushing and even pointing some birds. It was great to see her point, flush and retrieve her very first bird all on her own. Our guide said the only time you can brag on a dog without them making a liar out of you is to wait until they are dead. I'm going to settle for after the hunt.

Drake Landing was awesome as usual, the birds flew well, and the company couldn't have been better. Great happy hours with some fine bourbon at the hotel discussing the days hunts, followed by some excellent meals. Hopefully we turn this into an annual event. Posting the only pic I have from the day, Jim and I with our excellent guide Ryan in the middle.

Mike

Drake Landing Quail Hunt by Mike Smith, on Flickr