Last Week, Last Gasp...
 

After a New Year's Day snow storm that was followed by days of single digit highs and ice packed back roads, the last week of the Missouri bird season warmed and the snow melted. In spite of a foot injury to Aspen that kept him sidelined for a day, we managed to hunt four of the last five days of the season (it's snowing today with about 8 inches on the ground as I write this on our official last day of the season).

We revisited some farms where we had "saved" coveys for just such days -- balmy and sunny -- and then just made it out before the ice began to fall yesterday, a foggy, but beautifully still day. We probably had as many bird contacts and bird work from the dogs on these four days as we had all of the last couple of weeks. If it has to end, I'm glad it ended with birds.

Here are some photos from our last days...

1-3. Elaine got some nice shots from a covey we caught out in the foxtail that got up in waves. I'd taken 4 birds from this covey this season, so I only took one on the rise and let the remaining ten or so serve as photo models.

4. After the bitter weather of the preceding week, the critters were out and about on these warming days. Fortunately no skunks, but lots of possums.

5. It amazes me that the backroads can keep a sheet of thick ice on them long after the snow melts. They are treacherous then, and later, when they thaw and the clay turns to muck -- "slicker'n snot on a doorknob" as an old hunting buddy used to say. Still, on a day like this, it's just nice to be out with the dog (Alder, in this case) and, of course, Elaine.

6. Alder got in on some of the action on a large covey that had obviously evaded us on earlier hunts to this farm. She is so different from Aspen that sometimes they don't seem to be the same breed of dog. She sure likes her birds, though, and goes harder than any dog I've ever hunted behind. Many days I can't keep up with her(!)

7. In one hour of hunting yesterday, Aspen had 7 nice finds from one "fence line covey" that we'd hunted only once this season. These birds were track stars, the singles running over a half mile along a fence with scant cover. Aspen had a blast, though, and we took two birds from this covey and got back to the truck as large ice pellets began to fall.

8. This bird was able to sneak out the "back door" while Aspen was pointing in front of me. I thought it was his bird and moved to go after it, and the one he'd been pointing flew out behind me. I felt like I was in a Keystone Cops movie. Always trust your dog!

Still using the 16? It appears to be that gun. Nice photos! Thank you for sharing your season with us, it was enjoyable.

Great pictures Garry! Wonderful country.






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Very nice ! I’m a setter fan regardless of which variety :cool:

very nice hunting ground it s good to see the bob whites again...great pictures...charlie

I used a Smith 16 and a Parker 20 on these hunts. I had intended to use "Reggie's Gun" for the last day, as by this point in the season I need the best fitting gun I have, but, alas, 10 inches of snow stole our last day from us.:crying:

I hope this snow storm misses most of you, but I fear it will leave its wrath in snow and ice for many. Be careful and safe.

Charlie, I have my personal photographer tag along on our hunts. She claims she's the "sherpa." as she carries the water for the dogs. She's the best hunting buddy I've ever had.

Great post. The take away for me and I suspect a few others is “Always trust your dog”. I learned that a few decades back on a pheasant hunt. Taz, a young very energetic GSP, had only a few hunts under his belt (collar?). I dropped a rooster into weeds and scrub brush. I had a good mark and headed that direction. Taz, on the other hand was moving in a very different direction. I called him back to my mark so he could pick up the scent and find the bird. He did not want to be there. Then I saw why. I hadn’t killed the rooster and I saw it moving in cover where I had pulled Taz away from. I felt stupid and never interfered with the dogs again. Our eyes are never a match for their noses.:rolleyes::rolleyes:

You are so right, Jack, and I admit that even though I've learned to trust the dogs (the hard way), I still screw up royally on occasion. My worst faux pas happened twice in my time hunting behind dogs, and it occurred in exactly the same way, and with the same dog (which tells you how smart I am:banghead:) Quail in the snow will sometimes bury themselves after a covey flushes. I know this from too much experience. On two occasions my dog Prairie Trace, the best bird dog I will ever hunt over, pointed a single from a snowy covey flush. By his demeanor he "told" me the bird was "right here under my nose, Dad." I kicked and kicked. Nothing. I tapped his head and said "all right," the command for him to move on. He did not. I kicked some more, widening my focus. Nothing. Another head tap and "all right." No movement on Trace's part. I tapped him again. He reached down and picked the live bird out of the deep snow and presented it to me. Over his 16 years he did this twice, with many other extraordinary feats of bird legerdemain. After about 5 years, he had me trained to trust him and his nose. Thankfully, he was a tolerant teacher, and his image now is engraved on a custom Fox 16 that has taken many birds in his honor.

Yes, trust your dog!

good hunting pals are hard to come by looks like you have found yours...keep her safe your a lucky guy....charlie

1/15 at my place.....

I think we got more snow in northern Adair Co., but it looks familiar. We are looking to head south, out of the snow(!)

we got a dusting here in miss..sun shining today suppose to get to 60 here today.....charlie

If there were only decent quail numbers, we would be headed that way!

I understand that the woodcock hunting in LA during January is pretty good.

We went some years ago and enjoyed it thoroughly. I've got my eye on southern Kansas...and then, maybe, Oklahoma.

alas the quail are about gone in miss.. I have one covey and they are Mexican quail they will fly at the shutting of a car door and fly into a jungle of briars that nothing can go thru...use to get into so many coveys....charlie

Loved the great action photos! Your photos and narrative made me yearn deeply for times I've not had for over 20 years.

When you got 10" snow in northern Mo. I only got 2" down here in East central Mo. Small patches still linger everywhere. Thanks for posting. Don

Thanks, Don. We still have hard, crusted snow here, but we're making some headway in melting it, having had a couple of above freezing days in a row.

We got out today for our last Iowa hunt (we are headed to Kansas for warmer weather). We found some bare ground and above-my-knee drifts. The day started at 36 degrees with a light wind, and within an hour we went from sun and clouds to all clouds and a howling wind as a prairie front barreled through. The temperature dropped over 10 degrees in less than an hour. We found a covey and got a couple of chances. Aspen had 5 nice points, including a point of 3 pheasants that had to be kicked out. Of course they were all hens...and the pheasant season ended on Jan. 10.:crying:

Going on a last hunt is not like other hunts. It seems more poignant, and makes one think of past hunts, past dogs, and when I was younger. I'm sure you must understand if you are recalling hunts from 20 years ago.

Great pictures! Who’s your photog?





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My long suffering wife, Elaine.

Sweet! Love the pictures. I did the same with the few coveys we had here in NM. Amazing how one year can be booming with birds and the next year hardly anthing. Thanks for the pictures.

Thank goodness that quail are near the bottom of the food chain and have developed reproductive patterns that can bring themselves back in good numbers...IF they have a place to live.:bowdown:

Garry,
My brittany breeder buddy has 2 of his dogs in texas with one guy. They went out within the last month and had over 30 quail covey flushes in a day and a half. No idea what area, or even if they were in texas, the guy said the numbers were definitely up.