[mobirdhunter]

My wife and I have a long standing tradition, over 30 years now, of hunting on Christmas Day. We had snow this year for only the 7th time in the last 37 years (according to my shooting log). We "saved" a large covey on a farm close by for the Day's hunt. It was cold, but the winds were down -- unusual for us here in North Missouri. Modern day quail on snow are predictably unpredictable, and act completely different on the snow, often flushing wild and into trees, or holding so tight as singles that the dog gets tired of my fruitless kicking around and reaches in to grab the bird. Christmas day was no different. We found our covey which flushed from our Gordon's point before I could get in range. We followed up, flushing several from trees until we got two really tight holding singles that I took with my new-to-me AH 16 gauge. I only wanted a brace of birds from this covey, so we worked some more singles without shooting and headed home -- a nice, short hunt. I'll probably revisit this covey one more time this season and take no more than two more birds. It's a good size covey, but I want them to be around for the future.

Anyone else hunt Christmas Day? I'd enjoy reading your accounts of the Day.