Upper Peninsula--Part 2

[Harold Pickens]

The UP in December, you have got to be kidding! Are you hunting on snowshoes or snowmobiles? Well, as many of us that hunted the Great North woods of Minn., Wis., and Michigan found out, this was the coldest, snowiest October in UP recorded history. I spent the last 2 weeks of October with more snow on the ground than there has been so far in December. With elective surgeries being curtailed due to Covid, I was not needed to do the surgical follow ups for the ophthamology practice I work for. I made the decision late Thurs afternoon, found a place to stay, and pulled out Friday morning for the 800 mile/14 hr trip.
There was no snow on the ground when I got there, and the motel that depends on the snowmobile industry, was empty, except for me. Last year at this time, the owner said that there was 1 1/2' ft of snow on the ground. Friends told me I would need to hunt the swamp edges and heavy cover to find birds. With no snow, I decided to hunt the trail edges of the clear cuts--and the birds were still there. Wild as March hares, often getting up at the fringe of gun range. Multiple flushes were common, 4-6, those being the wildest. Found myself wishing I had brought the F/F PH 20, rather than the cyl/cyl VHE 20 .
I averaged 18 flushes/day and took 10 grouse in 6 days. beside the Parker, I also carried my Manton 20 ga hammer gun with 30" barrels. All 3 dogs did a wonderful job. Temps ranged from 7* low to a high of 28*, with most days in the teens, luckily there was not much wind.
You could not plan a trip like this as an annual event, most yrs would be snowed out. Things like this you just play by ear. I will post pictures and hope ypu enjoy---I sure did.