The Kingdom

[Dean Romig]

It was great fun to be present with Danny and Dave on this momentous occasion - Congratulations to Danny!!

When Danny and I started downslope to find his grouse after he shot and said he had hit it, a bird thundered up right from the area where Danny saw his grouse go down. We were disappointed but I've seen grouse do such things to me before and we tried to brush it off as 'just a bit of bad luck.' Danny and I turned to go back up with Dave and Jamie but Gracie would have none of it. She kept searchin and searchin and was acting very birdy. Suddenly she slammed into a very intense point with her muzzle just about on the ground... all at once she pounced and grabbed a grouse in a full-body grip. It was Danny's bird!... and Gracie knew better!! What a great "first grouse" story Danny has to remember.

That afternoon Gracie seemed to just come into her own! She made at least six classic points and some were at nearly forty yards. Danny's bird was one of a flock of three that Gracie pointed. They got up within a second or so of each other. Lots of shooting ensued! Another point she made was when she was quartering cross-slope and it was like she did a double-take turning her body into a tight horseshoe and freezing fast with her muzzle low, left front paw drawn up close to her chest, and her white 'plume' tail highly held. I'll remember that picture for a long time in my mind's eye... until a better one comes along. Well Jamie walked in on that point but when the grouse flushed it stayed very low and was screened by brush until it was nearly fifty yards away.

Grace got some very well-earned rest time back at camp....



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