Like a man almost suffocated...

[Dean Romig]

We got back up to grouse camp this morning about 9:30, unpacked and were out hunting by 10:30.
We were hoping the woodcock flights had dropped in since last Sunday evening when we went home... and they had!

Ten minutes into the tangled Gracie came on point. I stepped in and a woodcock popped into the air skimming over the tops of the bushes and small saplings. I dropped him neatly and Gracie made a bee line to him. She picked him up but put him right down again and ran straight to me then back to the bird and stood over him. She’ll retrieve a grouse with no hesitation.
So back to hunting. A minute later four grouse flushed unseen behind a screen of young spruces... never a shot was fired.

Within fifteen minutes I was on the rim of a bowl of low brush and scrubapple trees. The exact area where Phil Carr put up a woodcock and couldn’t get a clear shot at it. Jamie was below me and it seemed most of the woodcock were high where Gracie and I were working. Gracie pointed again. Two woodcock flushed - a huge female I presume and a much smaller male. I shot twice at the male as I couldn’t get a clear shot at the larger bird... no score.

Anyway, we hunted for another hour or so and had fifteen woodcock flushes in all and eight grouse flushes. The grouse flushed too far out for a fair shot so we passed on all of them. But we sure burned some powder on those woodcock though.

In the first picture Gracie is pointing a woodcock... which I missed.

Gracie chose Jamie as a nap mate.

Tomorrow’s another day.

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