28 gauge VHE

[Steiner]

I've heard stories of huntable grouse populations in E and SE Ohio but never hunted grouse in Ohio. Living on the northern edge of the state makes Michigan a much preferred (and superior) grouse hunting destination. I was also fortunate enough to make it up into your neck of the woods to hunt a few days in New Hampshire last year and plan to do so again this year.

[John Bastiani]

Originally Posted by Dan Steingraber

I've heard stories of huntable grouse populations in E and SE Ohio but never hunted grouse in Ohio. Living on the northern edge of the state makes Michigan a much preferred (and superior) grouse hunting destination. I was also fortunate enough to make it up into your neck of the woods to hunt a few days in New Hampshire last year and plan to do so again this year.

In the 70's Grouse and Quail were in abundance in southern Ohio. Virtually every farm had at least one covey of Quail and if you had some woods with alittle bit of honeysuckle for cover you had Grouse as well. We lived in town but had a 640 acre farm that had five coveys of wild Quail in the bottoms and plenty of grouse in the overgrown hills(that had been timbered). In the late 70's we had a ice storm that starved and killed most of the Quail and they never recovered. I'm not sure what killed off the grouse but their numbers went way down in the 80's and are few and far between now. The quail have come back enough were there is a limited season in some southern Ohio counties but nothing like the heyday of the 60's and 70's. I was lucky to have lived and hunted in the primetime of this era and had some of the best Brittany spaniels to hunt with.

[Harold Pickens]

I shot my first grouse in Ohio when I was 15, and was at that moment transformed into a passionate grouse hunter. I was born and raised and still work in SE Ohio, hunting Belmont, Jefferson ,Monroe and Harrison counties mostly. 25-30 flush days were common/expected. Half day hunts were in the upper teens. Best day was 62 flushes around 1990, and we tried not to count obvious reflushes. With a season that was almost 5 months, it was easy to shoot 40-50 (well, maybe not easy) grouse/season. When the grouse pop. started to plummet , the cover was stiil here. I told all who would listen, that it was due to a virus, probably West Nile, but was poo-pooed. I had a Masters in microbiology and was working on a PhD in Microbiology and epidemiology before I went to optometry school. Now look what they are saying.
Now the Appalachian wild turkey population is plummeting, hmm, wonder why.

Anyway, back to the original thread, quite a nice Parker 28, I too, am uncomfortable without a safety, and would add one. Be sure and post pictures afterwards.