Scouting Woodcock - No Joy

[Woodcock survey]

Edgar you are so right. Was many years ago that i had the joy of my sons first birds and deer and now granddaughter and grandsons first birds and deer. No accomplishment of my own ever compared with those days.
As we grow in the sport we find more satisfaction in the accomplishment of our companions than our own especially so when we have taught them to shoot, hunt and appreciate their surroundings.

[Dean Romig]

I'm a bit jealous Edgar!





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[tom tutwiler]

Originally Posted by Dean Romig

I'm a bit jealous Edgar!





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Me as well. I have 3 kids and none of them have any desire to hunt and they were all exposed to it a lot.

[Reggie B]

Just read on another site where an upland Hunter in Southern VA harvested 79 woodcock this season. While I don’t agree with taking that many birds, it seems to me that Woodcock are there if you can find them.

[Dean Romig]

I wonder what drives a man to kill as many as he can, knowing woodcock are not an infinite resource…





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[tom tutwiler]

Looked my notes today. I hunted Woodcock 12 times this year in 3 different states. On 6 hunts I failed to move a bird. 3 hunts I moved one bird. Guess as in real estate it's all about location. Feel bad for the pup more then me. Indeed southern and SE Va have had the most birds this season. As I mentioned before 4 birds have gotten a ride home. I have shot surprisingly well. I think I have shot 10 shells this entire hunting season.

[Zacharysmith]

I had no issue at all finding Woodcock in Maine and NH last season. I've kept a journal for 15 years now and last year we moved more birds than ever. Maybe I'm getting better at finding cover and hunting them in general or just luck. I am friendly with a very well know older gentleman hunter here in NH that had terrible luck moving them last season. I pushed my 6-7 month GSP pup to get on as many wild birds as possible with my old girl showing her the ropes. Flights came through the typical week or so later in the season. I don't think the population is decreasing much from hunting pressure. I believe it is lack of habitat just like grouse. Get rid of the new homes and return the forests to young growth and the population would boom. We can talk about a large freak storm (spring or fall) covering an area the size multiple states that could wipe out many times the about of birds all hunters could imagine in a season as well. I'm not going to blame the law-abiding hunter who is enjoying quality time in the uplands with his best friends. I live for those few days a year with my dogs.

If someone thinks 3 is a steep limit, check out the 8 per day limit in Quebec and New Brunswick.

Come on up to the North country Tom, plenty of birds for the both of us.

[tom tutwiler]

I hunted yesterday for almost 2 hours and moved no birds. However my other buddy I hunted with wanted to be there at daylight and I believe that was a bad move. My reasoning is another friend hunted the exact same cover 3 hours later and moved 2 birds and took one. I think what I have learned even in a down year is the last remaining flight birds coming in are arriving tired and once they land they are loafing for a few hours before they start moving around and feeding. When it comes to any game bird it seems the the early bird doesn't always catch the worm.

Rain today, so I am done. Sophie I have determined should not hunt two days in a row. Every other day at age 8 is enough.

[birddogdoc]

I just got back for SC and they have good numbers of woodcock. We had 20 pointed birds the first day and 18 and 19 birds the next two days.

[BRDHNTR]

The last couple of times recently that I ran my English setter, Sophie, in the quail fields at Myles Standish she has located and held point on woodcock and a single grouse that startled me big time
on the flush. Was not expecting a grouse there. Probably the only grouse left in myles standish