I have hunted the opening day of quail season in Missouri and also in Kansas for a lot of years. The weather forecast for the opener was for light rain with an accumulation of about .08. That doesn’t sound like much so Vince Dye and I went. First to a private place and then to a Missouri Conservation Area.
Luke is almost 12 and has had a stroke. I put some pigeons out for him.
Boss pointing a pigeon.
Ally, Vince’s short hair.
The light rain kept coming down. Pretty soon we were wet from head to toe so it didn’t make a lot of difference. Vince had mowed part of the first place we hunted. He had seen quite a few quail at the time. It was a 160 acres of CRP next to some row crops. We made a circle next to the row crops then down an abandoned railroad track. Across the end next to harvested soybeans. Back, toward the truck, next to the road with harvested soybean fields across the road. We made it back to the truck without seeing any game birds.
We drove to a Missouri Conservation Area where I had found 3 coveys last season. The corn was still in the field where one of the coveys were found last season so we crossed the road where there is normally two coveys. We covered the area, getting wetter and wetter. The dogs aren’t in the best shape yet and were hunting closer and closer to us. We covered most of the ground where the birds were found without seeing anything. We loaded the dogs and went home.
Two days later we went to another Missouri Conservation Area. Most of these areas have a lot of bow hunters after deer. We really don’t like hunting the same areas. If a camouflaged hunter was in a tree stand and a quail flushed close and flew between me and the hunter he could be shot without me knowing he was there.
We checked most of the area out before turning dogs loose. Vince had his German short haired female Ally and his English Cocker, Maggie. I had only brought Mann and Abby. We went through some really thick, heavy weeds. As we went to the south Ally went on point. By the time we found her in the thick weeds Abby and Mann were honoring. I took a picture and we walked in.
A single quail flushed. I figured that Vince would get that bird and I waited for the covey to flush. Vince waited for me to shoot. He finally shot after the bird was out quite a way without any luck. No other birds flushed. We worked the area without finding any others.
Ally on point with Abby and Mann in the deep grass honoring.
We went on to the south. We had found some singles last year in the area close to this bird. As we searched it Mann went on point. When we got close he was right next to a draw with some mature trees. Another single quail flushed. I shot and missed but Vince dropped it on his second shot. Maggie, the English cocker, made a good retrieve.
Before Maggie made it back with the retrieve another single got up and put a tree between it and us. We worked through the draw then separated. Vince and his dogs went close to the road where Maggie flushed a couple of birds that Vince didn’t get a shot at. We got back together and started back to the truck.
About 300 yards from the truck we saw a covey flush. The wind was strong out of the south and Mann was in the area. We don’t know what happened but he was probably going with the wind and didn’t smell them until they flushed. The covey flushed across the road onto more Conservation ground. The dogs were tired from hunting the heavy grass and we were going to rest them for about 30 minutes before chasing the singles.
Abby on point.
As we came down a hedge row and were almost to the truck a single bird flushed. By the time I could shoot it was through the hedge row. I shot anyway. I heard Vince shoot just a split second after I shot. I asked if he got it. He said, “No, it was on the way down from your shot when I shot”.
Maggie saw the bird drop and went right to the spot. But the bird was gone. We got all the dogs in and tried to find the cripple. Mann went east of us and went on point. This was about where we thought the singles had flown. When we got to him all of the dogs started trailing. We never came up with the singles. On the way back to the truck we went through where we thought the wounded bird was with no luck.
As we waited while the dogs rested Vince decided to take Maggie back one more time to find the bird we had knocked down. They worked about ten minutes but still didn’t come up with the bird.
We drove to another area we wanted to try. There were deer hunters already there so we decided to go to another Conservation area. When we got to the area we wanted to hunt on the next Conservation area there were two vehicles there. We went to an area that we had passed on the way.
The big ranch that we were hunting.
We separated with Vince going through a strip of grass that was left in a harvested corn field. I went through a weed patch next to the corn field. At the end of the corn field we got back together. We went on to the south to the end of the property then to the east property line and back to the truck. We didn’t see a game bird. When we got back to the truck we gave up and went home.
Late Thursday night I decided to go to Kansas prairie chicken hunting. So I was up early and loaded dogs, Abby, Bodie, Boss and Mann, so I could miss the rush hour traffic in Kansas City. This would be Bodie’s first road trip.
I drove past a huge cattle ranch that looked like a good place for prairie chickens but might also hold a few quail. I put e-collars and GPS collars on Abby, Boss and Mann but just a GPS collar on Bodie. I didn’t really think Bodie would need a GPS but it wasn’t long before I was glad he had it. He was 4 months and 6 days old but he ran.
This was a beautiful place to run dogs. I could see Mann and Boss at 500 yards as they ran the country. Abby didn’t make 500 yard casts but she ran pretty good. The surprise was Bodie. He started trying to follow Mann and Boss but couldn’t keep up. It didn’t seem to bother him. When they got far ahead of him he just kept going. He made several casts of over 300 yards. The wind was really blowing from the south. This made it hard for Bodie to hear me call him. The other dogs are used to keeping track of me and coming in when I beep them on their e-collar.
Abby pointing a chukar.
As I walked along Bodie came in front of me, close. There was a little ditch in front of him about 18 inches deep. He isn’t used to ditches. He thought he could walk across the ditch and fell to the bottom of it. I laughed at him. He acted like it hurt his feelings but these young dogs have to learn everything. The first time he went under a barb wire fence it was a big deal but by the time we got back to the truck he was doing it well.
There was a cross fence after we got back in about half a mile. I was leaning on a pipe fence post watching Boss who was about 400 yards away running. I really enjoy these wide open places where I can see the dogs for a long way. I heard quail flushing behind me. I turned and Mann was on point right behind me and about 6 or 8 quail flushed to the west. Mann was still on point and I knew there were still birds in front of him. I took a couple of steps toward him and a single bird got up out of a small multi flora rose bush. When it flushed it flew low to the north east and about 7 or 8 more quail went with it.
There was a small creek to the north that we crossed to see if we could find some singles. Another new thing for Bodie but he handled it well. We checked around without finding any birds and went toward the area of the birds that had flown to the west. I really don’t like to make a lot of noise when I’m hunting but Bodie was off about 350 yards. The older dogs are trained to come in with the tone but Bodie isn’t plus he didn’t have a collar on that I could tone him with.
Bodie pointing a pigeon.
As I called Bodie the dogs checked a small draw where I thought maybe the first bunch of birds had flown. Bodie came back and Abby pointed in front of me. Bodie went to her and licked her face. Abby was disgusted with her kid but put up with it. When I got close she moved to another clump of brush and went back on point. Bodie was still trying to play with her. I was hoping a quail would flush from the bush but they had already run off, I believe. Probably when I was calling Bodie.
Mann came by and stopped at the bush that Abby had pointed at. He didn’t stay long, though. We went on to the south west but Bodie made a big cast to the west. I called him and started to the west. I walked well over a quarter of a mile then stopped at another cross fence. I checked the GPS and Bodie was still on the other side of a ridge, over 350 yards from me. There were cows on that side so I stood at the fence and called.
As I watched the GPS he was coming closer. Pretty soon, at about 200 yards, I could see him coming. Some of the cows were moving away from him but some were standing their ground. He wasn’t intimidated, at all. He saw me as he came over a rise then dropped out of sight in another low spot. He came straight on. He came right by me and went on to the front. For a 4 month old pup he’s almost fearless.
When we got back to the truck I loaded the dogs. Bodie was more ready to get in the box than he had been earlier that morning. I started looking for another place to hunt. Prairie chicken hunting is really just a fact finding trip. I use these to find places I want to quail hunt when the season opens.
Bodie on another pigeon.
I drove by several places that I circled on my walk-in atlas. I found a pasture that wrapped around a harvested soybean field on two sides. I left Bodie in the truck and turned the other 3 dogs loose. We went into the south wind that seemed to be getting stronger. There was plenty of cover in the pasture to hold quail but we circled the soybean field and then went to the east up a good fence row and back to the truck. We hadn’t found any game birds. I loaded the dogs.
I drove by several more places before leaving to get back home without getting caught in the rush hour traffic. Having Bodie along was great. I enjoy watching puppies learn and he learned a lot. I’ve had puppies that had a hard time crossing barb wire fences. The first one was kind of tough for him but before the day was over he had it figured out. At 4 months old I don’t really want to run him for a long time but a few short hunts are good for him. And for me.