Vince Dye and I started for Iowa, to quail hunt, and the closer we got the more snow there was on the ground. I didn’t know it had snowed in northern Missouri and into Iowa on Sunday. Vince had been deer hunting over the weekend and he said there was quite a bit of snow on Sunday. When we started walking the public land in Iowa the snow was probably 6 inches with a lot of deeper drifts.
After the hunt in Iowa.
Tur Bo pointing a single.
Dolly nearly 13 years old pointing a covey of quail.
Vince knew of a small place that he had seen quail on earlier that we thought we should check on the way. We thought the hunt would be a good place for just our puppies, so I turned Mann out with the e-collar and GPS collar on. Vince turned his young GSP, Allie, out but he also took Maggie his English Cocker spaniel. Most of the soy beans had been harvested on this place leaving a lot less cover than when Vince had been here before.
We went down a draw through the middle of the soy bean field. When we got to the end we turned to the west and brought a ditch back to near the truck. The only cover left was on the east side. On the other side was a huge field of unharvested soy beans. We were about half way down the east side with Vince close to the fence and me in the edge of the harvested soy beans. I heard Vince yell, “there goes one.” As I turned toward him a large covey of quail flushed.
Several quail came through the brush and flew across the field about 20 yards in front of me. I got on one and it dropped when I shot so I switched to another. The second bird was hit hard so I headed toward the first. Allie, Vince’s GSP, saw or smelled the quail. When she got close the bird tried to fly but only got about 2 feet off the ground. Allie grabbed it and brought it to me. We went to get the other and she found it lying, belly up.
Vince said that 3 more quail flushed while Allie and I were getting my dead birds but flew right into the sun where he couldn’t shoot. We checked all of the available cover without finding any of the singles from the covey. We loaded our dogs and went to another place.
The next place was farther north and the snow was deeper. I had brought Sally, Luke and Tur Bo and they hadn’t been out of the box so I put the collars on them and turned them loose. Vince had another GSP that hadn’t been out so he turned Indy and Maggie, his cocker out. All of the dogs except Tur Bo and Maggie had gone ahead. Tur Bo went on point about 30 yards in front of the truck. He was on a small hill with a high head and a straight, twelve o’clock tail, looking beautiful and I didn’t bring the camera. He was pointing into a small thicket right on the property line.
Vince stayed behind a short distance to make sure Indy, his new dog would honor Tur Bo. I walked in and a nice covey of quail flushed, stayed low and flew off the public land. Neither of us got a shot.
We went on down the property line to some thick hedge rows that split the small soy bean fields. Vince was on one side with me on the other. A quarter mile or so down the hedge row a rooster pheasant came out of the hedge row flying low with Maggie right behind it. It folded when I shot and Maggie scooped it up. The pheasant looked as big as she is but she started to Vince with it. If I shoot a bird and Vince picks it up or the dogs bring it to him he carries it until we get back to the truck. I wondered how he would handle the bigger bird. We walked along a little way and Vince said, “I didn’t hear you try to call Maggie to you”. I laughed.
Tur Bo pointing a single.
I checked the GPS and Luke was on point over 550 yards from us. I didn’t say anything for a while thinking the birds wouldn’t hold for him anyway. We had been going in the right direction then we needed to go to the west to get to him. I told Vince he was on point and at this time he was 480 yards from us. We started through some tall weeds that turned into horse weeds over our head. As we went along I checked the GPS to see if he was still on point. He was. We crossed through some woods and a creek but finally we got to him.
I waited for Vince to get in the right place and while we waited Indy honored. I walked in and a rooster pheasant flushed. I shot and down it came. I think Vince hung back but Indy and I got to the pheasant about the same time. I carried this one.
We went back to the hedge rows that split the soy bean fields. I came around a bend in the hedge row and saw Luke and Tur Bo on point. When I got closer I saw they were honoring Indy, Vince’s GSP. Sally came by and honored. I waited for Vince to get ready then walked in. A single quail flushed. It ran on the ground then flew down the hedge row. When I shot it dropped on Vince’s side. When I shot a covey flushed. I never saw them but I did hear them.
Maggie retrieved my bird and Vince carried it. We went on down the hedge row. The dogs were staying in and really working the hedge row. Indy pointed on Vince’s side and he dropped the single in some tall weeds. Maggie found the dead bird and brought it to Vince.
Mann on point but not getting a lot of scent.
I checked the GPS and we had walked by Luke. He was on point 40 yards behind us. When we got close he was on Vince’s side. It was too thick for me to even try to get through the hedge row. Vince walked in and kicked a small clump of weeds. Nothing happened but Luke didn’t move. Vince kicked again and Luke went to the other side and went back on point. Vince kicked again and about 6 quail flushed out of the small clump. Vince shot twice and dropped two quail. I found a place to cross the hedge row to help him find his birds. Maggie found one but we never found the other. I went back through the hedge row.
As we went down the hedge row I checked the GPS and Luke was on point 220 yards from us. I crossed the hedge row and started to him. Thirty yards past the hedge row there were horse weeds really thick and taller than our head. All of the way we fought our way through. Vince and I were separated by about 40 yards. Finally, on the far side, where we were almost out of these tall weeds, I saw Luke on point, waiting for me. I told Vince I found him, come on over.
It was really thick and Vince said he couldn’t make it. For me to go ahead. When I got beside Luke a rooster pheasant flushed and tried to fly around a short cedar tree. He dropped on the other side. Tur Bo and I got there at the same time. Now I was carrying two of these heavy birds.
When Vince and I got back together he said, “when I saw that bird drop”, I told Maggie, “don’t go get that bird”.
Tur Bo after the pigeon has flown.
We went back to the hedge rows and started down them. We got near the truck and decided to go to another place. There was a little draw running from the soy bean field into a larger draw that ran along the road. Vince walked down it and I moved over closer. Tur Bo came in front of Vince and went down the draw. I saw him go on point. When we got closer Sally was on one side and Tur Bo on the other. Both on point.
Vince decided he could drive them back onto the place we were hunting. He circled around and when he got to Tur Bo he said, “I think they are just honoring each other”. When he said that a big covey of quail flushed. Most of the quail flew up the draw. One bird came out by me and when I pulled the trigger he turned to fly back up the draw with the rest. My first miss of the day. Vince had shot once without connecting, too.
We went on down the big draw with Vince on one side and me on the other. I tried to cross to Vince’s side to check out some tall grass but the ditch was too deep and the brush too thick. I went back the way I came and when I got to the truck I loaded the dogs. I drove up the road and picked up Vince and his dogs.
We drove around looking for another place to hunt without finding anything that made us want to get out of the truck. The deep snow and thick cover had taken its toll on us. We were tired and the truck seats felt good. We had only seen 3 pheasants and they were all roosters. We hadn’t seen any hens. We had seen a lot of birds and had some good dog work. It had been a good day.
Sally on point. Luke is on point in the woods 20 yards in front of her. She can’t see him.
Mann on wild quail.
Luke pointing a covey of quail.