November first, opening day of quail season should be at least a state holiday if not a national. At one time the opener was November 10th but now it’s the first. I have not missed an opening day of quail season since at least 1968.
On opening day 2013, Don Bowlen and I hunted private land near Carrolton, Missouri. Don was raised in this area and still has friends here.
The first place we hunted I turned out Lucky and Whitey. Don had his Brittany, Ava. We had just started across a bean field, that had been combined, when Lucky went on point. He had rimmed the bean field and was on point in the edge of a CPR field near a clump of trees and brush. Ava and Whitey were still coming around the edge of the bean field, Don and I were still about 100 yards from Lucky when I saw one quail flush about 30 yards from Lucky. He didn’t move and no one else was even close.
The dogs checked the area out, although there seemed to be a lot of bird scent they found nothing. Expecting to find some of the covey we started in the direction the single had flown.
As we waded through waist high CRP I walked up a single. On my second shot it folded. It dropped into a low spot of green grass that was real tall and thick. The grass had fallen over creating a mass that was hard for the dogs and me to get around in. Ava, Lucky and Whitey worked back and forth to find the dead bird. After about ten minutes of searching we gave up without finding the bird.
Don and Ava started through the CRP and I moved over about 100 yards with my dogs. The CRP slowed Don and me down but it didn’t seem to bother the dogs. Just a few yards away from us and the dogs disappeared in the CRP.
A few minutes later the Garmin GPS showed Lucky on point about 200 yards away. As I moved towards him I looked for Don but could not see him to alert him to Lucky’s point. When I got to Lucky, with Whitey backing, Don was still over a little rise from us.
When I walked in front of Lucky the quail flushed up the hedge row they were in. One bird came out my side of the hedge row and I dropped it. My second shot missed a quail flying down the hedge row.
Whitey found my dead bird but she didn’t retrieve it. We’ve been working on the trained retrieve, but we aren’t there yet.
I waited on Don to come up before chasing the singles. I thought I knew where the covey landed but we never found them.
On the way back to the truck Lucky and I went back to the area where we had lost the first bird. After searching the area for another five minutes we gave up.
On the second place we hunted Don dropped me off on the north east corner then drove around to the south west corner. I had turned out Luke and Dolly to hunt west on a hedge row then south down another hedge row to meet Don and Ava.
About 100 yards down the hedge row I was hunting, another hedge row ran south for a short distance. Luke and Dolly ran down one side then back toward me on the other side. As I continued west I heard a covey flush deep in the hedge row. I didn’t see a bird but I thought they flew west.
Dolly went on point just in front of me. Thinking maybe all of them had not flushed I crawled into the hedge row. But they had all flown.
Going on west on the hedge row Dolly would point with Luke backing, I would try to get into the hedge row and hear a bird flush, then Luke would point with Dolly backing. I had four points with birds flushing at each, not counting Dolly pointing where they originally got up and never saw a bird. I did get some nice pictures after I remembered I had my camera with me.
Luke
Dolly backing Luke
Luke backing Dolly
After lunch I turned Lucky and Blaze loose in another area. This area had soy beans that had not been combined yet. We hunted some good looking draws and hedge rows but we didn’t find anything. After about an hour we gave up.
We had probably moved 3 coveys and killed only one bird but we were finding birds. When the farmers get most of the crops out and it cools down more it will be better hunting. And we put another opening day behind us. I hope we have many more.
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The weather was ok with a gentle wind. Rob and I have opened quail season in MO the last five years. It is always a thrill wondering if we will find more than the year before. I think this year is better than the last three or four years. The birds also seem to get smarter and fly faster each year. I am 80 now and don’t know how many more opening days I have left. Thanks Rob for putting up with me the last few years. I used to be a good shot and could hold my own on any day. Now I cant catch up with them.