Austin Farley and I had heard some good reports on the quail hunting in north west Missouri and also, southern Iowa. Missouri has very few places to hunt in the north west for quail so we decided to give southern Iowa a try. We found a license at the Hyvee in Lamoni Iowa. The Hyvee had no books on the walk-in properties so Austin called the conservation department. If the lady that he talked to was right, Iowa doesn’t put out a book. You have to go to their website and down load whatever property you want to hunt. There is also an app you can get on your smart phone. Austin had this on his phone.
Luke
Sally honoring.
Luke pointing a covey of quail.
We drove around, looking at some properties then decided to turn some dogs out on a conservation area. We had seen some trucks parked about a mile and a half away on this area. I thought their deer season was over but it doesn’t end for a few days. It’s less scary to quail hunt in Iowa than some of the states because they can only hunt with shotguns using slugs.
The area we turned Luke, Sally and Ember out was in tall weeds with some small fields of harvested corn and soy beans scattered through out. Ember is a young pointing lab that hasn’t been hunted very much in upland but has retrieved a lot of ducks and geese. She will point birds when she gets a chance.
The weather man had said the wind would blow in the afternoon in Kansas City and I thought maybe it was coming in from the south west and wouldn’t get to Iowa until much later. Boy, was I wrong. We had to hold on to the doors, on the truck, when we opened them or the wind would wrap them around backwards.
We had parked close to a harvested corn field so we started around it. Luke and Sally were both working a big weedy draw that ran close to the corn field. I saw Sally point then move ahead. The GPS said Luke was on point ahead of us as well. Down at the end of the draw a rooster pheasant flushed and laughed at us. Over on my left a hen pheasant flushed. At least hen pheasants can’t laugh or at least can’t laugh out loud.
We worked the field almost to the road on the south and moved over to go back toward the truck. I checked the GPS and Luke was on point about 75 yards from us. When we got within about 40 yards of him we could see him. As we watched he moved to his right about 5 yards and went back on point. We started to him and he moved up and back near where he was originally on point. Then he moved forward and to his right and went back on point. Then he moved forward and to his left and went back on point. Austin and I were just standing watching him. About 40 yards in front of him and only about 20 yards from us a large covey of quail flushed, down in some brush, without giving us a shot.
We checked in the direction the quail had flown, going below a big pond then back around and back toward the truck. We had gone about a half mile when the GPS said Luke was on point about 35 yards from me. When we got to him Sally was honoring. They both were in a small thicket. I told Austin to get where he could shoot and I would flush them. When I went in a covey flushed, never getting much higher than the weeds and flew right into the strong wind. Neither of us got a shot.
We followed in the direction the covey had flown. After about a quarter of a mile Luke pointed with his belly almost touching the ground. He just knew there was a bird right in front of him. When I went in nothing flushed. He went in trailing then just went on. Something had run out on us.
As we went on toward the truck we noticed a small soy bean field we hadn’t been around. As we started up the hill to it Sally started pointing then moving up. We got right behind her and started to the top of the hill. She pointed right where the grass ran into the soy bean field and when I stepped up there she thought a bird would flush but nothing got up. As I was standing watching her the wind blew me back a step or two. I’ve hunted in some strong winds but this one takes the cake.
Tur Bo pointing a single quail.
As we got close to the truck we started seeing hunters. They were deer hunters that were making a drive and these were the blockers or they thought we might move some deer. Sally was running an edge and saw one of the hunters and went on point. I used every release command I knew but she wasn’t moving. I had to walk 50 or 60 yards, tap her on the head and say, “okay” before she would move.
We loaded the dogs and ate our lunch on the way to another place. We knew our chances were slight in the strong wind but this was the first time, in this area, for either of us and we drove just looking at the different properties.
I still had two dogs that hadn’t been out of the box since I had loaded them about 6:00 am. We stopped at another conservation area and turned Tur Bo and Dolly out. I’m not hunting Tur Bo very long because he just had his knee cap re-attached. Dr. Becker didn’t put any restrictions on him but I’m not going to let him over do it.
Sally pointing a quail.
This place was about like the first with weed fields next to corn and soy bean fields. This area had been burned last year or at least recently and was a lot easier walking. We went down a fence row along side a corn field then along a soy bean field. We went back in about a half mile then moved over into a weed field and started back toward the truck. As we went around the end of a pond we saw where something had killed a quail. At least there were some in the area.
About 50 yards past the pond Tur Bo was pointing into the weeds in front of us. When we got close he moved over and went back on point. He then moved into the weeds and went on point. When we got close he went on to my left trailing. I was trying to watch the dogs but the weeds were too high. I saw a quail flying from my right to my left but didn’t get a shot. I think both dogs were to my left.
Luke pointing a quail.
We took the dogs in the direction that the quail had flown but although both dogs got real birdy and did a lot of trailing we never came up with anything. The dogs hunted on back to the truck where we loaded them up and headed home. We looked at some more properties on the way.
It was a good day even with the wind blowing. We had some dog work and Sally and Ember got to work some running birds. We found another area to hunt with birds. We will be going back.
I’m having to recycle pictures. I carry my camera then forget to take pictures. When I don’t carry a gun I get good pictures. No more shots than I have gotten the last couple of hunts it wouldn’t be a bad thing to just carry a camera. Someone said, “quail are too valuable to shoot.” I believe that also.
Sally pointing 2 quail.
Dolly on point.
Tur Bo backing Sally.