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November 04, 2009
Rooster Wrap - 12
by Brian Lynn
 SD Day 3: Enlarge Photo It was another phenomenal day of shooting Browning Cynergy and Citori as well as Winchester 101 model over and unders loaded with Winchester Super-X Super Pheasant loads in 2-3/4 inch 4s and 6s here at R&R Pheasant Hunting in South Dakota. If you need proof, just look at the death tally: the second day in a row of 100 birds in the basket. Our three-day tally was in the neighborhood of 260 birds for 11 or 12 shooters per day. Alas, all good things must come to an end and we head home tomorrow (Thursday). The hunting here just got better and better each day and it's tough to leave, especially after seeing how my Lab, Kona, reacted (and handled) all the bird scent and contact. I just want to keep hunting and watching him work birds. I was impressed at his performance and he seemingly impressed my hunting partners, guides and even the owner of the operation. He made me proud, which is the most we dog guys can hope for. I don't think he impressed enough to score me a guiding job on the property, so I guess I'll have to keep scratching out a living as a writer. Today, the wind eased up and it got so warm that I was hunting in a t-shirt during the afternoon...something that's unheard of in the Dakotas in November! The heat and light wind seemed to hamper scenting conditions, so we had to keep forcing ourselves to slow down and really let the dogs dig out the roosters in the milo fields. Even though we tried to take it slow, I made sure to give Kona water when he'd bring a rooster to hand and to rest him after each hunt. I even took up post as a blocker twice to give him cool-down time. Here's a little tip: If you're ever in the Dakota's hunting, volunteer to take your turn as a blocker when working corn. The pheasants tend to run the rows and give the blockers some good shooting. Also, if you're in the market for a new shotgun, check out the Browning website. They have a "Cynergy Club," which gives you $500 in free gear if you buy a new Cynergy over and under (which was responsible for many, many pheasants dying this week). As part of the club you get a custom hard case, soft zipper case, limited edition range bag, an exclusive Browning shooting cap, as well as a $100 check. It's up bright and early to drive to Montana tomorrow. After a couple of days rest for Kona and myself, as well as some family time (and grudgingly work), we'll be hunting the Ft. Benton area of Montana with Pheasants Forever. I hope Kona continues performing like he did this week and doesn't have a brain fart. I'll let you know how it goes! |
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Comments (12)
sounds like you have a real winner in your dog kona.your right its hard to stop hunting when your having that much fun!
You're making me wish I didn't have so much to do here. I would love to go up there and get some birds from there to fill my freezer.
I can read between the lines. You miss Pheasant hunting in New Jersey don't you?
I don't know if you were talking to me, but I haven't been in New Jersey since 1975, and had no opportunity to hunt there. Was just there in passing.
What I miss is hunting in Nebraska. The pheasant hunting there was awesome way back when.
Sorry Bo I was writing to Brian. Trust me I was only kidding with him
Brian - Sounds like you and Kona are having a blast - so to speak. I'm curious to hear how you liked the Cynergy models and if you'd prefer it over one of the Citoris. Not really gun dog related so you can pm me your impressions. Glad to hear Kona was doing well -- maybe you can do a piece on canine over heating and/or hypothermia. Miss you around the NJ fields - with our 2 bird limit. - Chris
2 bird limit? holy cow!
i remember when i took my lab Chaos out for his first time with a couple of seasoned hunters on a duck hunt. i knew what he could do but i was still nervous hoping he would get it right. man, he hasn't had a bad day yet and after another year, if he does he deserves it. he is the best i've ever had and the first i've trained on my own. were those wild birds you were hunting?
While I was fortunate enough to grow up in South Dakota, I know all to well the hunting and fishing opportunities to be had. I must say your tally for 11-12 hunters for 3 days is a bit misleading as far as State Regulations/daily limits are concerned. Could you offer us a little insight on how we, the average hunter can legally bag that many birds a day, on public lands? or were you on one of those NJ style bird hunts?
They were probably paying to hunt some operation that is set up for that. But still it is fun to do.
Yoda, you are right about that pay to hunt thing, of course shooting endless birds all day is a treat. SD (probably like most states) has had a lot of problems in the past of hunters taking more than the legal limit of both game and also fish, which in turn hurts all sportsmen. I should have stated in my first post that the legal limit of Pheasant is 3 per day in SD, so as not to confuse the out of staters that you can not just go there and shoot until your shoulder is ready to fall off, that is of course if you can afford it, and if so take a camera to capture the memories. The lodge they went to allows 5 per day(?) and $30 a bird over that up to a total of 20 per day. The moral to the story is if you want to shoot farm raised birds for $30 a pop, then go for it, if you can not afford that then the limit is 3 on public or private land. Either way South Dakota has a great supply of Pheasants and many other opportunities for the sports minded.
Hey guys, not ignoring you, I've just been busy with catching up on some articles, other work, hanging with the little man and putting in family time over the last two days before heading just north of here to north-central Montana with Pheasants Forever.
RJW and Yoda, yes, R&R Pheasant Hunting is a licensed preserve that dedicates 6,000 acres of its 18,000-acre working ranch/farm to pheasant hunting. They supplement the wild birds found throughout the property by releasing crates of mature roosters about every two weeks. They're not going out the day of the hunt and dropping them in the field like other preserves around the country. In fact, Sal Roseland and I were talking about it. He made it a point that they have as little contact with the birds as possible; down to the fact that they don't touch them on the release. Instead, they just go to the middle of the property and open the crates and let the birds disperse at will. He also talked about how carefully SD Fish&Wildlife keeps tabs on preserves. If they mess up they lose their permit. So he makes sure to release many more birds (about 8,500 per year) than his shooters ever take. Also, he said that (by law I believe) the released birds have to be mature roosters, so any young birds and hens you see are all natural...and trust me, there were lots and lots of both! In fact, in one field we walked it was pretty amazing. Probably 80% of the birds flushed were hens...I'm talking like close to 20 hens in one 1/2-mile strip of milo. Nobody could believe it..we just kept calling out "hen" "hen" "hen!" Not great for hunting that strip, but a testament to the pheasant population and habitat of South Dakota!
And RJW, you're right, anyone heading to SD for pheasants on public land, the limit is 3 roosters. In no way was I trying to mislead you guys or condone over-harvesting of natural resources!
Also, Chris, I liked all the guns! However, I did enjoy the Cynergy to the Citori. I can't tell you why. I'm not a huge "gun nut" ... I just like the way it felt and pointed. I didn't care for the "light" version of the guns though. They weigh a pound less (6 pounds as compared to 7 pounds) and would probably be beneficial in chukar country, but they do kick! I'll tell ya, probably as much as the Cynergy, I enjoyed the Winchester 101 Field over and under. It's pretty sweet gun with nice accent engraving and the $$$ is less. I'm crunching numbers figuring out how to fit one in the budget...good thing the wife found a real job!! :)
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sounds like you have a real winner in your dog kona.your right its hard to stop hunting when your having that much fun!
You're making me wish I didn't have so much to do here. I would love to go up there and get some birds from there to fill my freezer.
I can read between the lines. You miss Pheasant hunting in New Jersey don't you?
I don't know if you were talking to me, but I haven't been in New Jersey since 1975, and had no opportunity to hunt there. Was just there in passing.
What I miss is hunting in Nebraska. The pheasant hunting there was awesome way back when.
Sorry Bo I was writing to Brian. Trust me I was only kidding with him
Brian - Sounds like you and Kona are having a blast - so to speak. I'm curious to hear how you liked the Cynergy models and if you'd prefer it over one of the Citoris. Not really gun dog related so you can pm me your impressions. Glad to hear Kona was doing well -- maybe you can do a piece on canine over heating and/or hypothermia. Miss you around the NJ fields - with our 2 bird limit. - Chris
2 bird limit? holy cow!
i remember when i took my lab Chaos out for his first time with a couple of seasoned hunters on a duck hunt. i knew what he could do but i was still nervous hoping he would get it right. man, he hasn't had a bad day yet and after another year, if he does he deserves it. he is the best i've ever had and the first i've trained on my own. were those wild birds you were hunting?
While I was fortunate enough to grow up in South Dakota, I know all to well the hunting and fishing opportunities to be had. I must say your tally for 11-12 hunters for 3 days is a bit misleading as far as State Regulations/daily limits are concerned. Could you offer us a little insight on how we, the average hunter can legally bag that many birds a day, on public lands? or were you on one of those NJ style bird hunts?
They were probably paying to hunt some operation that is set up for that. But still it is fun to do.
Yoda, you are right about that pay to hunt thing, of course shooting endless birds all day is a treat. SD (probably like most states) has had a lot of problems in the past of hunters taking more than the legal limit of both game and also fish, which in turn hurts all sportsmen. I should have stated in my first post that the legal limit of Pheasant is 3 per day in SD, so as not to confuse the out of staters that you can not just go there and shoot until your shoulder is ready to fall off, that is of course if you can afford it, and if so take a camera to capture the memories. The lodge they went to allows 5 per day(?) and $30 a bird over that up to a total of 20 per day. The moral to the story is if you want to shoot farm raised birds for $30 a pop, then go for it, if you can not afford that then the limit is 3 on public or private land. Either way South Dakota has a great supply of Pheasants and many other opportunities for the sports minded.
Hey guys, not ignoring you, I've just been busy with catching up on some articles, other work, hanging with the little man and putting in family time over the last two days before heading just north of here to north-central Montana with Pheasants Forever.
RJW and Yoda, yes, R&R Pheasant Hunting is a licensed preserve that dedicates 6,000 acres of its 18,000-acre working ranch/farm to pheasant hunting. They supplement the wild birds found throughout the property by releasing crates of mature roosters about every two weeks. They're not going out the day of the hunt and dropping them in the field like other preserves around the country. In fact, Sal Roseland and I were talking about it. He made it a point that they have as little contact with the birds as possible; down to the fact that they don't touch them on the release. Instead, they just go to the middle of the property and open the crates and let the birds disperse at will. He also talked about how carefully SD Fish&Wildlife keeps tabs on preserves. If they mess up they lose their permit. So he makes sure to release many more birds (about 8,500 per year) than his shooters ever take. Also, he said that (by law I believe) the released birds have to be mature roosters, so any young birds and hens you see are all natural...and trust me, there were lots and lots of both! In fact, in one field we walked it was pretty amazing. Probably 80% of the birds flushed were hens...I'm talking like close to 20 hens in one 1/2-mile strip of milo. Nobody could believe it..we just kept calling out "hen" "hen" "hen!" Not great for hunting that strip, but a testament to the pheasant population and habitat of South Dakota!
And RJW, you're right, anyone heading to SD for pheasants on public land, the limit is 3 roosters. In no way was I trying to mislead you guys or condone over-harvesting of natural resources!
Also, Chris, I liked all the guns! However, I did enjoy the Cynergy to the Citori. I can't tell you why. I'm not a huge "gun nut" ... I just like the way it felt and pointed. I didn't care for the "light" version of the guns though. They weigh a pound less (6 pounds as compared to 7 pounds) and would probably be beneficial in chukar country, but they do kick! I'll tell ya, probably as much as the Cynergy, I enjoyed the Winchester 101 Field over and under. It's pretty sweet gun with nice accent engraving and the $$$ is less. I'm crunching numbers figuring out how to fit one in the budget...good thing the wife found a real job!! :)
Post a Comment (200 characters or less)