A lot of late winter grouse hunts end this way.
It’s raining. But we’re hunting grouse anyway, a golden retriever and I, walking down an old logging road that has become a seasonal stream. Tire ruts transformed into riffles, runs and pools; water overflows into grassy meadows and thick salal and sword fern patches beneath the cedars. My boots are soaked through, and I’m wet thigh-high from pushing through the saturated brush. Chloe’s paws are muddy, too. She’s soaked all over. The temperature has been falling for the past half hour, and our breath is visible. I blow on my fingertips as Chloe works the cover in front of me. She gets birdy and charges a salal patch where, I presume, a ruffed grouse is sitting. The problem with this is the 40-foot Douglas fir standing between me and the patch of salal. I make a break for the other side and touch off a shot as the bird slices into the trees. I blow through my hands and watch my breath disappear with the grouse.
A lot of late winter grouse hunts end this way. Western Oregon grouse season runs to the end of January. The woods are dark gray and quiet. The madness of September bird hunting is gone, as are black-tailed deer general rifle season crowds. The environment is no longer suitable for the casual bird hunter. This time of year Chloe and I walk for miles, finding, flushing and occasionally killing ruffed grouse and maybe a few mountain quail. We work together, gauging each other’s speed and location. I try to put her into places where birds are; she tries to find them and flush them.
Denne historien er fra Winter 2016-utgaven av The Upland Almanac.
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Denne historien er fra Winter 2016-utgaven av The Upland Almanac.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
Allerede abonnent? Logg på
Tailfeathers
The essence of fly fishing, I think I've decided, is time.
Ten Questions with Tim Flagler, Fly Tyer/Cook Extraordinaire
Culinary Creations from Gordon Hamersley
GREY on the Wing
Hands clutching the wheel of a large, lumbering vehicle whose vintage and purpose partially prompted the invention of \"powering steering,\" disengaged the clutch and applied the brakes, bringing it to a stop.
James Purdey & Sons Ltd.One of London's "Best"
At the conclusion of a recent breakfast meeting of the Shrewsbury Men's Club of Massachusetts, I was packing up my show-and-tell aids after giving a presentation.
WAWAWAI
I don't chase chukars anymore, but from the time I was 16, chukar hunting had been my favorite bird hunting endeavor.
A FAIR EXCHANGE
Among the concerns faced by many small community gun clubs here in the Northeast is our inability to attract and maintain new and younger shooters.
Coming to Heel
I'n the world of gun dogs, it's not unusual that retrievers are taught to heel.
Bird Dogs - Health Matters
Avoiding Medical Mishaps on the Road
MATT HART
Matt Hart, owner, designer and artist of Hartist Metals, is a highly skilled metal sculptor based in the picturesque Catskill Mountains of New York.
Luigi Franchi Imperial Monte Carlo Extra: One of Italy's "Best" SxS Doubles
As on London’s gun-maker’s row, Italians had skilled craftsmen who made “Best” guns of superb quality