![WAWAWAI](https://cdn.magzter.com/1409082599/1723556568/articles/YhuSF0afh1723627325222/WAWAWAI.jpg)
My last chukar hunt was in the Yakima Canyon of Washington State when I was 75. On that trip, I finally had to admit that bad knees, peripheral neuropathy and diminishing lung capacity on slippery steep slopes and loose basalt were a certain recipe for an eventual debilitating fall. I only shot one bird that day, a beautiful mature male that I decided on the spot to have mounted. Sadly, I left it overnight in a cooler that my dog nosed open, and he reduced "the last chukar" to a few feathers.
My favorite place to hunt chukars was always in Wawawai Canyon, a rugged piece of the vast Snake River breaks in southeastern Washington State. The name Wawawai, means talk-talk or council grounds in the Nez Perce and Palouse tongues. I had hunted chukars in Idaho and Oregon, too, but Wawawai Canyon was my "home turf," a two-hour drive from my residence in Spokane. With slick cheat grass and scabrock-covered slopes reaching from the Snake River to the sky, Wawawai Canyon was an intimidating but beautiful place. Mostly it was steep, but narrow benches of relatively flat ground dotted with sumac and balsamroot would sometimes entice me to abandon my painful uphill trudge and seek easier going along the side of the mountain. Invariably, these benches caused me to either backtrack or foolishly venture on. I then had to compromise life and limb by climbing hand over hand up near vertical walls of basalt - hard to do while toting a shotgun, and a good way to lose your dog.
Denne historien er fra Summer 2024-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
Denne historien er fra Summer 2024-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](https://reseuro.magzter.com/100x125/articles/7434/1798214/CUbFfK6X_1723628574370/TAILFEATHERS.jpg)
Tailfeathers
The essence of fly fishing, I think I've decided, is time.
![Ten Questions with Tim Flagler, Fly Tyer/Cook Extraordinaire](https://reseuro.magzter.com/100x125/articles/7434/1798214/Cy2kZQTXN1723628280689/TEN-QUESTIONS-WITH-TIM-FLAGLER-FLY-TYERCOOK-EXTRAORDINAIRE.jpg)
Ten Questions with Tim Flagler, Fly Tyer/Cook Extraordinaire
Culinary Creations from Gordon Hamersley
![GREY on the Wing](https://reseuro.magzter.com/100x125/articles/7434/1798214/vH4BisIr61723627742625/GREY-ON-THE-WING.jpg)
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"](https://reseuro.magzter.com/100x125/articles/7434/1798214/2iiHtftrq1723627559743/JAMES-PURDEY-SONS-LTDONE-OF-LONDONS-BEST.jpg)
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](https://reseuro.magzter.com/100x125/articles/7434/1798214/YhuSF0afh1723627325222/WAWAWAI.jpg)
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](https://reseuro.magzter.com/100x125/articles/7434/1798214/Rw2Bvrrkc1723627050142/A-FAIR-EXCHANGE.jpg)
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](https://reseuro.magzter.com/100x125/articles/7434/1798214/XmtA6RwJO1723626830675/COMING-TO-HEEL.jpg)
Coming to Heel
I'n the world of gun dogs, it's not unusual that retrievers are taught to heel.
![Bird Dogs - Health Matters](https://reseuro.magzter.com/100x125/articles/7434/1798214/-nM7XpITF1723626599895/BIRD-DOGS-HEALTH-MATTERS.jpg)
Bird Dogs - Health Matters
Avoiding Medical Mishaps on the Road
![MATT HART](https://reseuro.magzter.com/100x125/articles/7434/1798214/iKD2plnwK1723626175684/MATT-HART.jpg)
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](https://reseuro.magzter.com/100x125/articles/7434/1351870/0SAiBgwJa1690522419485/LUIGI-FRANCHI-IMPERIAL-MONTE-CARLO-EXTRA-ONE-OF-ITALYS-BEST-SXS-DOUBLES.jpg)
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