South Dakota - Here we come, ready or not.

hunterdoug

hunterdoug

New member
I have a South Dakota trip planned to take my two sons on a hopefully memorable pheasant hunt. The three of us will be there 11/17-11/20 (just before Thanksgiving). The attached picture shows what a VERY successfull hunting day looks like here in Utah. Most days we are lucky to even see a single bird. My boys are now 16 & 17 years old. I have told them South Dakota is like pheasant heaven, but now I'm starting to get nervous I have over sold the trip. I realize private ground may be the only way to ensure they have a good experience; however, my limited hunting budget prohibits me of paying for all three. I am hoping and praying somebody has access to some good areas that would allow the three of us to hunt for a day or two, but maybe only charge a reasonable fee for me. Is there anybody out there that would be willing to provide such a generous offer to help fulfill a dream hunt?

Thanks,
Doug
 
Hi Doug,

We've corresponded a couple of times. Am wondering if you received my last message?

The brood survey for SD has been published. This is a good review of possible bird concentrations in the state. It appears the highest populations are 30 miles in any direction of Pierre; mainly east, south and north and a bit west.

The SD Hunting Atlas will give you some direction to public hunting land; be mindful these areas get heavily hunted and are best late in the season, when most of the cover is cut and perhaps snow has piled in the ditches.

What areas have you decided on??

Jon
 
Doug, nice picture and family. Too bad you are not a week earlier as our opening in the Wolf Creek camp group is about as close as you can come to pheasant heaven in South Dakota. This is one of our top 3 camps.

http://www.ultimatepheasanthunting.com/forum/showthread.php?t=11530

On a side the deal we have is if you have a group of 4 adults you can bring 1 youth 12-15 free and 1 Jr 16-17 at half price. If 6 adults you can bring 2 of the former each.

I challenge you to find a deal better than that with any other South Dakota Outfitter.

If you were able to go to Wolf Creek week 4, and help Kent fill out his group we could probably work out something that fits your budget and gets you hooked on South Dakota:)
 
My original plan was to hunt the entire week during the dates you suggested; however, my boys didn't want to miss that much school. Really?? School over hunting? They must take after their mother. As a result, I'm now committed to the dates of 11/17-11/20 to take advantage of the time off for Thanksgiving.
 
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Doug, That's a nice pic. Very successful in IMO.

At least at the time your going to SD, most of the locals will be deer hunting, might be good might be bad.:confused:
Best of luck to you guys.
 
Thanks for the comments on the 'very successful' pic. It was actually private ground. The $50 permits allowed access all season (which is only 15 days long in Utah). I think the three of us managed to get 4 birds over two days of hunting.
 
Hi Doug,

Was wondering if have been following the survey reports that are reviewed on this site? Some areas of the state are very dry with little to no cover in the ditches and sloughs.

Finding places to hunt may prove very difficult south and west of Pierre.

Your thoughts?

Jon
 
West of Pierre

I hunt west of Pierre and found if you get way out (30 to 50 miles) you can knock on doors and find pay to play places. We pay $75/day/gun usually and have no trouble shooting birds, we also see our share of grouse and chickens. Good Luck!

PS fill up the gas tank first as there aint much out there along with some lunch!
 
hunterdoug said:
I have told them South Dakota is like pheasant heaven, but now I'm starting to get nervous I have over sold the trip.


White Man speak-um truth,not fork tongue.

Your boys ain't gonna believe what they are about to see,your gonna be a hero.
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ranchodeluxe said:
hunterdoug said:
I have told them South Dakota is like pheasant heaven, but now I'm starting to get nervous I have over sold the trip.


White Man speak-um truth,not fork tongue.

Your boys ain't gonna believe what they are about to see,your gonna be a hero.
Click to expand...

Last year was my first time to South Dakota, the report came out that bird numbers were down 49%, made me "nervous" too. We got out there early am, drove around scouting for 3 hours till 10. Saw small pockets of birds along the road anywhere there was habitat. Went by a Walk In Area about 8:30 and witnessed a 200 bird flush (or more) from both ditches and the trees. They just kept coming!
My point...regardless of the current situation, I'll take my chances that the best odds for a pheasant hunter are in South Dakota. But don't tell anyone, let's keep this between us. Best to you and your boys...you're a good Dad!:thumbsup:
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Last year was my dad's first SD trip too. We hunted east-central, where bird #'s were said to be the worst they'd been in quite some time. He saw more birds there than he's ever seen anywhere. A down year in SD is nothing to be "nervous" about IMO. Enjoy the trip:thumbsup:
 
Best place in the world to hunt the rooster!! Our group has been going for 18 years and i have been doing it for 13. We hunt in the @#%$, there is always birds and we always limit, sometimes we have to hunt til 5:00 but thats very rare. There is always 10-12 in our group all the time.
I remember my 1st year there, i couldnt believe it, there were roosters everywhere, i was like a little kid in a candy store.:eek:
We will get into town on the 23rd, its killing me. Life is good!!:cheers:



Andy....................................
 
While I still haven't nailed down any spots to hunt, I've been amazed with all the positive feedback in this thread. I'm encouraged that I won't be letting my kids down regardless of were we go. Even if the numbers are down from years past and the cover may be limited due to the drought, it sounds like it will still be way better than what we're used to in Utah.
 
hunterdoug said:
While I still haven't nailed down any spots to hunt, I've been amazed with all the positive feedback in this thread. I'm encouraged that I won't be letting my kids down regardless of were we go. Even if the numbers are down from years past and the cover may be limited due to the drought, it sounds like it will still be way better than what we're used to in Utah.
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If you look at sdgfp site you will see that the annual survey done by rural mailmen indicate numbers are up over last year.I have been dodging them on my motorcycle all summer(except one).As long as we don't get a major winter storm with the receding cover,we have a lot of birds.Good Luck
 
ranchodeluxe said:
If you look at sdgfp site you will see that the annual survey done by rural mailmen indicate numbers are up over last year.I have been dodging them on my motorcycle all summer(except one).As long as we don't get a major winter storm with the receding cover,we have a lot of birds.Good Luck
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Totally agree, overall about 18% state wide. Even higher in other places.



Andy..................................
 
Good luck guys. I'm hoping to have my first SoDak hunt next year. My main goal is to hunt where there is a nice mixed bag. I'm looking forward to Huns and sharptails just as much as I am the great amount of pheasant.
 
ElectricShorthairs said:
Good luck guys. I'm hoping to have my first SoDak hunt next year. My main goal is to hunt where there is a nice mixed bag. I'm looking forward to Huns and sharptails just as much as I am the great amount of pheasant.
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Thanks mate, I use to shoot grouse, but those sharptails taste like poop. Huns are a different story though, love em. But we are just nutz about the ring neck boys, i really look forward to this trip every year.


Andy............................
 
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