2024 Pheasant Pics/Reports

Oh wow! Sounds like a gem of a spot.

I’m looking to try tomorrow morning. Haven’t been out for a while cuz of deer hunting. I miss it and wanted to try the fields during the gun hunt but thought against it. Looking forward to getting out - I love December pheasant hunting.
 
SDinWI said:
Oh wow! Sounds like a gem of a spot.

I’m looking to try tomorrow morning. Haven’t been out for a while cuz of deer hunting. I miss it and wanted to try the fields during the gun hunt but thought against it. Looking forward to getting out - I love December pheasant hunting.
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Both birds, about 200 yards apart on differing sides of food field, had crops full of corn.....so I'm guessing all of them were out on there feeding and I caught them just right heading back into cover.
 
Walked a bunch today, saw just a few birds. Ran the pup first, had a nice find on a pair of hens. Later, she pointed in the farmyard that adjoins the public, a couple of squawking roosters flushed as I quietly snuck in and grabbed the pup. That was it for that spot, there were some guys out goose hunting, had a hell of a spread out on the ice. Mostly swans flying, but they did get some shooting on geese.
Moved to a different spot, ran a different dog, went birdless for a 45 minute swing.
Took the afternoon off, went out again for the last hour on yet a different spot. Ran a different dog, 4 year old, had a jam up point down in some canary grass. When I got to her she looked pretty tight, flushed a rooster about 5 feet from her. This bird had a crop full of soybeans and what looked like buckthorn berries. I’ve seen the beans before, but never these berries. Wonder what he’ll taste like?
 

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Jleclair said:
Walked a bunch today, saw just a few birds. Ran the pup first, had a nice find on a pair of hens. Later, she pointed in the farmyard that adjoins the public, a couple of squawking roosters flushed as I quietly snuck in and grabbed the pup. That was it for that spot, there were some guys out goose hunting, had a hell of a spread out on the ice. Mostly swans flying, but they did get some shooting on geese.
Moved to a different spot, ran a different dog, went birdless for a 45 minute swing.
Took the afternoon off, went out again for the last hour on yet a different spot. Ran a different dog, 4 year old, had a jam up point down in some canary grass. When I got to her she looked pretty tight, flushed a rooster about 5 feet from her. This bird had a crop full of soybeans and what looked like buckthorn berries. I’ve seen the beans before, but never these berries. Wonder what he’ll taste like?
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Dogs on the ready! I like it. Sounds like you have a good bunch.

Might want to see if you can get permission on that neighboring farm if it’s worth it??

I went out for an hour and a half maybe this morning before our baby shower. Double trouble coming early next year 🍼🍼. Saw birds all in or around the cattails. Kind of surprised they were all there on a warmer day. All were hens or out of range except one rooster. He of course happened to flush in the direction of the one home around, so that was a no go.
 
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wingsnfins said:
I'm in Fond du Lac......I have a few decent spots in the Theresa Marsh that give up birds, especially later in the year. Most of my other time I'm in Fond du Lac County and into Sheboygan County on public. Born and raised here.
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Have a place E. of Fondy that I haven't hunted for probably 10 years. Right off of 23 a little NW of Mullet Creek. I should hit that. Always found a bird or two when I did.
 
December I’ve hit a bit of a wall, the no snow has made it tough. Still flushing birds every trip out, but a lot of brown; this guy broke a 25+ hen in shotgun range stretch. Nice cackle too. Up to 18 in WI, been a great year. Called the tipline as some idiots dumped a bunch of geese on the side of the road without even bothering breasting them, what a waste.

3-5 inches on Thursday, have a few spots in mind for Friday and I’d be surprised if I don’t bring one or two home. Flushed 15 pheasants last Friday but the 3 that had some color were just a little too wild.
 

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Was out Friday in the Northern Kettle Moraine area with the BIL.
He has a case of the "misses". We flushed 8 roosters. I shot 1, he shot 1 and missed 4. Other 2 were no shots.
Didn't get any pics though, notvsure why!?!?
 
Been out a bit myself, had 2 roosters pointed on Friday that flushed before I could get there. Saturday had 4 finds, all hens with one point 4 birds. Sunday was tough, got soaked, only ran 2 dogs in the morning with no points and 3 wild flushes. Yesterday ran the old girl, lost her in the wind and hilly ground. She was gone for 30 minutes or so, turned out someone came in on me and she went hunting with him. I drove around the area, pulled into a parking spot, the guy came my way and I saw the white dog (whose name is Whitey) with him , called her and she came running and got in the truck so fast I couldn’t believe it. Today I took a younger one out, had to go to a less desirable spot because people were in the 1st and 2nd choice spots. No birds pointed, 2 wild flushes. December is tough on public grounds in WC Wisconsin!
Highlight - on Saturday my old dog brought me an opossum. She doesn’t retrieve, but brought this guy in so proudly! I thought it was dead, after putting up the dogs I was went to chuck it into the cornfield across the road, but saw it licking its chops so I grabbed a snow shovel and scooped him up and chucked him over there. When I went to leave about 10 minutes later I saw him walking along the edge, went to take a quick video but when I got near it it rolled over and played dead again. Photo is from the second time.
 

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wingsnfins said:
Never saw a bird, never cut a track. Hunted thick stuff near food, thin stuff near food, sunny hillsides out of the wind, sunny fence lines out of the wind, cattails, cedars......nada.
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It was a tough day. They were staying warm deep in the cattails.

I guess you didn't get the same cold as here, though.
 
Probably had my last hunt of the year (well I guess…season) for me today with the way the forecast looks this weekend, but it was a good one! Was chilly at 20 degrees and a good 10 mph wind.

Started off with running hens in a willow patch and flushed 5 at the end. Then, hunted a brushy ditch next to corn and flushed two roosters a bit out of view with the brush and another hen. Finished with some nice dog tracking on 2 hens in cattails. It’s a nice cattail patch, and I always think we’ll flush quite a few, but I think they give us the go around many times and don’t leave the ground.

On the way back, my dog was going wild about this lone 10 ft cattail patch in some beaten down grass - jumping in and out every which way. Nothing was doing until a raccoon slunk out the back door behind my dad and made an exit. Thought it was odd that it wasn’t hunkered down in a den tree somewhere but in that small patch of cattails in relatively open ground.
 
I was able to get my nephew his first rooster on Monday. Made a nice crossing 40 yard shot and stoned him, you only get one first rooster.

December sucked for the most part, we only killed 3 and birds were few and far between. Monday I took my nephews out to my late season private spots and we put up a ton but I wanted to let them shoot and shoot they did. Did get one, but hunting solo I would’ve been done quickly.

Had a great hunt tonight, two easy close flushes on roosters and another 3-4 hens. One had a tag, I don’t live in a stocked part of the state as I’m lucky to be hunting mostly wild ones, but there is a rod and gun club or two that releases a few. Up to 22 in Wisconsin on the year, beat my old record of 21, still have a couple days left to hunt. Going to be chilly this weekend but am hoping that’ll weed out some weekend warriors.

Killed one tonight that had a 24.5” tail feather, I’ve got one at 26 from 2 years ago and a handful of 23s but he was a good one. You can see on the GoPro shot his tail wriggle, need to see on a close flushing bird.

SD for one more weekend in 2 weeks.
 

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That’s a nice way to break in 2025 for you, 24.5” is quite the mark! Nice looking cover you hunt.
 
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