It???s 7:30 AM on Saturday morning and the temperature gauge reads +7 when I park the truck next to a cut milo field. It snowed earlier in the week and I can see some serious snow drifts. It???s foggy and I wonder if I am the only fool attempting to look for pheasants this morning. I had just driven for 3.5 hours, so I get out of the truck. I walk about 30 yards and jump my first pheasant. It???s a hen. I start to think that this could be good. I hunt the same field for about another hour, kicking up birds that don???t really want to go anywhere. But, every bird I kick up is a hen. When I finally get near the truck, about 30 birds get up. Some of them are roosters, but they flush 100 yards in front of me. Oh well. At least I am seeing birds. I get back to the truck and head to my next spot.
It???s a balmy 12 degrees now. Since it is cold outside, I decide to hunt a thicket of 8+ foot tall weeds that sits in the middle of a section that has milo, wheat, and new winter wheat. I begin the 300-400 yard walk to the thicket. It is winter wheat and the walk should be easy. Nope. It snowed earlier in the week and there were knee deep snowdrifts were everywhere. I keep telling myself, ???This is fun. This is fun.???
I get to within 100 yards of the thicket and look up. 20-30 birds get up on the other side of the thicket and begin their flight to Oklahoma, possibly Texas. Dang. I am pretty far from the truck and 100 yards from the thicket. There might be one straggler left in the junk. I decide to keep going. I bust some more snow drifts and make it to the edge. I take one wrong step. Now I have one leg in snow up to my thigh while the other leg is bent in some strange yoga position.
The sound of a helicopter erupts. It???s not a chopper, but instead it is three birds on the other side of the thicket. They were a little on the far side, but I shoot anyway. I miss. I???m disappointed. But at least I can walk back in my own tracks. But wait. More birds get up. I shoot. A rooster drops. Yes!.
My gun is empty, but I don???t care. There couldn???t possibly be more birds. But I???m not as smart as I think I am. More birds get up. I???m shooting a semi-auto and slip a shell into the chamber. False alarm. They are just hens. What?! More birds get up. My hands are stiff and cold. I reach for more shells so that I can be fully loaded. I put one in, but the shell is UPSIDE DOWN. It???s stuck. More birds get up. What is going on? How many pheasants can this thicket hold? I don???t shoot because I???m afraid that if I do, the semi auto will eject the shell in the chamber and jam the other one even more. Birds are still getting up. Holy **&@!. They are still flying. I am frantic. I have two hands. Last time I checked, they both worked. But they do not work now. I can???t get the jammed shell out. OMG. There are even more birds flying out. What am I doing here?! It takes me forever, but I finally free the jammed shell. Game over. No more birds. I shake my head and think, ???what have you done? You blew the most incredible thing you have ever seen.??? It???s not over. Two more roosters fly out. I still have the one shell in the chamber. I shoot at the back one. He drops. Great. Ok. Now it???s over. It takes me 5 minutes to grind through thigh deep snow to pick up the two birds.
I load up my gun and walk to the end of the thicket. Two hens and a rooster fly up. One shot and he drops. I am amazed. How many birds could there have been in that thicket, and why did they continue to wait for me to do my best impression of Curly, Moe, and Larry? I???m glad they did.
I made my way back to the truck and drove to the next field. I walked 50 yards and jumped a rooster. That???s number 4. What a day. I tell myself, ???Yes. This is fun!???
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Ducati 860GT
It???s a balmy 12 degrees now. Since it is cold outside, I decide to hunt a thicket of 8+ foot tall weeds that sits in the middle of a section that has milo, wheat, and new winter wheat. I begin the 300-400 yard walk to the thicket. It is winter wheat and the walk should be easy. Nope. It snowed earlier in the week and there were knee deep snowdrifts were everywhere. I keep telling myself, ???This is fun. This is fun.???
I get to within 100 yards of the thicket and look up. 20-30 birds get up on the other side of the thicket and begin their flight to Oklahoma, possibly Texas. Dang. I am pretty far from the truck and 100 yards from the thicket. There might be one straggler left in the junk. I decide to keep going. I bust some more snow drifts and make it to the edge. I take one wrong step. Now I have one leg in snow up to my thigh while the other leg is bent in some strange yoga position.
The sound of a helicopter erupts. It???s not a chopper, but instead it is three birds on the other side of the thicket. They were a little on the far side, but I shoot anyway. I miss. I???m disappointed. But at least I can walk back in my own tracks. But wait. More birds get up. I shoot. A rooster drops. Yes!.
My gun is empty, but I don???t care. There couldn???t possibly be more birds. But I???m not as smart as I think I am. More birds get up. I???m shooting a semi-auto and slip a shell into the chamber. False alarm. They are just hens. What?! More birds get up. My hands are stiff and cold. I reach for more shells so that I can be fully loaded. I put one in, but the shell is UPSIDE DOWN. It???s stuck. More birds get up. What is going on? How many pheasants can this thicket hold? I don???t shoot because I???m afraid that if I do, the semi auto will eject the shell in the chamber and jam the other one even more. Birds are still getting up. Holy **&@!. They are still flying. I am frantic. I have two hands. Last time I checked, they both worked. But they do not work now. I can???t get the jammed shell out. OMG. There are even more birds flying out. What am I doing here?! It takes me forever, but I finally free the jammed shell. Game over. No more birds. I shake my head and think, ???what have you done? You blew the most incredible thing you have ever seen.??? It???s not over. Two more roosters fly out. I still have the one shell in the chamber. I shoot at the back one. He drops. Great. Ok. Now it???s over. It takes me 5 minutes to grind through thigh deep snow to pick up the two birds.
I load up my gun and walk to the end of the thicket. Two hens and a rooster fly up. One shot and he drops. I am amazed. How many birds could there have been in that thicket, and why did they continue to wait for me to do my best impression of Curly, Moe, and Larry? I???m glad they did.
I made my way back to the truck and drove to the next field. I walked 50 yards and jumped a rooster. That???s number 4. What a day. I tell myself, ???Yes. This is fun!???
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Ducati 860GT
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