Any reports from hunters ?
- Thread starter mwilly56
- Start date
Yes, I guess you could say that, have not used this site since it changed many years ago, only been going to SD for 13 years. That said, they used to have a youth and resident opener, prior to the regular open, thought someone might post a report or two?
I can tell you my home state opener was HOT! Put up 8 Birds total, 2 roosters, not bad for a morning hunt in Michigan. Oh, only been doing that for 50 years a relative "newbie" LOL.Yes, I guess you could say that, have not used this site since it changed many years ago, only been going to SD for 13 years. That said, they used to have a youth and resident opener, prior to the regular open, thought someone might post a report or two?
Think I have you beat - hunting for 60 years...
Hunted hard in Beadle County today. Wind was nasty! We flushed significantly less birds compared to last years opener. Four guys and one lab flushed four roosters within shotgun range. Hunted same areas that have produced for the past 10 years. We will see what tomorrow brings. Still enjoyed every minute of it!
Thanks for the report Boomer, will be out in a couple weeks. Just wanted to see how dire the numbers are, it's always time well spent regardless.
Thanks for the report Jim. It's always a surprise how well the birds know the sunset table, usually come out 30 seconds after shooting hours. LOL
A5 Sweet 16
Well-known member
So far, so good. Seeing just what I expected in the public areas I hunt. Numbers comparable to last year, which I felt was a good year. And hunting will get so much better once they start hitting the corn harvest harder. I'm talking about east-central SD. In my area, I just didn't see any particular reason that places with habitat shouldn't have just as many birds (or pretty close) as last year. So far I think I'm right. We'll see what I think come mid December.
Natty Bumpo
Member
Waiting to hear from hunters, boots on the ground reports. Is anybody out there?
Willy,
The general season opened Saturday. This is Monday morning. Many thousands of boots on the ground all this weekend.
So......... where are all the pheasant hunting reports ???
NB
jackrabbit
Active member
Report I received from a friend of mine/landowner in the Winner area was that it was really bad. I do not know how many people/dogs/etc. they had but they generally always limit fairly easy on opener no matter the group size. Said they only SAW 4 roosters the entire day.
Natty Bumpo
Member
Thanks for that, JR. And, also, Thanks for keeping it "Real World".
It is what it is..............
NB
A5 Sweet 16
Well-known member
A large bunch I know hunts in the Platte area every opener. They said they thought bird numbers this past weekend were "maybe a little down from last year". No major decrease though.
stillsteamn
New member
I recall around 2000-2003, the birds were doing well back then and it was before SD started the resident-only opener 1 week early, which is allowed on PUBLIC land only as a slap in the face to us NR public land hunters. Anyway, back then we had some great opening weekends with plenty of action on public land. Things went immediately downhill once the resident-only season was started. And it seems every year since then the corn harvest has also come later and later. Now I don't waste gas, tires, or time heading to SD until sometime in November when the corn is mostly gone. Even then it's been a struggle the last few years, and my interest is beginning to fade some. First time I've logged onto this site all year.
Highvoltage
Active member
Well I got some good news for you, your not paranoid!
The bad news is everyone is out to get you!!
A5 Sweet 16
Well-known member
:cheers::10sign::thumbsup:
A5 Sweet 16
Well-known member
That's strange. I hunt public land exclusively in SD about 20-25 times a year, in the most populated part of the state (people-wise). This usually includes the weekend that's supposedly caused all your angst. (Let's not forget that SD added a youth season too.) I rarely have a more difficult time on the weekend of the regular opener than I do on residents-only weekend. In fact, the regular opener is typically better. In my opinion, this is for a few reasons. a) Young roosters have had another week to mature & become identifiable. b) Farmers can harvest a lot of crops in a week, weather permitting. and c) The further into October you get, the more the birds are into their fall behavior patterns - the ones we're used to seeing during the early part of the season.
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Here is what I am seeing. 1. We need to harvest some corn but it is still too wet in my area. Hunting will be better when the corn is out. 2. We must have had a poor hatch as the birds are carry over birds predominately. They are well educated and leaving early. Guys are getting a little over 1 bird per man per day. I talked to a neighbor that said 9 guys in two days got two roosters.
chriswhite22
Active member
Miner County hunting public and private. Bird numbers are down from last year but not terribly. Weve (5 guys) averaged 1.5 birds a day. Ive got my limit all three days. Ive got the experienced dog, which has obviously given me an advantage over the rest. Oh yeah and according to my gps Im at 9 miles a day walking. Its been great even with 50 mph wind gust!