KBell
New member
Sophie and I hit the ground running at 8:18 a.m. We were back in the Bancroft area at my relative's farm. I wanted to see how the little brown squabs were getting along.
Stronger easterly wind with very damp and heavy air. I knew from previous experience that the birds would sit tight! We started at the far western end of the property to have the wind advantage.
A rooster track greeted us in the creek bed. I could tell by the spread that he was running and on to us. He flushed wild 60 yards to our right.
Our first cattail patch had so many tracks--you know criss-crossing and such that I could not ascertain movement. Sophie is in stealth mode now. I can tell from her body language and mouthing that we are close. First point and I walk in. I move a little to the left as this is Sophie's sight line. Three hens flush and fly farther up the creek. We are off to a promising start I think to myself.
I decide at this point to ignore the tracks--a good problem to have--there are just so many of them. I decide to let Sophie dictate this day's events. We travel east to the next piece of suitable cover. Snakeweed--not my favorite but Sophie has no preference. As soon as she enters birds began flushing. I lost count of the hens at 13, and eye the first two roosters low and heading out to the east. Our first bird of the day is off a wild flush. As I walked back to the west to gather him, I can hear birds flushing and heading east.
Continuing on we encounter our next cover 4 acres of big blue that borders the creek as riparian buffer. As Sophie enters up pops a hen and I notice the tracks--they appear as mini deer trails along the edge of the big blue. Sophie is back in stealth mode. We are creeping now and suddenly stop. I see her recalculate and reposition about 2 yards to her left. As I move in four roosters flush. I take the first on the left as he is crossing right. Everybody is cackling--it is quite a site! Bird two is on my right. As he is heading out I notice 3 other roosters and 5 to 7 hens pop up from the cover. My little brown squabs--a month older now--flush as they did then in a group. Here is a photo or two of what they now look like:
A load of copper five's finishes our day and I still have a way to go to the farmhouse. Did I mention I finished with a double! Sophie and I proceeded to work the cover up to the house pointing and flushing birds the entire way.
Sophie provided an early Christmas present with full retrieval of bird three to hand. She has only done this once before. All three birds were this year's hatch and I was impressed with the yellow body fat and full crops of corn!! Our tally for the day--25 hens and 14 roosters.
Ken
Stronger easterly wind with very damp and heavy air. I knew from previous experience that the birds would sit tight!
We started at the far western end of the property to have the wind advantage.A rooster track greeted us in the creek bed. I could tell by the spread that he was running and on to us. He flushed wild 60 yards to our right.
Our first cattail patch had so many tracks--you know criss-crossing and such that I could not ascertain movement. Sophie is in stealth mode now. I can tell from her body language and mouthing that we are close. First point and I walk in. I move a little to the left as this is Sophie's sight line. Three hens flush and fly farther up the creek. We are off to a promising start I think to myself.
I decide at this point to ignore the tracks--a good problem to have--there are just so many of them. I decide to let Sophie dictate this day's events. We travel east to the next piece of suitable cover. Snakeweed--not my favorite but Sophie has no preference. As soon as she enters birds began flushing. I lost count of the hens at 13, and eye the first two roosters low and heading out to the east. Our first bird of the day is off a wild flush. As I walked back to the west to gather him, I can hear birds flushing and heading east.
Continuing on we encounter our next cover 4 acres of big blue that borders the creek as riparian buffer. As Sophie enters up pops a hen and I notice the tracks--they appear as mini deer trails along the edge of the big blue. Sophie is back in stealth mode. We are creeping now and suddenly stop. I see her recalculate and reposition about 2 yards to her left. As I move in four roosters flush. I take the first on the left as he is crossing right. Everybody is cackling--it is quite a site! Bird two is on my right. As he is heading out I notice 3 other roosters and 5 to 7 hens pop up from the cover. My little brown squabs--a month older now--flush as they did then in a group. Here is a photo or two of what they now look like:
A load of copper five's finishes our day and I still have a way to go to the farmhouse. Did I mention I finished with a double! Sophie and I proceeded to work the cover up to the house pointing and flushing birds the entire way.
Sophie provided an early Christmas present with full retrieval of bird three to hand. She has only done this once before. All three birds were this year's hatch and I was impressed with the yellow body fat and full crops of corn!! Our tally for the day--25 hens and 14 roosters.
Ken
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