IOWA Opener is finally here! Share your opening day success.
- Thread starter remy3424
- Start date
Anxious to hear how y’all do! There’s certainly a lot of excitement about Iowa pheasant hunting this year. I pray that everyone has a safe, successful, and blessed season.
Two more weeks until our pheasant and quail season opens here in Kansas. Until then it’s waterfowl and deer for me.
Two more weeks until our pheasant and quail season opens here in Kansas. Until then it’s waterfowl and deer for me.
Northwest Iowa here. Started at 8am sharp. Home at noon, 0 roosters bagged. Saw 2 roosters and missed 1. Also saw a covey of partridge, wasn't quick enough to get off a good shot. The wind is way worse than I thought it would be and we saw quite a few more hunters than in the past too (12 or 15 groups out, the past couple of seasons I would see maybe 1 or 2 other groups out). We will head back out here in a bit, more to follow.
remy3424
Well-known member
Hunted til about 1:00, bagged 3 and had 3 that went down in thick CRP grass that weren't found. There were several that were missed, saw plenty, the wind wasn't helpful. Sure beats not pheasant hunting! There will be better days coming. Way warm today, but it sounds like next weekend the temps might be in the 70s...I have never hunted due to it being too warm for the dog.
Ok we went out this afternoon to some large public area's here in NW Iowa. We got to the public and right away noticed quite a few vehicles parked and easily picked out hunters in the fields. The area is quite large with multiple public spots and access. We did 3 individual hour long walks and saw pheasants on each walk, should have had 2 roosters but I missed both. The amount of hunters this afternoon was insane. Nice to see so many hunters back using public and we heard quite a few shots. I prefer to have other hunters on the large public tracts we have here in nw iowa it keeps the birds moving.
Wow, half lost even with a dog. Must have been some thick cover.
remy3424
Well-known member
It was our own CP-38 project and had 2 GSPs. The nesting cover is crazy thick and tall, the switchgrass is so dense, is hard to push a Gator through, insane thick. I hunted a parcel of public last year, northern Monona or Southern Woodbury, it was the only thing I have hunted as thick as what we have. There are bunches of birds, so runners are very difficult for the dogs to sort out. I think last season, we might have had a dozen that were not recovered, the dogs did find 2 of the winged ones during the season. Will likely avoid the switchgrass now...forgot just how difficult finding downed birds in it is...hard to get them up in it also.
Ok so this morning I had church at 8am so it was a bit of a late start for me. I didn't get out of the driveway until 9:30, gas next with micky d's followed. The area I chose to hunt today is a solid hour away so I didn't get there until 11.The area has lots of public ground and it took me a bit of time to find some public without a bunch of guys. (Dang there are a lot of hunters this year), vehicles from Colorado, Michigan and South Dakota (yes South Dakota!!!!) were a few of the plates in the public parking lots. Anyway my first walk (1.5 hours) produced 2 whitetail bucks and no pheasants seen. Both bucks waited until my lab and I were mere yards away before jumping up and getting out. The second walk (2 hours) produced a whitetail doe right away and I was thinking "what the heck" but then 5 minutes later a hen busted from cover. I have a young lab named "Kepa" and this is her first real year of bird hunting (she went to a trainer this past summer for one month). A few hundred yards from the hen flush Kepa became real birdy and I had to "tone check" her back multiple times as there must have been a runner out front. We were able to catch up with the bird and it was a rooster. Kepa was able to flush it and I was able to knock it down. Kepa then made the retrieve and I was one proud dad!!! We finished the walk with another hen flush and a rooster flush at my feet that I whiffed the shots on. Anyway great hunt and really proud of Kepa, she did great today.
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There are several strains of switchgrass. The old “Cave-in-rock” is really tall and grows thick. Some of the western strains are half that size.
MinnHunter
Active member
Most hunters I ever seen. We couldn't secure a public spot almost an hour and a half early sat. Hunted a private field instead and got 16 for 6 guys. Finished the day after lunch in ditches. Today we hunted other public and private with almost the same luck.
scott county vizsla
Member
I second 'the most hunters I've ever seen' comment. I waited until 10 am on Saturday to hunt a small public parcel that another guy was finishing up. There was enough room for both of us to hunt starting at 8am but I was having fun counting trucks in the public areas(28 between three 200ish acre areas). I had my 3 birds in less than 2 hours and I missed the first 2 of the day. On Sunday I shot very poorly in the wind but my dog just kept tracking down roosters for me, after about 4 hours on two different public areas I had 3 roosters and one very tired pup.
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John Singer
Well-known member
It is very dry and windy in Iowa.
Running crippled birds are very difficult for the dogs to find.
Our group of 8 hunters lost several this weekend. Our dogs also caught a couple that were nowhere in the vicinity of where we dropped a bird.
Running crippled birds are very difficult for the dogs to find.
Our group of 8 hunters lost several this weekend. Our dogs also caught a couple that were nowhere in the vicinity of where we dropped a bird.
Hunted mostly Kossuth County and a private piece in Winnebago county. 8 guys, 6 roosters and 2 lost birds on day 1, quit at 1:30.
Sunday was a struggle, had a really nice looking piece of private ground with no dog, only put up 3 birds, 2 hens and a rooster we hit. It landed just in the tilled ground and took off running, never to be found.
Sunday was a struggle, had a really nice looking piece of private ground with no dog, only put up 3 birds, 2 hens and a rooster we hit. It landed just in the tilled ground and took off running, never to be found.
MinnHunter
Active member
For the first time ever we did not lose a single bird shot on opener. Just good luck. Next day we lost 1 right out of the gate.
Can I still call today part of opening weekend? If so I can report my brother and I went today and made a 2 hour drive to some public ground near the Minnesota border. We shot three today, one off of public and 2 out of the road ditches. We always make it a point to stop and talk to other hunters when we can. Seems like everyone is finding a few birds, no limits heard of yet. But still compared to last year this is looking to be a pretty darn good season.
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John Singer
Well-known member
Hunted for first 3 days on both private and public land. Group size ranged from three to 8. Flushed 50 to 100 birds each day. We bagged 25.
It was very dry and windy. It was difficult to keep the dog hydrated.
It was very dry and windy. It was difficult to keep the dog hydrated.
bellahunts
New member
Hunted in NW region for 2 and a half days on private land. 4 hunters with 3 dogs. Like the post above, we flushed 50-100 birds each day and brought 24 home. Even with 3 seasoned dogs, we lost 5 birds in very heavy cover which really sucks. Always amazed at how deep a cripple can burrow down and disappear. Most birds I have seen in years. Worth the 500 mile drive.