Ipswich?
- Thread starter ksauers
- Start date
I’ve been hunting around the Ipswich area for the last 15 years. Last year was up a little bit compared to the previous year but I would only say by about 10%. It’s been back to back dry springs and Summer which has really hurt the bird population in that area. We were still able to Limit out on good private land but it did take from 10 AM all the way to dusk to get the job done.
In years past we would have our limits by noon or 1 PM. It’s still a good area but nowhere near 10 years ago .
ehudgens
Active member
Agree with Hockeybob. Was better than last year, but waayyy down from the last 10 years or so. One thing I really noticed was the lack of cattails. The drought has really made some of the slews more grass than cattails, which makes me worry about winter survival rates. I hunt private ground around there, had a couple days where we hunted all day, and a couple where we were done early. Driving around in the morning you really notice how few birds you see compared to prior years. I'll still see more birds in one day in SD than I will all year here in Illinois.
sjohn
Active member
My first two years hunting in SD was around Ipswitch in 2005 and 2006. The first year was amazing. I never saw so many birds. You would round a corner and from the next quarter section, several hundred birds would get up and fly a couple hundred yards and sit back down. We still hunted because there were always a few that stayed tight. There was a blizzard the week before we got there and the snow was deep and drifted. We hunted the week after thanksgiving and I think it was Dec. 7th 2005 it got to -27 one night and set a new record. I will never forget several sights from that first trip. First, groups of pheasants would work together to dig down to the ground and then they would expand that circle. Some circles would be 25-45 feet across with three or more dozen pheasants working the edges. The second unforgettable sight was when we were driving through some CRP at a pretty good clip, and the pheasants were blowing up in front of the truck like grasshoppers in August. The farmer was trying to get in front of a deer that was running in the next section over. Yes, I now know that was illegal. It was just before dusk and the pheasants were flying to their night time roosts. You could look in any direction and see multiple birds flying. It was truly unforgettable.
The next year we went, there was no snow, and very few birds. It was hard to understand how it went from hundreds to just a few. In hind sight, it had to be partly because of the blizzard. The birds were congregated in the best cover and that happened to be some great CRP we had access to. The bird numbers were down the second year but the difference between the two years had to have been the effect of bad weather congregation in the best habitat. The same CRP field went from having hundreds to maybe just a handful. The first year two of us shot our limit everyday. The second year there was 4 of us and we only killed about 18 birds between us all.
We were staying with a friends family on the main road about 4 miles south of town. The farmers brother and his wife owned and operated the breakfast house in town. His name was Clyde and he just passed away this past year. His wife died maybe 5 years ago. Clyde's brother worked for the COOP and still lives south of town before the correction line. He gave me a winter hat that I am still wearing today. North Central Farmers Elevator.
Would like to get back up that way. I have been hunting down around Armour for the last 8 or so years.
View attachment 9106
The next year we went, there was no snow, and very few birds. It was hard to understand how it went from hundreds to just a few. In hind sight, it had to be partly because of the blizzard. The birds were congregated in the best cover and that happened to be some great CRP we had access to. The bird numbers were down the second year but the difference between the two years had to have been the effect of bad weather congregation in the best habitat. The same CRP field went from having hundreds to maybe just a handful. The first year two of us shot our limit everyday. The second year there was 4 of us and we only killed about 18 birds between us all.
We were staying with a friends family on the main road about 4 miles south of town. The farmers brother and his wife owned and operated the breakfast house in town. His name was Clyde and he just passed away this past year. His wife died maybe 5 years ago. Clyde's brother worked for the COOP and still lives south of town before the correction line. He gave me a winter hat that I am still wearing today. North Central Farmers Elevator.
Would like to get back up that way. I have been hunting down around Armour for the last 8 or so years.
View attachment 9106
