Well, I just got back in last night from a two day trip out to South-Central Kansas. The conditions could have been better, but all-in-all, it was a great trip. We drank some beer, laughed a little, and with a little luck, shot some roosters to boot.
My buddy shot his first rooster in the second field we hunted Tuesday morning. That was the best part of the trip in my opinion. It was actually "cold" that morning, and the bird flushed at his feet. I watched as it scared the shit out of him getting up, then he raised his gun, got level, and smoked him on the fly-away shot. Other than that, the birds were running and flushing ahead of us and the dogs.
Yesterday morning it was unusually foggy, with a light mist. I was pretty excited as we headed out, knowing the dogs would actually have an opportunity to smell the hot scent though.
The birds however were still on the run. We were on our way back to the truck when the dog turned and locked up. I came in facing him upwind, and nothing. The dog trotted West about 10 yards and locked up again. After a few repeat instances of this, I changed my tactics. I released Tucker after a point, and when he again trotted North and locked up, I took off in a full sprint up ahead of him. Up came a rooster. I made sure to reward the dog with a good shot, and brought that ditch chicken down. He seemed really proud when he brought the bird back, and dropped it at my feet.
My advice for late-season roosters, forget your "plan" for hunting a field, and follow the dogs. Place the dogs downwind in a field, and let them do the rest. :thumbsup:
I'll post the typical "proud owner" dog-with-birds photo later.
Edit: One thing that really bewildered me on this trip (and pissed me off) was the lack of etiquette some of the other hunters exhibited. Not once, but twice, other hunters decided to stop and hunt the same property we were hunting. Has anyone had this happen to them? This is the first time it's ever happened to me.
My buddy shot his first rooster in the second field we hunted Tuesday morning. That was the best part of the trip in my opinion. It was actually "cold" that morning, and the bird flushed at his feet. I watched as it scared the shit out of him getting up, then he raised his gun, got level, and smoked him on the fly-away shot. Other than that, the birds were running and flushing ahead of us and the dogs.
Yesterday morning it was unusually foggy, with a light mist. I was pretty excited as we headed out, knowing the dogs would actually have an opportunity to smell the hot scent though.
The birds however were still on the run. We were on our way back to the truck when the dog turned and locked up. I came in facing him upwind, and nothing. The dog trotted West about 10 yards and locked up again. After a few repeat instances of this, I changed my tactics. I released Tucker after a point, and when he again trotted North and locked up, I took off in a full sprint up ahead of him. Up came a rooster. I made sure to reward the dog with a good shot, and brought that ditch chicken down. He seemed really proud when he brought the bird back, and dropped it at my feet.
My advice for late-season roosters, forget your "plan" for hunting a field, and follow the dogs. Place the dogs downwind in a field, and let them do the rest. :thumbsup:
I'll post the typical "proud owner" dog-with-birds photo later.
Edit: One thing that really bewildered me on this trip (and pissed me off) was the lack of etiquette some of the other hunters exhibited. Not once, but twice, other hunters decided to stop and hunt the same property we were hunting. Has anyone had this happen to them? This is the first time it's ever happened to me.
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