MN opener

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0fer2

New member
I am hunting the MN opener for the first time, ever. Will be hunting S MN, all public lands. Obviously the corn will be standing, am thinking the beans may be in. Am I correct to assume that the roosters haven't been educated yet to spend days in the corn, hence may be successful in flushing birds out of grasslands?

My older lab seems to have healed up nicely from his rotator cuff injury. I would be remiss if I didn't say how much help I got from VRCC through the Inver Grove Heights Vet hospital. Awesome folks. I also have a 7 month old lab from Old Oak Kennels I am hoping to get into birds. Hes been a great pup-well ok theres been some isolated incidents..............................but he has a very very soft touch while disciplining so have to keep that in mind when training.

Looking forward to a fall afield again after sitting out last season.

Dan
 
0fer2 said:
I am hunting the MN opener for the first time, ever. Will be hunting S MN, all public lands. Obviously the corn will be standing, am thinking the beans may be in. Am I correct to assume that the roosters haven't been educated yet to spend days in the corn, hence may be successful in flushing birds out of grasslands?

My older lab seems to have healed up nicely from his rotator cuff injury. I would be remiss if I didn't say how much help I got from VRCC through the Inver Grove Heights Vet hospital. Awesome folks. I also have a 7 month old lab from Old Oak Kennels I am hoping to get into birds. Hes been a great pup-well ok theres been some isolated incidents..............................but he has a very very soft touch while disciplining so have to keep that in mind when training.

Looking forward to a fall afield again after sitting out last season.

Dan
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If your hunting public land in the SW on the opener you better be there parked at your spot long before the 9:00 start time if you want to secure your spot. In fact getting there early enough to survey the area for bird activity is not a bad idea regardless. Hunter numbers have dropped off some in the last couple of years because of the bird numbers, but the opener traditionally has guys out that may not hunt another day the rest of the season.

Because of the 9am start the birds likely will have already moved out of the roost cover and will have begun feeding. Catching them in buffer strips of grass adjacent to corn would be my first choice if possible thru much of the day. The last half hour before sunset then go back to hitting roost cover. Always look for tracts that are near corn to be specific.

If more than 50% of the corn is still in the field, which is highly probable, it won't be easy that's for sure. You'd be surprised how quickly the young of the year roosters quickly get educated and head for corn at the first sign of trouble. For many the opener is a tradition regardless of how many birds they harvest. A chance to reacquaint with old friends and family members.

But... don't let that stop you, just keep your expectations in check. Have a good hunt and be safe...:cheers:
 
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birdshooter said:
If your hunting public land in the SW on the opener you better be there parked at your spot long before the 9:00 start time
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Is (9am) the case all season long or dose it switch over to sunrise later in the season?

Nick
 
Thanks Tbear:). I didn't know that. I was under the impression SD was the only state to have a late start. Nice early opener though. Oct. 10th for this year.

There's something special about hunting pheasants first thing in the morning/off the roost. Do you know if there was some "pus-back" when this law was in-the-works, or has it been on the books too long to remember?

Nick
 
been 9:00 am since ive been hunting pheasants 16+ years...

what benifit do the pheasants have if people can blast them at daybreak??? i mean any article on upland bird hunting ive ever read has said let the birds move from roost to feed if possible b4 hunting they just gonna hang near grass+feed...

if hunters ambush birds in there roost aka safe zone they move even when i hunted states with a sunrise start time we never get up to hunt em then thats a duck deer or turkey thing risr n at daybreak to hunt...

now prairie grouse it helps to get up early...

pheasant hunting is better after 10:00 anyway what the heck u do if u limit out 10 min after sunrise??? go back to sleep???
 
Wow. Sounds like it's been in play for a long time. Must be working out for you up there.

Though, what do you do when the wife says "be home by 9am to help with the kids!":D Guess you can always hit ducks and geese or other game instead.

Good luck this fall guys:thumbsup:

Nick
 
drag the rug rats along i assume??? or get the doghouse ready lol

feels kinda wrong to shoot a rooster in his sleep???

ill never change that rule no matter what state im in 9:00 am bout perfect start time SD 10:00 am all but 7 days a season the 1st wk is for the guys who have hangovers noon is a lil late if i ask me its more for the bars cafes etc. benifits in SD not to protect the pheasants lol
 
Many years ago, and I first started hunting roosters in high school, it was a sunrise start in MN. I think it also really benefited road hunters with pheasants picking gravel and moving from cover to food etc.

Gonna hunt the opener, looking forward to it!
 
small munsterlander owner said:
drag the rug rats along i assume??? or get the doghouse ready lol

feels kinda wrong to shoot a rooster in his sleep???

ill never change that rule no matter what state im in 9:00 am bout perfect start time SD 10:00 am all but 7 days a season the 1st wk is for the guys who have hangovers noon is a lil late if i ask me its more for the bars cafes etc. benifits in SD not to protect the pheasants lol
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LOl....I suppose it would depend on the age of the little-ones. Guessing the "doghouse" would be the choice for many.

Yeah, the guys I hunt with in SD like the 10am start too. You mentioned the drinking factor. They get to drink the night before then sleep-in a bit. Fit's nicely with a "vacation hunt".

Anyway--sleeping pheasants---pheasants are up well before the sun rises. The colder it is, the longer they'll stay on their roost, but they're awake. If the birds are in the mood you can hear them talking to each other just before the sun comes up.:)

Few more weeks to go for you Mn guys. Hope to see some pic of those wild Mn pheasants.:cheers:

Nick
 
oh trust me im not sleeping all the way up till the 9:00 or 10:00 start times im listening for birds & watching for birds etc. just i dont hunt till the birds get outta roost & feed etc. i like using my dog to hunt the birds not just surround birds shoot or ambush. . im hard headed i dont ditch hunt either i like to hunt not just shoot i guess...

yes i feel its good to give the birds time to eat pick grit then move to loafing cover simpler to get there routine down & wear they will be etc. in state wear u can blast at sunrise it pushes birds outta wear they feel safe & if they dont feel safe on public lands witch that all i hunt they move to private lands thats no good for me also must suck for guys whi pull up to a roosting area thats been shot out at sunrise walk all morning & think no birds here etc. in reality guys allready hammered it at daybreak... 9:00 makes the playing field alot more level/fair etc
 
small munsterlander owner said:
oh trust me im not sleeping all the way up till the 9:00 or 10:00 start times im listening for birds & watching for birds etc. just i dont hunt till the birds get outta roost & feed etc. i like using my dog to hunt the birds not just surround birds shoot or ambush. . im hard headed i dont ditch hunt either i like to hunt not just shoot i guess...

yes i feel its good to give the birds time to eat pick grit then move to loafing cover simpler to get there routine down & wear they will be etc. in state wear u can blast at sunrise it pushes birds outta wear they feel safe & if they dont feel safe on public lands witch that all i hunt they move to private lands thats no good for me also must suck for guys whi pull up to a roosting area thats been shot out at sunrise walk all morning & think no birds here etc. in reality guys allready hammered it at daybreak... 9:00 makes the playing field alot more level/fair etc
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I gotcha Munsie.;) Everyone has their preference. Obviously most pheasant hunters in Mn don't have mind the 9am start otherwise they would have changed it by now.:)
 
I never really ever even thought to wait until 9:00 or so. I guess something to think about.

I am sure MN SD, have done some research on the subject, or at least feel its beneficial to wait.


ND they let you Hunt 30 minutes before sun up till sundown.

I will have to rethink my hunting strategy.

thanks
Jim
 
i think some states like i may be wrong like iowa have a hunting cutt-off time like 1 hour b4 sun set & a delayed starting time so man that would suck cant hunt either golden hour???

i like the idea of leting the birds regroup & feel safe again on public lands if on private they should be able to hunt when u feel its ur land... some public gets used so much it need a break to keep birds using it...
 
small munsterlander owner said:
i think some states like i may be wrong like iowa have a hunting cutt-off time like 1 hour b4 sun set & a delayed starting time so man that would suck cant hunt either golden hour???

i like the idea of leting the birds regroup & feel safe again on public lands if on private they should be able to hunt when u feel its ur land... some public gets used so much it need a break to keep birds using it...
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In Iowa our hours for hunting pheasant are 8am to 4:30pm.
 
Madison COunty said:
In Iowa our hours for hunting pheasant are 8am to 4:30pm.
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That's impressive. Says something about bird numbers (or at least how good they were). When you can not hunt either "prime" hour of the day, and still harvest the numbers Iowa pheasant hunters harvest (harvested) there must be some birds.;)

Nick
 
My beef with hunting times is the cutoff with dove hunting. They fly like crazy around sunset, even the ability to hunt 1/2 hour after sunset would really increase the chances to take some birds.
 
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