I would have thought this place would be flooded with excitement about the resident opener tomorrow.. I know all the doom and gloom guys have out a black cloud over SD but come on it's the opener... Post some pics tomorrow. I'm all the way down here in Texas and can't wait to make the 18 hour drive next weekend...
No excitement???
- Thread starter Walker
- Start date
Dakotazeb
Well-known member
For whatever reason there just aren't a ton of guys from SD on this site. And because we live here I don't think we get as excited about an opener as the non-residents that may only make it out once or twice per year. As for myself, as I've gotten older (67) I don't get very excited about it anymore. Use to start getting guns and gear ready weeks in advance. Now I don't do much until the last minute. I'll be headed out tomorrow to hunt with a couple other guys. Suppose I should at least get the dog kennel in the vehicle today but I'll probably wait and do it all tomorrow morning.
reddog
Well-known member
That, and Dakotans in general typically keep their mouth zipped tight, and superglued shut if necessary... and they bury locals that sing the praises of South Dakota sporting ops.
Ringneck Redneck
New member
I live here in South Dakota and can't wait to get out today. I live on an old farm(aka acreage). I drive an average of 16 miles of gravel roads a day and I rarely see a pheasant. I've seen one hatch from last spring till now and it was a late one. In the evenings I take my dogs for walks down the gravel roads and we rarely see anything. One evening they put up 2 hens and I was shocked. When the field around my place was combined I watched for a while but didn't see them move any birds. Because of the heavy flooding around my place in 2011 and the drought in 2012 there aren't many birds. The last 2 seasons were the worst hunting for me since the 1990s when this whole corner of the state was flooding. This local didn't want to post about the coming season because I didn't want to become one of the "gloom and doom" people.
1pheas4
Moderator
LOL.....it is what it is. If you're not seeing birds, you're not seeing birds. Let's hope the guy who's been working his dog somewhere else within the state is seeing more birds. If not, yeah, it could be a rough season.
Nick
Dakotazeb
Well-known member
Three of us with 3 dogs spent 2+ hours walking a nice, fairly large public area in the Watertown area. Cover was great, corn (unpicked) along one side and beans being harvested across the road. We saw one pheasant and did not see any sign at all. No nesting spots, droppings, scratchings in the food plots, nothing. This was perfect habitat with water on it. Should have been full of birds. Not a good start to the season.
Ringneck Redneck
New member
At noon I was hunting a wpa about a mile from my house. 10-15 minutes into the hunt my dog grabs a skunk and shakes it like a rag doll till it dies. The dog got a slight bite under one eye and stunk real bad. We ended up hunting about an hour and never saw a bird. Late afternoon I took my old dog out to another wpa. We didn't even get 100 yards from the pickup when he put up a hen. I was feeling optimistic but an hour later I was on my way home without seeing another bird. One other thing I never saw all day, hunters. I never saw any hunters in the field or driving around. They must be smarter than me.
only a pointer
Banned
wow what a shame I like the pierre area the best the one year that I went man it sounds bad ??
Jetifantasy
New member
La la la la la can't hear you
I think your right nobody wanted to hear that it is what it is
I think your right nobody wanted to hear that
it is what it is 
moellermd
Super Moderator
Mostly beans did a little corn earlier. Normally cutting alfalfa you see a few hens on nests. Not so this year.