Reports

We returned to one of the more productive private fields from last weekend and saw about the same number of birds (10+/-). The only real shootable flushes were hens. Also saw two coveys of quail. One of them was a repeat from opening weekend, but I think the other was different. We moved about 40 miles back towards Wichita to a WIHA. It was an 80, and about 60 of it was too thin/too short for my tastes but there was a nice shallow draw running through it that had good cover. Saw one covey right up against the road. I got one on the covey rise as they crossed the road onto private. No pheasants on that one.
 
carptom1 said:
I know in the 70s most of the birds we shot in NA Kansas were shot out of knee deep stubble fields full of weeds and sunflowers. Very little grass was hunted. Those fields were full of birds. Otherwise it was milo stubble.
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Because those fields weren't full of GMO crops, soybeans, very likely had lots of forbs, and insects, and food (native plants -- the weeds farmers hated) working in harmony with mother nature. Now not so much.
 
2 buddies and I went out yesterday to some ground we've been hunting for a long time. I shot one 50 yards out of the truck and then we didn't see a bird the rest of the field until we got back around by the truck and 4 hens busted out. Walked two more fields and seen one hen, both these fields are usually pretty good but not really any sign of pheasants using them. We decided to do one more walk before heading home. I shot a second rooster not too long after parking the truck and then 10 mins later my buddy had one jump at his feet and he missed twice. Swung around and started making our way to the truck and kicked up 3 or 4 hens and then my other buddy missed a rooster over a two dog point. Hunted half a day, finished with two in the truck, could have had 4 which sounds pretty decent for half a day but the truth is we only seen maybe 15 birds and this is ground that in the last few years we would have seen 40-50 in a half day pretty easy. Did talk to a guy that's been hunting around the state for the past week and said pheasants aren't good but he has gotten into decent numbers of quail.
 
After a two week hiatus I slipped out Thursday afternoon for a walk. Saw two big coyotes one of which shadowed us for about 3/4’s of a mile. He stayed out of shotgun range and kept pace. He finally turned and trotted off. We bounced another one in a draw farther out in the CRP.
The wind started picking up when we crossed back into the cut wheat from the CRP. The dogs bumped a hen about 20 yards in. The dogs stayed birdy when a rooster erupted from the wheat. He folded at the shot. Continuing through the wheat we bumped two more hens.
I covered almost 3 miles saw four birds and two coyotes. I hunted opening weekend only to see a handful of birds and one rooster. Pretty dismal but the dogs and me really needed the break.
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We are coming out to KS from Indiana next weekend for our annual trip(4 of us). We started hunting out there in 2012. For some reason we came back after a less than impressive hunt. Took some time but we figured it out between a mixture of WIHA and some land owners that are more than kind to us. All that said the land owners where we hunt say that this year has been worse than 2012/2011. So, high hopes for a good time with room to roam and low expectations of harvesting more than a couple birds.
 
Hunted about 6 hours on Sunday, all WIHA. First field produced one covey. Second produced one hen and two wild flushes. Third was a motherlode of hens. 12 or more hens, and 2 roosters. Several held for points, which made it a lot of fun, albeit unproductive. No roosters shot, only one quail. Saw a surprising number of big bucks about and about, given that it's deer season.
 
We have 2 full sections of CRP grass south of Ingalls (Cimarron KS area) with access to another 3 sections.
We (the two of us) have always done quite well and usually VERY well in those properties.
Except (as DF mentioned above) 2012.....and now this year. We were "cold barrel" on the opening day. Never seen that. Oh sure...there are a few, but they are 'veterans' and carry overs from last year. If ya don't think they are smart/wilder than a march hare..yur wrong. I mean, the few we saw were flying at 100-150 yards in front. Acting like late season birds on a windy day. Plus, the one or two we harvested were "scrawny". Small bodies, thin, with big long spurs. Must have been a (Bee with an itch) summer there!! It seemed like there was no need for a dog...unless you happened to get lucky with a golden BB on a 60+ yd shot and need help finding the wounded bird. In fact, the one or two we harvested during the opening three days and second weekend hunts were accomplished by just a lucky walking flush at about 50 yrds with the dog far away.. It's plum pitiful around there.
 
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Kansan said:
Been hunting public ground in NWK for the past few days. Saw a few, shot a few. Every pheasant we shot was this year’s bird.

Lots of wild flushers, too, which are likely carry overs.
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NW Kansas has always been the golden location compared to the rest of the state in bad seasons IMO....
 
Jayhawk said:
I can report that, for the first time since 2005, I did not hunt the opener. What I saw last year combined with the weather reports all summer led me to stay home and give the birds a break. Hopefully with a few wet years they’ll be back and I’ll still be able to make the trip. But I just couldn’t justify it this year.
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Jayhawk...you have wisdom beyond your years...!! I mean, around Cimarron, unless you were trying to improve your PT score for this years PT test, it was a 'get out with the dogs, enjoy the company, and stroll the fields' moment.
 
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