Taking the boys hunting

1

1Model21

New member
I am brand new to the forum and have been lurking for about a year as I have decided to take my two sons on a pheasant hunt to ND. We live in Idaho and have a few pheasants, but nothing compared to ND. This will also be my first time to ND for pheasant. My sons are 12 and 14 and we shoot many ducks a few chukar and huns out here in ID, but they are very excited to hunt in ND. I have booked two days hunting on a ranch near Bowman, Dakota Winds, but I also want to spend a couple days on our own with our two English Pointers chasing some grouse or roosters. I have been looking at the plots stuff around there, can anyone recommend a good place to take a couple kids for a day or two? Also are there hotels near Bowman? We will be there around Oct. 20th.

Oh and as for my "handle" or name, it does not mean I date a 21 year old model or anything, it is the model of a gun I like - the winchester model 21. I inhereted one from a great uncle that went down in a sub in WW2. Thanks for any help you send, I look forward to some good times this fall with my boys in the field.
 
Welcome to UPH. I can't help you with your hunt in North Dakota, but you may want to post an intro, in the introduction forum. It may help you to get quicker response to your questions. Once again welcome.:)
 
Google up "Hunting For Humanity" out of New England, they're good people & will do you right at a fair price if you can find an opening (loads of wild birds) - or you can spend the moon (SERIOUS $$$$) with Cannonball or the many other similar operations over by Mott/Regent/Hettinger.

As to PLOTS land in the area, good luck on that - been there, done that - it's how I met the other guys & several more good people in the area after traveling across the country from PA with my two sons on our very first real pheasant hunt & coming up with a big, fat ZERO on lots of very poor plots land (much of it grazed or mowed to bald nubbins at that time) while seeing pheasants out the wazoo up and down practically every road in the county on primo private lands.

Only been to sw ND once - it was one of the best & most memorable pheasant hunts of my life (& the very first one with my two sons when they were not a whole lot older than your boys), but it would NOT have been if we had kept hopelessly plugging away on downright sorry plots lands & failed to start knocking on doors! I had a couple dejected, tail-dragging boys on my hands losing interest fast until we switched gears & hit the mother-lode! :( :D

Like I said, only been there once - so sure there are others with much more ND experience - maybe it was just a particularly bad/dry/emergency year for plots land or I never managed to find the right ones.

Regardless of the route you choose, hope you guys get into 'em & have a bang-up father/son time - nothin else on earth like it! :thumbsup:
 
Towns are far apart in Western ND. There are motels but with the oil boom, I wouldn't depend on finding a room. Try get a reservation well in advance. There's plenty of public land including a big chunk of National Grasslands to the NW of Bowman. Good place for a chance at Sharptails.
 
agree with all above ,the plots are tough. Most of that part of the state is paid trespass hunting. There are lots of birds however if you want to go! i say worth the money!

great experience for the kids ! Grew up in Idaho,and 40 years ago , in southern idaho was like N. Dakota is now. Go! JIM from Montana
 
Thanks for all the help, I have done some map searching and a bit of calling around and I think we will be fine looking for some roosters and sharptails when we get to ND.
 
great place to hunt

I have been hunting the same area in ND for 6 years now and never paid to hunt. I hunt posted land just by asking and been turned because I was too early. Their relatives hunt first. When you go later it seems to work better for me anyway. I hunt 3 weeks total. I hunt plots and seem to get my limit. I think what works for me again is. I have built relationships with farmers out there. It takes time but for me it was worth it. Good dogs are great to because they find birds others have missed.

Lazlo
 
Lazlo.

I am sure you realize that the Zeeland area is not the same as West of the Missouri. Commercialization of pheasant hunt is at its peak in SW ND.

Bowman is on the edge of the prime pheasant range. National Grasslands has pheasants along the river bottoms. Sharptails too.

It is rattlesnake country. Like anything pockets here and there as they move towards their dens in the fall.
 
Just want to Welcome you to UPH. I know nothing of the area you planning to hunt........Bob
 
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