519vx
Member
After not having been to SD for a couple years, I decided to give it a try based on large part on the better reports from the state game and fish dept. the odds aren’t with me. I’ve got a somewhat inexperienced 2 year old dog, I don’t get around well (bad leg) and I’m hunting state lands and ditches - no private land.
I put on a lot miles today looking for birds. I was basically in the middle of a triangle between Mitchell, Huron, and Kimball. There are birds, but not many. For perspective, I saw 21 deer today (only one nice buck), and 14 pheasants. 14 is what I saw, not what I flushed. The 14 does not include the 3 roosters I saw standing in the open next to sorghum strips on a corporate hunt club farm.
I shot at one bird today. Storm flushed a young of the year group of for birds. The first three were hens, the fourth was a rooster but his coloring was only partial. I knocked him down but he got up and ran like no Tommorrow into a weed field outside what I could legally hunt. Be very careful of your target, the one I shot at today only had a mottled colored head.
Crops are starting to come out. A lot/most of the beans are out but little corn is. Most of what I saw today was near corn so there’s a good sign for those coming later in the season.
If you ditch hunt, the roads marked with yellow minimum maintenance signs were definitely better for birds but drive slow and carefully. I hit a couple skunk holes that bounced us pretty good, some low spots are still pretty wet/muddy so use caution. A couple of times today I puckered up thinking I will be in a real pickle if I bury the truck in the middle of no where but all was fine.
I was also very surprised by the lack of hunters. I came across a few groups and a couple of other ditch hunters but that was it. Definitely fewer than when I was out a few years ago.
Day ended with a great prime rib dinner with a cup of cream of pheasant soup at the Smoking Mule in Kimball. It was very good and I definitely recommend. I went there based on a recommendation from my friend Reddog on this website. Thanks Reddog.
Headed in a different direction tomorrow to explore a new area. Will report tomorrow night.
I put on a lot miles today looking for birds. I was basically in the middle of a triangle between Mitchell, Huron, and Kimball. There are birds, but not many. For perspective, I saw 21 deer today (only one nice buck), and 14 pheasants. 14 is what I saw, not what I flushed. The 14 does not include the 3 roosters I saw standing in the open next to sorghum strips on a corporate hunt club farm.
I shot at one bird today. Storm flushed a young of the year group of for birds. The first three were hens, the fourth was a rooster but his coloring was only partial. I knocked him down but he got up and ran like no Tommorrow into a weed field outside what I could legally hunt. Be very careful of your target, the one I shot at today only had a mottled colored head.
Crops are starting to come out. A lot/most of the beans are out but little corn is. Most of what I saw today was near corn so there’s a good sign for those coming later in the season.
If you ditch hunt, the roads marked with yellow minimum maintenance signs were definitely better for birds but drive slow and carefully. I hit a couple skunk holes that bounced us pretty good, some low spots are still pretty wet/muddy so use caution. A couple of times today I puckered up thinking I will be in a real pickle if I bury the truck in the middle of no where but all was fine.
I was also very surprised by the lack of hunters. I came across a few groups and a couple of other ditch hunters but that was it. Definitely fewer than when I was out a few years ago.
Day ended with a great prime rib dinner with a cup of cream of pheasant soup at the Smoking Mule in Kimball. It was very good and I definitely recommend. I went there based on a recommendation from my friend Reddog on this website. Thanks Reddog.
Headed in a different direction tomorrow to explore a new area. Will report tomorrow night.
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