Watertown, SD Report
- Thread starter specialk
- Start date
Dakotazeb
Well-known member
specialk, I moved from Aberdeen to Watertown in September. I knew in making the move I would be going from a very good part of the state for pheasants to an area not quite as good. But I had no idea it would be this bad. I've only been our 4 times in the Watertown area as I've had other areas to hunt. But the first 3 times out I never saw a bird. The 4th time I was with 2 other guys and we did see a few birds and shot 1. I have yet fire a shot within 40 miles of Watertown. The areas I hunted were West and NW of Watertown. I even hunted private land between Henry and Clark and there were no birds. The area around Henry got hit real hard with a hail storm the summer of 2010 that killed a lot of birds and then the severe winter finished off most of the remainder. I have heard of guys finding pockets of birds but they are really down within 40-50 miles of here. You need to get west of Clark and probably out to the Doland/Redfield area to start seeing any decent numbers, but those areas are also down from the previous years. If I was you I would consider another area. I've heard very good reports from the Pierre area and the south central part of the state. Good luck where ever you end up going.
Zeb, as we hunt around the Arlington area and a bit North and East of there usually, would you consider that territory in the very poor zone as well? We were scheduled to go this Saturday for 5 days but my dog developed a severe hematoma and had surgery Monday with a 3 week recovery period per the Vet so we cancelled but might go after Thanksgiving unless it's really that horrible-we can take our gun for a walk around here a lot cheaper. Thanks for any comments on this--and aren't the areas around Pierre and south central mostly pay to hunt set ups?
Dakotazeb
Well-known member
Geno, I don't have any info on the Arlington area. If you have any contacts in that area I'd advise you to call them and see how the pheasant numbers are. I think there are a fair number of public areas in the Pierre area but I know the south central part has few public areas. All I know for sure is that the Watertown area is not good this year. I just talked to a guy I know from Minnesota that was recently out in this area. They had to get out west of Redfield to find birds. They started out in the Clark area. I think he mainly hunted public areas and ditches. He said the last 4 days SW of Redfield he did quite well. Sorry to hear about your dog. Have a good trip when you do make it out.
I am hunting the exact same spot presently, and have ben for the last 9 years. it's pretty bad, we are moving very few birds maybe getting a shot at one or two all day.
Anrab, are you staying by Debbie at the Arlington Inn? Say hello, just e-mailed her yesterday about not being able to come this coming week. We have for about the last 10 years and overall have had pretty good results [2 guys, my dog] in the region but rarely getting a limit and mostly all on private land, I think we have only gone on public 1 time by Dempster and a couple walk-in spots. There is a group of guys from this area going out there on the 12th and we'll get a report from them since we can't make it next week due to my dog being out of commission until he heals. I hope you do better, it's discouraging walking for hours with no activity-been there before.
I only hunt pblic land, north and west of Arlington,
We hit a few pockets of good bird numbers but for the most part it's pretty slim. Not seeing a lot of young birds, about half the birds we take are cary over birds. We are seeing a good number of hens, about 3 to1 to roosters.
just got back from hunting west of watertown (doland area). Nice trip. Birs numbers are certainly down. First day 5 guys shot 11 birds hunting until 4:30. Second day 16 guys shot about 30 birds hunting until 6. Third day 16 guys shot 43 birds and the last day 16 hunters limited out. Birds were really in the cattails ans sloughs. Had to walk longer and saw fewer birds, but that is why they call it hunting and not shooting. Great company and still a very good time.
watertown
Special K,
Hunt where you need to, it is your trip. If you are going to visit Watertown & relatives, by all means go ahead. If you are going to South Dakota for Pheasant hunting please go further West & spend your money (more purposely - more Phez.). I was one of the hunters with Zeb. I have hunted the Watertown, Clark, & Henry areas for years as well as further West.
I just returned from nearly two weeks of Phez. hunting out there.
To make a long story short, our trip would have been a total bust if we had not travelled further West. Redfield area was where we found decent bird numbers around there. Please believe me here for your own sake. Watertown NEVER has the numbers of birds as further West does. In better years you can hunt the Watertown area & get some. This year don't bother.
My hunting dollars like anyone else's are not that easy to come by. I will not waste any of mine near Watertown this year. NUMBERS ARE TOO LOW FOR ANY REAL SHOOTING OPPS.
Feel free to hunt where you wish & L.O.L.
The difference is night & day.
Special K,
Hunt where you need to, it is your trip. If you are going to visit Watertown & relatives, by all means go ahead. If you are going to South Dakota for Pheasant hunting please go further West & spend your money (more purposely - more Phez.). I was one of the hunters with Zeb. I have hunted the Watertown, Clark, & Henry areas for years as well as further West.
I just returned from nearly two weeks of Phez. hunting out there.
To make a long story short, our trip would have been a total bust if we had not travelled further West. Redfield area was where we found decent bird numbers around there. Please believe me here for your own sake. Watertown NEVER has the numbers of birds as further West does. In better years you can hunt the Watertown area & get some. This year don't bother.
My hunting dollars like anyone else's are not that easy to come by. I will not waste any of mine near Watertown this year. NUMBERS ARE TOO LOW FOR ANY REAL SHOOTING OPPS.
Feel free to hunt where you wish & L.O.L.
The difference is night & day.
Well don't really having the option of going anywhere else. Already have reservations and a house rented for the weekend. We'll be getting there early next Friday morning and hunting through the weekend. Either way I'm still looking forward to the experience. I've never been to that part of the country before so it should still be a good time.
I have hunted Watertown area since 1987 and I have some very nice farms to hunt. Three weeks ago we saw less than 10 birds all day. Birds are down probably 90% from two years ago. You will be much better off going at least to Doland and probably Redfield to get in to birds. Those areas are way down too, but if you have a decent dog you will get birds.
Uncle Buck
New member
2 plus a day is pretty good.
Watertown Bird Counts Way Down
We've hunted private land south of Watertoen for the past 8 years with good success. Last year bird numbers were down, and we had hoped for a rebound in 2011. Unfortunately the hard winter and wet spring combined to create the worst pheasant population we have ever seen. Hunting was on a par with SE Minnesota. Areas where we have seen dozens of birds in the past held 0-1 birds. You see almost no birds in the ditches or fields, in contrast to years past when counting birds enroute from watertown to our destination was a daily ritual.
The locals all told us to revise our expectations. "No one is seeing birds. If you get one bird per guy per day, consider yourself above average."
I'd strongly advise anyone planning to hunt within 25 miles of Watertown to MOVE WEST. After two days of fruitless hunting on private land in early November we moved 50 miles west and hunted public land. Lots of walking but at least we were seeing birds.
I wish I could be more encouraging, and I hope the Watertown area rebounds because we love the area and the people. But it will take more than one year to get back to bird numbers of a few years ago.
We've hunted private land south of Watertoen for the past 8 years with good success. Last year bird numbers were down, and we had hoped for a rebound in 2011. Unfortunately the hard winter and wet spring combined to create the worst pheasant population we have ever seen. Hunting was on a par with SE Minnesota. Areas where we have seen dozens of birds in the past held 0-1 birds. You see almost no birds in the ditches or fields, in contrast to years past when counting birds enroute from watertown to our destination was a daily ritual.
The locals all told us to revise our expectations. "No one is seeing birds. If you get one bird per guy per day, consider yourself above average."
I'd strongly advise anyone planning to hunt within 25 miles of Watertown to MOVE WEST. After two days of fruitless hunting on private land in early November we moved 50 miles west and hunted public land. Lots of walking but at least we were seeing birds.
I wish I could be more encouraging, and I hope the Watertown area rebounds because we love the area and the people. But it will take more than one year to get back to bird numbers of a few years ago.
Dakotazeb
Well-known member
New Depressing Report
I'm still not having any luck in the Watertown area. I've shot 2 roosters within 50 miles of Watertown this year. Today I had access to over 500 acres of private land about 30 miles NW of Watertown. About half the land was harvested beans and corn. The rest was tree groves, weedy tree lines, grass and weed patches and cattail slough areas that were too wet to plant. Overall, perfect pheasant habitat. In the corn and bean fields that had been harvested there was a lot of corn and beans left by the combines, so an abundance of foods sources for the birds. My 2 Brittanys and I walked the majority of the land, obviously couldn't cover all of it, and saw 1 hen. I did not see any other sign of birds on the land. No roosting spots, no tracks where there was still some snow, no dusting spots and not one drop of pheasant poop. Man, I'll tell you, if there are no birds on land like this it's a tough situation and not something that's going to correct itself in a year or two. Now I don't know how much this land had been hunted but I was told not much. But even so, there should have been bunches of hens. So far the winter has been great, let's just hope and pray it stays mild and the spring brings good hatching conditions.
I'm still not having any luck in the Watertown area. I've shot 2 roosters within 50 miles of Watertown this year. Today I had access to over 500 acres of private land about 30 miles NW of Watertown. About half the land was harvested beans and corn. The rest was tree groves, weedy tree lines, grass and weed patches and cattail slough areas that were too wet to plant. Overall, perfect pheasant habitat. In the corn and bean fields that had been harvested there was a lot of corn and beans left by the combines, so an abundance of foods sources for the birds. My 2 Brittanys and I walked the majority of the land, obviously couldn't cover all of it, and saw 1 hen. I did not see any other sign of birds on the land. No roosting spots, no tracks where there was still some snow, no dusting spots and not one drop of pheasant poop. Man, I'll tell you, if there are no birds on land like this it's a tough situation and not something that's going to correct itself in a year or two. Now I don't know how much this land had been hunted but I was told not much. But even so, there should have been bunches of hens. So far the winter has been great, let's just hope and pray it stays mild and the spring brings good hatching conditions.
