I would say anywhere between the North and South borders of the state and in between the James and Missouri Rivers. Take your pick of a town that you like and make reservations. There are birds to be found most any place in that "pheasant belt". Not to say that there aren't birds elsewhere but these are consistently the highest populated areas.
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Waubay Lake area Pheasant
- Thread starter GSPforever
- Start date
Waubay
Second vote for the Gettysburg area. I like it up that way, as well. I would drive 100 miles from Mitchell, and get set up in a small town. If you stay in Mitchell, you won't get that feeling that you are out on the prairie. The small towns are much better for getting to know folks in the bars and cafes. I base in Miller, and I rent a house there. It's quite a drive north of there where I do most of my hunting, but I've made some friends in Miller over the years, so that's where I go in November. I can give you info if you want it. I'm gonna spend a week in October this year and stay in Lebanon with a friend. I've never gone that early before, so should be interesting. That just a bit northeast of Gettysburg. If I were coming that far for that short of time, I'd second Zeb's advice to think about a pheasant hunting operation. The first two years I came out I didn't have a dog, or a clue, and I hunted Wenzel's Pheasant Ranch in Wessington Springs. Geez, what a great place. The hunting and accommodations were really great, and the area is really picturesque, with a lot of hills. I'm thinking that you will want to shoot your gun a few times, coming from that far away. You will for sure at a place like that. I can give you Gary's number if you want it. He ranches there along with his business. Just a great guy. They had a bad tornado there in 2014. I just went through there this November and things looked good. I think Zeb had another suggestion of a place to go. Anyway, you will have many other helpful suggestions from more experienced folks on this site. Shoot some clays before you come. The birds got a lot of get up and go out there. Good luck planning and have fun.
Second vote for the Gettysburg area. I like it up that way, as well. I would drive 100 miles from Mitchell, and get set up in a small town. If you stay in Mitchell, you won't get that feeling that you are out on the prairie. The small towns are much better for getting to know folks in the bars and cafes. I base in Miller, and I rent a house there. It's quite a drive north of there where I do most of my hunting, but I've made some friends in Miller over the years, so that's where I go in November. I can give you info if you want it. I'm gonna spend a week in October this year and stay in Lebanon with a friend. I've never gone that early before, so should be interesting. That just a bit northeast of Gettysburg. If I were coming that far for that short of time, I'd second Zeb's advice to think about a pheasant hunting operation. The first two years I came out I didn't have a dog, or a clue, and I hunted Wenzel's Pheasant Ranch in Wessington Springs. Geez, what a great place. The hunting and accommodations were really great, and the area is really picturesque, with a lot of hills. I'm thinking that you will want to shoot your gun a few times, coming from that far away. You will for sure at a place like that. I can give you Gary's number if you want it. He ranches there along with his business. Just a great guy. They had a bad tornado there in 2014. I just went through there this November and things looked good. I think Zeb had another suggestion of a place to go. Anyway, you will have many other helpful suggestions from more experienced folks on this site. Shoot some clays before you come. The birds got a lot of get up and go out there. Good luck planning and have fun.
GSPforever
New member
Im not intrested in going to a commercial place....i want to hunt one rooster at a time with my GSP. The only thing about the small towns is that i cant find hotels or any houses to rent on line. Im not really concerned about 40 bird flushes but would like to get a few birds daily between my dad wife son and myself....i really appreciat all the help you guys have giving me on this thread....you guys rock...lets keep this thread going....dont get me wrong....i would love to go to one of those places but cant really afford to spend300-500 a day each x 3....plus dont think it would be the same without my beloved GSP.....again....thank all of you so much.
Waubay
Try going on-line and get a look at the town's newspaper. Many times you can find ads for places to rent. Subscribe to a couple if you want to. It will also give you a feeling for the community, the schools, government, and general interest stories. It's really fun to read the paper from a completely different town in another part of the country. When I stop for gas out there in the middle of nowhere, I always pick up the local paper. Then, call a couple of area realtors. Find them in the paper or on Zillow, or a site like that. If they are a little older, they will know everybody in the area. They often have ideas and know people who have rentals. I'm trying to find a rental up in the Wishek/Lehr (ND) area so I can do an ice fishing/hunting combo trip in 2017. I called two realtors up that way, and bam, got four names of folks that might rent to me. You're not the only dude who plans ahead, lol. Then get on the phone and call the three folks who know everybody in town. The hardware store owner, the cafe owner, and the bartender. Folks out there are far enough west to have a pioneering spirit about them. They help each other out if they can. It's not like in the big city where everybody is afraid of each other. Sounds like a lot of work, but geez, I really enjoy that part of the journey. Get your wife on it. They can be really good at the research end of it. Good luck. I hear you on the one bird at a time. I'm the same way.
Try going on-line and get a look at the town's newspaper. Many times you can find ads for places to rent. Subscribe to a couple if you want to. It will also give you a feeling for the community, the schools, government, and general interest stories. It's really fun to read the paper from a completely different town in another part of the country. When I stop for gas out there in the middle of nowhere, I always pick up the local paper. Then, call a couple of area realtors. Find them in the paper or on Zillow, or a site like that. If they are a little older, they will know everybody in the area. They often have ideas and know people who have rentals. I'm trying to find a rental up in the Wishek/Lehr (ND) area so I can do an ice fishing/hunting combo trip in 2017. I called two realtors up that way, and bam, got four names of folks that might rent to me. You're not the only dude who plans ahead, lol. Then get on the phone and call the three folks who know everybody in town. The hardware store owner, the cafe owner, and the bartender. Folks out there are far enough west to have a pioneering spirit about them. They help each other out if they can. It's not like in the big city where everybody is afraid of each other. Sounds like a lot of work, but geez, I really enjoy that part of the journey. Get your wife on it. They can be really good at the research end of it. Good luck. I hear you on the one bird at a time. I'm the same way.
Downtown Bang!
Member
Hopefully the link below works. Basically a google map that lists the South Dakota motels and allows one to zoom in to each town and see whats available.
https://www.google.com/#q=motels in...906,5.202385689820176&fz=8&qop=1&rlfi=hd:;si:
https://www.google.com/#q=motels in...906,5.202385689820176&fz=8&qop=1&rlfi=hd:;si: