Bob Peters
Well-known member
Sometimes I get in trouble when I post, get too long winded. My name is Bob, I've got a problem. I think of bird hunting 365 24/7. I don't have bias for or against any state. When I've seen Skye flush or retrieve a bird in ND, Minnesota, Iowa, or SD, I've gotten goose bumps every time. Her first retrieve was a ringbill in a North Dakota public marsh. My buddy has the video on his phone, it's a memory I'll cherish forever. My first pheasant I shot just me and her was north central Iowa. I dropped a rooster, and she ran off into the public food plot and was gone. I'll never know how far the bird and her ran, I stood there for what seemed forever. I started hollering, nervous she had ran out of the county. Eventually she came back, a wild rooster held gently in her chops. I was so excited I sounded like a choir boy light in the loafers. She's the dog that taught me more about pheasant hunting than any book or youtube ever could. I didn't grow up hunting and had to figure things out on my own.
There were great times in MN when she flushed up and retrieved my first ever limit, and Iowa too. At this point I feel bad she had to put up with me as a hunter. Sometimes I called her off retrieves, or didn't follow her with enough belief only to see a gorgeous wild rooster flush out of range. What I've been thinking about is doing better on choosing hunting spots, more for her sake than mine. She deserves it. I've called biologists in SD and ND. I've done deep dives on old hunting reports, and spent more time looking at maps than I care to admit. I'm planning an early season grouse trip/pheasant scouting. I'll be knocking on a pile of doors in MN and IA. My main objective is to get on more birds, because the reason I hunt is to shoot them, but even more because Skye deserves it more than me. A lot more. All the discussions here got me thinkin', and I don't judge. Some guys wouldn't go if it cost more or they had to drive farther. Others would drive 16 hours to a lodge where they're all but guaranteed multi-man limits of birds with questionable heritage in groomed fields. Thats's fine as I see it. As for me and Skye, we'll drive 30 minutes or 10 hours, but we'll be chasing wild birds in wild places. I'll come clean on this. I had a furlough during pandemic. I was so happy to have time off, we headed straight to Huron. The birds were jumpy and pressured, we hit it hard. I think we got 3 birds in 4 days. I wouldn't trade the experience for anything. Right now I've got 4 trips planned to SD. One for prairie grouse, One with buddies in Day country, One back to west river for grouse and pheasants, and one for the January late season. Skye is 8.5 years old and in good shape, but I know good dogs don't live long enough. She is a lover, she is so happy to be around people that are happy to be around her. At the end of the day I've never seen her so happy as when she is out hunting and retrieving wild birds. I hope this fall and winter I can knock down enough birds to make her happy. She means the world to me.
This is Skye after we got back from Huron. Look how skinny she is after hunting wild birds all season. She is all business afield, but as friendly a dog as you'll ever meet back home.
There were great times in MN when she flushed up and retrieved my first ever limit, and Iowa too. At this point I feel bad she had to put up with me as a hunter. Sometimes I called her off retrieves, or didn't follow her with enough belief only to see a gorgeous wild rooster flush out of range. What I've been thinking about is doing better on choosing hunting spots, more for her sake than mine. She deserves it. I've called biologists in SD and ND. I've done deep dives on old hunting reports, and spent more time looking at maps than I care to admit. I'm planning an early season grouse trip/pheasant scouting. I'll be knocking on a pile of doors in MN and IA. My main objective is to get on more birds, because the reason I hunt is to shoot them, but even more because Skye deserves it more than me. A lot more. All the discussions here got me thinkin', and I don't judge. Some guys wouldn't go if it cost more or they had to drive farther. Others would drive 16 hours to a lodge where they're all but guaranteed multi-man limits of birds with questionable heritage in groomed fields. Thats's fine as I see it. As for me and Skye, we'll drive 30 minutes or 10 hours, but we'll be chasing wild birds in wild places. I'll come clean on this. I had a furlough during pandemic. I was so happy to have time off, we headed straight to Huron. The birds were jumpy and pressured, we hit it hard. I think we got 3 birds in 4 days. I wouldn't trade the experience for anything. Right now I've got 4 trips planned to SD. One for prairie grouse, One with buddies in Day country, One back to west river for grouse and pheasants, and one for the January late season. Skye is 8.5 years old and in good shape, but I know good dogs don't live long enough. She is a lover, she is so happy to be around people that are happy to be around her. At the end of the day I've never seen her so happy as when she is out hunting and retrieving wild birds. I hope this fall and winter I can knock down enough birds to make her happy. She means the world to me.
This is Skye after we got back from Huron. Look how skinny she is after hunting wild birds all season. She is all business afield, but as friendly a dog as you'll ever meet back home.
