Tag Archives: Styrka

Hunting

Wild Birds

Season four with Echo had many memorable highlights. While birds in Eastern Colorado were not as abundant as in past years, she and I managed to get it done more often than not. There was one specific day in December that proved to be the most incredible I have ever witnessed in my years in the field.

Greg and I rolled into Yuma just after 8 am. The night before I received permission to hunt a fantastic half section of native grass just south of town. I hunted this property throughout the early part of the season, and I had taken a few roosters while seeing many more. The dogs hit the field with excitement as we made our way to the initial edge of the thigh-high cover. Not dissimilar to previous walks, there were birds present, but they all flushed wild. Seventy-five minutes later, and with no shots taken, Greg and I regrouped at the truck to debate what we would do next.

I have additional private access just west of town, and there are some good WIAs within minutes of our location. Taking a calculated risk, we made the decision to travel an hour east in order to hunt an exquisite farm just north of Wray. As we entered town, we noticed a blanket of fresh snow covering the ground. The newly discovered conditions brought great anticipation for the day ahead. As we drove to my favorite spot in Colorado, we pulled over to evaluate a corner where we have access. I noticed a hen sitting on a plum thicket branch about two feet above the snowy ground. She got fidgety and took off. An unseen rooster followed her, and then forty birds exploded from their hidden positions. Greg and I looked at one another and smiled.

We quietly approached the half section of CRP with a realistic expectation to find a lot of birds. Two cornfields border the 320 acres of tall grass, making this property an ideal environment for housing wild pheasants. As we walked north towards a perfectly designed shelterbelt, birds suddenly started to appear in every direction. Echo and I were still seventy-five yards from the trees when the action began. Literally two hundred pheasants took flight in groups of twenty. Picking up the pace Echo and I finally made it to the east side of the pines. As birds continued to fly in waves from their hiding spots, they veered away from me once they noticed my conspicuous location. I took a futile shot at a rooster that briefly appeared before vanishing from my vantage point. Echo remained focused as her senses were sharp given the number of birds that had been present. She and I made our way around to the backside of the windbreak, and a hen busted followed by a rooster. I mounted my shotgun and followed the bird to my right. One shot crumpled him, and Echo made a quick retrieve.

Echo and I limited out in less than an hour. We saw more wild pheasants on this one day then during ten trips combined last season. It was good to see these magnificent animals flourishing in ideal habitat.

A Colorado Pheasant Hunt – December 15, 2019

Hunting

Hunting Partner

It is not uncommon during Colorado’s upland bird season for me to drive over 450 miles and walk 13 in a single day.  I am usually up just before 4 am, and out the door no later than 4:45 am.  The trip to the eastern corridor of the state is long, but I am fueled by both adrenaline & caffeine.  Upon arrival in bird country, my heart starts to race as I anticipate the day’s adventure. Once I am out of the truck, I expect that every shelterbelt, plum thicket and CRP field that I walk is loaded with exquisite pheasants.  The reality is that I generally walk for many miles before raising my shotgun at a crafty rooster.  There are days that can be bleak, and exhausting when no birds reveal themselves for hours on end. Upland hunting can be even more exasperating when erratic shooting undermines limited opportunities.

It takes someone with comparable DNA to want to prowl the prairie with you. They possess the same commitment, passion and unadulterated love for the chase. Your hunting partner embraces the grind, and he does not need an explanation when you want to hit one more spot late in the day before the long journey home. They don’t have to be a colleague at work, a college roommate or even your best friend. They just need to bring the same level of intensity to the sometimes-complex, arduous process of hunting the uplands. I value those people that pursue birds with me. I enjoy talking strategy with them, and learning from their divergent experiences in the field. They know when they can chide me for missed shots, but they are also aware when silence is golden. It takes time to create the mutual trust to want to begin hunting together. Once the required commonalities are satisfied, a unique respect between people is born.

My hope is that both of my teenage sons evolve to become zealous wingshooters. I know that I cannot force them to love it, and that there is an opportunity cost associated with hunting with their dad. That said, my boys would be my ideal hunting partners.

A Colorado Pheasant Hunt – December 15, 2019 – The Video

Hunting

Failure

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“We pray our sights be straight and our aim be true.  We pray for no pain to the game we pursue. We thank you, Lord for this land. We thank you for the sights from our stands. We pray for safety one and all.  We pray we may return in the fall.”

-Camille Pissaro

Failure brings on all types of undesirable emotions. For me, failure usually creates a gut-wrenching, remorseful reaction to whatever I was attempting to accomplish. Many times, these feelings negatively impact my frame of mind for the foreseeable future.

On the second day of Colorado’s deer rifle season, my plan involved putting myself in an advantageous position before sunup.  I drove down the main road leaving headquarters at a quickened pace. It was 5 am, 33 degrees and shooting light was over an hour away. Towards the end of five mile road a truck was parked about 150 yards inside the entrance to the Ranch. I cautiously pulled my pickup next to his vehicle. He was an older man dressed in camo, highlighted with the proper amount of hunter’s orange. He told me that he was waiting to contact the owner of the property.  I asked him who he was specifically looking for. When he could not come up with a name, I politely asked him to leave. As he turned his truck around, I looked up the hill to the west, and saw the outline of the buck that poacher was eyeing. I trained my binoculars on him, and I was able to discern that he was a deer that I wanted to take.

I grabbed my rifle and bipod, and made my way across the cattle guard. The buck was feeding uphill, and he did not seem aware of my presence. I put my rifle into the bipod, and got comfortable. The buck was 151 yards from my shooting position, and he decided to lay down. The sun was coming up behind me, so I felt confident that I could remain concealed until I was permitted to shoot him. About thirty minutes later, the buck stood up and took two steps to his left. With my crosshairs on his shoulder, I squeezed the trigger. The buck kicked hard, and spun around as he fell to the ground. I stood up, as I thought the animal was fatally wounded.  Suddenly, he raised up, obviously injured, but able to walk. I attempted to shoot him off hand, but I missed.  He made his way over the hill heading southwest.  I ran towards the buck, realizing that I needed to kill him before he got beyond from my effective range. The noise I made startled the wounded deer, and he unexpectedly turned and jumped the adjacent fence and then ran across the highway. Recognizing that the animal was hurt, I made the difficult decision to pursue him, even though I would no longer be in my game management unit. I know the pasture where he entered, and I scoured the land both on foot and in my truck.  This section of the Ranch abuts the neighbor’s property just one mile to the north. That landowner leases his land to an outfitter who charges a lot of money for guided hunts. The deer needed to be recovered before he became inaccessible. As I drove to the north end of the land, the injured deer jumped from his bedded position, and he made his way over the fence.  My heart sank as I drove to the fence line, and watched him limp away at fifty yards.  I quickly received permission from the ranch manager to take the deer, but I hesitated because I figured that the outfitter would be present.  Recognizing I was shaken up, I took a few deep breaths, and I tried to collect myself. I drove to an area where I had both mobile reception, as well as data access.  My objective was to contact the outfitter, and determine if he was hunting with clients.  It took me well over one hour to figure out who was leasing the property, as well as to find his mobile number. Soon after getting the outfitter on the line, he accused me of trespassing, lying, and many other unseemly acts. He threatened to call the CPW, and told me to expect a hefty fine. Recognizing that I had done nothing wrong, I called the CPW, and asked them to meet me at the Ranch. The officers listened to my story, and completed an extensive investigation of the incident. Hours later, they absolved me of any wrongdoing, and offered to help me locate the deer.  Despite looking all over the pasture for two hours, we could not find him. Discouraged, embarrassed, and angry, I packed up and headed for home.

I have replayed my initial shot multiple times over the last couple of weeks. I cannot determine what occurred on such a routine shot. My subsequent range work did not reveal the issue, as my aim proved to be spot-on. The guilt I feel for wounding the deer will never leave me.  I accept responsibility for my failure, and I hope it will never happen again.

Hunting

A Late Season Colorado Pheasant Hunt

New Year’s Eve means two things at this point in my life; a vacation day and the eve of my oldest son’s birthday.  Gone are the days of big parties, a few too many cocktails and staying up all night.  To that point, I planned an early morning bird hunting trip to my favorite Walk in Areas in Eastern Colorado.  My lofty goal was to have my limit by early afternoon, and be back in time for a celebratory family dinner.  Jeremy, Kessler, Pride and I loaded up at five a.m. and hit the road.

Upon arriving at the first field at 8 a.m., we noticed tire tracks in the six inches of recently fallen snow.  After closer inspection, it looked as though the hunter only covered the northern part of the long CRP field the prior day.  We moved to the southern edge, and worked the dogs west.  Our thirty minute walk produced one hen that was sitting tight on the edge of a large corn field.  Disappointed that we did not see more birds, I made a phone call to a local rancher who allows me to hunt his property.  Ron recently moved into a new home, but he still has access to the land he leased for years.  He asked us not to hunt the northern switchgrass strips, as his cousins were coming out to hunt in January.  After thanking him profusely, we hastily made our way to the prime area.  Just to the north of the house, there is a one hundred and fifty yard shelterbelt that always has a few birds hiding within the junipers.  Leaving Pride in his crate, Jeremy, Kessler and I pinched the tree row from the east and west.  Weaving through the eight foot trees, we worked our way toward one another.  As I focused on the cover to my left, I heard a bird get up behind me then a successive shot.  The plan worked as Jeremy bagged the first rooster of the day.

Given the explicit direction of the rancher, we drove to the southern edge of the property and unloaded.  The cover is pristine; deep grass abutting corn.  Additionally, no one had hunted the land in over a month.  Leaving Pride in the truck, Jeremy, Kessler and I worked our way west keeping about twenty five yards between us.  Pheasant tracks became evident just off the county road.  I anticipated birds were running to evade their pursuers.   Without warning, dozens of pheasants started to flush wild.  My first instinct was to sprint to the action, but experience told me to be patient.  I was rewarded minutes later with a dozen birds jumping up within twenty five yards.  I selected a lone rooster moving into the cornfield and fired three unsuccessful shots.  Disappointed in my performance, I reloaded my Benelli Ethos and marched forward.  Cursing at my inability to execute, I tried to focus on immediate improvement.  Literally dozens of pheasants continued to get up about seventy five yards from our position.  Jeremy and I commented on the incredible scene taking place in front of us.  The bird population in Eastern Colorado is recovering, and it was now evident.  About three quarters of the way into the field I stopped.  A nervous hen flew into the cornfield followed by a lone rooster flying away to the west.  A single HEVI-SHOT round took him down, and Kessler made the retrieve.  With a bird in my Orvis Upland Sling Pack we worked our way to the far western edge of the field.  Realizing that we were pushing birds, I picked up my pace in order to ensure that our prey would not escape into the adjacent cornfield.  As I turned the corner, I saw a rooster sprinting back into the thick ironweed.  I yelled to Jeremy as the pheasant took flight.  He made a perfect swing, and downed the bird with one proficient shot.

We made a decision to walk back to the east, as we did not want to disturb the acreage close to headquarters.  It did not take long before a rooster jumped out of the tall grass and took flight.  My first shell missed to his left, but my follow up shot knocked the bird out of the air. We witnessed more pheasants taking flight, but none that encouraged a shot.

It was lunchtime, so we decided to visit friends in the area as we had Christmas gifts.

I am not certain that I will get out again this season.  Pride is officially retired.  He does not have the ability to navigate fields any longer.  I will miss watching him hunt.
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English: A Pheasant at Castle Grant Pheasants ...

Video: Another Great Day Hunting Pheasants on the Eastern Plains of Colorado

 

Hunting

Pride Circa 2015

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I did not anticipate that my 12.5-year-old lab, Pride, would make our annual upland hunting trip.  He was diagnosed with cancer in June, and had part of his left front paw amputated.  His gate after the surgery was noticeably awkward, and moderate running became strenuous.  As I attempted to get him prepared for the 2015 season, he tired quickly, and did not seem enthused when we threw the bumper.  As our trip neared, I was conflicted on what I should do.  I am fortunate to have buddies that own quality, hard-working gun dogs.  Hunting over them is a privilege. That said, the experience in the field is enhanced when you’re working in harmony with your own dog; a dog that skillfully corners a running rooster, a dog that locates a crippled bird in deep cover, and a dog that forgives you when you miss an easy shot.

On Wednesday evening I made the decision to bring Pride on the trip.  He would not hunt large fields, or be put in situations that would tax his mind and body.  Additionally, I brought all relevant medications to ensure that he remained comfortable during the journey.

Five of us arrived in the northeast corridor of Colorado at about nine am on Thursday, November 19th.  I am familiar with the Walk in Area (WIA) fields in this part of the state.  The drought that plagued this region over the prior three years made hunting challenging.  Bird populations decreased substantially as the habitat disappeared.  Thankfully, most of Colorado received adequate precipitation throughout 2015, and early season reports were promising.  I surveyed the land once I arrived at our first field.  The CRP was noticeably higher, and I hoped that would result in consistent action.

Hunting Pride in the first couple of fields was not an option.  The cover was too thick, and the walks were too long.  I made a call to a friend who is a landowner in this part of the state.  He gave us permission to hunt his property.  Our initial private field has a center pivot irrigation machine that abuts the county road.  Tall grass and tumble weeds sit below the drag hoses.  The deep cover parallels a large cornfield harvested weeks prior to our visit.  We manned each end of the agricultural equipment and worked towards the center.  Pride walked with determination and excitement as we executed the pinching technique.  His tail became noticeably active, and he picked up the pace, signifying there were pheasants present.  Unfortunately the first two roosters flushed wild and out of shotgun range.  A third rooster flew out of the cover thirty yards in front of me.  I took immediate aim then fired three quick rounds at the evasive bird.  Unfortunately, I did not connect, and was forced to yell “no bird” as Pride headed into the cut cornfield.  When the hunters met somewhere in the middle of the field, a final rooster flew, and it was quickly taken down by a flurry of skillful shots.

We made our way to another private section of land that always holds a large amount of pheasants.  It is critical to approach the long row of tall junipers from both the north and south.  We set up a blocker at the far west end in order to prevent birds from easily escaping.  There is a significant amount of cover throughout the shelterbelt that includes two large, deep pits.  Cornfields line both sides of the trees, which makes a quiet approach almost impossible.  As we moved through the area we noticed a pile of new shotgun shells, indicating that others had recently hunted the land.  Given the disappointing facts, three of the guys started to head back to the trucks.  Pride and I marched further west, still hoping that there were birds held up in a small patch of cover one hundred yards from the prime area.  As I approached the edge of the field the distinct sound of a pheasant taking flight caused me to turn one hundred and eighty degrees.  There were two roosters already in the air and moving in different directions.  I focused on the bird moving to my right and fired a HEVI-SHOT round from my Benelli Ethos 12 gauge.  The right wing of the pheasant was struck, but he successfully glided fifty yards into the middle of the cut cornfield.  Pride was already running, but his lack of speed undermined any ability to successfully mark the downed bird.  I ran right to the position where I believed the bird landed.  I asked Pride to hunt dead and positioned him into the wind.  For fifteen minutes, I watched him move carefully up and down the cornstalk rows.  Suddenly his turns tightened and his body lowered.  He stopped on point, staring intently at a pile of brush.  Watching with amazement, Jeremy and I waited for Pride to move.  He dove into the cover and grabbed the wounded bird.  I was elated at Pride’s performance.  He accomplished a feat I thought impossible given his age and medical condition.  We took pictures and I ended his day.  I could have headed back home as my trip was already a resounding success.

Eight of us enjoyed four great days in the field.  Successfully hunting both public and private land throughout Eastern Colorado and Western Kansas.  Pride continued to surprise me, finding birds in the nastiest cover.  Given his remarkable performance, we will hunt again this season.

Our First Field

Product Comment
Benelli Ethos (12 Gauge) I shot pretty well the entire trip.  The only birds I missed were my fault.  The gun performed flawlessly in some pretty cold weather.
HEVI-SHOT Pheasant Every bird I hit eventually died.  The load packs a serious punch.
SoundGear Bob and I wore our SoundGear hearing protection during the entire trip.  We love the sound amplification in conjunction with the protection.
Orvis Upland Sling Pack I was cautiously optimistic when I purchased this pack.  It performed very well in the field.  Comfortable and everything is easily accessible.
onXmaps Imperative on this trip. Needed to distinguish public from private land.  A must for all hunters and fisherman.
Irish Setter King Toe I LOVE these boots.  We walked 10 miles a day and my feet were so comfortable and warm.
Oakley Racing Jacket Would not hunt without these shades.  They perform very well in low light conditions.   The lenses are easily scratched so protect them with a case.
SportDOG UPLANDHUNTER 1875 The best e-collar in the market for upland hunters.
Sylmar Body & Paw Protection I recommend these products to all of my friends that own gun dogs.
Sitka Ballistic Beanie Awesome hat that keeps you warm.  Too warm when the air temperature crests 30 degrees.

 

 

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