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quiet on the forum


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It sure has been a quiet year on the forum regarding pheasant hunting. Is it that bad, is no one hunting, folks just tight lipped or what?

I know its been a tough year with all the crops in, we hunted SW MN just before firearms deer and it was worse than we even expected.

So whats everyone think, and how are you doing now that the corn is down??

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The corn still isn't down here, but its getting there. I think I'm jinxed. Dog and I put up 18 hens today before finally a rooster (17 just me and him before we joined up with some friends) and the rooster flew right in front of another guy I didn't even get a shot... I had to leave to help with six year old girls birthday party and they shot 7 roosters after I left. UGGH. Oh well, dog had a great day and I was out, that's what really matters...

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Colder temps, a little snow, and a bit less corn in the fields is just what the doctor ordered for better ditch parrot hunting.

Popped a few today. Saw a few more. I saw more today than I have seen in the past days. I'm not saying I saw gabillions of them, but more than I did last week.

When HL comes out we prolly won't see a single bird. That's my luck. I can do ok one day and the next day when a frind shows up to hunt, we don't see a thing.

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Went out on black friday. Walked one creek/small slough and seen easily 20 hens and 3 roosters. Shoulda had 2 of the 3 but the other was a hail mary that got up behind. Birds were holding tight. Went out sunday near my place to a big area of CRP got 2 hens up only 20 yards in then a few more hens here and there and only seen one rooster that swung over the water and dint feel like going back for the waders. then 2 more hens. Overall the birds were holding tight

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First weekend with corn down around our hunting area and It was what we expected "Amazing" One spot shot 6 roosters and seen a total of 50 hens and 30 or so roosters most out of range. The were holding so tight in the morning and busted way to early in the afternoon. Ended the day with 12 roosters for 5 guys. The dogs worked like champs.

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The were holding so tight in the morning

Towards the end of my one hunt (both morning hunts) my lab was on point, then flushed it once i got there then she trotted about 3 feet after it flushed and stopped and watched it fly away and about 1 second after she stopped another hen burst out of the grass literally right under my dog thats how tight they were holding for me.

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From what I have seen in SW MN the population is down a solid

50% from last season.

Less corn has been helping but the numbers just aren't there.

On our farm I am guessing there are 75% less birds than last season, period.

The rain and hail in June really took a toll on the birds.

Still great to get out and watch the mutt do his thing.

tweed

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Got out this afternoon, started about two. First WMA we walked, the ice was thick enough to walk in the cattails. Would have only went in about knee depth so worth the risk. Only one hen for our efforts. Went to a WPA and there was a father/son team just unloading their two labs so I drove a couple hundred yards down and was going to hunt the other side of the road. I then found myself outside with the dog and the keys locked inside. Quick call to my daughter, 35 minutes later I am back hunting. While I waited the F/S team finished their quick walk, they did not go into the real thick cattails, don't think the younger guy was tall enough. At least three trucks with hunter drove by. As soon as they left another truck pulled in and three more guys started to walk it again. Still no shots. Me and Duey walked an area we have hunted in the past and I know the birds roost close by. Three hens flush tight and then the rooster takes Duey for some exercise. After about 75 yards the rooster flushes and all I can do is listen to him cackle as he flew back into a 160 acre corn field. On the way back to the car talked with a couple of young hunters with their dogs, they live right across from the WPA. They had watched three roosters and a hen settle in to the cattails where the F/S team had been and tried to walk them up with about 5 minutes of shooting time left. They didn't get close enough either. They told me that it is amazing the number of times the WPA gets walked in a weekend. It shows with the beat down paths around the perimeter. Most the time unsucessfully. I would agree that in the area of SW MN I hunt, the numbers are down. But if you can be that guy who hits an area shortly after the corn is combined, it can still be as good as it ever was. Or if you have PP that is better yet, at least you know you are number one for that day, not group 5 or 6 or 7.

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memyself@I, The late harvest has (on the land I hunt) just driven the birds into a 1/3 mile wideing of a cattailed creek with flowing water and some deep holes. I'm waiting for the COLD to take a GOOD grip and gimme some thicker ice to walk on, cause I ain't gonna try it in hip boots again. That's TOO dang much work! I know they're in there, I can hear them cackling in the AM & PM. If it comes down to 'crunch time', I'll break out the canoe and push pole again! Phred52

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Went out thursday and friday and managed my bird both days but I would agree that the numbers are not there like they were a couple years ago. Now that most of the corn is down and there is a little snow they are fairly predicable though. The one nice thing about the corn being up so late the birds dont act like they have been pressured to much yet and have been holding pretty tight. The biggest problem I've run into is there is enough ice for the birds to run out to the middle of the slough but not enough to hold me up.

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Wow Phred52 you really must be a fanatic or you're yanking my chain about push-poling the creek. I agree walking in hip boots is too much work unless its a really short push.

Good to hear people are finding some birds and that they are holding. I know the last 2 seasons were phenomenal in MN it was as good a hunting as I have seen anywhere. I did not know about the hail this summer but I know we had more of a winter last year than we've had in a while. So what goes up does come down.

I hope to get out this week (barring big snow event) and give it a go again, I have a 1 year old lab I'd like to get into some birds with.

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Not yankin' your chain, I start my season late due to harvest and personal preferance. Actually with using the canoe, it's easier than the boots, just a little tougher getting a quick shot off. Having the push pole teathered to the canoe is 'cumbersome', but a definite plus!! Hard to say how many birds I'm passing by, I've wondered about that often. I haven't needed the canoe now for I believe the last 4, maybe 5 years. It's kind of a last resort. Pheasants are the only game I hunt anymore, I can really focus on them. Phred52

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I got out Friday and only saw three birds that got up 100 yards ahead. Two looked like young roosters. Same wma last year, we would see 10-30 birds. Couldn't walk in the cattails, but they should be good by now.

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Just got back in from our mornings hunt and our group of 3 got 5 roosters. We saw a couple other roosters and about 25 or so hens. Corn is just about gone around here and the birds are realateing to the willow patches. Just enough dusting of snow to see tracks what a blast! Can't wait to get out again. Things will really get good once the ice is thick enough to hold a human in the cattails.

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Just got back from SW MN near Boilerguys area, not much happening for birds. Kicked up 4 hens and NO roosters. I have yet to pull the trigger this year. The dog is frusterated. I jumped from one WMA to the next, and they were all about the same. Few tracks in the snow either, so I know its not me or the dog. Tried lots of different methods, slow, fast, thin cover, thick cover, REALLY thick cover, even tried hunting in the water (fell though knee deep on the first spot, long cold day after that.) After working over a WMA good, we stopped to eat, of course the dog finds the birds right across the dirt road on the private land. Eh, I have ONE trip like this left in me for the year, with the amount of miles and wear on the vehicle, a game farm is far cheaper. Private land would be priceless, as there are still lots of people out chasing pheasants on the WMAs. There are far, far fewer birds on the WMAs than last year. I've flushed groups of 40 and 50 bird right at the end of the year last year on some of these spots, I think the winter was not nice to them.

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Was out on Friday, saw 7-8 hens and was able to shoot the only rooster I saw. Hunted mostly upland and willows, at 10 degrees I didn't feel like getting sucked into the cattails and getting wet feet. Hope this snow bypasses us, I'd rather see it stay cold and making ice. Worst possible scenario is 2 inches of ice and 6 inches of snow, there will be spots in the cattails that will never freeze solid.

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Saturday hunted WMA's and WPA's from Boooten, to south of Wilmar, to the So Dak border, and back up to Brooten. The dog work was the best of the year, the birds were spotty at best, and the shooting was poor.... We covered a lot of ground. There were a ton of people out hunting. shocked I was very surprised. I thought with bird numbers down, some corn still up in areas, coupled with cold temps, it wouldn't have been as busy as it was. We really had to hop around, it was crazy. The atlas really got the broke-in look by the end of the day. Not much to show for the long day, but dang it was nice to be out there. Might have to go back to grouse though. grin

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Hunted all day yesterday in the Hutch area. Was planning on going farther West but with the coming storm did not want to get stuck out there. Cold, very windy day.

Flushed 3 birds, all roosters. Got the first one, didn't have a shot at the second, and missed the third. Never even saw a hen.

One bird out of some relatively thin hip high grass along a drainage ditch, one out of a windbreak hedgerow, and one out of the cattails. Couldn't really find a pattern.

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