Upland Birds

[wyobohunter]

Who loves hunting upland birds? What birds do you hunt, where do you love to hunt and what do you use to hunt them with?

Me,

Ptarmigan - Kenai and Chugach mountains, 12 GA. BPS Upland special (my new shotgun, formerly a Mossberg 835).

Grouse (Spruce and Ruffed) - Spruce swamps and foothills on the Kenai Peninsula, same shotgun or my Ruger MKIII .22LR.

Pheasant (feral) - Southern Kenai Peninsula, same shotgun.

[chucksolo69]

I hunt dove and quail mostly. The Imperial Valley area of Southern California is a paradise for those species. We usually hunt along the All-American Canal just outside of the Brawley/El Centro area. I typically use my 12 guage auto loader. I have hunted with various shotguns, all auto loaders. My favorite was my Beretta intertia 12 guage. I had to sell it after I lost my job a few years back, I recently purchased a Winchester 1400 and am anxiously awaiting Sept. 1 so I can go hunt me some mourning doves and whitewings.

[jdscholer]

I guess I've become pretty much a quail hunter. We call ours Valley Quail around here. I've got a couple of places close to the house where I can always find a covey or two, and going out with my best friend, Gunner and shooting about six quail is just about like heaven for both of us.

Gunner is a German Wirehair Pointer, but he doesn't realize it. Our latest favorite shotgun is a sweet little 20 ga. Ithaca (SKB) 200E side by side. I'd like to think that between the highly pedigreed European bird dog and the eye catching side by side that we look natty and sophisticated, but opinions may vary.

We used to have a good pheasant population around here, but for whatever reason, they have pretty much disappeared. Every so often when I''m feeling flush, we'll go out to a pay-to-go hunt club where you buy what you're going to shoot, and they go plant them for you and turn ya loose.

It's not quite like hunting, but Gunner doesn't know the difference (or care) and the birds taste pretty good when it's all over. Some of them actually give us the slip, and that hurts after having paid 15 or 20 bucks for them.

Later Dudes. jd

[Cerick]

As of now I enjoy bird hunting more than I enjoy deer hunting, but I am very new to deer hunting.

I go mostly for pheasant in northern NJ. Use either a 12 or 20 gauge 870. Occasionally ill pick up the 12 gauge BPS just to switch things up.

My german shorthair is getting pretty old even though she would love to still be out there with the birdies. I often go out with my dad who always shoots with the same Ithaca Skb side by side that he has been upland hunting with since he bought it when he was 18. The thing is beautiful, light, and still looks brand new. Awesome gun.

I also do quail hunting up in Chenango county NY but that only happens a couple times a year.

[impalacustom]

I love to bird hunt more than any other kind of hunting. I use my 80 year old Remington Model 11, 20ga. My brother and I go hunting for pheasant and quail mainly but will sometimes get a few shots at some prairie chickens and turkeys if we have the permits. All of this is in southeast Nebraska. Here is a pic of him and my niece who went with us this December. The turkey was taken with his Browning 12ga the rest were with my 20. 2 pheasants, 3 quail and the single turkey. Bird hunting has gotten a lot harder since my dog Harley, black lab, is now blind and a spoiled pet. He whimpers and cries when we go hunting, he is just now along for the ride

[chucksolo69]

Wow, nice birds Impala!!! I wish there were pheasant around here; sadly there used to be, but too much development. We almost have to go to central California now, up around Visalia. Anyway congrats, that looks like a fine passel of birds.

[ddeyo1]

mainly grouse and woodcock. fast as hell and fun to shoot. Location - backyard (600 acres)... NY.

[Shorthair]

I love grouse hunting, for the habitat as much as for the birds. I get in shots at woodcock as well, because their preferred cover overlaps.
Pheasant hunting used to be big here in Michigan, but its died off to almost nothing now due to habitat changes, mostly related to modern farming practices.
For me, its almost always about the dogs...

[ddeyo1]

those are some great lookin dogs. I have a shorthair as well. great dogs, dont know what i would do without her

[flyboy14]

Pheasant is my favorate, I'll hunt doves, geese, ducks, and anything else

that I can, but pheasant is what I get excited about. The night before the

resident opener is better than the night before christmas for a 5 year old.

My hunting buddy has a brittney turbo, who is an excellent pointer, and I

bring my golden retriever elmo (kids named him) son of Fozzie Bear (wife).

Go to gun, last two years is an old rem 1100 12, this year I think it will be

a rem 1100 20, just to mix it up. Life is good when you live in South Dakota

and love to shoot pheasants. In the pic are the two dogs I think we were

two short of a limit, somebody else must of missed a couple.

[Cerick]

[darkgael]

Upland hunting is 95% of what I do. There's some turkey annd the occasional half-hearted attempt at deer (ya gotta get up too early) but mainly it's ruffed grouse.
I hunt in Columbia and Sullivan counties in PA, mostly in the game lands up on North Mountain.
There's me, my old Parker SXS and my English setter, Belle.
Pete

[Scorch]

Put me down for upland game, too! I have 2 Brittanys (I know, why 2? Poor judgement, that's all) that I use mainly for pheasant hunting, I love quail hunting (but there isn't much around here), grouse hunting, dove shooting, and goose hunting. I intend to try turkey soon, but it may have to wait for a while.

[sjeeperman]

I love upland hunting. I try to do as much as I can. Most years I grouse hunt in Colorado and Pheasant in Kansas. Dove/Quail in Ky & In.

[spikespeigel]

Quail and pheasant but the most fun is definately chukar. My dad used to call my borther and myself his bird dogs as we never had a dog. Nothing like chasing a covey of 200 chukar up a hill all day long...

[Stiofan]

I have 6 shotguns, all 12 gauge, two that are my own and the four others handed down to me by my dad who no longer hunts.

I just bought a new barrel for my Remy 870 Wingmaster so I can shoot steel shot, I last used it for waterfowl in the late 70s early 80s.

I mostly have hunted Dove, Quail and Pheasant in southern California (the Pheasant up around Stockton), and I'll use dad's Savage Fox SxS or Ithaca O/U for the dove and quail and my Browning A-5 for the pheasant, but not sure if I'll get much more upland game where I'm at.

This year I will do some duck and goose hunting in Idaho, and next month I'll try turkey. I'll use the Wingmaster or dad's Remington 11-87 Auto.

[hogdogs]

Never was big on upland birds as I was a po' boy after supper and meat to shell yield was paramount to "fun". I did nail every ring neck pheasant I could in season or not as it was usually a one shot one kill with the .410 and they were cheap back then. I also supplied many barnyard pigeons and doves but those were not hunts so much as shoots and was happy to help a farmer out and momma convinced me that she could cook them a hunert different ways and I loved them every way!
Brent

[chucksolo69]

Chukar???? I tried that once, thought I was gonna die from chasin' those little rascals up and down the hills all day. Nope, I'll stick to critters that you can hunt on flat land or over water.

[spikespeigel]

oh no way! Chukar hunts were definately some of the best hunts I've ever been on. They really make you work for it. They always fly just out of gun range and THEN land and run like the wind, uphill of course... If it wasn't a challenge everyone would do it...

[Fat White Boy]

Dove- Colorado River area along the California- Arizona boarder.

Valley quail- Usually north of Bakersfield.

Mountain Quail- San Bernardino Mountains, Cleveland National Forest(Southern end)

Gambel's Quail- All over the Mojave from Arizona to Apple Valley

Mearn's Quail- Arizona around Tuscon

Chukar- Nevada, Occasionally California up by Inyokern

My Favorite? Any of them. They all present unique opportunities and they all have different environments. I love the variety...

[Nnobby45]

Nevada is Chukar country and Shorthairs are Chukar dogs.

The LW 870 .20 ga. with 1 oz. of #6 work just fine in modified and you'll appreciate the light weight.

For 12 ga. I use IC. and have never regretted resisting the temptation to use a modified that handicaps me at 80% of the ranges where birds get up.

Same for Sage and Blue Grouse, although handloaded #5's sure knock the hell out of 'em.

If I'm into quail, I like to switch to 7 1/2's.

[Shorthair]

This is a great point Nnobby45.
I have a skeet tube in my lower barrel and an IC in the top of my 20. I use 7 1/2 for grouse and woodcock and high brass 5 or 6 for pheasants. Too many bird hunters go over-choked, resulting in missed birds or ruined dinner when the bird is centered on a close hit.

[James R. Burke]

I agree with you Shorthair to many people are way over choked, and miss alot of birds. I use a Browning upland 20ga o/u 24" tubes, and straight english stock. Just made for speed. I mainly hunt grouse and woodcock. The bottom barrel I run Cyl, and the top Imp. Deadly comination. If you get anywhere by what your shooting at it comes down. Just had to have my twelve year old Shorthair put down. It was the hardest thing I have ever done in my life. Dont know if I could do it again. So we are giving getting a new dog a little time. I know a Shorthair is not for everone but I believe it is the best bird dog you can have. I run 7 1/2 in the bottom barrel my first shot, and 6 in the top for my second shot.

[Fat White Boy]

I have shot my Remington 1100 for 25 years using only an Improved Cylinder choke. For dove, Valley and Mearn's quail, I use 7 1/2's. For Gambel's I use #6's. For Chukar and Mountain Quail, I use # 4's. They kill out to 65 yards and with these birds, that might be as close as you get...