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2010 Hunting Resolutions

I hope everyone had a Merry Christmas. And I hope you all have a happy new year. I know I’m looking forward to 2010, I have a lot of disappointments – in regards to hunting – that I hope to rectify in the new year. As the 2009 hunting season winds down, I’m looking back and thinking on the things that I want to work on in 2010. So here’s my 2010 Hunting Resolutions list.

My first resolution is plain and simply, become a better shot. The three misses of this year’s deer hunts have gotten into my head and I’m just not confident in my shot or my rifle. I need to rectify that. Which means put in time at the range. A win-win for me there. I certainly don’t mind spending time at the range.

As far as the rifle is concerned, my 50 caliber Ardessa Woodsman, I want to experiment with different loads and possibly different rounds and see if I can come up with the optimum load/round combo for it. I’m even thinking about getting into casting my own rounds as well.

My second resolution is to get my daughter out into the field more. She’s active in a couple of sports that keep her active during the school year, so there’s lots of conflict trying to line up a free weekend for her during any hunting season. But the hunting bug has definitely bit her so I’d be remiss not to help her get out more in 2010. She’s a pretty good shot with her Stoeger side-by-side, but she hasn’t had the chance to drop a pheasant yet. That needs to get resolved in 2010.

My third resolution has to do with the positive things of the 2009 season. I rattled my first buck in this year and that was indeed thrilling. But I want to get better on my stand. Whether that’s calling in deer or just being better on the stand (I really have a problem setting still), I wan to improve there.

And fourth, I just want to continue to have fun. The 2009 season was a blast, even with the disappointments. I learned a lot, had some great times with all the guys and had some good experiences. I can’t imagine hunting not being fun, and I’m not about to let it go down that road.

I guess, if I had to sum those up, I just want to become a better hunter in 2010. I want to become a successful hunter in 2010. And really, that’s probably every hunter’s resolution. So how about you? What are your resolutions for the 2010 hunting year?

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Opening Day 2009 Report

Another opening day has come and gone. I must say that I’m not entirely disappointed, but I wasn’t blown away by it either. It was a fun weekend though; as I’ve always said, a bad day of hunting is better than a good day at work.

It started off early on Saturday. We wanted to hit a couple of fields that we had permission on, but so did some others. So we’re there at dawn, all 13 (hmmm,13. that just dawned on me) of us. This was my daughter’s first time out on opening day, and she was excited.

The first field was a cut circle field of corn, we were going to walk out the margins and the 4 triangles left from the circle. These were way overgrown by tumbleweeds, about waist deep and nearly impossible to get through at times. A couple of roosters flushed from the field, hopes were high for the rest of the day. Frankly, the rest of the field was a bust. I’m sure we walked over game due to the growth, so off to the next field.

Again, another cut circle of corn, fortunately, it wasn’t quite as overgrown as the first. We immediately get a rooster or two to flush and we’re all excited. But frankly, with 13 hunters, it’s hard to get a shot unless the pheasants flush right in front. A few of the birds were hit multiple times. But it’s all good.

One edge of this field is bordered by a dry creek bed which flushes a decent sized covey of quail. My daughter and I get down into the bottom of the creek and she takes a quail. Everyone wants a shot, so we moved out and let some of the others in. I did manage to bag a pheasant on the last corner, so at least the kid and I weren’t totally stumped.

The rest of the morning was about the same, we’d see a couple of birds and that was about it. It’s getting close to lunch so we’re trying to decide whether to hit another field or take a lunch break. Keith decides we should hit this small area on the way to lunch that he called a “tail water pit.” Basically, it’s dugout to the size of a small pond and left to overgrow. It might hold water during a real wet season, but it’s bone dry that day. A couple of guys say that we’ve never gotten anything out of it so why bother. Keith’s saying we always see stuff there. I don’t recall ever walking it out.

It’s decided that 5 of us would go through it, 3 in the bottom and 2 on the outsides, and a couple of blockers. I send my daughter down in the bottom in hopes she’ll get a better chance and I take the outside by the road. Several get in the vehicles to wait and listen to the football game (KSU is playing KU that day). I’m kind of daydreaming as I walk along.

A couple of shots ring out and I turn to see a small covey flushing out of the bottom. I don’t think anyone gets one then. We’re beating around a woodpile and a few more flush. Keith gets one towards the end. He’s totally gloating in a “see I told you” kind of way. I missed on a couple and so did my daughter.

The afternoon hunt is a bust, I don’t think we saw anything after lunch. We call it a day at sundown and go get some dinner.

The next day we awake to rain, mist and fog. It had rained most of the night, so the corn and milo fields will be a muddy mess and no one is up for it. We head down south of Meade to a local friend’s land. We generally always see quail down there. It’s all pasture and sandy hills, so would be better than slogging through muddy farm fields.

We get into a nice covey of quail and chase them around awhile. The best part of that day is Sam finally gets his first quail. He’s hunted with us for years. Yay Sam!

Like I said before, it was a fun opening weekend. It might help if we had some pointers with us rather than the lab pup, who did do a good job of retrieving for being a young one. All in all, the group harvested 7 pheasants and 7 quail (1 quail was eaten by one of the dogs, so the number would have been 8). It certainly wasn’t as great as the early reports were saying, at least in our area. But nothing beats a weekend hunting with your buddies. There’s always next time.

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Kansas Pheasant and Quail Season Opener

ringneck pheasantThe pheasant and quail opening weekend will kick off in a couple of days here in Kansas. I haven’t been out on opening day in a couple of years due to spending all my allotted hunting time on deer. This year sounds like it should be a good one and I’m really looking forward to getting out for a couple of reasons.

One, I’ll get to see some guys I haven’t seen in a couple of years since I haven’t been out. There’s friends coming in from all over. Some from southeast Kansas, Wichita, Augusta and even the east coast of the U.S.

Two, and the best reason, this will be my daughter’s first opening weekend. She’s 17 and this will only be the second time she’s gone hunting. Her first time was at the end of last season after she had finally finished Hunters Safety Clinic. She also had saved up her money from working a Christmas job and bought herself a double barrel shotgun – made me want to cry. On her first time out, she dropped two quail. I was definitely the proud papa. I’m looking forward to her reaction when a dozen pheasant come blasting out of their hiding spot.

Last count, there are maybe a 8-10 hunters showing up for the opener. It’s always a good time, even if I don’t get my limit – which is most of the time (like I’ve said before, the bird population has never been in danger from us). I love being in the outdoors, hanging out with friends and seeing all the wildlife. And the traditional stuff that goes on at hunt camp.

Keith will always have to suddenly go do something when it’s time to clean the birds. Jason will complain about Keith being gone. Sam and I will complain about our sore legs. There’s always lots of stories told around the bonfire after the hunt, some true, some not, most exaggerated. It’s definitely good times.

I’ll post a report of how things go, hopefully a good report. Wish us luck!

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Mid Week Hunting Round Up

Some random articles from around the web…

Hunters Help Feed Homeless, something the anti-hunting crowd doesn’t ever bring up, how much hunters share their bounty with the needy.

Why you should get your kids interested in hunting, I’ve gotten my youngest daughter interested in hunting and took her out for the first time last season. Will definitely be taking her pheasant and quail hunting next month.

After years of 100’s of unsubstantiated sightings, finally, a confirmed cougar sighting in Kansas. My dad claims to have seen one in South Central Kansas, towards the Oklahoma border. He didn’t get a photo though, but he was with his fishing buddy and he saw it too.

State by state quail hunting forecast from the Quails Forever site. Things look good for Kansas in general. It’s been a long time. Nothing more fun than a good quail hunt.

State by state pheasant forecast from Pheasants Forever site. According to them, Kansas should be excellent. Higher populations overall and specifically in the NW part of the state. SW Kansas should be improved also – which is where I’ll most likely be.

And close to my heart, The Possible Shop has an article on sighting in a Hawken rifle and determining optimum loads.

And I haven’t quite determined how I feel about this article yet,  Couple to hunter: ‘Leave without your dead deer’. I totally respect their right, since it is their land, but it just seems a bit mean to me. Of course, being a hunter, it’s hard for me to understand some, SOME, anti-hunters.

And I leave you with this quote (courtesy of The Hunting Authority):

“How strangely will the Tools of a Tyrant pervert the plain Meaning of Words!” -Samuel Adams

That’s it for this week. Keep your powder dry!

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October, Thou Art Cruel

Oh October, how cruel you are! No hunting seasons open for me.

September teases with it’s dove and muzzleloading deer seasons. October is the month where I look back and sulk and reminisce while waiting for November and it’s quail and pheasant season.

If only I bowhunted or hunted for waterfowl, I would have an excuse to get out in the field. But alas, I sit here waiting and dreaming.

Those in the Dakotas mock me as they’re off to their pheasant camps this week.

October, you are are cruel.

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Five Things I’ve learned Deer Hunting

deeringoldengrass

Since I’m still fairly new to this deer hunting thing, I thought I might lay out a few things I’ve picked up that no one seems to tell a new hunter about. Hopefully, this can help other greenhorns out.

  1. Check the weather – religiously. I seem to constantly under-dress for the elements. And check the weather for where you’re going to hunt, not where you live as they could be different. The weather conditions can differ fairly significantly from where I live and where I hunt, and it’s only a 3 hour difference. Bring more cold weather gear than you’ll think you need, because you’ll need it. You can take stuff off if you get hot, you can’t put stuff on when you get cold if you didn’t bring it.
  2. Sorry for being a little gross, but clear all the phlegm and mucus out before you head out to your stand. Nothing is more loud than clearing your throat when the sun comes up in the morning.
  3. Learn to sit still. This is still hard for me to do. Don’t jump and look around at every little noise, most likely it’s not a deer, but the sudden movement can tip them off if they’re sitting in the margins looking around.
  4. In the area I hunt, the deer definitely have have schedules. They seem to wander through the same fields and waterholes about every 2-3 days. This last season, the buck I missed was on a 3 day schedule. Keith picked it up, predicted they’d show that Saturday night, and they did. I had suspected this, and started watching this myself. Other hunters I’ve talked to have said the same thing. But I don’t hear anyone talk about it, even in the hunting magazines. Now if I can just figure out 2 stands that have deer traffic on alternate days, that would be awesome.
  5. This one is the most important, especially to the married guys. Thank your wife for keeping the fort under control while you’re out. Thank her a lot. Really. Let me say it one more time, thank your wife for keeping the house and family under control while your out hunting. A simple thank you will go a LONG way. Believe me. I can’t say this one enough. My wife’s awesome. She let me go hunting on our wedding anniversary. Yes, I said “let.”

Those are just a few things I’ve picked up the last couple of hunts. What other tips have you picked up along the way? Leave your tips in the comments.

Image courtesy of Free Nature Pictures.

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Fall Deer Camp 2009 Revisited

Sunrise on the final Saturday
Sunrise over the waterhole on the final Sunday of the season.

I was able to make it for the final weekend of Muzzleloading Deer Season in hopes that I still might be able to get a shot. But, not being able to leave until after work on Friday, I was only going to get a day and half to hunt. The weather proved to be ideal for the hunt. A cold front moved in Friday night and couple that with a full moon and a clear night, the conditions to get the deer moving.

I did see a lot of deer that morning, all whitetails. Unfortunately, they all stayed out of the field I was in and ran the fences to the north and east of me (which we don’t have permission to hunt). A couple of does started to venture in, but were startled by something and changed their mind.

I left around mid-morning to grab some lunch. I had planned on coming back out later in the afternoon as their were a pair of whitetail bucks that seemed to be coming to the water hole every 3 days in the evenings. I’ve observed this behaviour before, noticing that deer seemed to be on some type of schedule like that and would be seen every 2-3 days. Saturday would be the third day for this pair of bachelor bucks. My hunting buddy and I set back out around 5 to see if it would hold true.

I started to get apprehensive as sunset approached and we hadn’t seen anything up to then. But like clockwork, the two bucks showed about 5 minutes after sundown, rounding a ridge just to the north of our stand. We were sitting in a washout on the side of ridge about 10 feet above a couple of paths leading up to the windmill watering hole.

We watched the bucks pick the closest path to us and realized they were going to pass within 30 yards of out stand. My heart and breathing is racing at this point. My first shot at a buck! I mean, I’m really panting, like I had run a marathon. I’m getting worried they’re going to hear me. My mind is screaming at me, “Don’t move! Sit still! Why are you breathing so hard?”

I pick my shooting lane. I wait until the biggest of the 2 clears a large sunflower plant I’m sitting behind. I see his head, his shoulders. I pick my spot. Wait. Squeeze.

The buck flinched, did a 180 and put the spurs down. My partner had waited for me to take the shot. I hear his ring out and see the puff of dust in a slight ridge over the top of the buck’s back. He’s at full gallop, his white tail flying high. We had both missed!

I have no excuses, total newbie, greenhorn mistake. My buddie’s shot was a running shot. When I fired, he was barely moving. And I should’ve waited a couple more seconds to get a good broadside. Instead, in my excitement and nervousness, I took a quartered shot and probably went underneath him. How disappointing! It was like I had forgotten everything when I sighted that buck in.

We went back out Sunday morning, but nothing seemed to be moving. We left around 10 as I had to get my gear packed up to head back home. The season was over. I still had loads of fun and learned much. And I still have December to give it another try. Like I’ve said before, it’s why they call it hunting and not getting. Hopefully, I’ll have a chance to redeem myself in December.

Keep your powder dry.