NJ second season woodcock opener today.

[ROMAC]

The second season in NJ's south zone opened today and I skipped my company Christmas party and made the drive to meet up with a couple of buddies. We hit some coverts that we had left alone in the early season that were along the Delaware bay that we knew would produce as the weather got colder. We were lucky and the birds were apparently there in good numbers resting and eating before they cross the bay on their way through Delaware, Maryland and Virginia on their way south.

It was a great day. There was a steady stream of activity for over 5 hours and there were probably around 20 flushes before we took our 9 bird limit. There were great shots, embarrassing misses and flushes that were impossible to get a bead on for a shot. The dogs were happy to get back at it after a couple of weeks off during the main deer season. My pedometer registered just over 10,000 steps on fairly flat ground that is a mass of Russian olive, multi-flora rose, sapling stands so thick that they were hard to walk through, and a bit of slash from old logging.

I was the only one using a fox, Reynard was loaded with paper 8 RST's and paper 9's from my stash of vintage Winchester Skeet ammo. The aroma from those shells was intoxicating to say the least. The others were slumming it with a couple of 20 gauge Browning's that had the barrels stacked all wrong!

We finished the day with a toast to Hubertus as usual. All in all a great day.

[Jeff S]

Great pictures Roger. You are the king of woodcock hunting!

[44whiskey]

great story and pics,i long for the scent of the old paper shells , you have a real treasure in Reynard. thanks for sharing fred

[ROMAC]

Great pictures Roger. You are the king of woodcock hunting!

Jeff, I'm just a duffer that happens to live near some historically productive woodcock coverts along their migration route. The area has not changed all that much since I was a kid. Hopefully, it will still be that way for the next generation.

I will say this, though, I'm impressed with the difference having a gun custom fit makes. My shooting seems to be much improved and I'm hitting the birds harder. 7/8ths of 8's is stoning them in the air when I do my part. Being a lefty with a 15 inch LOP is somewhat a detriment when you are shooting off the shelf guns.

[Sporrns]

Roger, what a great post! Birds have not yet appeared in any numbers here in VA nor in our traditional stopover hotspots in MD along the DE/MD line north of Centreville. I suspect the big storm coming this weekend will activate some of the NJ birds to cross DE Bay ahead of it. Our MD season second half does not open until MLK weekend (15 JAN ). So we may get a big slug of them after it blows out - fingers crossed!! Your gun turned out beautifully and great to see it in the field doing its thing. Kevin

[Silvers]

Roger, what a class act! Thanks for posting. Now then, we've seen and talked with you many times at the Northeast SxS but I don't recall you bringing any spirits for post-shooting toasts of St. Hubertus. Tell me I'm wrong. frank

[ROMAC]

Right you are Frank!

Hopefully that will change in the future.

I have a 3.5 hour drive home so I usually make an Irish exit just before the adult beverages begin to flow.

I'll need stock up on the Brooklyn Handicap, Catawba, Black **** Gin, Beaver Dam Punch, Tree Top Tall, and Saratoga Sours.

[Silvers]

Well Roger that sounds like a good reason to stay over at least one night to bark with the Fox Faithful. frank

[Foxnut]

Roger,
Great pics and details of the hunt. Isn’t amazing how those birds get into the autumn olive and briars? Love the gun for sure!