Ruffed Grouse

[Jim Cloninger]

Anyone been out grouse hunting?

[OH Osthaus]

had the new pup out for a couple short runs

the covers are still quite thick with leaves and its been warm - mid 60's and dry -
so no sightings of the mythical bird yet

[Silvers]

PA season isn't open yet and we still have plenty of green leaves hereabouts. So a good friend many of us know is in Maine along with a partner and their dogs, kind of cyber deprived, and he txted last night with a dozen or so pics and wrote they flushed 144 birds in three days and limited out every day. Wow, sounds like early 1900's gunning. All of his taken with a 16b Parker. Next up is a Lefever. Not my place to post details and he'll probably do that when they return.

frank

[Stan Hillis]

Wow, 144 birds in three days! Not being a grouse hunter, but being very interested in it, I didn't know that was possible today. An average of 48 per day!

SRH

[ROMAC]

The most I've ever had in PA is 12 in 4 hours.... Sadly I missed every one of them.

Really thick leaves still up that day but I blame it mostly on me and the stinking LC Smith 20 I decided to use that day. I really want a do over with my favorite Fox 16, yeah that's the ticket! I could have been a contender!

[TOOL MAN]

144 flushes in 3 days??? Silvs, you sure he wasn't referring to the action around the hallowed "camp toilet" covert??? I didn't think there were that many grouse in the entire state!! Unless of course, a wee bit of Brooklyn Handicap is added to the mix.....bwahahhahha!!!!

[OH Osthaus]

leave it to Steve to clear up the meaning


but he does say 144 FLUSHES not birds - if you figure 2 to 3 flushes per bird following up on initial contacts

that is still around 20 individual birds a day - grand hunting in anyone's book any day

[Silvers]

Got some clarification today; that was 134 grouse flushes and 10 by woodcock. Also learned that the gent was txting me with intermittent cell coverage and while riding back from ME with his partner and the dogs. Hence the only gun he used over the three days was the 16b Parker, and the Lefever didn’t get to hunt. No Foxes on the trip.

frank

[Foxnut]

I’m up in the Northern Lower of MI starting tomorrow for three days. We’ve had some cooler weather, good leaf drop and a little rain. Hope it will be promising. There will be four of us w/2 dogs. Hunted a couple counties North of me today on the way up. Deliberately hunted all “new to me” coverts. Windy, light rain off and on and a tad warm. A couple of the coverts I will add to the rotation, a couple of them are not yet quite the right age/growth. Sadly only one grouse point with a complete miss and 4 woodcock points and one wild flush. Going to hit some tried and true coverts Up North and will hopefully have a better report Saturday or Sunday.

[glassman48]

I went out about a week ago with my brittany cash and found about 5 acres of ferns and some moderate growth aspen trees mixed with hardwoods. My dog went on point, it was very open in that area so I was hoping for a good shot. A grouse took off, I started swinging, 2 more took off I swung on them instead (thinking double) slid the safety off and pulled front trigger on first bird and second trigger on 2nd bird. I realized nothing happened, I figured my gloved thumb slid off the safety, by then a 4th bird was flying the trigger still wouldn't budge, as I was looking quickly at the gun I was pinpointing where the birds were flying while number 5 grouse flew away, cash still not moving a muscle. As I opened the gun a 6th grouse flew up in a tree 20 feet away looking down at me. I had just taken 2 shots at a woodcock about 20 minutes before. I thought "buck fever" another guy told me he thought either the gun wasn't closed properly or something like a small twig could of kept gun from closing properly. So we decided it was "buck fever" with a possible mechanical assist:)

I have had several short hunts less than an hour where we saw little or no grouse or woodcock. I took a friend out last Sunday who had never hunted over a bird dog. Our first hour was private property at 8 30 a.m. (a couple hundred acres) that has no hunting pressure, and we never found a bird. We moved a half mile away and we moved 20 woodcock in about 2 hours. I am sure some of those were repeats that flushed or were pointed earlier. Cash was magnificent, many birds held, some ran, he managed some points on running birds. My friend only took one shot, he wanted to "take turns" his first shot was wide open, and I don't think he felt comfortable as many of the shots were just glimpses of the birds. I took 10 shells with me and shot 9 times, I only had 1 shell in right barrel walking back to the truck. I never hit a bird, 3 were pretty easy shots, the rest were tough. That was the best 2 hour hunt I have ever had with cash. My friend had a stevens 12 gauge side by side from the 50's or 60's I believe, I checked his barrels, and they were modified and full choke. We talked about how many birds and how a hunt is usually moving way less birds. He is hunting for a grouse gun as we speak:)

[Jim Cloninger]

Ed, I am glad Cash is getting you into birds.
Jim

[Fox20obsessed]

Jim, myself and a couple friends/co-workers/fellow foresters are heading out for PA’s ruffed grouse opener tomorrow in south central PA state forest land. We’ll start the day at one of my favorite coverts and then see where the day takes us. Hoping for a shot at the king as always...gonna be tough to sleep tonite! After reading through this thread I may have to think long and hard about a Maine trip next year.
-Matt

[Fox20obsessed]

Just wanted to post a follow-up. Made it out this past Saturday and we flushed and then re-flushed the same bird...only bird we moved all day and my buddy missed it on both flushes...such is grouse hunting, but they’re still around in Penns woods.
-Matt

[Jim Cloninger]

I hope you have better luck next time, Matt. Do you or your hunting partners have a hunting dog?
Jim

[Fox20obsessed]

Jim,
Thanks for wishing me luck next time buddy!
My former co-worker/boss has a german wire-hair pointer that is still young, but I myself do not have a dog for two reasons...one, I do not have the time to devote to a dog for it’s proper care and field training and two, I much prefer walk-up grouse hunting for the added challenge it provides. I was still happy to get out and move some birds last Saturday though and I think we will have my buddies pointer out this Saturday on some put-and-take pheasants at the local state gamelands. I had a ringneck walk past me a few nights ago where we plan to hunt this Saturday. Also, tonight I saw the magnificent 8 point buck that I was after last year...first time I’ve seen him in about 10 months. I’m really happy this deer is still alive and equally as excited to try and get him this season. This isn’t your run-of-the-mill 3.5 yr old 8 point either...we’re talking 160” which is absolutely monstrous for an 8. I’ve got some pretty dam nice archery bucks on the wall, but this buck would fit right in there amongst the others. I’m relieved because I was sure the landowner whose property butts up to the gamelands had poached this buck last season for several reasons...I just about pooped myself when he stepped out at last light this evening. If my notes are right and he follows course, he may just step out in the same spot tomorrow night and hopefully I will be laying in wait. Last season he entered the field where I have seen him in the same location two nights in a row(same exact place I saw him this eve) If I get lucky and take this buck for a ride in the truck I will have to post a pic here.
-Matt.