Not just for the birds

Category: Hunting accounts

  • Snapshots of Chukar Hunting

    Sloping in shadow
    The Future?

    “I can’t wait for chukar hunting season,” Bob said just yesterday. We have just over 6 months now. We need time to recover.

    These are some snapshots of the 2015/2016 season mostly from down in the Hells Canyon National Recreation Area and a few at the Cecil Andrus Wildlife Management Area. We feel blessed to live in a state where we can access lots of quality, picturesque public lands for hunting and other recreation. We hope it stays this way. If you’re a chukar hunter, you’re well aware of the fact that some very misguided (or worse) folks are trying to have our federal public lands transferred to state control out west, which could very likely be the end of hunting, or any kind of use, for the common man and woman (not to mention the fact that many state constitutions – including Idaho’s – specifically disavow any future claim on federally owned land). As Americans and joint owners of this public land, this is the greatest legacy we can leave future generations. You can’t put a price tag on that.

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    Peat’s First Hunt
    Halloween hunt
    Halloween hunt
    Reward at the top
    Reward at the top
    Huns
    Huns
    Early morning start
    Early morning start
    Follow the leader
    Follow the leader
    Bitterbrush or Basin Big Sagebrush
    Basin Big Sagebrush
    Fall is here
    Fall is here
    Steep country
    Steep country
    Pure joy
    Pure joy
    Beauty
    Beauty
    Boat, shed, cattle
    Boat, shed, cattle
    Bird dog trio
    Bird dog trio
    God's country
    God’s country
    Side-hilling
    Side-hilling
    Brownlee
    Brownlee
    Brittany beggars
    Brittany beggars
    Reflecting with Angus
    Reflecting with Angus
    Dog's country
    Dog’s country
    Chukar down
    Chukar down
    South-facing slopes
    South-facing slopes
    Snowballs on feathers
    Snowballs on feathers
    Agony (Peat eats the first chukar of the season).
    Agony (Peat eats the first chukar of the season).
    Early October view
    Early October view
    Typical chukar terrain
    Typical chukar terrain
    Angus fur
    Angus fur
    Brought to you by Vienna Sausages
    Brought to you by Vienna Sausages
    Ready, set, go!
    Ready, set, go!
    Wild turkeys
    Wild turkeys
    Heading back to the pickup.
    Heading back to the pickup.

  • Thanks

    Our chukar hunting season was blessed by being able to hunt with good friends and family. There’s something indescribable about sharing this activity with people and their dogs we care about. Maybe the photos can talk a bit…

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    Bagpiping friend Rob came all the way out from western Washington with his young pointing Griffon, Talisker. (He even brought a bottle of the pup’s namesake!)
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    Early October days were among the hottest of the season. We picked a doozy of a hike for this one.
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    Talisker is a great dog, and quite fetching (get it?).
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    Oh my…
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    What you do after a long haul.
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    Hunting with my brother Geoff and his son Porter was a treat.
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    Father and son are super-fit and covered tons of ground.
    This one’s for Donner, Geoff’s dog, who had to stay home on their trip out this fall (this was taken in January 2015).
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    Hunting with The Kid for the third season in a row. He’s tough, smart, funny, and I’ll soon be watching him take off up hills ahead of me while I try catching my breath…
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    The Kid got his very own shotgun this year, and shoots left-handed. He came close but is still looking for his first chukar.
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    Peat took a liking to The Kid and has promised to point lots more birds for him to shoot next season.
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    Cam was intrepidly good company.
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    Cam gets up and down the hills with ease.
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    Angus partnered with the shooter nicely on this Hungarian partridge in December.
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    Didn’t get any photos of Dave hunting with us this year, but this classic old-school look from Dave last year shows his style. He’s always got something interesting to tell us…
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    Dave’s Hun from last fall.
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    Angie, Allan (with Quigley and Emma), me (with Angus and Peat), and Mike (with Paddy), on a blustery Halloween eve. Lots of birds, even more than we had dogs! Angie and Mike shared a great meal with us while camping in Hells Canyon. We hope to get out with them more next year in their new stomping grounds.
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    Treat-hounds take a break from the action.
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    Bryan is the figure in the upper left. He can move. His dog Bodie is up there somewhere, too. I wasn’t able to get any photos of Bryan up close.
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    Angus, probably watching Bryan and Bodie on New Year’s Eve. This was the coldest hunt of the season, which felt even colder because we took the boat. Brr.
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    My across-the-street neighbor Jared and his son Logan joined me for a spectacular January hunt filled with a plethora of deer, elk, and eagle sightings. Their first chukar outing, they’re eager to go again next season.
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    The fact that my wife/BFF Leslie can share these experiences with me makes it impossible to imagine anything better. Life is good, but with her, doing this with our dogs, it is the best thing.

  • Finale 2016

    Phew!
    Phew!

    Sad to say it’s over. For now. What a season! Ended up with a gorgeous day yesterday, lots of birds, even hit some, and Peat made several flawless retrieves and was a joy to watch. Angus had stepped up his game the past several hunts, and finished strong yesterday, too, with a marvelous retrieve of a Hungarian partridge that landed in the creek way, way down there. Here’s a video of the last few hunts. Stay tuned for Leslie’s 2015-2016 highlight film.

  • Peat Jumps

    Goofing around today, which began with a deluge, causing us to wimp out on hunting, Leslie told me she could get Peat to jump off of a snow-bank. So we all had a little fun and wanted to share.

  • January Shmanuary

    The snow it is a-comin’. Stayed home today, and probably tomorrow. Gave me time to show Leslie how iMovie works, and she made this cool video of some fun dog-work:

    P1140950.jpgLast weekend we got to take The Kid out again, but he’s still in search of his first chukar. He got a couple shots off over a nice point by Peat, but no cigar. Still, it was a gorgeous day out of the fog shrouding our wee valley to the east of Hells Canyon.

    Also, I have a new Q5 Centerfire Upland Vest (Quilomene), which can be seen in the latter part of the video. I’ll give it a thorough review next fall after I’ve had a chance to put it through its paces. The first outing with it was good.

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