Not just for the birds
Some things are rituals. It was never discussed on Saturday but over the course of the last four months it was customary or tradition that we'd bird hunt on every Sunday. Last Sunday morning while sitting in front of the wood stove drinking coffee and looking out the living room window toward the mountains, Bob …
I live for this moment. This sequence. My dogs look like they're onto birds. I sense it from subtle nuances and have learned from training and experience how to read their body language. If I'm hunting with just one dog all my focus is on that one dog. If both of my dogs are in …
The week started off bad. The week also ended with many firsts. Tuesday started with Angus throwing up his morning kibble in the backyard. Later on, he refused a dog treat from the treat jar. This was a first time in his life that he's ever not wanted one of those multi-colored square snaps treats. …
When Peat was 7-months-old, we took him hunting with Angus to a place where his day of hunting lasted exactly 15 seconds. Upon arriving to our hunting destination, we let both dogs out of the pickup and before we knew what was happening we saw Peat streaking a 200-yard beeline to a covey of Huns …
We all have our stories about how bringing a dog into our lives changed it, enriched it, or sometimes made it more complicated. We have our own tale going back to the beginning of Chukar Culture and where it all got started with this one particular Brittany named Angus who is now 12-years old. Looking …
The landscapes where the birds live dictate where you'll hunt chukar in the West. Terrain covered in sagebrush, bunch grass, scree veins, and rocky talus outcroppings high up in the clouds is typical in this part of Idaho. You'll encounter steep traverses and sidehilling that make you wish you had tightened your boot laces tighter. …
"The man must learn to know his dog as a personality, not a formula." -George Bird Evans  "Peat No!" I yelled at the top of my lungs as he booked full speed through the dog door and outside to the backyard with a big piece of cauliflower firmly gripped in his mouth. The piece …
The inevitable is here. Yesterday, was my last hunt with Bob for the season. It was also Bob's last hunt. We'd hoped he'd last until the end of the month but tomorrow he's undergoing spinal surgery. Our life for the past three months has revolved around his spine. Yes, our life. It's not that it's …
"What's in a name? That we call a rose by any other name would smell as sweet."Â --William Shakespeare I've never called myself an upland hunter. I don't know why, but maybe it's too broad of a term. I don't hunt quail or pheasant, and don't usually go out of my way to hunt ruffed …