# Thanksgiving Hunts



## njsimonson (Sep 24, 2002)

Hey everyone,

I hope your Thanksgiving has been fun and eventful! We've been hunting some. The numbers aren't as good as they were on Opener around the Watford City area, but we've still seen about twenty or twenty five roosters in the last two days. We've shot 5 so far, including a dandy. with a pair of 24" tailfeathers and 1/2" spurs, which my cousin took. He plans on getting it mounted.

How is everyone else's hunting weekend going? I'll keep you posted on developments out west! Enjoy the fresh snow (if you got it) for tracking those roosters!


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## holmsvc (Nov 26, 2003)

Is gunner finding any birds Nick?


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## Dick Monson (Aug 12, 2002)

Nick, you're on the wrong end of the state. :lol:


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## njsimonson (Sep 24, 2002)

Holmes-

Yeah, almost forgot to mention that Guns got his first bird up! I was pretty stoked about that, but then Dylan's big roodie was really exciting.

He was on scent and got birdy, and started sweeping through the cattails, pausing and sniffing and holding every so often. Then all of a sudden a yearling rooster burst out of the end of the cattails and I dropped it with one shot. Gunnar then proceeded to chew on his head and pull out all of the tailfeathers. The bird was pretty ragged looking by the time we got home, but it might just be one of the best looking birds I've ever seen! 

He has really improved a lot. His nose is down and he is getting the idea that he is in the lead at all times. He does still chase mice, and finds other scent, but for the most part, he gets pretty excited when we get on pheasant tracks, or in a high-percentage area. He is responding well to whistled commands which we worked on the last couple of weeks, and also to the verbal as well. I'm pleased.

Dick - You're probably right, bird-wise. The numbers just aren't here like they were earlier in the year. How are you and Gus doing?


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## jamartinmg2 (Oct 7, 2004)

Ended up shooting my limit twice in two days of hunting. My party consisted of myself and my golden, so had I had more firepower, I am sure more birds would have been had! The birds seemed very concentrated in cattails next to cut corn and sunflowers. One spot we worked must have yielded 25 flushes.... quite a few of them hens, but a decent number of roosters too! Enough to put a few in my freezer anyway! 
:beer:


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## Remmi_&amp;_I (Dec 2, 2003)

My dad and I had some tough luck hunting on public land early Thursday morning so we called a landowner that we know. He told us we could only walk one cattail slough because he had family in town that wanted to hunt later that afternoon. Well, it just so happens that this one slough had about 50 birds and atleast 60% were roosters.

We got a quick 6 birds and were in Minot by 1:30. Mom wasn't too mad that we were a half hour late! :beer:


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## Rick Acker (Sep 26, 2002)

4 of us hunted in the rain on Friday, tough conditions but still felt good about picking up 5. Saturday, lots of smart birds and picked up 5 and then Sunday it was just 2 of us and we got on some nice land and limited out! All and all an awesome weekend! Even shot a Rooster practically in Cass county! Thanks to all of the very kind and generous land owners out there! I can't believe all the fantastic opportunites we've had the privilege to have this year!


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## Dick Monson (Aug 12, 2002)

Nick, Gus's other knee is going out if we push too long, so a couple hours is it. Another surgery this winter. I have a new GWP pup, Sammy, 11 weeks old. He is a terror.

The ice is good enough to hunt sloughs now but deer hunting sharpened up these birds. Yesterday we did 3 miles of cattails. Got up 4 roosters, two in range. I locked my saftey on the first one, drives you crazy when you try to straighten the trigger and it won't fire. Came into the end of a small cattail and lit a smoke. Gus was putzing around behind me. He looked over his shoulder, made a jump, and flushed a rooster. I couldn't spit out out the smoke and jammed it right into my thumb when I shot the bird.  Another reason not to smoke.

The birds aren't really bunched up yet, snow would help that. Can't track well either. But am having fun at it. email me when you are ready to go.


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## Remmi_&amp;_I (Dec 2, 2003)

Dick Monson said:


> The birds aren't really bunched up yet, snow would help that. Can't track well either. But am having fun at it. email me when you are ready to go.


Most of my friends (non-hunters) think I'm crazy but I've been praying for snow for weeks!

P.S. I fell through a slough this weekend and it/me smelled aweful!!!


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## Rick Acker (Sep 26, 2002)

Dick, Remmi, do you guys really like hunting them better when they bunch up? We always do better when they are in smaller groups. Seems like when they bunch up, more ears and more birds jumpin way out of range! This weekend in 3 days I fired 13 shots (1/2 a box) and shot 9 and I am far from a great shot...ask my friends...But the roosters we were getting up in the cattails were right at my feet...The dog damn near got em' herself! I'll tell you what...one things for sure..."Hush" Hunting is the only way to go this time of year! The pheasants number one sence..."HEARING"! Good luck guys!


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## jamartinmg2 (Oct 7, 2004)

Remmi_&_I said:


> Dick Monson said:
> 
> 
> > The birds aren't really bunched up yet, snow would help that. Can't track well either. But am having fun at it. email me when you are ready to go.
> ...


That happened to me a couple of years ago when I was ruffed grouse hunting. I was leaping accross a small creek that flowed into a slough and slipped on my takeoff. One leg went thigh-deep in the smelliest slough mud imaginable. Good thing my brother-in-law was there as I litterally could not pull myself out. Imagine me standing there on the bank of this creek/slough with one leg completely submerged in **** the other leg on dry land and trying to keep my gun up high enough to as to not get it wet. What a sight. If I'd been hunting myself, I might still be out there trying to figure out how to get out of that mess!


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## Dick Monson (Aug 12, 2002)

What I meant by not bunched up is that many birds are still scattered in singles out in marginal cover. Thin CRP or wheat stubble. Normally they would hold better in the cats. But not last Sunday.

Talking about ice, 15 years ago I broke through while crossing a large slough. Caught myself by my elbows and feet didn't hit bottom. I was so darned scared I just kind of popped out. It was -20 and 1 1/2 miles back to the truck. The slough had been dreged and a narrow channel had current under the ice. A lick on me.


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## Bigdog (Aug 13, 2003)

My older dog has a bad foot so it was just me and the puppy this weekend.
Got two birds on Saturday in about 3 hours. Took a little longer on Sunday, the area still had corn up and the sloughs were not frozen enough to be entirely safe but we still managed our two birds. One had 1/2" spurs. His first MN rooster hunt and on public land so I was pretty happy. Should only get better this week when the ice thickens up, some snow sure would be nice too.


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## mburgess (Aug 11, 2003)

I brought my pooch and hunting gear just in the event someone would want to go hunting with me over the weekend. I get to talking to my new brother in law that he knew someone, who knew somebody else that could get us on some nice workable land. Boy did that turn out to be the case. Only saw about 10 roosters and got our limit, but I bet we saw 100 hens at least and I think my dog went on point at least 40 times! My dog went on point so many times that I think he was getting a little bored, and he is damn birdy. Has anyone else had this happen where the dog just didn't show the same enthusiasm at the end of the walk as he did at the beginning from constant points? I live for watching my dog lock up and I've never gotten him into so many birds that held nice like they did this weekend. My brother-in-law had never shot birds over a dog before, and I think he is hooked after this weekend. I told him that it doesn't always work like it did today, but there is nothing better in the world when you have days like that. :beer:


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## Remmi_&amp;_I (Dec 2, 2003)

mburgess,
I always feel bad about my pup pointing so many hens. This weekend we were working a piece of thin CRP and she was working her little butt off. She pointed 2 hens that held tight in about a 3 minute span. Each time I was able to walk in from the side and flush them at my feet.

Only problem is, she kinda quite on me for a while. It was like she was saying "if you aren't going to shoot them, I'm not going to find them"


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