I feel like its been slow. My dog has put up 8 birds so far this season and we're past the halfway point. The last two years we've finished up the season around 20-25 birds although I haven't been able to get out as much this season.
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Pheasant Hunting
- Thread starter hermes2069
- Start date
he said "put up".....which means his dog flushed em.......doesn't mean he shot em......which doesnt mean he personally harvested that many birds.
![[rolleyes]](/xen/styles/default/xenforo/smilies.vb/042.gif "Roll Eyes [rolleyes]")
Also he said "we".....which in the english language is plural......which in the english language means more than one.....which means in simple terms there was more than one dude hunting......so we'll get into some math here.......I know I know its hard but bear with me......so those 25 birds were spread out among a few dudes so even if the season limit is 6 birds he (I mean they) were legal.
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boilermaker
NES Member
You take your dog and go out with different friends throughout the season.
Yup, everyone is right. Usually hunt with my father and then I'll take out a friend or two once in a while. My father and I have been able to easily fill our season limits the last few years. 12 birds there, flush a couple that you can't get a good shot at, somehow miss one or two, and then take out a friend or two. Adds up. 4 hunts so far, 8 birds put up, 6 in hand. I don't think I've had a flushless hunt in the last three years. The dog and I have worked for a lot of those birds though, especially this year.
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boilermaker
NES Member
X-force - what section of Mass are you in?
I think every WMA should do what martin burns does and close the wma for the rest of the afternoon when they stock. At least that way there are birds left for the morning. Its not even enjoyable to hunt them right after they've been released. As far as I see it with stocking days there isnt much of a way around that. The guys that stock have to drive quite a ways to pick up the birds to stock them and they don't want to vary their schedule.
North shore
I think the stocking guys get lazy and sometimes just release them all from one spot. Definitely seen that a few times. Found a few piles of feathers from bird that the coyotes got the night before next to the parking lot of one area in the no hunting. Looked like they didnt even bother leaving the parking lot to stock it.
Are you sure there isn't another factor that is causing them to not stock it?
Catoperat
NES Member
Which WMA have you referring to?
They've definitely stocked it. I went in there this season they had definitely put at least some birds in there. Not much good stocking habitat in there though.
Really? There are 5 areas in crane pond WMA and one of them is a 1/2 mile stretch of poser line that is perfect for pheasant stocking........its actually one of the biggest pheasant fields I've seen east of Worcester.
I don't think you have seen all that Crane pond has to offer
Yup, and no pheasants. We walked the over grown power lines with 2 dogs plus all the other dogs out there and not one bird was flushed. This has been the worst year. At least the duck hunters seem to be having a good year.
The lot that we park in has no tire tracks going into the woods, so they have not stocked it. They are lazy pieces of shit. They know full well that the majority of people hunt on Saturdays and they are supposed to stock it on Friday nights.
dixidawg
NES Member
I live not far from there. I can tell you with certainty that they do in fact stock that lot, although not every Friday. They don't stock every gate at every stocking. By knowing the stocking schedules, there are a lot of guys that wait for the truck, see which gate they go in, and bang, bang, bang. Working guys show up first thing Saturday morning and very few birds left.
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45collector
NES Member
Went to Sandy Neck before work this morning. Walked a long way through the hilly dunes/ marshes/ cattails/ reed grass etc... It's really good exercise out there especially if you don't have a dog and you need to work all the thick stuff yourself. Well that's exactly what I've been doing for several years now trying to get my first pheasant. I just want to cook one up and try it before I decide if I want to get a dog and get serious about it.
Anyhow, I'd like some opinions on what happened: I'm finally starting to learn where the birds like to hide. I made my way into a thick area of scrub pines/ thickets and started moving in a back and forth pattern. When I got to about the middle of the area I heard a guy and his dog approaching me from my right. For the first time ever, on my own without the help of a dog, I spotted a hen sitting under a bush. I could have just shot her right there but I didn't wanna be shitty about it. Plus the guy and his dog would have been somewhere behind it. So I just jumped at her, she burst up and flew to my left and I fired two rounds. First one looked like it winged her, second produced a puff of feathers and she started to go down, just outside the edge of the clearing. I hear the guy shout a command to his dog, I hear the bell ringing as he runs, and before I can make my way out of the thick stuff towards the bird the guy and his dog are already on their way off with the bird I just shot.![[thinking]](/xen/styles/default/xenforo/smilies.vb/010.gif "Thinking [thinking]")
So WTF, is it first come, first serve on birds no matter who shoots it? As long as you get to it first? I was pretty pissed about it and I thought of chasing the guy down but at that point I had to start heading back to the parking lot and head to work.
Looking on the bright side, I got a nice picture of the sunrise from the top of one of the dunes. I at least shot my first pheasant even if I didn't get to keep it.![[angry]](/xen/styles/default/xenforo/smilies.vb/008.gif "Angry [angry]")
And I got a pretty good workout.
ETA: Here's a diagram, LOL
Anyhow, I'd like some opinions on what happened: I'm finally starting to learn where the birds like to hide. I made my way into a thick area of scrub pines/ thickets and started moving in a back and forth pattern. When I got to about the middle of the area I heard a guy and his dog approaching me from my right. For the first time ever, on my own without the help of a dog, I spotted a hen sitting under a bush. I could have just shot her right there but I didn't wanna be shitty about it. Plus the guy and his dog would have been somewhere behind it. So I just jumped at her, she burst up and flew to my left and I fired two rounds. First one looked like it winged her, second produced a puff of feathers and she started to go down, just outside the edge of the clearing. I hear the guy shout a command to his dog, I hear the bell ringing as he runs, and before I can make my way out of the thick stuff towards the bird the guy and his dog are already on their way off with the bird I just shot.
So WTF, is it first come, first serve on birds no matter who shoots it? As long as you get to it first? I was pretty pissed about it and I thought of chasing the guy down but at that point I had to start heading back to the parking lot and head to work.
Looking on the bright side, I got a nice picture of the sunrise from the top of one of the dunes. I at least shot my first pheasant even if I didn't get to keep it.
And I got a pretty good workout.
ETA: Here's a diagram, LOL
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kengog
NES Member
Went to Sandy Neck before work this morning. Walked a long way through the hilly dunes/ marshes/ cattails/ reed grass etc... It's really good exercise out there especially if you don't have a dog and you need to work all the thick stuff yourself. Well that's exactly what I've been doing for several years now trying to get my first pheasant. I just want to cook one up and try it before I decide if I want to get a dog and get serious about it.
Anyhow, I'd like some opinions on what happened: I'm finally starting to learn where the birds like to hide. I made my way into a thick area of scrub pines/ thickets and started moving in a back and forth pattern. When I got to about the middle of the area I heard a guy and his dog approaching me from my right. For the first time ever, on my own without the help of a dog, I spotted a hen sitting under a bush. I could have just shot her right there but I didn't wanna be shitty about it. Plus the guy and his dog would have been somewhere behind it. So I just jumped at her, she burst up and flew to my left and I fired two rounds. First one looked like it winged her, second produced a puff of feathers and she started to go down, just outside the edge of the clearing. I hear the guy shout a command to his dog, I hear the bell ringing as he runs, and before I can make my way out of the thick stuff towards the bird the guy and his dog are already on their way off with the bird I just shot.
So WTF, is it first come, first serve on birds no matter who shoots it? As long as you get to it first? I was pretty pissed about it and I thought of chasing the guy down but at that point I had to start heading back to the parking lot and head to work.
Looking on the bright side, I got a nice picture of the sunrise from the top of one of the dunes. I at least shot my first pheasant even if I didn't get to keep it.
View attachment 119444
ETA: Here's a diagram, LOL
View attachment 119445
Hmmm, not cool on his part. Possibly he shot as well and didn't see you/know you were there? In any case, be happy to give you a couple pheasants if you want to try them.
boilermaker
NES Member
I hear the guy shout a command to his dog, I hear the bell ringing as he runs, and before I can make my way out of the thick stuff towards the bird the guy and his dog are already on their way off with the bird I just shot.
I am really sorry that happened to you. That is not how it is supposed to go. I have helped others looked for downed birds because I might have had a better angle on where it went down. Also, once I downed a bird but could not recover it. Two of us and the dog, all in a small area but could just not find it. So we moved on to the next field and on our way back, another hunter had found it and left it for us right in our path.
45collector
NES Member
No the other guy never fired a shot. It seems to me like some guys with dogs feel they have more of a right to be out in the fields than guys like me who are dogless.
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Appreciate the offer! I really want to get my first on my own though. It will happen some day. Maybe not this season (I figure I only have 5 days left I can get out there with any possibility of getting a bird), but I will get one.![[wink]](/xen/styles/default/xenforo/smilies.vb/002.gif "Wink [wink]")
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Appreciate the offer! I really want to get my first on my own though. It will happen some day. Maybe not this season (I figure I only have 5 days left I can get out there with any possibility of getting a bird), but I will get one.
Thats totally ****ed. I definitely would've gone and asked what his deal was.Went to Sandy Neck before work this morning. Walked a long way through the hilly dunes/ marshes/ cattails/ reed grass etc... It's really good exercise out there especially if you don't have a dog and you need to work all the thick stuff yourself. Well that's exactly what I've been doing for several years now trying to get my first pheasant. I just want to cook one up and try it before I decide if I want to get a dog and get serious about it. Anyhow, I'd like some opinions on what happened: I'm finally starting to learn where the birds like to hide. I made my way into a thick area of scrub pines/ thickets and started moving in a back and forth pattern. When I got to about the middle of the area I heard a guy and his dog approaching me from my right. For the first time ever, on my own without the help of a dog, I spotted a hen sitting under a bush. I could have just shot her right there but I didn't wanna be shitty about it. Plus the guy and his dog would have been somewhere behind it. So I just jumped at her, she burst up and flew to my left and I fired two rounds. First one looked like it winged her, second produced a puff of feathers and she started to go down, just outside the edge of the clearing. I hear the guy shout a command to his dog, I hear the bell ringing as he runs, and before I can make my way out of the thick stuff towards the bird the guy and his dog are already on their way off with the bird I just shot.
dixidawg
NES Member
?? I would have my dog retrieve it. Deliver it to me and I would hand it over and congratulate the guy. Is there something wrong with that? I see it as a chance to give the dog some work and fetch the bird for the guy.
