This is the Week 3 Recap of the 2024 Pheasant Hunting season. Temperatures are starting to cool off so we have more hunting options. We got out twice this week and we did see birds, but nothing in shooting range.
Compared to previous years, we have gotten a slow start. My miles walked is the lowest it has been since I started recording. This is due to a combination of things including the weather and recovering from my second hip replacement. Trip counts are also the lowest, mostly due to the weather. Roosters seen is the third highest but roosters shot is the second lowest. One possible explanation is that more mature birds survived the last mild winter while the rainy spring impacted the hatch this year. So we are seeing more mature roosters who already know how to play the game. The roosters we are seeing are at a distance which is what we typically see later in the season.
November 1st - Trip 1
Our first trip this week was to public ground where we had moderate success at last year. The Fish and Wildlife service burned a portion of this area last fall and the prairie came back very well. The cover was thick compared to last year.
We started with Stella and after about 30 minutes she started tracking. We tracked for at least 20 minutes before we had several hens wild flush in front of us. A little farther along we had a rooster wild flush. We did a big loop and Stella tracked several more hens.
We were headed back to the truck to swap dogs when Stella got birdy. She started tracking and we ended up following her for 0.6 miles and 58 minutes before a rooster wild flushed out in front of us. At this point we were on the opposite side of the property. On the way back, she found several more hens. By the time we got back to the truck we were out of time so Willow did not get to hunt.
November 3rd - Trip 2
Our second trip of the week was to private ground. It was rainy and in the low 40s. Temperature wise it was almost perfect.
We started with Stella working a fence line. We had a rooster wild flush well ahead of us. We had another rooster flush ahead of me while I was working through a thicket. I never saw it but Kevin did. We did a big loop and walked a variety of cover but did not see any other birds.
We swapped dogs and tried some other areas with Willow. At one point she got birdy and tracked into a thicket. A hen wild flushed out in front of the thicket. That was the only bird we saw with Willow.
Video
There is a short video this week with Stella working some hens. Nothing special.
Summary
Bottom line, the week 3 recap was pretty boring. We got out twice, saw some birds but nothing exciting. We are looking forward to possibly hunting in Iowa next week.
