Recent Posts

Longer Barrels an Advantage in Small Gauges?

Longer Barrels an Advantage in Small Gauges?

In our grouse book we talk about agonizing over whether to get a first grouse gun with 28″ or 26″ barrels. Would the extra 2 inches be a disadvantage in tight cover or because of the higher weight? Should we try to find one of the rare 24″ guns?

April 26, 2011 | By | 3 Replies More
Hawaii Bird Smorgasbord: Would You Do It?

Hawaii Bird Smorgasbord: Would You Do It?

Saw this piece on shotgunlife.com a while back about hunting what sounds like a Hawaiian game farm/preserve for birds. None are native, but at least some are wild. Read it and wondered: Would we do it? Meaning, would you go there for that? Check out a few highlights, then you decide:

April 21, 2011 | By | 1 Reply More
Have You Considered Going Lead-Free?

Have You Considered Going Lead-Free?

Once in a while we run across articles or op-eds like the one that appeared recently in the Des Moines Register. The points generally are that lead is no longer necessary in ammo thanks to lead alternatives, and that lead in game harms wildlife and people: No matter how careful one is with cleaning the […]

April 20, 2011 | By | 9 Replies More
Still on Gear List: Waterproof Gloves

Still on Gear List: Waterproof Gloves

It’s the offseason, time to work on shooting and try to plug gear holes. One such hole we haven’t been able to plug in years of trying is waterproof gloves.

April 19, 2011 | By | 4 Replies More
PA Opens Porkie Season

PA Opens Porkie Season

Starting next year, the bane of bird dogs and foresters will have no place to hide in Pennsylvania: The state Board of Game Commissioners recently voted to establish a season for porcupines. As the Commission reported, “Under the new season, hunters can take porcupines from Sept. 1 through March 31. The daily limit is six and […]

April 14, 2011 | By | 1 Reply More
Pheasant Hunters Trending Down in SD: Why

Pheasant Hunters Trending Down in SD: Why

Here we go again, another report about the number of bird hunters trending down. But this time it’s in a newspaper in the bird-hunting stronghold of the U.S. – South Dakota – which makes it worth comment. An editorial in The Daily Republic newspaper wonders why the numbers are trending down. For us, the answer […]

April 13, 2011 | By | 2 Replies More
PF’s New Easements a Big Deal

PF’s New Easements a Big Deal

“Conservation easement.” Not the world’s sexiest term. For example this scenario: “Tim Lincecum, you just won the World Series, what are you going to do with your bonus?” “I’m gonna buy a conservation easement!” [Sound of a balloon deflating.] Yep, don’t think that’s making SportsCenter, which is one reason

April 12, 2011 | By | 1 Reply More
GPS Review, Time for a New One

GPS Review, Time for a New One

Maybe it’s different out in the vast open expanses of the Midwest and West, but out here in the wooded East, you need a GPS…and we’d encourage you to have one wherever you hunt. In fact, you and whoever you hunt with should each have one. A good one. The GPS we’ve used for years […]

April 7, 2011 | By | 2 Replies More
What Does This Chart Mean to You?

What Does This Chart Mean to You?

If you get The Upland Almanac – we guess the “The” is pronounced like “The” Ohio State University (lol) – you will have seen the following table in the Flushes section of the Spring 2011 issue. Question is, what does it tell us?

April 5, 2011 | By | 3 Replies More
Our Plan to Create More Grouse Habitat

Our Plan to Create More Grouse Habitat

We’ve been kicking around ideas for years to create more ruffed grouse habitat – quickly. The Ruffed Grouse Society does a great job and we heartily support it, but we kept thinking there had to be a faster way. Well, we found one, and today we’re proud to announce what that is.

April 1, 2011 | By | 1 Reply More
How to Take Advantage of the Flush

How to Take Advantage of the Flush

And which dog is better… by Larry Rich, a fellow Serious bird hunter Over the years I’ve seen, heard and at times been lucky enough to intercept a grouse in a variety of situations, and over quite a few different dogs.  Employing a little empathy and reasoning, I’ve come to have an opinion on how […]

March 30, 2011 | By | 4 Replies More
Which One Dog for Pheasants…and Grouse

Which One Dog for Pheasants…and Grouse

A recent post on the Pheasants Forever website quotes Steve Smith, head editor of Pointing Dog Journal and Retriever Journal, as saying the following to the question of “if you could have only one” dog: “If your idea of a good time is a German shorthair pointing, relocating, pointing, relocating all the way down a […]

March 28, 2011 | By | 13 Replies More
Dogs: Head High or Low or Doesn’t Matter?

Dogs: Head High or Low or Doesn’t Matter?

Grouse man of letters Burton Spiller said in one of his books that a good grouse dog must run with its head held high. We remembered that passage recently when looking at a recent article in a Wisconsin newspaper, which read in part: > Some bird dogs can detect the very subtle scent of [birds] […]

March 23, 2011 | By | 1 Reply More
Rain Jackets That Actually Kept Us Dry!

Rain Jackets That Actually Kept Us Dry!

In a future post we’ll talk about gear we’re still looking for, things we need as Serious birders but are as yet unavailable on the market. Thankfully, one item we crossed off the list this year is rain jackets. We make no bones about the fact that we absolutely believe LL Bean makes many of […]

March 22, 2011 | By | 4 Replies More
Eulogy: Remembering Coley

Eulogy: Remembering Coley

How many things do you remember from college? Maybe not much, especially if it was at night with some suds in hand…. Yet it was on just such a night something happened that I (Jay) do remember – and, in fact, several of us remember it well enough to quote from. It was an off-the-cuff […]

March 17, 2011 | By | 3 Replies More
Wet/Dry Springs and Nesting: Insight

Wet/Dry Springs and Nesting: Insight

If you can hunt pheasants or grouse right outside your door, it’s probably not spring yet. But for the rest of us, spring is either here or sticking its toe in the door. Spring means nesting gamebirds, and we’ve all read over the years how wet or dry springs can affect nesting success. On the […]

March 16, 2011 | By | 1 Reply More
Close-Ups of RGS Raffle Guns: Drool!

Close-Ups of RGS Raffle Guns: Drool!

Would you pay $100 for a 1 in 1,000 (or less) chance at winning a unique shotgun with an MSRP of $5,000 – or $7,850 or $9,000? Nice odds. Brendan would because we’re talking about the recently announced Ruffed Grouse Society annual fundraiser/gun raffle, and he’s already bought his ticket. Before you answer for yourself, […]

March 15, 2011 | By | 1 Reply More
Keep Your Chokes Open At All Times!

Keep Your Chokes Open At All Times!

Bob St. Pierre at Pheasants Forever is one of the best writers in the bird world, and recently put up another interesting post, this one about the two things that have given him shooting confidence: > A good dog. > A skeet choke. Let’s talk about the latter. We’ll start with a couple Hosannahs. Next, […]

March 10, 2011 | By | 4 Replies More
WI Woodcock Projects, Favored Habitat

WI Woodcock Projects, Favored Habitat

The Ruffed Grouse Society, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and a few other groups recently announced “at least 10” projects to help improve woodcock habitat in Wisconsin. Any such work is much appreciated by us birdmen since unfortunately woodies are in the same boat as many gamebirds: populations are trending down. “With a steady […]

March 9, 2011 | By | Reply More
Time to Get Serious About Gun Fit: Why

Time to Get Serious About Gun Fit: Why

When I (Jay) make my annual pilgrimage to the mall to buy “clothes not needed for hunting,” I have a tough time. I’m not a single size. I’m between a large and a medium up top, my waist is too small and legs too long for many off the rack pants, even my feet are […]

March 8, 2011 | By | 7 Replies More