NH Grouse Hunting Update: 10/3
The start to the NH grouse season saw the remnants of a formidable tropical storm that belted us for two straight days, with October 1 falling on the second day of the torrent. Nevertheless, we are grouse hunters, and there were grouse to be pursued regardless of the weather conditions, so the answer to the question was simple: yes, we’re going out! I must admit that Dr. Bob Gabreski was a gamer under these conditions, and he was focused until the end of his time with me - fortunately, we took to the woods two mornings in a row only, so that we could recharge for the following day’s hunt.
All three of the dogs got their work in over the two mornings with Bob. Rudy had a very good opening day - several good points and patient work yielded some good chances for Bob. Greta gave a good showing the next morning with points on three distantly flushing grouse, and Monty also had a good hunt with his first grouse point under battle conditions near the end of his hunt on a running, and then flushing-out-of range grouse. Yes, they are running already folks, sorry to say, so we’re going to have to kick it in to a higher gear as the leaves drop and the dogs display “birdiness”.
How did Dr. Bob do? He dropped two grouse (both males) over our two mornings and he is planning his return for the opener next year too. While the action seemed slower on day two after the storm passed, we still encountered approximately 16 grouse and 2 woodcock over our two mornings together. Not bad, and the shooting should get a bit easier as the foliage melts away for another season ...
All three of the dogs got their work in over the two mornings with Bob. Rudy had a very good opening day - several good points and patient work yielded some good chances for Bob. Greta gave a good showing the next morning with points on three distantly flushing grouse, and Monty also had a good hunt with his first grouse point under battle conditions near the end of his hunt on a running, and then flushing-out-of range grouse. Yes, they are running already folks, sorry to say, so we’re going to have to kick it in to a higher gear as the leaves drop and the dogs display “birdiness”.
How did Dr. Bob do? He dropped two grouse (both males) over our two mornings and he is planning his return for the opener next year too. While the action seemed slower on day two after the storm passed, we still encountered approximately 16 grouse and 2 woodcock over our two mornings together. Not bad, and the shooting should get a bit easier as the foliage melts away for another season ...
