Woodcock!

User avatar
SpringerDude
Rank: Senior Hunter
Posts: 193
Joined: Mon Jul 19, 2010 8:37 pm

Woodcock!

Post by SpringerDude » Tue Oct 15, 2013 6:41 am

Woodcock Season opens today in Missouri. Let the fun begin!!!

duckn66
Rank: Champion
Posts: 341
Joined: Thu Jan 26, 2012 10:19 am

Re: Woodcock!

Post by duckn66 » Tue Oct 15, 2013 8:13 am

Good luck Springerdude! I know you have waited for this day probably since the close of last season.

User avatar
SpringerDude
Rank: Senior Hunter
Posts: 193
Joined: Mon Jul 19, 2010 8:37 pm

Re: Woodcock!

Post by SpringerDude » Tue Oct 15, 2013 3:33 pm

Not many birds here yet but we found one and got the season off to a start. This is Spud, my elder of the pack now. Made a lot of memories with him and because of him. 9.5 yrs old and still doing his thing. Foliage is still heavy limiting visibility. Nice to know that I can still move the gun fast enough for the barrels to point where I am looking.

Image

big_fish
Rank: Master Hunter
Posts: 282
Joined: Fri Nov 30, 2012 4:42 pm
Location: eastern ohio

Re: Woodcock!

Post by big_fish » Tue Oct 15, 2013 4:08 pm

keep posting pic I love seeing them. I will be out this weekend with my young britt hope to have a pic and a story.
I will take the dog and not the gun but never the gun without the dog !

User avatar
CDN_Cocker
Rank: 5X Champion
Posts: 1416
Joined: Wed Mar 06, 2013 5:59 pm
Location: ON, Canada

Re: Woodcock!

Post by CDN_Cocker » Thu Oct 17, 2013 5:19 pm

This is my first year ever seeing a woodcock (thanks to my new furry partner) but I have yet to hit one of the little buggers.
Cass
"If you train a young dog for momentum, precision will arrive. If you train for precision, demanding perfection, momentum will depart." - Rex Carr

Rod W
Rank: Master Hunter
Posts: 230
Joined: Mon Dec 31, 2012 8:15 am
Location: Phelps, Wis.

Re: Woodcock!

Post by Rod W » Thu Oct 17, 2013 5:44 pm

They usually go vertical 12-15 feet, then start to fly away horizontally. Let them get out from you so your spread opens up, this is the hard part, we usually shoot to fast.
"Democracy dies when the people wanting their government to take care of them outnumber those wanting to take care of themselves!"


We usually learn,, to overcome IGNORANCE,, but STUPIDITY cannot be overcome!!!

Life Member NRA

User avatar
gonehuntin'
GDF Junkie
Posts: 4867
Joined: Tue Dec 12, 2006 5:38 pm
Location: NE WI.

Re: Woodcock!

Post by gonehuntin' » Thu Oct 17, 2013 8:17 pm

Kind of interesting. When they go straight up, then level off and fly, they're males. The females rocket through the jungle twisting and dodging like a falling maple leaf. Nature's way of preserving the species. Between grouse and woodcock, the woodcock is my favorite bird. Everything about them is unique. The dance, upside down brain, the bill, the migration, dark meat breast and white meat legs; what a fascinating little fellow he is!!!
LIFE WITHOUT BIRD DOGS AND FLY RODS REALLY ISN'T LIFE AT ALL.

User avatar
SpringerDude
Rank: Senior Hunter
Posts: 193
Joined: Mon Jul 19, 2010 8:37 pm

Re: Woodcock!

Post by SpringerDude » Thu Oct 17, 2013 8:36 pm

gonehuntin' wrote:Kind of interesting. When they go straight up, then level off and fly, they're males. The females rocket through the jungle twisting and dodging like a falling maple leaf. Nature's way of preserving the species. Between grouse and woodcock, the woodcock is my favorite bird. Everything about them is unique. The dance, upside down brain, the bill, the migration, dark meat breast and white meat legs; what a fascinating little fellow he is!!!

Never knew you could identify gender of a bird by the way it flushes. Interesting.

Oh, if they all went straight up then leveled off. Most of the ones I shoot at are flushing low and fast and using cover to its advantage. Sometimes I get a high flush where I can shoot them through the tree tops.

Mountaineer
GDF Junkie
Posts: 1630
Joined: Tue Feb 16, 2010 7:23 pm
Location: State?...The one where ruffed grouse were.

Re: Woodcock!

Post by Mountaineer » Thu Oct 17, 2013 9:37 pm

Woodcock of either sex twists or levels out or short flushes.
Short flushers are often tired migrants.
Females are most often noticed as they are noticeably larger, on average.
Woodcock can be difficult or one of the most easiest of game birds to shoot.

User avatar
SpringerDude
Rank: Senior Hunter
Posts: 193
Joined: Mon Jul 19, 2010 8:37 pm

Re: Woodcock!

Post by SpringerDude » Fri Oct 18, 2013 5:34 am

Mountaineer wrote:Woodcock of either sex twists or levels out or short flushes.
Short flushers are often tired migrants.
Females are most often noticed as they are noticeably larger, on average.
Woodcock can be difficult or one of the most easiest of game birds to shoot.

Those comments have been my experience as well. On the short flushes, I have noticed that sometimes the birds have just arrived and don't really know where they are going to go. But on a reflush, they move on out quickly and a farther from the flush area. A steady dog allows the bird to think it is not being pursued and sometimes the bird does not fly far. However, when I have hunted them with unsteady dogs, the bird wanting to make a short flight usually will continue on flying when it feels the pressure of the pursuing dog.

Woodcock are fabulous game birds and are fun to hunt.

Mountaineer
GDF Junkie
Posts: 1630
Joined: Tue Feb 16, 2010 7:23 pm
Location: State?...The one where ruffed grouse were.

Re: Woodcock!

Post by Mountaineer » Fri Oct 18, 2013 5:55 am

SpringerDude wrote:... the bird wanting to make a short flight usually will continue on flying when it feels the pressure of the pursuing dog.

Woodcock are fabulous game birds and are fun to hunt.

Or a pursuing hunter.

Yes, they are an interesting bird and one difficult to accurately gauge their population.
Their value to me lies in their wildness, their filling in of slow points of a grouse day and for training bird dogs.
Cooked barely medium rare, their value as table fare is tops as well.
One can easily become protective of the little bogsucker.

User avatar
CDN_Cocker
Rank: 5X Champion
Posts: 1416
Joined: Wed Mar 06, 2013 5:59 pm
Location: ON, Canada

Re: Woodcock!

Post by CDN_Cocker » Fri Oct 18, 2013 7:07 am

Speaking of flushes - how far does a woodcock generally flush? Is it worth going after like a flushed grouse?
Cass
"If you train a young dog for momentum, precision will arrive. If you train for precision, demanding perfection, momentum will depart." - Rex Carr

Neil
GDF Junkie
Posts: 3187
Joined: Mon Jun 29, 2009 12:46 pm
Location: Central Arkansas

Re: Woodcock!

Post by Neil » Fri Oct 18, 2013 10:01 am

I have been chasing them from WI to LA since 1965, even made two trips to Canada, and the only thing I have learned you cannot generalize, there is no specific behavior that is always followed.

Once known as a tight holding, great training bird, is often a running, wild flushing, sly little fellow. Well, they shuffle more than run like a pheasant, but they still will move some distance from a point and flush before you get to them.

I do not believe any bird is smart enough to put a tree between them and you, they are just trying to escape, and the tree is just there. But it is very often there.

Enjoy. Part of the fun is their unpredicability.

BTW, I have found them far outside their accepted range, such as far Northwest South Dakota and South Florida in good numbers. I have found resident, nesting birds in West Tenn and KS. Trully unpredictable, but delightful.

User avatar
gonehuntin'
GDF Junkie
Posts: 4867
Joined: Tue Dec 12, 2006 5:38 pm
Location: NE WI.

Re: Woodcock!

Post by gonehuntin' » Fri Oct 18, 2013 10:54 am

CDN_Cocker wrote:Speaking of flushes - how far does a woodcock generally flush? Is it worth going after like a flushed grouse?
This is strictly my view. With either a grouse or a woodcock, if they flush once and get away, they've earned their freedom. I don't pursue either one.
LIFE WITHOUT BIRD DOGS AND FLY RODS REALLY ISN'T LIFE AT ALL.

User avatar
gonehuntin'
GDF Junkie
Posts: 4867
Joined: Tue Dec 12, 2006 5:38 pm
Location: NE WI.

Re: Woodcock!

Post by gonehuntin' » Fri Oct 18, 2013 11:04 am

Mountaineer wrote:Woodcock of either sex twists or levels out or short flushes.
.
Now you're going to make me think of where I came up with that little gem! :D :lol:

Seems like it may have been Gene Hill, but maybe not.

I'm up hunting them now but it's currently pouring so I'm motel-bound. I figure the flight birds should be in so it's worth the gamble!!
LIFE WITHOUT BIRD DOGS AND FLY RODS REALLY ISN'T LIFE AT ALL.

Mountaineer
GDF Junkie
Posts: 1630
Joined: Tue Feb 16, 2010 7:23 pm
Location: State?...The one where ruffed grouse were.

Re: Woodcock!

Post by Mountaineer » Fri Oct 18, 2013 11:07 am

gonehuntin' wrote:
CDN_Cocker wrote:Speaking of flushes - how far does a woodcock generally flush? Is it worth going after like a flushed grouse?
This is strictly my view. With either a grouse or a woodcock, if they flush once and get away, they've earned their freedom. I don't pursue either one.
I agree...especially with woodcock.
I may follow up a flush in the general direction once for a grouse tho....in the Apps, not in the UGLs....more a cover thing, I reckon.

Mountaineer
GDF Junkie
Posts: 1630
Joined: Tue Feb 16, 2010 7:23 pm
Location: State?...The one where ruffed grouse were.

Re: Woodcock!

Post by Mountaineer » Fri Oct 18, 2013 11:10 am

gonehuntin' wrote:
Mountaineer wrote:Woodcock of either sex twists or levels out or short flushes.
.
Now you're going to make me think of where I came up with that little gem! :D :lol:

Seems like it may have been Gene Hill, but maybe not.

I'm up hunting them now but it's currently pouring so I'm motel-bound. I figure the flight birds should be in so it's worth the gamble!!

Nothing wrong with gems, generally. :D
I just returned from the U.P.....mostly residents were found but that deduction itself can be somewhat based on an equivalent gem.
Good luck.

Rod W
Rank: Master Hunter
Posts: 230
Joined: Mon Dec 31, 2012 8:15 am
Location: Phelps, Wis.

Re: Woodcock!

Post by Rod W » Sun Oct 20, 2013 10:42 am

CDN_Cocker wrote:Speaking of flushes - how far does a woodcock generally flush? Is it worth going after like a flushed grouse?
Quite often you can see them land after flying only 20-30 yards. Othertimes they may go high and go fly of sight, but most often will not fly as far as a flushed grouse. Yes, it is worth going after, you can usually find them again! AND, never let some PROFESSOR OF BS,pretending to be a GOD and protecting a bird the Feds already protect, convince you otherwise!!!
"Democracy dies when the people wanting their government to take care of them outnumber those wanting to take care of themselves!"


We usually learn,, to overcome IGNORANCE,, but STUPIDITY cannot be overcome!!!

Life Member NRA

Ms. Cage
Rank: 5X Champion
Posts: 705
Joined: Wed May 09, 2012 5:01 pm
Location: Hibbing, Mn. 55746

Re: Woodcock!

Post by Ms. Cage » Sun Oct 20, 2013 11:23 am

We've been bagging mostly adault females the last week, flight birds. With night temps dropping below freezing I don't think we'll see many more. Howie plans on heading about 75 mi. south of here on Tuesday with hopes of getting into the flights.
IMG_5476 (800x600).jpg
IMG_5483 (800x600).jpg
You do not have the required permissions to view the files attached to this post.

User avatar
Vonzeppelinkennels
GDF Junkie
Posts: 2107
Joined: Fri Dec 03, 2010 9:14 pm
Location: Amelia,Ohio

Re: Woodcock!

Post by Vonzeppelinkennels » Sun Oct 20, 2013 11:58 am

Enjoying the FALL guys ? Looks like fun! :D

User avatar
gonehuntin'
GDF Junkie
Posts: 4867
Joined: Tue Dec 12, 2006 5:38 pm
Location: NE WI.

Re: Woodcock!

Post by gonehuntin' » Sun Oct 20, 2013 4:40 pm

Saturday was a miserable day. Seemed like most of the birds pulled out Friday nite. Bummer. Not a point the entire day and every grouse we saw came out of. Tree.

Today was different!! Splashes all over the cover and limited by 10:30. Looked like a new flight came in over nite.
LIFE WITHOUT BIRD DOGS AND FLY RODS REALLY ISN'T LIFE AT ALL.

Ms. Cage
Rank: 5X Champion
Posts: 705
Joined: Wed May 09, 2012 5:01 pm
Location: Hibbing, Mn. 55746

Re: Woodcock!

Post by Ms. Cage » Sun Oct 20, 2013 5:03 pm

A friend was over this afternoon and said the woodcock were pouring into his slash late yesterday evening when he was leaving his deer stand. Today has been a wintery mix all day. Maybe we can go out hunting Monday after the hubby gets back from the Doctor. Howie has got to go in and get doxy. He's had alot of deer ticks stuck to him this past wk. I hate to see what our vet bill is going to be. The dogs have been in to same boat as Howie. Myself, I've been lucky . Ticks must not like me. knock on wood.

User avatar
CDN_Cocker
Rank: 5X Champion
Posts: 1416
Joined: Wed Mar 06, 2013 5:59 pm
Location: ON, Canada

Re: Woodcock!

Post by CDN_Cocker » Sun Oct 20, 2013 7:01 pm

Jake has had a few ticks the past couple weeks as well. Planning on getting the antibiotic the end of November or so. On a positive note I've heard the woodcock are on the move up here
Cass
"If you train a young dog for momentum, precision will arrive. If you train for precision, demanding perfection, momentum will depart." - Rex Carr

User avatar
SpringerDude
Rank: Senior Hunter
Posts: 193
Joined: Mon Jul 19, 2010 8:37 pm

Re: Woodcock!

Post by SpringerDude » Mon Oct 21, 2013 12:03 pm

There are a lot of "gem's" and statements that can be true on most days. But as stated, Woodcock are woodcock and they are a mysterious bird.

Cass,
You can follow up a woodcock and the bird is in the "general area" where it landed. However, it can move and put cover between you and and itself prior to flushing. I have flushed birds as many as 3 times and never get a good shot at it. I just say I was educating the bird so that it is harder to bag for the next hunter it encounters farther South. LOL I follow up most so that I can get my dog another contact. You can always just not shoot at it if you are conservation minded that day.

Neil, There is the "text book" area to find woodcock and then there are the "other areas" that they are even though they are not supposed to be there. If one did a self study on woodcock from an academic point of view, the type of cover that person would hunt would possibly eventual shoot some woodcock. However, in my area, that person would be missing a "ton of fun" due to not hunting where the woodcock are at. Me and the other anonymous woodcock hunters in SW Missouri have confirmed that they can be in a variety of different habitats and are in those habitats very consistently during the season.

Fat on birds is used to indicate "flight" birds. However, local birds are putting on fat as well. In my area, we shoot birds with lots of fat later in November and early birds do not have much fat. We do not have any "local birds" to speak of and all our birds are considered "flight" birds. We can debate nuances and have exceptions of each but in the end, Woodcock are just fun birds to hunt.

Trying to predict the migration is very difficult. Some things help make a "high percentage" guess but the reality is that you really don't know until you put a spaniel (or other dog) into the cover. That's how you verify what you think is happening. I had someone asking about temperature, weather patterns, moisture content in soil, etc. If one would wait until the Maples have turned Red and Yellow, then you will have a great chance to see woodcock. However, you just might miss the best hunting if you wait. The more often you go, the better your chance of stumbling onto a "big flight" of woodcock.

Fabulous Game Bird.

User avatar
gonehuntin'
GDF Junkie
Posts: 4867
Joined: Tue Dec 12, 2006 5:38 pm
Location: NE WI.

Re: Woodcock!

Post by gonehuntin' » Mon Oct 21, 2013 1:18 pm

Great post Springerdude. I hunt one area you would completely pass over as a woodcock area. It is all maple with a spattering of small balsam. The woodcock forage in the thick maple leaves and hide under the balsam. It should be illegal to shoot them there the shooting is so easy.

On the other hand, we won't talk of the alder tangles.
LIFE WITHOUT BIRD DOGS AND FLY RODS REALLY ISN'T LIFE AT ALL.

User avatar
gonehuntin'
GDF Junkie
Posts: 4867
Joined: Tue Dec 12, 2006 5:38 pm
Location: NE WI.

Re: Woodcock!

Post by gonehuntin' » Mon Oct 21, 2013 1:59 pm

My favorite gun and three of my favorite buddies; Sunday morning.


Image
LIFE WITHOUT BIRD DOGS AND FLY RODS REALLY ISN'T LIFE AT ALL.

User avatar
CDN_Cocker
Rank: 5X Champion
Posts: 1416
Joined: Wed Mar 06, 2013 5:59 pm
Location: ON, Canada

Re: Woodcock!

Post by CDN_Cocker » Mon Oct 21, 2013 2:55 pm

I really gotta get an o/u
Cass
"If you train a young dog for momentum, precision will arrive. If you train for precision, demanding perfection, momentum will depart." - Rex Carr

User avatar
gonehuntin'
GDF Junkie
Posts: 4867
Joined: Tue Dec 12, 2006 5:38 pm
Location: NE WI.

Re: Woodcock!

Post by gonehuntin' » Mon Oct 21, 2013 3:00 pm

CDN_Cocker wrote:I really gotta get an o/u
I bought that gun in 1967-68 and have been shooting it ever since. It's the only upland gun I shoot. I did have Briley put in screw in chokes. All you have to do is look at the bird and it dies.
LIFE WITHOUT BIRD DOGS AND FLY RODS REALLY ISN'T LIFE AT ALL.

Neil
GDF Junkie
Posts: 3187
Joined: Mon Jun 29, 2009 12:46 pm
Location: Central Arkansas

Re: Woodcock!

Post by Neil » Mon Oct 21, 2013 7:40 pm

Springerdude,

I was hunting woodcock all around Springfield beginning in 1968, my friend the famed artist, Ross B. Young continues. I know the area. You do have resident birds. And the fat content is rubbish.

When I started, my quail hunting buddies that I was daft.

User avatar
northern cajun
Rank: 5X Champion
Posts: 836
Joined: Mon May 07, 2007 9:28 am
Location: Breaux Bridge, La and Ithaca, NY

Re: Woodcock!

Post by northern cajun » Mon Oct 21, 2013 8:24 pm

Enjoy the fun everyone they well be here in Louisiana for the winter stay I will post up some pics :mrgreen: :mrgreen:
HAVE A GREAT DAY!!
GOD BLESS

DOGS COULDNT LIVE WITHOUT EM!!
NORTHERN CAJUN

User avatar
SpringerDude
Rank: Senior Hunter
Posts: 193
Joined: Mon Jul 19, 2010 8:37 pm

Re: Woodcock!

Post by SpringerDude » Mon Oct 21, 2013 8:55 pm

Neil wrote:Springerdude,

I was hunting woodcock all around Springfield beginning in 1968, my friend the famed artist, Ross B. Young continues. I know the area. You do have resident birds. And the fat content is rubbish.

When I started, my quail hunting buddies that I was daft.

That is interesting that Ross Young hunts woodcock. Does he still hunt them regularly? We could have resident birds but I usually don't find any in my thickets when the season begins so the resident birds must be other places. I did see a bird east of Springfield in mid September that might very well be a resident bird. I have seen pic's of chicks in SW missouri over the years. Just wonder how many stay here through the summer.

Neil
GDF Junkie
Posts: 3187
Joined: Mon Jun 29, 2009 12:46 pm
Location: Central Arkansas

Re: Woodcock!

Post by Neil » Mon Oct 21, 2013 9:30 pm

SpringerDude wrote:
Neil wrote:Springerdude,

I was hunting woodcock all around Springfield beginning in 1968, my friend the famed artist, Ross B. Young continues. I know the area. You do have resident birds. And the fat content is rubbish.

When I started, my quail hunting buddies that I was daft.

That is interesting that Ross Young hunts woodcock. Does he still hunt them regularly? We could have resident birds but I usually don't find any in my thickets when the season begins so the resident birds must be other places. I did see a bird east of Springfield in mid September that might very well be a resident bird. I have seen pic's of chicks in SW missouri over the years. Just wonder how many stay here through the summer.
Ross is in SD right now, but hunts timberdoodles often, he lived in Maine for a few years, but was hooked in S/W MO long before. What we call a vacation, he calls research. Go to his web site to see the number of woodcock featured paintings. I have a couple.

Neil
GDF Junkie
Posts: 3187
Joined: Mon Jun 29, 2009 12:46 pm
Location: Central Arkansas

Re: Woodcock!

Post by Neil » Mon Oct 21, 2013 9:35 pm

Oh, if you find them in Feb and March, and then nesting in May, those are resident birds. I have watched the mating dance not 30 minutes from downtown Springfield. Go out this comming Spring.

User avatar
SpringerDude
Rank: Senior Hunter
Posts: 193
Joined: Mon Jul 19, 2010 8:37 pm

Re: Woodcock!

Post by SpringerDude » Tue Oct 22, 2013 7:14 am

The woodcock start coming through SW Missouri in February. The numbers grow by early March. I watched them in good numbers last year about a mile from my neighborhood on a hillside next to a community walking trail. I have gone out to work dogs on woodcock in the Spring for several years now. What I don't see is woodcock in the summer time. I look for them flying at dark in likely places. I have not flushed them during turkey season or seen any flying at daylight during turkey season. We probably do have some but I just have no first hand experience observing them.

We have tons of them coming through in the Fall and then back again in the Spring. Just a fun bird to hunt.

Neil
GDF Junkie
Posts: 3187
Joined: Mon Jun 29, 2009 12:46 pm
Location: Central Arkansas

Re: Woodcock!

Post by Neil » Tue Oct 22, 2013 10:49 am

SpringerDude wrote:The woodcock start coming through SW Missouri in February. The numbers grow by early March. I watched them in good numbers last year about a mile from my neighborhood on a hillside next to a community walking trail. I have gone out to work dogs on woodcock in the Spring for several years now. What I don't see is woodcock in the summer time. I look for them flying at dark in likely places. I have not flushed them during turkey season or seen any flying at daylight during turkey season. We probably do have some but I just have no first hand experience observing them.

We have tons of them coming through in the Fall and then back again in the Spring. Just a fun bird to hunt.
What you think is a likely place at dusk is only for migrating birds, not residents. Nesting birds try not to fly, except for the male's mating dance. You need to rethink the whole thing. Resident birds do not use the habitat the same way as migrating birds, except they have supper together.

User avatar
SpringerDude
Rank: Senior Hunter
Posts: 193
Joined: Mon Jul 19, 2010 8:37 pm

Re: Woodcock!

Post by SpringerDude » Wed Oct 23, 2013 2:05 pm

Well, Bingo got on the board today with a limit of birds. Here is a pic of her first of the season.

Image

I had one of those hunts where I couldn't hit anything. Got the 3rd bird with my last shell. I had fun and got some exercise.

Image
Last edited by SpringerDude on Wed Oct 23, 2013 4:22 pm, edited 1 time in total.

User avatar
SpringerDude
Rank: Senior Hunter
Posts: 193
Joined: Mon Jul 19, 2010 8:37 pm

Re: Woodcock!

Post by SpringerDude » Wed Oct 23, 2013 2:08 pm

Neil wrote:
SpringerDude wrote:The woodcock start coming through SW Missouri in February. The numbers grow by early March. I watched them in good numbers last year about a mile from my neighborhood on a hillside next to a community walking trail. I have gone out to work dogs on woodcock in the Spring for several years now. What I don't see is woodcock in the summer time. I look for them flying at dark in likely places. I have not flushed them during turkey season or seen any flying at daylight during turkey season. We probably do have some but I just have no first hand experience observing them.

We have tons of them coming through in the Fall and then back again in the Spring. Just a fun bird to hunt.
What you think is a likely place at dusk is only for migrating birds, not residents. Nesting birds try not to fly, except for the male's mating dance. You need to rethink the whole thing. Resident birds do not use the habitat the same way as migrating birds, except they have supper together.

I would agree, resident birds are going to have different patterns than migrating birds. We are going to have far more migrating birds than resident birds and the migrating birds get here soon enough after the season opens to provide plenty of fun.

User avatar
CDN_Cocker
Rank: 5X Champion
Posts: 1416
Joined: Wed Mar 06, 2013 5:59 pm
Location: ON, Canada

Re: Woodcock!

Post by CDN_Cocker » Wed Oct 23, 2013 3:27 pm

Only 1 flushed today - no hits
Cass
"If you train a young dog for momentum, precision will arrive. If you train for precision, demanding perfection, momentum will depart." - Rex Carr

User avatar
SpringerDude
Rank: Senior Hunter
Posts: 193
Joined: Mon Jul 19, 2010 8:37 pm

Re: Woodcock!

Post by SpringerDude » Fri Oct 25, 2013 5:02 pm

Really starting to move through the area.

Here is a pic of Bingo with 3.

Image


Image

User avatar
mik
Rank: Senior Hunter
Posts: 109
Joined: Wed Oct 15, 2008 9:20 pm
Location: Wausau,WI

Re: Woodcock!

Post by mik » Sat Oct 26, 2013 2:11 pm

Found 5 in 3 hours got our limit in the first two...just one grouse found today and no shot :evil:
You do not have the required permissions to view the files attached to this post.

User avatar
gonehuntin'
GDF Junkie
Posts: 4867
Joined: Tue Dec 12, 2006 5:38 pm
Location: NE WI.

Re: Woodcock!

Post by gonehuntin' » Sat Oct 26, 2013 5:44 pm

Sitting in a motel in N. Wi. now. Great morning. Got here at 09:30 this morning and had a limit of "Doods" by 10:45. Saw two grouse the whole day so spent it taking pictures. Hope they don't pull out tonite. Snow flurries now.
LIFE WITHOUT BIRD DOGS AND FLY RODS REALLY ISN'T LIFE AT ALL.

User avatar
SpringerDude
Rank: Senior Hunter
Posts: 193
Joined: Mon Jul 19, 2010 8:37 pm

Re: Woodcock!

Post by SpringerDude » Sun Oct 27, 2013 2:05 pm

Another great evening chasing woodcock. Saw 13 birds and had over 20 flushes.

Spud with his first limit of birds this season.

Image

User avatar
northern cajun
Rank: 5X Champion
Posts: 836
Joined: Mon May 07, 2007 9:28 am
Location: Breaux Bridge, La and Ithaca, NY

Re: Woodcock!

Post by northern cajun » Sun Oct 27, 2013 7:02 pm

I will keep you guys posted up on the winter population down here in Louisiana woodcock capitial of the world in winter.
HAVE A GREAT DAY!!
GOD BLESS

DOGS COULDNT LIVE WITHOUT EM!!
NORTHERN CAJUN

jimbo&rooster
Rank: 5X Champion
Posts: 1252
Joined: Tue Mar 16, 2010 4:22 pm
Location: Sullivan IN

Re: Woodcock!

Post by jimbo&rooster » Mon Oct 28, 2013 11:01 am

I Havnt ventured too far into the "jungle" yet after timberdoodles this season, but we have a few marshy CRP fields that will hold a few from time to time, and are often good fro a mixed bag of woodcock and bobwhites the first week of quail season. However no doodles this weekend, so Id say Ill be headed to the river bottoms in the near future......

Jim
A limit on the strap is nice, but the kill has nothing to do with tradition.

User avatar
SpringerDude
Rank: Senior Hunter
Posts: 193
Joined: Mon Jul 19, 2010 8:37 pm

Re: Woodcock!

Post by SpringerDude » Mon Oct 28, 2013 11:57 am

What's interesting about woodcock hunting in Missouri is that you have to be careful for the rocks rolling out from under your foot and twisting an ankle while chasing woodcock. We climb hills and do not hunt them in any creek bottoms or river bottoms like the text books state. Most folks would be surprised where we find woodcock.

User avatar
gonehuntin'
GDF Junkie
Posts: 4867
Joined: Tue Dec 12, 2006 5:38 pm
Location: NE WI.

Re: Woodcock!

Post by gonehuntin' » Mon Oct 28, 2013 2:37 pm

Image

Can't seem to put two days together. Couldn't get off friday, so got up early and got there Sat. A.M. Started hunting about 09:30, limited a little after 10:30. Went out Sunday early, hunted until 2:30, saw and shot one "dood". Frustrating. It seems a flight comes in, stays a day, and pushed South. You guys S of here should be covered in em'. :lol:
LIFE WITHOUT BIRD DOGS AND FLY RODS REALLY ISN'T LIFE AT ALL.

Rod W
Rank: Master Hunter
Posts: 230
Joined: Mon Dec 31, 2012 8:15 am
Location: Phelps, Wis.

Re: Woodcock!

Post by Rod W » Mon Oct 28, 2013 5:58 pm

gonehuntin' wrote:Sitting in a motel in N. Wi. now. Great morning. Got here at 09:30 this morning and had a limit of "Doods" by 10:45. Saw two grouse the whole day so spent it taking pictures. Hope they don't pull out tonite. Snow flurries now.
Where in N Wis, I'm in Phelps, give me a call! PM sent
"Democracy dies when the people wanting their government to take care of them outnumber those wanting to take care of themselves!"


We usually learn,, to overcome IGNORANCE,, but STUPIDITY cannot be overcome!!!

Life Member NRA

User avatar
gonehuntin'
GDF Junkie
Posts: 4867
Joined: Tue Dec 12, 2006 5:38 pm
Location: NE WI.

Re: Woodcock!

Post by gonehuntin' » Mon Oct 28, 2013 6:01 pm

I go up and back on weekends Rod. I hunt the NE part of the state, Marinette and Florence counties.
LIFE WITHOUT BIRD DOGS AND FLY RODS REALLY ISN'T LIFE AT ALL.

Chubs
Rank: Just A Pup
Posts: 1
Joined: Mon Oct 08, 2012 12:13 pm

Re: Woodcock!

Post by Chubs » Sat Nov 02, 2013 9:23 am

I'm still seeing scattered doodles in central Wisconsin. Thought they'd all be gone by now, but not quite....

User avatar
SpringerDude
Rank: Senior Hunter
Posts: 193
Joined: Mon Jul 19, 2010 8:37 pm

Re: Woodcock!

Post by SpringerDude » Thu Nov 07, 2013 7:29 am

After being involved in an English Springer Spaniel Field Trial this past weekend, I was ready for some woodcock hunting. I was meeting Billy and Aaron Sutton of SDW Outfitters from Louisiana. They needed to get some dogs into birds before their season opened. They were running Pointers. I was impressed with how these dogs hunted my woodcock thickets. They did a great job wiggling through the cover and check out every likely woodcock looking area. On Monday morning, we moved approx 7 birds and had plenty of additional contacts on woodcock that made those guys smile. I left them at noon and went to meet another guy for a hunt that afternoon. We hunted about 1.5 hrs that afternoon and moved 5 with 9 flushes. The guest got 2 and missed a couple birds that would have been his limit bird. He really enjoyed the walk with my spaniel, Lee Roy.

Tues morning found me waiting on the La guys at the parking lot. They were there shortly afterwards and we let the dogs out. They ran one dog that morning, so I took Bingo along. I hate not having my dogs on the ground just for "insurance" purposes. Can you hunt a springer with a pointer? Absolutely! When Rock would go on point, I would heel and hup Bingo and they would walk in and flush the bird. When the dogs wanted to work into the same cover, I would softly whistle Bingo out and move her into other cover. I would say that the bird "finds" were about 50/50. I would put Bingo into spots that the pointer didn't cover and I would hold her back in some areas and let the pointer go first. Bingo got to show off her retrieving skills a few times which is always cool to watch. At the end of the day, the dogs and produced over 16 birds and had over 25 flushes.

The La guys were very pleased and we were into birds pretty much from the time we put the dogs down until we said " that's enough."

The first day, Billy wanted to take a ton of pictures.
Image

This Point had a bird in a place that we took a lot of pictures. The bird held like a still life model until Billy stretched out his hand and dropped his hat on the bird. Yes, he was within arms reach and got some really cool pictures.
Image

And the end of a great two days!
Image

Image

Post Reply