# Good luck everyone!



## michiganmaniac (Dec 9, 2008)

Tomorrow's the day we wait all year for! I hope that everyone has good luck, great times, and a safe day. Ill be out solo in the AM checking out a new spot. It looks so good from the trail I didn't even want to disturb it before the season, so we will see how it goes. I should be able to hunt until around noon, and then maybe again for an hour or 2 in the evening. Ill report back on my findings and hope you guys do the same!


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## PQuinn (Oct 23, 2018)

Super pumped for tomorrow. Will be my first ever grouse/woodcock hunt as well as the first ever for my 14 month old GSP. We’ve been working hard the past year to prepare for this! 


Sent from my iPhone using Michigan Sportsman


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## DirtySteve (Apr 9, 2006)

Good luck to you maniac! I am about to leave for roscommon county. Staying at my dads cottage for 10 days. I will be working every weekday until 3 30-4ish then hitting the woods a couple hrs each evening.


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## #8 shot (Aug 27, 2009)

Good luck everyone, stay safe and shoot straight


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## birdhntr (Jan 25, 2014)

My opener will be this weekend.
And well I do have October off!!
Save me some!!


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## Hoyt0321 (Jan 29, 2021)

Don't forget the bug spray ! They are horrible in the Zone 2 area we were at this weekend ! Ridiculous


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## jeffm (Sep 20, 2008)

Good luck to all that's getting out. I'm working my ars off this month to have Oct and Nov off. Looking forward to pics of your hunt and dogs, love them.


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## Stand By (Jan 23, 2015)

Good luck all. Eager to see the reports. Stuck at work today. To short staffed to take off. Gonna try to get out tomorrow. Also going to make up for missed time in October when staffing should be better.


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## ikesnipecity (Jun 28, 2016)

Killed 4 of the 6 woodcock we saw in the NWLP. Moved one young grouse. All in about 1 hour.


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## michiganmaniac (Dec 9, 2008)

I got out for about 2 and a half hours of ground time this morning. I was hoping to hunt for longer but I am sick and I didn't want to push myself too hard.

At my first spot I hunted my older dog and we were in there for about and a half. I flushed 4 broods of grouse (averaging 6 birds) and 5 singles. I fired a grand total of ONE shot at grouse, and it was a miss. They were all very jumpy and were flushing before I could even get around the dog. I also flushed 6 or 7 woodcock, fired at 2, and managed to scratch one down. All the grouse were along alder edges. 

At my next spot I put my puppy Ezra down. He bumped 2 grouse before he finally pointed one, and thankfully my aim was true! He got his first grouse. I also foot flushed a couple birds on our way out that I let fly. This spot is a traditional aspen cut on an alder edge, the birds were not necessarily on the edge, but were near it. 

The woods were soaking wet, I came out drenched head to toe, but it was worth it! It's grouse season again!


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## BillBuster (Apr 25, 2005)

michiganmaniac said:


> I got out for about 2 and a half hours of ground time this morning. I was hoping to hunt for longer but I am sick and I didn't want to push myself too hard.
> 
> At my first spot I hunted my older dog and we were in there for about and a half. I flushed 4 broods of grouse (averaging 6 birds) and 5 singles. I fired a grand total of ONE shot at grouse, and it was a miss. They were all very jumpy and were flushing before I could even get around the dog. I also flushed 6 or 7 woodcock, fired at 2, and managed to scratch one down. All the grouse were along alder edges.
> 
> ...


Great report! Hope you feel better soon!


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## Lightfoot (Feb 18, 2018)

My dog is still in heat so I'm staying out of the woods for a bit. I have no need for a litter of brittshorthairs etc.


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## Hoyt0321 (Jan 29, 2021)

Birds were jumpy? Was this the same area everyone ran on labor day?


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## Cork Dust (Nov 26, 2012)

I shot two...nice aspens. Four other flushes heard but not seen. Yes, I have flushing labradors, not pointers. Lots of soil moisture from the multi0inch rainfall two days ago, Glad I took some walleye out for dinner before I left with the dogs this morning. Spotty acorns is the report, but I am seeing them wherever they were abundant last year.


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## michiganmaniac (Dec 9, 2008)

Hoyt0321 said:


> Birds were jumpy? Was this the same area everyone ran on labor day?


Lol nope. I have stated many times on this forum that I never run my hunting spots in the off season. The first spot I went into I had never stepped foot in in my life. I drove by it while scouting this off-season and decided it looked so good there was no reason to go in and check, its bird holding capacities were almost a guarantee. I guess I was right!


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## birdhntr (Jan 25, 2014)

michiganmaniac said:


> Lol nope. I have stated many times on this forum that I never run my hunting spots in the off season. The first spot I went into I had never stepped foot in in my life. I drove by it while scouting this off-season and decided it looked so good there was no reason to go in and check, its bird holding capacities were almost a guarantee. I guess I was right!


Not to mention that the labor day spot is about 5 hrs away!
Lol


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## ryan-b (Sep 18, 2009)

missed 2 pointed 7 all ruffs.Was suprised how jumpy the birds were as well.


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## UPaquariest (May 13, 2010)

Spent about 90 minutes in the woods after work today, flushed 6, none in the bag but still a good day.


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## sportsman98 (Dec 6, 2010)

Hour and a half walk tonight. Dog didnt skip a beat from last year. 7 woodcock points and 1 grouse point. Only managed to connect on one woodcock though.


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## nick brown (Mar 6, 2012)

Hunted hard all day. Moved 7 grouse and about a dozen woodcock. My pup had his first 2 points on woodcock. The second one he was steady through the shot. I felt pretty terrible when I missed and the dog was still standing on point giving me that look. My friends dog did well also. Had a great time even though I didn’t take a single bird. Already looking forward to the next trip.


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## DirtySteve (Apr 9, 2006)

Hunted 2 hrs late in evening. Warm and dry conditions. No wind. The dog seemed to have a little extra jump in his step because I brought the gun I think. We nailed a grouse within 2 minutes. Dog proceeded to bump 4 grouse in the next 15 minutes. One was a big family group. Then I had a mishap learning to use the gps tracker i recently purchased. Dog had a beautiful point on a mature grouse. I thought he was 84 yard. The unit changed to feet. I didnt notice the dog in the brush and I barreled right into the bird as I was talking to my buddy to join me and walking fast. 

Lots of grouse. Saw several on the road. Woodcock in my area was a bit down from last year but still birds to be had. Ended up with 3 woodcock and 1 grouse. Grouse numbers are best I have seen in 15 years.


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## ryan-b (Sep 18, 2009)

Yeah scenting conditions were tough for sure. Warm and dry. Only put mine on the ground 40 minutes. He doesn’t have a off switch in the heat and will kill himself if given the chance if we are hunting.


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## wirehair (Oct 16, 2007)

And the season begins... Safety, Quality, Production.


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## ab5228 (Nov 13, 2009)

We put in a little over 3 hours on the ground. A lot of action for both dogs. I ran them together at the first spot for a long run. Then hit two different spots, one for each dog and called it a day. The first spot was excellent, I was able to kill two birds, one off a Bella find and one off a Goldie find. These were the only birds I was able to get shots at. Couldn’t have been a better start to the season.
This bird came home with us.








It was a poor hit and I had given up, thinking I’d circle back through on the way out when Bella went on point again and then Goldie was on it. About 150 yards from the initial flush. 








Then Goldie made a find on the way back and I was able to knock it down for her.








At the next spot Goldie had a point on 1 woodcock and 1 grouse. Both birds were runners and she relocated on the grouse multiple times before it flushed way out ahead. At the last spot, a spot that gets a lot of hunting traffic, I put Bella down and she had 4 finds. They were all grouse one pair and 3 singles all runners that flushed out of range and sight for the most part.

The lone dark spot was that I forgot they switched the Woodcock opener to the 15th! 😂So I let a couple go. Fortunately we focused on grouse spots, we only put up 5.


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## birdhntr (Jan 25, 2014)

I have learned that the greater the distance between you and the dog the better.Let the dog pin down the bird.
In other words if you,the dog,and the grouse are let's say in a 25 yard circle they tend to be jumpy. 
Due to our height they see us more than the dogs that are low to the ground.


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## Cork Dust (Nov 26, 2012)

Breezy to put it mildly today, rain forecast overnight and into tomorrow so scenting conditions should be good. Still seing a boatload of acorns on the ground...


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## Cork Dust (Nov 26, 2012)

ab5228 said:


> We put in a little over 3 hours on the ground. A lot of action for both dogs. I ran them together at the first spot for a long run. Then hit two different spots, one for each dog and called it a day. The first spot was excellent, I was able to kill two birds, one off a Bella find and one off a Goldie find. These were the only birds I was able to get shots at. Couldn’t have been a better start to the season.
> This bird came home with us.
> View attachment 787328
> 
> ...


Good recovery effort! Yeah, staying away from topnotch woodcock covers right now.


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## ab5228 (Nov 13, 2009)

birdhntr said:


> I have learned that the greater the distance between you and the dog the better.Let the dog pin down the bird.
> In other words if you,the dog,and the grouse are let's say in a 25 yard circle they tend to be jumpy.
> Due to our height they see us more than the dogs that are low to the ground.


So do you hang back when the dog is relocating on a running bird? Let’s say after an initial attempt to flush?


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## mattcurt (Mar 3, 2019)

ryan-b said:


> View attachment 787261
> 
> missed 2 pointed 7 all ruffs.Was suprised how jumpy the birds were as well.


 How do you like the English stock on your gun?


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## Mark4486 (Oct 14, 2015)

One for each of them. Both had acorns in the gullet mixed with leafs(winter green)maybe. It was dry today after the fog lifted I am very proud of both my dogs. Henry pointed his from about 5-10 yrds and stayed tight. Louie pushed his out to the trail I was walking. Couldn’t have asked for anything better. Good luck to all of you this season and be safe.


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## OHIO VIZSLA (Sep 7, 2007)

ab5228: What is the tracking unit you're using that shows the satilite view and the tracker path?


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## shaffe48b (Oct 22, 2019)

Mostly wc. Just realized they were in season already, so lucky wc.


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## ab5228 (Nov 13, 2009)

OHIO VIZSLA said:


> ab5228: What is the tracking unit you're using that shows the satilite view and the tracker path?


Dogtra Pathfinder


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## birdhntr (Jan 25, 2014)

Mark4486 said:


> View attachment 787420
> View attachment 787421
> One for each of them. Both had acorns in the gullet mixed with leafs(winter green)maybe. It was dry today after the fog lifted I am very proud of both my dogs. Henry pointed his from about 5-10 yrds and stayed tight. Louie pushed his out to the trail I was walking. Couldn’t have asked for anything better. Good luck to all of you this season and be safe.


Well trained 7 month old pup.
He likes pork chops incase you forget 😂


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## birdhntr (Jan 25, 2014)

ab5228 said:


> So do you hang back when the dog is relocating on a running bird? Let’s say after an initial attempt to flush?


Grouse and woodcock yes.
Pheasants not always but most of the time. That is a different world.

Considering I want my setter to be my first fully broke dog I will never follow up on her.
I see this when it comes to the dogs.
When relocating if you stay put or way back they tend to point.
When you go with them they tend to think "we" dog and I are chasing.
This seems to cross over from retrieving game.
So when you down a bird and go after it with the dog it's a different situation.
They pick up on this over time and experience because the hunter always goes after the bird.The dog thinks we're going in.
Dogs learn from are actions and body language as much if not more than words.
If a dog makes point and you walk in then stand still instead of going for a quick flush they will honestly think you are pointing also which confirms to them what is to be done.
You race in they want to race in.
If your excited they are .
Not entirely easy to explain but I hope you somewhat understand my view.


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## ryan-b (Sep 18, 2009)

mattcurt said:


> How do you like the English stock on your gun?


I have straight stocks on all my guns. I love them but I also am a small human(5’5) so they work best for my wee little hands.


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## DirtySteve (Apr 9, 2006)

birdhntr said:


> Grouse and woodcock yes.
> Pheasants not always but most of the time. That is a different world.
> 
> Considering I want my setter to be my first fully broke dog I will never follow up on her.
> ...


This is great stuff. Thanks for taking the time to post. The part about the walking in and standing makes complete sense. I can relate it to past experiences with my dog when he was younger and I was a novice owner.


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## ab5228 (Nov 13, 2009)

birdhntr said:


> Grouse and woodcock yes.
> Pheasants not always but most of the time. That is a different world.
> 
> Considering I want my setter to be my first fully broke dog I will never follow up on her.
> ...


Thanks! I get what you’re saying. When I was breaking Bella I would never let her relocate on her own. But I let her when hunting. Fortunately she has never tended to want to creep much. Goldie is still young but definitely seems to like to move forward with me a little more. Like you say dogs definitely respond to our movements and attitude.

As far as approaching a dog on point, I like to flank wide of the dog and come in head on, ideally getting the bird between us. The situations where I’m unsure is when the dog is relocating on a runner that’s out front of them and I’m behind the dog, I try to keep up on a side to be ready to flank again. But maybe I should just stop and wait until a solid point is set again. Good luck with that young Setter.


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## ab5228 (Nov 13, 2009)

We put in another 2 hours or so this morning. 30 minutes with both dogs at the first spot and then about another 40 minutes for each dog alone at other spots before calling it a day. We quit before 10. Bella did great. On Goldie’s solo run I was about ready to sell her after we bumped 5 grouse and 2 woodcock. But just before we got back to the truck she handled a grouse nicely. She stuck it along the road but it took an awkward flush and I missed.

Bella’s Day








Good luck out there this weekend stay safe and shoot straight.


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## birdhntr (Jan 25, 2014)

Well the morning started good.Two for two off Penny for pointed birds.
Then I missed a woodcock and another grouse.Then she was knocking birds so I stopped hunting her.
Then Annie went birdless.

Dixie had a pair of woodcock on private property so I left my gun and brought her back.
Then another one in thick cover with no shot.
I was calling it then I heard a drummer and went after it .
Dixie had it found and I missed.

Then I went after it and missed again u


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## cwk33041 (Dec 30, 2013)

Today was quite the day! Got my first grouse! (After flushing quite a few early in the season). Was heading north through a trail and my pup put up a covey of around 5 grouse. In typical fashion, I froze and watched them fly off to live another day lol. From there decided to continue north and had one more grouse flush on my right, didn't think I had a shot, but decided to put quite the lead on the bird and take my chance. Well I was sure I missed so I recalled my dog and continued on my path north. Finally decided to turn around. On the walk back, my dog ran into some thickets and came back out with my first grouse! I hope there were no deer hunters around because I couldn't hold in my excitement! Fantastic morning! Also put up 3 woodcock


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