Doing the game farm thing with the boy Saturday

berettafan · 12-13-2017, 07:43 AM

And while I'd much rather be walking up wild birds I am very excited. Jealous of those who get to hunt pheasant, quail and the like in the wild near your homes.

We will be seeing pheasant and chukar using a guide with a pointer. My son is starting to hit some clays so hopefully he'll get his first bird(s). I'm taking the Beretta 28ga to start and will have a 20 as backup if it turns out I suck at shooting slow flying climbing birds inside 40yds (don't anticipate that but who knows!). The boy will be using his Franchi 620VS.

Hoping we have to walk miles and it takes a long time

ckelly78z · 12-13-2017, 07:49 AM

That sounds like a lot of fun, and memories for both of you. He will be a lifetime hunter with a succesful first hunt, good luck.

berettafan · 12-13-2017, 08:00 AM

Heck just the 2 hr ride up and back will be great for the time we get together just talking and listening to music. he likes to put on John Pinette on Pandora. we both get a kick out of that guy.

he was gone for a week recently playing football in Fla and it sucked not having him around. he'll be in 9th grade next year and the reality of him moving out one day will be fast approaching. love that boy.

berettafan · 12-17-2017, 03:04 AM

Well that was a hoot! We had a great time and managed to bag 6 pheasant and 5 chukar. Super proud of my son as he was safe as could be. The guide even complemented him on a shot he waited delayed because the dog was too close to the bird.

Quality time with the boy doing something I’ve wanted to try for many years. It’s not cheap (I can make $300 last longer in Vegas or even Disney) and honestly I’d much prefer going wild or even public stocked land (pa has this) but without a dog and no natural upland birds anywhere near us we are limited.

Used my new 28ga. It proved more than adequate if I did my part. Both species are much softer than ducks. More like large dove in terms of toughness.

We hunted some narrow strips and some thick wooded strips as well. Enjoyed the thicker stuff as it wasn’t a sure thing when the bird flushed. If trying another place I’d be looking for large areas of rough cover and more challenge.

The dog, an English pointer, was awesome. Paid zero attention to us and did his job with crazy focus. Even pointed one bird that was in a tree!

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KFC911 · 12-17-2017, 03:11 AM

Awesome...you won't even remember those 300 bucks by next week and those memories you just gave your boy are priceless!

aigel · aigel's Garage

I hit a club once a year when they have very discounted "clean out" hunts including a lot of hens. See if you have something similar where you are. It doesn't break the bank that way!

My dogs love it. So much action. Only thing I don't like is the birds are cage raised. So eating them is as exciting as buying chicken at the store. And they often don't fly worth crap, so sometimes the dogs end up catching the bird instead of me shooting them. My dogs break on flush, which is great on wild birds, when they can get a head start in case you get a cripple that runs.

Keep up the good work!

G

berettafan · 12-17-2017, 04:01 PM

Just finished eating one of each. Delicious. White meat but a deeper flavor than chicken or turkey. In Brine at lunchtime, cooked for dinner. Salt and pepper, basted with butter. Some onion and apple in the cavity. No voodoo, no wrapped in bacon, just simple cooking.

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berettafan · 12-17-2017, 04:02 PM

Roasted the pheasant, grilled the chukar. I think the chukar had a slightly more robust flavor. Can’t wait to eat more.

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berettafan · 12-17-2017, 04:04 PM

Aigel there is a club in pa about 4hrs away that does clean up hunts but you have to train your dog with them to get an invite.

What I wouldn’t do to have a bird dog that didn’t have me wheezing!

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Eric 951 · 12-18-2017, 04:42 AM

Very nice. We host a sporting clays/pheasant and chukar event for some clients every February. The attendees love it--we encourage them to bring younger hunters, or older beginners so they can get an introduction into shotgunning. It is also a great opportunity to get our dogs some work. The added bonus is the great eating--my favorite is breaded pheasant strips--very tasty.