2 Week Upland Trip

[mgray]

WCB, are these the type of peacock we have here? Like, the big colorful ones?

Conner, this sounds like an awesome trip. Good luck!

 

[dtrkyman]

SW quail, though I hear desert quail are tough on dogs?

 

[PredatorSlayer]

Quail and pheasants in Nebraska are pretty fun.

 

[connordude27]

See here

Montana Legislature 2023

This took me a bit to assemble but I wanted to have a list for myself and thought some folks here may be interested also. The following is a list of bills that may be of interest. You can look up more info including bill language and adopted amendments here: LAWS Look Up Bill Information Page...

rokslide.com

LC 3616 should be converted to a bill soon if not already. The draft language is there if not.

Ah, thanks for linking that. Seems similar to ND except it looks like ND you can just buy another two weeks after. I’d be interested to hear how this affects pressure

I would do 2 different 7 day trips. The first would be Wyoming for blue grouse followed by Nebraska for early teal and doves. 3 days in each spot would be a blast to me. Then I would do a later trip for pheasant, quail, and maybe a 3rd species depending on destination. I would probably choose South Dakota for 3 days and then Kansas for 3 days (Nebraska has been pretty bad for pheasants recently and not as many quail as Kansas).

I’m fortunate enough to have Blues damn near out my back door, so those will certainly be a “you have two hours to slip a hunt in, go!” bird. I am curious how this drought will turn out this spring when it really matters for grass growth. Might make the difference in a NE vs KS hunt or even heading north.

I'd spend a week in Nevada hunting Chukar then a week in AZ chasing quail.

I do enjoy the chukar, there’s a handful wandering around out here….. but I will say quail intrigues me. Especially the prospect of multiple species.

OP, 3 weeks would just mean more states. Dakotas and MT are close so those are easy. My wife and her dad are upland nuts and we run French Brits. I grew up with my grandfather owning a large Pheasant Lodge in S.D. Because I've shot enough Pheasants, Sharptail, Huns, Rough Grouse I would head out west and try my hand at Chukar and different quail in the S.W.

Truth be told if I go back to New Zealand I want to try a Peacock hunt over pointers

Another mention of quail really has me thinking. Any thoughts on NM vs AZ If I were to specifically chase quail? Quite a few people have mentioned it for various states. And peacock over pointers?? That sounds crazy haha must be feral?

 

[WCB]

WCB, are these the type of peacock we have here? Like, the big colorful ones?

Yes I believe they are....at least they look the same.

 

[Kkwebb]

Dream trip. Following.

 

[Sierra Hunter]

I’d do a late season chukar trip, for you hit nv and you can get into huns and chukar and then park my ass in az and hunt the quail trio. I hunted mearns this year and had a blast.

 

[loganwayne]

with a young dog and only having one dog. Over working the dog could be a real concern. Id try to plan it where you spent 2-3 days hunting then a solid day of traveling/ resting then another few days and repeat.

 

[Sierra Hunter]

with a young dog and only having one dog. Over working the dog could be a real concern. Id try to plan it where you spent 2-3 days hunting then a solid day of traveling/ resting then another few days and repeat.

That’s a great point, one dog wears out after a few days.

 

[Dos Perros]

I go up to Alberta and Saskatchewan and roam around a lot and shoot the piss out of the huns and sharpies.

 

[Kathol22]

I would strongly look into North Dakota. A variety of species and tons of land to hunt.

 

[NDGuy]

OP lemme know if you have upland questions for ND.

 

[Kathol22]

Also if you have time later in the year, make a trip to AZ. Gambels and Scaled quail were a great hunt and it was easier to find birds than I had anticipated.

 

[Sierra Hunter]

Also if you have time later in the year, make a trip to AZ. Gambels and Scaled quail were a great hunt and it was easier to find birds than I had anticipated.

I never ran into scalies, were they in similar gambles habitat?

 

[Kathol22]

I never ran into scalies, were they in similar gambles habitat?

We saw them in the same habitat the further south we went. Were no where near as abundant as Gambles in the area we hunted.

 

[406flyfish]

I’m taking a 2-3 week upland road trip next year as well. I’m thinking ID or NV for chukars then Quail in AZ. As previously stated, sharpies will be jumpy by October.

As a MT resident, I’m hoping someone will be interested in swapping pheasant/sharpies spots for Chukar/Quail locations.

 

[jumpychukar]

That’s a great point, one dog wears out after a few days.

Similar point - but you also could focus on easier terrain for 2 weeks to ensure your dog holds up.
eg - running on lava rock for scaled quail, or slate for chukar will rip a dog up in a day or two - But running in the Sandhills for sharpies or for means quail is a little easier on their pads.

 

[Wrench]

2 weeks is gonna be hell on a setter. You better work the heck out of your dog now.

My pard brought a English setter and pointer, I brought a Drahthaar. He ended up rotating his dogs after 4 days in the field because they were so beat up. Both were much more tender footed and cut up easier than my dog.

Just food for thought. A setter can make 14 days, but you're gonna have to toughen the dog up before hand
...or plan a couple days of rest.

 

[jumpychukar]

2 weeks is gonna be hell on a setter. You better work the heck out of your dog now.

My pard brought a English setter and pointer, I brought a Drahthaar. He ended up rotating his dogs after 4 days in the field because they were so beat up. Both were much more tender footed and cut up easier than my dog.

Just food for thought. A setter can make 14 days, but you're gonna have to toughen the dog up before hand
...or plan a couple days of rest.

Agreed on that point that a setter or pointer will wear down faster than a Draht just based on running patterns regardless of the terrain. I was just saying that some locations/hunts have easier terrain than others.

Also agreed that toughening up their pads before is critical. I like roading dogs on gravel to do this before the trip.

I've done lots of 2-3 week trips in the past but we bring a dog trailer and rotate our 5-7 setters - to ensure that dogs are getting rest.

So with 1 setter, I would say you should only hunt a limited amount of time per day , and still plan on having a couple rest days for scouting in the two weeks.

 

[Tod osier]

2 weeks is gonna be hell on a setter. You better work the heck out of your dog now.

My pard brought a English setter and pointer, I brought a Drahthaar. He ended up rotating his dogs after 4 days in the field because they were so beat up. Both were much more tender footed and cut up easier than my dog.

Just food for thought. A setter can make 14 days, but you're gonna have to toughen the dog up before hand
...or plan a couple days of rest.

A lot depends on the feet, some dogs feet hold up, some don't. It does relate to conditioning, but not 100%. I've had dogs with pads as hard as iron, but they still get beat up badly (between the toes and around the nails), I've had dogs with feet that seem tender and soft that last a long time. Managing the feet is the biggest thing on trips like that.