Doves

I've found the birds can duck and weave with the best of them. Sure can be humbling when you do a shell count LOL
 
Hunted Friday, Saturday, Sunday and this morning at the house. I planted sunflowers but the deer destroyed them, so I disced the field up and planted a fall food plot. It's just dirt now, but have a few birds in the area picking around. Been averaging 5-6 doves each morning, in a couple hour hunts. Not great, but gives the dogs something to get excited about.
 
Went out Monday and going out again tomorrow. It's so hot here that (95ish) that they are staying hidden in the shade until about the last hour of shootable time. We can only shoot from 12-5 this year.
 
Opening morning rain and wind for the first time In like 25 years. Shot a limit and about 15 bonus eurasians and 10 “rock doves”
Saturday morning scratched another limit but much smaller flights. Another 19 eurasians.

Might be my last year with the 28 gauge. Steel shots too expensive and hard to find.

Found a lab running down the road heading home and got to reunite him with his owners, highlight of the weekend.
 
Was hunting whitewings last weekend, special season allows 2 mourning doves within a 15 bird/ day limit. Friend set up mojo decoys, had mourning doves landing in the decoys 10 yds away. Whitewings were uninterested.
 
I didn't try hunting them, but it looked lackluster here in eastern SD. Maybe they are bunched up somewhere, but it isn't by me. Too many geese around for me to bother with doves this year.
 
I didn't try hunting them, but it looked lackluster here in eastern SD. Maybe they are bunched up somewhere, but it isn't by me. Too many geese around for me to bother with doves this year.
I know my friends around Watertown have been beating them up in the afternoon after shooting geese in the morning
 
Dead this morning, but this guy managed to get to close. Hot and dry again, only seen about 25 birds. Of course not close enough to take a poke at.
 

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Had a great opening day in MO over sunflowers. Shy of a limit for me, but had the kids out and couldn't ask for better weather. Dove poppers are sure hard to beat.
 
Shooting geese in the morning it’s been 100 here the last three days no way I’m sitting out in that going to go tomorrow morning if we don’t find geese. Friends have been hammering doves in the morning here.
So jealous you all get to hunt geese in shorts.
 
Ya when its 80 by 9am its not that cool. This weekend when we are high 40's will be fun and the dog will like it alot more to.
Theres not a lot of fun things to do when its that hot but I would rather be sweating in a blind than working.
 
And its Dove Poppers for dinner tonight!! Didnt have time to get to it over the weekend. Kept getting in too late, so they got cleaned and put in the fridge till now. Oh yeah!!
 
Went out this past saturday and monday here in Phoenix, AZ. Judging based off the previous posts, it seems as though it was cooler here then a lot of places this weekend. 70 degrees at sun up was amazing.

My first time dove hunting, got my 10/15 with 2.5 boxes of shells. Monday got my limit of 15 with 1.5 boxes. Definitely got more picky with my shots. My GFs dad is an absolute surgeon with the O/U. We were done Monday in about 30 minutes

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We got in them really good on Friday, Saturday was like a light switched and it was incredibly slow. With these cold fronts pushing through I don't hold out much hope for this weekend.
 
It was Very hot in ND. We went mule deer hunting and saw a lot of doves and the whole time wish we were dove hunting. Tons around the western side of the state.
 
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